Unfair advantage??? (1 Viewer)

[ssejamafone]

Recently my friend was complaining to me about how some people in our school are trying for medicine, and they're doing the usual science/math-related topics, whereas other people who are trying for medicine aren't doing any science/math-related courses at all. Her point of view was that they have an unfair advantage because they are doing subjects that they are really good at (like, band 6-good) and not doing subjects they are not too good at (science/math), and then they'll get a really good uai, and when they get into medicine, then they can just take a bridging course for the subjects that they need. Do you think they have an unfair advantage over the people who are doing the required subjects(or suitably related subjects, eg. bio, chem, maths, phys) , and yet are not doing band-6 well?

Take me for example. I'm doing chemistry, 4U maths, English adv, German and biology. But, the only reason i'm doing a subject like chemistry is because i need it to get into medicine, though unfortunately because i don't particularly like the subject, i'm not doing too well in it. And, i know that if i were doing a subject that i was good at (eg. Music, physics) then i would be getting much better marks and would be able to get a much higher uai, and i would probably have a much better chance at getting into medicine. And then once in uni, i could simply take a chemistry bridging course. whereas, now i'm stuck in some subjects i don't particularly like and am not doing particularly well in, and thus my uai will suffer against those doing subjects they're good at.

ok, i kinda went off on a tangent. But, do you think people taking non-science/math subjects that they are good at is giving them an unfair advantage over people taking he required/related subjects?

If you can kinda read between the lines of my post, then maybe you'll see that i'm also suggesting that..... well, medicine is very very very science/math related (ok, maybe not so much math-related), and that by not doing any science/math related subjects to get their uai and into medicine, in a way, it's a kind of.... "cheating". (sorry if that seems like a pretty strong word to use, but i couldn't think of a better word). See it this way: we're slogging the hard yards doing certain subjects because they are 'requirements', but others are maybe not working as hard and they're not even doing any subjects that are related to the course that they want to get into. Doesn't this seem a bit.... i dunno..... unfair? (for lack of a more descriptive word)

ok, maybe people will argue that non-science subjects are just as hard as science subjects, and i probably will agree on this point. But, there is also 'horses for courses'. People will always have their strengths and weaknesses in certain subjects, and those who choose subjects completely unrelated to medicine but they are very good at, maybe have 'unfair' advantage over those who are perhaps also strong in non-medicine related subjects, but are taking their 'weak' medicine-related subjects because they are the requirements and it would seem 'cheating/non-serious' not to take them.

ok. now some may argue that i'm only 'complaining' because what i see as 'unfair' may be commonplace for many people, and that many people have gotten into medicine this way. Perhaps this is true, and if it is, then i regret not having done the same thing. But, i may argue back that doing these medicine-related subjects that i know i'm not good at shows that i have great determination and dedication to get into my dream course (not that those taking non-medicine-related subjects have any less determination).....

ok, i could continue, but i won't because i tend to be a long-winded kind of person. So, unfair or commonplace or simply an ok thing to do? What do you think? Are you perhaps one of the people i am 'targeting' and if so, then speak up. I'll be glad for some different opinions.

ps. please don't flame me. I'm only posting my (and my friend's) opinion.

 

[chocolate_lover]

If people pick subjects that they like and are good at, and they aren't science/math based subjects, then that's their decision. But a lot of the time, if you want to do medicine, and you knew this when you picked your subjects in Year 10 for Year 11 and 12, chances are you would've picked science and math based subjects.

On the other hand, people can change a lot in 2 years, so some people may still just be realising that they are interested in medicine.

Long story short, I disagree with your friend.

 

[ssejamafone]

If people pick subjects that they like and are good at, and they aren't science/math based subjects, then that's their decision. But a lot of the time, if you want to do medicine, and you knew this when you picked your subjects in Year 10 for Year 11 and 12, chances are you would've picked science and math based subjects.

On the other hand, people can change a lot in 2 years, so some people may still just be realising that they are interested in medicine.

Long story short, I disagree with your friend.

yeah, i see your point. I've wanted to do med for years, so, yeah, that's why i chose those subjects (even if i don't really like them). I guess i sounded like i was saying that the non-science/math people completely planned this, but that's not true. You're right. People do change (even i've changed somewhat, because now i am equally interested in a course other than medicine, and i had never planned that to happen.)

 

[missjohns]

Look at it another way - it is recommended to take the science/maths subjects to get into the course. They want people with the assumed knowledge from those courses. So in a way, how can you really be good at medicine if your strong points are in other subjects? That part doesn't match up to me. If you're good at other subjects, why not choose a career based on those subjects...? Correct me if I'm wrong, it's probably obvious I don't really know what is involved with a career in medicine. This is just my thoughts.

