Do I have to go straight into med school after receiving my bachelors?

You don't have to go straight out of college -- I know many doctors who didn't -- but you shouldn't have a family before you go.

You SHOULD go within 2-3 years of graduating, or your pre-med classes might end up being out-of-date or you might forget much of what you learned.

One year ago you were 16, so you're definitely counting your chickens before they are hatched. You don't yet know if you're going to qualify for medical school. You will have to do really well in your bachelor degree, and it's very competitive.

I also see that you're male, so there's less hurry to start a family. You'll generally marry a woman who is younger than you are. And your age is less of a problem for begetting a child. So if you get the opportunity to get into medical school after your bachelor degree you should take it and start straight away.

Even if you go straight through from college to medical school to residency to specialist training, you can be in your thirties before you have specialist qualifications. And more time to build up a reputation. Also once you're getting into your sixties people won't be trusting your surgical skills so much because you're starting to age. You'll have to be doing smaller procedures. So it's a mistake to postpone surgical training too late in life. You can be a little more leisurely if you're going for a non-surgical specialty.

So go straight through if you get the opportunity. You could have your family once you graduate as a doctor.

Also, though it's good to have a goal, be a bit open-minded about being an obstetrician. Obstetricians have a job which intrudes far more into their personal life than many other specialties. You get woken in the middle of the night for routine matters even if you're not "on-call". Some women only want female obstetricians. Obstetricians pay much higher indemnity premiums than nearly any other specialty. The public believes childbirth is "natural" and they expect a good outcome, but the parents can be very upset about a bad outcome which may not be your fault.

So if you get into medical school you won't really know if you have aptitude to train for surgery until you're actually doing some surgical assisting. Do consider other surgical specialties. I'm not saying don't do obstetrics, but know what you're getting into.

If you are considering medical school, you postpone having a family until you complete med school - and residency. How do you expect to spend 80 hours a week with med school studies, rotations, etc, when you have a baby? And how can you support a child & pay for med school, too?

it would be better to go through med school and residency before having kids. It's hard enough to do that without worrying about child care responsibilities on top of it. It will be easier to balance family and work when you're actually working reasonable hours and getting paid. You'll likely be living off debt during school and scraping by during residency - not likely to be able to afford child care easily. You'd probably also want to plan on a partner who *can* take the time to help out - which is again easier if you make money yourself.

Plus, taking even a year or two off makes it *much* less likely you'll go back later. One year quickly becomes five as you enjoy whatever you're doing instead of being in school - if you get a job and start making decent money, it will be hard to return to a student lifestyle and income.

Sure... But your knowledge will fade over time, so when you ARE ready, you may have to study more than you otherwise would for the MCAT... In addition, when you DO apply for med school, you will be competing against younger, more recently-educated applicants.

Well, yes -- but don't just assume that you will be able to go to medical school at all. Getting into medical school in the U.S. is extremely competitive. Only 10% of all applicants get in at all and at least half of all medical students had to apply more than once.

What you also may not understand is that being in medical school and then in a residency is an 80-100 hour/week "job." It isn't an easy path for someone with small kids and it costs a lot too. You also need to understand that there is no guarantee that even if you graduate from medical school that you will get accepted into an obstetrics residency program. Most medical students have to move across the country for their residency -- again that is a lot more complicated with a spouse and kids.

No. I know someone who was a Phys Ed teacher and went to medical school in her forties. If you're a woman and talking about having children before you go to med school, let me tell you that there's no good time for women. Yes, by the time you finish med school, internship, residency, you'll be in your thirties and your fertility will be lower. But if you have children, it's very difficult to work those 24 hour shifts required in internships, and to get your studying done. I know one woman who had two babies while in medical school, but her husband was a stay-at-home dad who took care of the children.

Here in UK yes it is possible as my daughter done that.

Med schools are very competitive. It is already a challenge getting into med school. You need great grades in a premed program. You also have to pass the MCAT. Experience in research or medical related fields is also a benefit. Assume you would qualify academically and have some background, you'll have to have a good explanation as to why you waited a bit before starting school.