Quitting My IB Job: How Hard is it to Get Back into the Corporate World after Leaving for Medical School?
I've recently made the decision to become a doctor and will be quitting my BB IB job of two years in the coming weeks so I can take the pre-requisite classes full-time. After that, I will be applying to medical school.
In the worst-case scenario, that I don't get in or realize further down the road that this is not something I want to do, how hard will it be for me to re-enter the corporate world? I'm assuming if I left for 2-3 years, I would pretty much be starting all over again as if I was a college graduate.
Just wanted to get a better understanding of how significant of a career shift it would be for me to pursue a completely different career for a couple years and what effect it would have on my current career trajectory.
Appreciate the help!
How many pre-req classes do you need to take? Did you do an undergrad BS or STEM major?
I think you should stay in IB or in finance until you get into med school.
Don't do it!
please elaborate. Don't do what? Drop and try the medschool route? Why?
Hey OP, I made a post previously about IB and quitting for med school (about 2 weeks ago). Were you the one replied?
Wish you all the best!
So your quitting your $150k+ job, taking on $200k of the debt, forgoing over $750k of income over the next 8 years, just to maybe make $200k?
no
Why am I wrong?!
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You don't become a doctor to make money friend. There's more to life than that and if OP wants to help people then that's f.
unfortunately most of the premed people I've met were becoming doctors for money/prestige/social status lol. It's the easiest profession to claim the moral highground.
You really want to retake those terrible finra exams? damn goodluck dealing with that when you come back...
I don’t think you’re asking the right question. you can’t be this willy nilly over time keeping exit options and optionality open. at some point you just need to drill down. think about if you really really want to be a doctor. don’t think about a potential exit before you’ve even started the path. if you want to be a doctor you’ll make it happen. most people if they’re not cut for US MDs go to the Caribbean or do the DO route. I have tons of family friends who weren’t that bright and went the DO route and are physicians now with the same specialities as MDs.
Thanks for the advice. Yes, you're right that I can't be standing in two boats at one time. It's just very hard for me to make the decision of abandoning a career that I've built for the past 6 years (college + two years of IB) for something completely different.
right, but you must have had your reasons. quitting to become a doctor couldn’t have just come out of the blue. what I’m saying if if you’re made the decision, stick to it and don’t be worried about getting back into the corporate world if you “fail” at becoming a doctor. If you’re determined to be a doctor and not a complete idiot, it’s plenty possible through all the routes I mentioned. I’m Indian half my cousins did this. if you can memorize shit well then you’re golden.
I don’t think you are asking the right group of people. Most Hardos on this forum will ask you to stay in IB. If you get past VP or rise to MD in a few years that’s great. If you don’t, you can spend your time on other meaningful things. They might pay less but still, if IB is not what you wanna do, just go for it.
I'm aware of the bias on WSO for sure. I've realized money isn't everything for me and 20 years down the line, I don't want to be sitting in my office, thinking about what the next transaction is that I could pitch to a client to make money whether it's really that valuable for a company or not. I used to care a lot about how cool it was to work on a live transaction and get a deal done, but there's honestly no sense of fulfillment in that. Having already completed a transaction, I just didn't get any sort of joy or feeling that I want to do another one. Many people get a high from winning transactions and closing deals, but I'm just not a fan.
Regardless of the job I do in business, I feel like I'm just a replaceable cog in the wheel making rich people richer.
I concur. I was working in transaction advisory, not as fancy as IB but got some pretty good exposure too, especially on deals with top PE investors like Carlyle. When I finished a deal I was not excited at all...my feeling is exactly/almost the same as yours. I don't really find much meaning in the work I do, and even in my supervisors' work --- it's different in one situation where you rise up in ranks and once you hit VP/MD the work becomes more interesting and meaningful. I found/find the work I did/they do straight up boring, except maybe a couple projects I've worked on. Whether they really do have much meaning is not my question. Now I'm laid off, my plan is to brush up on math --- my major before I did the MSF --- and buy a mac to learn iOS development once I have a job, whatever/wherever that is. I'll try to build a product and start a business. Will that plan come true? I reall don't know. Sorry I digressed. Go for it ! Good luck to your future endeavours.
OP you have one life to live and I commend you for realizing this and choosing this path.
Best of luck on the MCAT and doing research.
Don't falter when tribulation comes your way. Think of it as becoming a Navy Seal. Most people who became Navy Seals did not have a Plan B. They focused singularly on being a seal while those who doubted themselves washed out from BUDS.
You know that Warren Buffet saying..."don't ask a barber if you need a hair cut"
Asking people on a finance forum (who are committed to this field - or worse, college students who glorify finance yet don't understand what it actually means from a working standpoint) will guarantee that they try to persuade you against it / call you a fool.
My advice is, figure out what you find joy in doing. I did IB for a bit, found that I absolutely hated it and moved over to AM. Now I really enjoy what I do (some negatives here and there, but don't think you can get rid of those in a salaried position) and I'm fully committed.
How about you? You seem not to have loved IB either. Let me tell you, from a purely financial standpoint if would make sense to NOT go to med school. But looking purely at the financial side totally misses your quality of life. People are generally fine working 70hr weeks doing something they love vs. something they hate. I've certainly found that to be true in my own job. Couldn't wait to get away from my desk at IB but if I need to stay till 9pm for AM, that was a-ok. Figure out what about medicine you love, and if the answer isn't something more than the money, stay away. If seeing patients, learning bio / chem truly excites you, then I'd say go for it. Just saw a Linkedin post about a guy who decided to go to med school at 33 and he's now an attending in his 40s. Seems like he's very content with his decision. You're what, 24-25? You have not even close to missed the window if you want to go to med school. Best of luck
Wow - It already has been a year since the start of this thread.
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