In high school and early college years, I've met many pre-meds who only think about getting into medical school. But what about after that? Med school is really only the first step. It's important to think about the entire process of becoming a doctor, before committing yourself to the long and arduous journey.
The path to medicine in the U.S. requires...
1. Undergraduate education (BS/BA). 4 years.
2. Gap year, post-bac program, or master's program *if necessary*. 1-2 years. I only add this is because it's increasingly common these days for pre-med students to take time off between college and med school in order to improve their competitiveness for med school. Most people I know took a gap year.
3. Medical school (MD). 4 years - 2 years in the classroom, 2 years clinical (in hospitals/clinics).
4. Residency. 3-5 years, depending on the residency. A residency is where you receive the training to specialize in the specialty of your choice. You pretty much need to complete a residency in order to practice clinical medicine. Those who don't do one might go into research, teaching, or working for some biotech company. *Note: sometimes people get confused about an intern year. An internship refers to the first year of post-med school education, but this is usually incorporated into residency. In other words, "intern year" = "first year of residency".
5. Fellowship. 1-3 years. Optional, only if you want to sub-specialize. Examples: gastroenterology, surgical subspecialties such as cardiothoracic surgery, pediatric subspecialties such as pediatric neurology, etc.
6. Employment. Now that you've finished your many years residency and fellowship, you can finally get a job! Oh and probably have kids and such.
(7). Continuing Medical Education (CME). Forever! The great thing about medicine is that it is a constantly-evolving field that doctors need to keep up with! Okay, so this isn't exactly a requirement to become a doctor, but most states require a certain number of CME hours (maybe around 50 hours) a year to let you practice medicine.
Just some important things to think about: TIME and DEBT. By the time you finish your training, you'll be anywhere from 29 to 35 (rough estimate). Only then will you be full-fledged physician making a real income. Also, you might still be in debt. The average debt for medical school students in 2011 was $162,000 (http://www.ama-assn.org/amednews/2012/08/27/prsb0827.htm).
So as you can see, the path to medicine is long and demanding. But if this is your goal in life, don't give up!
<3 kathleen
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