 

[chocolate_lover]

Look at it another way - it is recommended to take the science/maths subjects to get into the course. They want people with the assumed knowledge from those courses. So in a way, how can you really be good at medicine if your strong points are in other subjects? That part doesn't match up to me. If you're good at other subjects, why not choose a career based on those subjects...? Correct me if I'm wrong, it's probably obvious I don't really know what is involved with a career in medicine. This is just my thoughts.

But people change though. After doing the Prelim and HSC course of a certain subject, someone might find out that it's not what they expected at all, and realise that they are actually interested in something completely different to the subjects they had chosen to do 2 years ago.

 

[Season]

no one forced you to do those subjects, and if you were good at physics you should have chosen it, two med schools look at it as highly desirable, until this coming year physics was a prerequisate for tassie.

No one forced anyone to choose any subjects therefore I fail to see how one could have an unfair advantage when you guys all had the same choice. Also remember that to get in band six in any subject you still have to work really hard, they might find it a bit easier to do that in a subject they like, but that by no way means that they are getting a leg up or they aren't deserving of the end result.

 

[Buiboi]

i dont think its an unfair advantage...they told you from teh start ...choose subjects you are good at and those that you actually enjoy, so you cant blame them for choosign those subjects... like you shouldve known that if you did the subjects that you enjoyed or good at taht youd have a better chance of scoring a high UAI which opens more options for you, i reckon thats the prob... the way i see it is that you do whatever subs you like that you believe that you can excel in to get a good UAI and that UAI is your ticket to whatever course you want

 

[watatank]

it's not an unfair advantage. if these said people get the uai they need and then realise they hate science or whatever at uni when they do medicine that's their problem.

 

[Wooz]

Look people have choosen and undertaken subjects that they enjoy since there are no pre-requisits for medicine, Chemistry is only reccomended. Most teachers and advisors in subject selections always stress to maximise ur uai choose subjects that you are most likely to enjoy.

 

[xclusv2bhung]

lolz , i dont think it is.
i`d think it`d be more unfair if people wanting to do medicine were forced to do sciences & such.

 

[BikkiMuncher]

try all HSC morning exams starting at 7am, thats an unfair disadvantage.

 

[chocolate_lover]

try all HSC morning exams starting at 7am, thats an unfair disadvantage.

Not really.

 

[Sad Statue]

try all HSC morning exams starting at 7am, thats an unfair disadvantage.

Just go to sleep earlier.

 

[xclusv2bhung]

try all HSC morning exams starting at 7am, thats an unfair disadvantage.

wth there are exams that early "
all of mine begin at 9:20 at the earliest.

 

[+Po1ntDeXt3r+]

remember that medicine is not a pure science.. so no matter what background.. there is no major advantage.

frankly maths is useful.. so is english.. and basically anything else

 

[loveforever]

I don't think it's "cheating" at all!
Besides, people can change their minds alot between Year 10 and Year 12. My mum's a doctor, and she didn't do a single science subject at school. It was only about halfway through Year 12 when she decided that she wanted to do medicine.
So yeah... plus isn't it the point of scaling to make the different subjects more equal?
Anyway, I just think that we should be grateful that we are in Australia and can choose almost all of subjects.

 

[Tiffanys]

some people from my school who got into med last yr said they hated chem but did it anyway and worked their butts off for it. If u look at a person who gets 99% for chem and loves it, compared with one who gets the same mark but endured many hours of unenjoyable study to attain that, it's only unfair that one person was born to or was conditioned to hate chem, comme moi.

 

[ahen]

hmm i have friends who are doing chemistry just because they want to get into medicine, but if you should know chemistry stuff and if its not your strength then won't you struggle in the medicine course? obvoiusly i dont know much about the medicine course so don't hold me to it but that's just the theory that i've held all along. it always pissed me off that people had a go at me for not doing sciences and maths, but if i'm not good at them then why should i do them? its not going to help me in terms of UAI nor in terms of what i want to do after UNI
i also know people who only do one science and general maths and are going for medicine as well, no one really thinks they'll get in ( the 4u maths and 3 sci people laugh at them) but...you never know i guess

 

[rusticmetal]

its not 'unfair'. you could choose exactly the same subjects as all these other people you talk about, and that would give you the nessecary knowledge. it is an 'advantage' though.

if you were in a maths degree, and most people have done specialist & methods, while you have only done further, you would be disadvantaged. but that would be your own fault for not doing methods and specialist. such as it is in this situation.

 

[Tiffanys]

i also know people who only do one science and general maths and are going for medicine as well, no one really thinks they'll get in ( the 4u maths and 3 sci people laugh at them) but...you never know i guess

haha yeah but i figure..if ur a 3u or 2u maths person then if u did general maths and u cane it u can get a pretty good uai aight?