June 2003

Up for discussion: Redefining dreams

Freshmen enter the university with stars in their eyes and big dreams for the future.

No one knows precisely how many dream of becoming doctors, but deans and advisers estimate that they constitute the largest group, perhaps 20 percent of the class or 1,000 students. On the other end of the college experience, 325 graduates or near-graduates applied to medical school last year.

Somewhere between freshman year and graduation, the number of intended physicians shrinks. On a personal level, there is often emotional turmoil before students redefine their dreams, and parents play a key role in easing the transition.

When and how do students move in new directions?

"From the time I turned 7, I insisted I was going to be a pediatrician," says Jenny Shaw '02, now studying social work at Columbia University. During freshman year, Shaw had "a subconscious sense that pre-med wasn't quite right for me." She stuck it out through sophomore-year organic chemistry, a class that often weeds out future doctors, but she didn't do well.

"I was one of the weeded," she now jokes.

She doesn't regret it for a minute. Thrilled by the field of social work, she says, "Moving to New York City for graduate school has been the most amazing experience. I love it."

	Once a pre-med student, Rachel Rollins just eats up what she's learning about nutrition. (Julia Ann Easley/News Service)

Another former pre-med student, sophomore Rachel Rollins, has a similar take on her experience. "I'm glad I'm a statistic," she says. Although she excels in science, Rollins discovered during an internship that doctors don't interact with patients as much as she had hoped. "I wanted to be doing something where I was more in contact with people."

"I got into nutrition," Rollins says. "I love it. Nutrition is something I like reading about on my own time. If you're really passionate about something, you're going to do so much better in it," she adds.

Even with supportive parents, both young women found it hard to tell family and friends they'd changed their minds. "It's a pride issue," says Rollins, "especially when you've been telling people ever since high school. People have expectations for you."

If parents sense that their student is reconsidering a career in medicine, advisers suggest the following:

• Support your child in their exploration. Trust that they know themselves best.
• Contact advisers yourself, if needed. Parents are welcome to call the Internship and Career Center, the Health Sciences Advising Office, or their student's dean. These advisers will need your student's written permission to discuss his or her specific circumstances.
• Even if you are deeply disappointed, do not apply pressure. A few desperate students deliberately fail classes in order to convince their parents that they won't make it in medicine. No student abandons medicine lightly, but a supportive parent can make all the difference in future confidence and success.

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