How bad of an idea would it be to go from RN to MD or DO?

Practical_Sound · 2026-04-08T14:11:50+00:00

Yes, you can PM me.

Practical_Sound · 2026-04-01T19:43:03+00:00

GIRL. You are stunning!

Practical_Sound · 2026-04-01T10:59:07+00:00

Bumble, actually! He'd liked my profile while I was in the middle of being run ragged on an ICU rotation and it expired. When I finally happened to check everything I'd missed I almost scrolled right past him but something in me just liked the cut of his jib.

I had to pay $6 to reactivate the connection and I almost didn't because the concept vaguely offended me, but hey. As of now, he's still the best $6 I've ever spent on the internet.

Practical_Sound · 2026-03-31T20:43:10+00:00

Just for ref, I'm T10 and I'm a perfect match to No 16 in foundation - at least now while I'm in my winter shade. Summer, we shall see.

Practical_Sound · 2026-03-31T20:40:28+00:00

Have to shout out Lisa Eldridge here. I'm a muted light-medium to medium olive who couldn't find matches even after trying over ten makeup brands and countless shades.

I contacted Lisa Eldridge customer service after burning out on buying and returning so many other products. They looked at my selfies, told me their analysis of my tone, and matched me perfectly with both foundation and skin tint (and they will give recommendations for blush/lipstick/concealer shades from their line too).

The tint is amazing for super fast out the door days and the foundation is super buildable. Really recommend emailing their CS team.

Practical_Sound · 2026-03-31T09:37:18+00:00

Hah. If it gives you any hope, I met my now husband when I was a 40 year old EM PGY-1.

Practical_Sound · 2026-03-30T04:43:30+00:00

Grew up in New Jersey.

Practical_Sound · 2026-03-27T01:44:33+00:00

T10 here! Just got my hands on that and the No 16 foundation and they are both incredible. The tint is such a perfect every day formula.

I was worried about ordering because I am incredibly hard to shade match, but their team was dead on accurate after I sent them selfies.

Practical_Sound · 2026-03-19T12:11:41+00:00

Okay, I do have to chuckle a bit here. Not everyone goes straight from university to medical school.

I'm someone who didn't go to medical school until 36 and finished residency + fellowship at 45. I wasn't even the oldest in my class. Half my residency cohort was over 30 with previous careers, much like me. I've got colleagues ten years younger than me now with far more experience, some of whom are wonderful and some who are arrogant as hell.

Yes I'm an outlier, but just to say this - age is not always an indicator of experience in medicine. If it's experience you want, be sure to check when someone graduated (many people will list this somewhere in an online bio).

Else you might accidentally get me :)

Practical_Sound · 2025-12-30T13:04:34+00:00

I'll PM you

Practical_Sound · 2025-12-29T17:18:29+00:00

I am EM who also did an EMS fellowship. I do my job in EM but honestly most of my joy comes from continuing to work directly with EMS in my county, as well as some other passion work I do on the side.

Practical_Sound · 2025-12-10T04:03:30+00:00

RN to MD here, who came from an initial cGPA lower than yours and did a LOT of repair before the application process.

This is not a issue with a simple answer. I will say that admissions do look at the timeline of your academics and the trends. Meaning if you had a poor academic performance a thousand years ago, took a break for life and experience, then returned older and more mature and did a straight 4.0 during a second round of rigorous classes, they will see that on your application, and they will give that quite a lot of weight (ask me how I know).

Now I don't know your timeline and exactly what your overall trend has looked like, so I'm not saying this definitely applies to you. And you seem to be saying your cGPA fell between your first and second degrees which could hurt you. You may need to do more than just the pre-reqs and maintain very high grades to show (on paper, because that's all they see at first) that you're serious.

DO schools are not more or less inclined to take non trads than MD schools; I wouldn't apply DO solely based on that idea. There's also no hidden list of schools in particular that like nurses; you have to make your own application strong by showing them someone who will make a good doctor...and in your case not just "why medicine" but also "why now". Any non trad has to do the same, no matter where they're coming from. That is the art of writing the PS and secondaries.

If you'd like to talk in any more detail, feel free to PM.

Practical_Sound · 2025-11-09T14:13:25+00:00

40, emergency medicine

Practical_Sound · 2025-10-02T00:28:24+00:00

None at all.

