Considering Medical stream after 10th? Here’s what will help

The 10th board marks is an important milestone in any student’s life. From there on starts the actual preparation of one’s career. This confusion between the choices and subsequent panic is common amongst students.

This confusion is well placed too, as soon after 10^th boards the students are faced with career-defining choices, sometimes with almost no help given for the decision making the process. It is thus up to the students to become aware of the plus and minus points of all the courses with respect to their own talents.

Beyond the overall stream choices between Science, Commerce, and the Arts, there are choices to be made inside a chosen course too. And here we will discuss the choice of a Medical stream inside Science, broadly between PCM and PCB. We start by focusing on some of the most asked questions related to the same:

Is Medical stream tougher than the rest?

As far as the difficulty levels of the subjects stand, the best thing to consider is your interest in them. If we ask a fish to climb a tree, it will obviously be impossible and something similar stands true for this scenario. No subject is tough or easy, it all depends on your interest and the amount of work you put in.

If you are interested in, say, Computer science, the theories and intricacy of biology might seem overwhelming to you. This would hold true vice-versa too. And as most of the experts assert always look for what you enjoy doing, not what your peers are going after.

Your success will depend on smart choices and the effort you are willing to put in.

Subjects covered in Medical stream

The medical stream presents a lot of career options besides the popular ones like MBBS. The core subjects when paired with the correct options presents students with career options that span across disciplines. Thus, it’s important to review all the options and combinations before taking an informed decision.

The main subjects for a Medical student are

• Physics

• Chemistry

• Biology

Optional subjects for Medical students are

• Math

• Computer science

• Engineering drawing

• Economics

• Informatics practices

• Physical education

The students are required to choose 3 main subjects, a language, and an optional course for their exams.

Possible subject combination to choose in the Medical stream

1. Students could take up lighter subjects like physical education as an optional with PCB if they wish to focus more on their medical dreams. This subject is particularly helpful for the students who wish to devote all of their focus on the medical aspect of their course.
2. Math is considered to be the most favoured optional as it helps the boost the understanding of Physics and Chemistry too. It is a prerequisite for much higher education and career paths, many of which are interdisciplinary. Mathematical concepts are also needed for some courses which include biology as the main aspect. (We will shortly discuss these and the other career choices in detail)
3. Economics is another popular choice as it paves way for higher education options and careers from the commerce background of the medical students. It seems like a prudent choice if a student wishes to expand their future options and not get limited to a few.
4. Computer science and informatics practices are fun subjects which also have one of the biggest job markets in the world right now. If a student is interested they should always take it up for a fun, inter-disciplinary range of subjects and careers.
5. Engineering drawing helps keep the architecture as a future option for medical students.

Career options for Medical students

There is a prevalent misconception regarding the career choices after the medical stream. Many students believe that it restricts the students to either the core medical options or nothing.

This is a wrong notion to the harbour, as with the various options and rapidly developing areas of research the career options have become varied and crossing across disciplines from every sector.

Science-related career opportunities for Medical student

• Medical science and dental science

• Biotechnology

• Neuroscience and AI

• Biophysics

• Bioinformatics

• Biochemistry

• Healthcare and data mining

• Microbiology

• Molecular biology

• Pathology

• Physiology

• Biomedical engineering

• Ayurveda, Homeopathy, and Unani

• Veterinary science

• B. Tech

• B. Arch

Arts and Commerce related career opportunities for Medical student

• Bachelors of Arts(B.A)

• Bachelors in computer applications (BCA)

• Bachelors in Commerce(B. Com)

• Defense

• Diploma courses

• LLB and other such integrated courses

• Fashion Technology

• CA, ICWA, CS

As one can see, there is no dearth of choices. The only thing required is a well-informed decision by the students.

For students who are completely sure of their future plans not choosing any active interdisciplinary option (or even Math) as a fourth subject might be a good choice. However, given the rapidly developing state of the Medical sector and also considering how every discipline has started merging with the next, it is advisable for students to take up subjects which keep their avenues open. It is always better to have more to choose from.

List of Entrance Exams for Medical students

Engineering related Entrance Exams

• JEE (Main and advanced)

• BITSAT

• VITEEE

• IISc

• IIST

• CET’s of different states

• Arch of various universities

• IPU engineering

• Manipal, Jamia, AMU (B.Tech)

Medical-related Entrance Exams

• NEET

• AIIMS

• JIPMER

• CMC

• COMED-K

• AIPVT

• AIEEA

• CET’s by various universities

Arts and Commerce related Entrance Exams

• Entrance exams for defense, marine, and navy

• Entrance exams for various Humanities and social science courses across universities

• Entrance exams for law courses

• Entrance exams for Fashion Design and Hotel management

• Entrance exams for pure math courses

• UPSC, SSC and IBPS exams held by the government

How Unstop (formerly Dare2Compete)helps while preparing for Entrance Exams?

It requires systematic and efficient, planning plus management for students to reach whatever goals they set. Coaching and tuitions can only help to an extent, what truly makes a difference is the amount of self-study the student agrees to put in. Another factor that matters is credible information and educational help sources for the students.

This is where Dare2Compete helps.

A provides information about various educational competitions across the country from every discipline under one roof. These competitions work as a good stimulator of ideas and boost the confidence of the participants regarding their expertise on the choice of subjects. The students can keep track of the upcoming competitions and have a one-stop destination for all the information regarding them.

Further, Dare2Compete also provides information about the various scholarship programs and competitions on offer by the government and private organizations plus, universities. Students can avail these opportunities to help their higher education dreams sail.

Students can also take part in the various quizzes (both online and otherwise) on the website. These quizzes are designed for every discipline and are a fun way to learn and revise the concepts present in the textbooks. If a student wishes so, they could also participate in quizzing competitions held across the nation (the information of which is also provided on the website).

Finally, there is a dedicated section of the website which contains career-related and educational articles which aim to help ease the ever-present confusion in a student’s mind.

This article talked about the medical stream and its options for a student. We systematically went through the subjects on offer and the career options they provide. We also saw the list of entrance exams a Medical student is allowed to give. The collective result of this has been the dispelling of the wrong notions about the toughness and the restricted options a medical student might face.

As a student, you need to remember that complexity and toughness of a subject is inversely proportional to your interest. Thus, it is important that you don’t get influenced by either peer-pressure or parental-pressure while taking this decision.

However, one can always change their stream halfway through or near the completion of the 11^th grade, so it is nothing to panic about if you feel your options don’t entirely agree with your aptitude.

The effort you put in will define your success in your field. So it is imperative that you remain sharp and consistent with your work. Don’t let initial hiccups bother your zeal as they are normal in every student life, be it a student of science, commerce or humanities.

And last but not least, don’t stress. These are simply exams which don’t define your personal worth. Reach out to your family, friends, and teachers for help. There is also professional help available for career guidance or even to guide you through personal troubles. Be it studies or life, remember to give yourself a break every now and then and the good things will be bound to follow.

All the very best for your future!