Need Advice - Non-traditional Route

Hello Everyone,

I was hoping to get some advice regarding some moves I should make career wise. I am looking to determine whether it is too late to pursue a career in finance or if it would not be advantageous for me. I'm 24 years old and I have a degree in science biology specifically from a Canadian University. I was accepted to the HBA program at the Ivey school of business and would start this September for a 2 year program.

My concerns are the following, my GPA in my graduating year (last year) was around 3.91 and I'm torn between banking and medicine. The Ivey business school has great recruiting; however there is a GPA hit in that the average for all classes in the program is an 80 with some classes have minimal standard deviations, which could make it problematic if I don't land a job from the program and decide to do medicine. I do find myself interested in finance; however I do not believe that I possess the same knowledge as same of the people coming into the program that have known they wanted to do this since high school. Also would it be pretty late to start the program and expect to get a job as an analyst or in S/T?

I originally pursued medicine because of the stability; however I'm worried I am more interested in business. Getting into Canadian medical schools is extremely tough, but once acceptance you're guaranteed to become a doctor. I wouldn't over specialize and would probably pursue family medicine, they have the ability to make anywhere from 160-250k pre-tax and probably overhead in Canada. It does vary.

My other fear if I pursued Ivey is that I don't have the requisite skills or career experience to be successful in the program. I've done research, but never really worked in finance and my program wasn't necessarily math heavy compared to some of the students that come in from actuarial science or engineering. I'm good at mental math and can complete 2 digit by 2 digit multiplication within 30 seconds.

Also would something like the Ivey Msc (master of science in management) be a better move at my age?

4 Comments
 

I wouldn't be anywhere near qualified to answer on this, but what is the sentiment about the career earning potential with Canada's universal healthcare? I know that med school apps in the US dropped significantly after the HCA got passed due to the limited earning potential and the new bureaucratic red tape it created.

"Decide what to be and go be it." - The Avett Brothers
 

Family doctors in Canada make more than American counter parts. Nevertheless, the province, I'm from is in a deficit so there is talks about reducing physician pay, but the physicians have strong lobbying power and I would be surprise to see physicians being paid less in the future.

 

Family doctors in Canada make more than American counter parts. Nevertheless, the province, I'm from is in a deficit so there is talks about reducing physician pay, but the physicians have strong lobbying power and I would be surprise to see physicians being paid less in the future.

 

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