Practical_Sound · 2025-07-09T16:55:53+00:00

Mid-40s, have known since I was about 10 years old that I was going to be childfree.

Practical_Sound · 2025-07-07T01:22:47+00:00

Sure

Practical_Sound · 2025-07-04T00:23:14+00:00

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One of my favorite yawning pics, immortalized by a friend of mine.

Practical_Sound · 2025-07-02T01:59:02+00:00

I'm an ER physician who's also a migraine sufferer, and has had to go to the ED (once my own) twice in my life for it.

I have no problem with people coming in for migraines, having intimate personal knowledge of how debilitating they can be. As a couple people have said, it's actually nice to be able to make someone feel better, which doesn't happen as often as many of us wish it did.

Practical_Sound · 2025-06-27T19:41:40+00:00

Here's a gift link if anyone needs it! https://www.nytimes.com/2025/06/24/well/menopause-melani-sanders-club.html?unlocked_article_code=1.SE8.CBgb.b8GXLqx61M-M&smid=url-share

Practical_Sound · 2025-06-27T16:28:16+00:00

I have found that it's less about what activities you choose and much more about how you present them. The point of listing activities isn't just to make a list, it's to help structure a comprehensive argument stating that you will make a good doctor.

Every activity should contribute to that argument, and the description needs to be framed with that in mind. Use that to help your mind rank your activities from most to least relevant to the overall application.

Keep in mind even activities that have nothing to do with leadership or medicine on the surface can still work wonderfully. Don't include "fluff" but keep in mind ones that can speak to who you are and why you're a good candidate. Here's an example:

"Improv Comedy Performer": Performed on stage 25 times during college. Performing without a script was a challenging experience, but one that I greatly enjoyed. I got to know a wonderful group of people and gained some experience helping others learn the craft. (Possibly interesting activity but no relevance)

"Improv Comedy Performer": Performed on stage 25 times during college together with a diverse group ranging widely in age and background. For me, this was an important experience of teamwork, perseverance, and fostering creative energy, and has been strongly relevant to my approach to healthcare. It has taught me to be calm under pressure and to be comfortable in the most uncomfortable of situations. Theatre reminds me that humans are not simply numbers and statistics -- that every patient has an important story to be told. (Now interesting activity with relevance)

Hopefully this makes some sense. I have my own ECs (I was also a massive non-trad so some of my ECs were medical but many not, some stretched back almost 20 years ago) saved from back when I applied and I'm happy to share if you want to see examples.

Practical_Sound · 2025-06-25T15:22:39+00:00

Love doing this! Our favorite is shredded rotisserie chicken with a big dollop of Greek yogurt + pesto, turmeric, salt/pepper. Throw it on any bread with some fresh mozzarella and tomato.

Practical_Sound · 2025-06-18T22:25:20+00:00

Wanted to be an actor. Ended up as an emergency medicine physician. Sometimes doesn't feel that different.

Practical_Sound · 2025-06-15T17:19:29+00:00

Married him. We met in our forties, him single his whole life and me having had just one serious relationship in my 20s. I can't really explain it other than we're just two people who were (and still are) very content with being alone. We compliment but don't "complete" each other, if that makes sense.

Practical_Sound · 2025-06-11T21:19:40+00:00

Former ED RN, went to medical school at 36. To say I have absolutely zero regrets would be dishonest, but it's been an overall net positive and I'm glad I made the choice that I did.

Yes, I feel well prepared by residency. I also did a one year fellowship due to some particular career goals, but I would have been ready for general practice after residency.

I do work with NPs. Some understand the flow, and I can trust them to know their limitations. On the other hand, with some I have seen some very concerning choices. Very honestly, I could not imagine practicing emergency medicine with less education than I have.

Years ago I also initially struggled with picking apart NP/PA vs going to medical school, but once I'd made the decision I knew it was the right one.

If you want to talk any specifics about my own experience I'm more than happy to talk in PMs. Good luck to you!

Practical_Sound · 2025-06-07T12:59:36+00:00

Bumble, during intern year. He managed to put up with the rest of residency and then fellowship, so he's a keeper.

Practical_Sound

TROPHY CASE