Making the decision to pursue health science education is a deeply personal one. It involves assessing your strengths, interests, and values. You may have a strong desire to serve humanity, a hope for a well-paying career, or a passion for science or any combination of characteristics that are unique to you. Students often feel pressure from family or peers to go into a health career, or may be influenced by media. Each student owns his or her process for decision making about a future in the health world. It must be self-reflective and experiential, and not merely one long checklist of activities, courses, and test scores to take care of.
Choosing medicine, pharmacy, dentistry or any other program is not one decision but a series of decisions based on experience. You will need to continually assess your academic readiness and skills in science. You will need to get involved in health care and community service to see what the profession is really about and to learn about the people you will serve. And you’ll need to think deeply about what’s important to you to have and achieve in your life.