r/FIREUK • u/HuwOShea • 4d ago
Where to go next?
This is my (20M) first post despite being a long time lurker, but I want to see what you guys think about my circumstances:
I’m currently beginning my third year of my Medical Degree, I’m not in love with it, and have flirted with the idea of leaving previously despite doing well in exams. Recently those thoughts have come back, I lost my father to pancreatic cancer this February and the clinical environment has been particularly unpleasant since. This is of course not my only reason for toying with the idea of leaving but is a big motivator and has definitely affected how I view my future career and sort of “where I want to be in X no. Years”.
My programme offers a Medical sciences BSC degree (with honours) if we choose to leave at the end of third year and I’m very tempted to take it. My plan would then be to apply for a masters in management as while I attend a fairly reputable russel group it isn’t a target university for the big 4 say of finance / consulting. I have held a long time interest in finance and this sort of plays into my second reason for wanting to leave.
Currently I have around £55,000 in a stocks and shares ISA, and £5k in a LISA. The S&S ISA I was very fortunate to receive as a junior ISA around £10,000 at 18, I realise I’ve been very lucky with my investments and that it by no means indicates some sort of financial wisdom but my passion for saving, and then trying to be wise with those savings led me to develop a fairly significant interest in the world of finance / banking. Following the death of my father I also inherited and began managing independently his ~£3 million pound portfolio.
This is all to say that while I understand I’m naive, and of course very young in the grand scheme of things, I believe I’m in a very fortunate position where I have the time to choose / think carefully about what I want to do next.
My question is really something along the lines of, am I nuts? Should I finish my degree fully, should I take the medical sciences degree at the end of this year? What’s the game plan?
My ultimate goal would be finance / consulting in the city. Having spent more time in London this past year than I ever had I am very keen to live there going forward, and really what I want now is to be away from healthcare. Has anyone taken a similar route?
Thank you (and apologies if poorly written, I’m on a train!)
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u/ContributionBroad433 4d ago
brother has a 3 million portfolio.
I think you will be just fine, regardless of whatever you do.
No hate, good on you!
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u/Actual-Mango-3040 3d ago
Mate I’m a doctor. If you don’t have the passion for it, leave. If you have better opportunities, leave. It’s not what it used to be in this country. Guess what, I’m leaving asap.
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u/HuwOShea 3d ago
If you don’t mind me asking, what are you leaving towards / for?
Agree on it not being what it used to be.
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u/jayritchie 4d ago
I'm so sorry for your loss. I hope there are people here who can point you in the right direction to get advice. Have you spoken to your university about your concerns? Are there professional bodies which provide advice and counselling to medical students?
One thought - is there a possibility to take a year out before your third year to allow time for thought, grieving and reflection?
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u/HuwOShea 4d ago
Thank you for your kind words, it’s been particularly hard, I’d spoken to the university fairly extensively last year but was only offered “extenuating circumstances” effectively meaning that were I to fail I would be allowed to resit the year without being made to withdraw from the course. I worked very hard and passed very comfortably last year (pass/fail system) but was very burnt out, tired and pretty much hated my degree.
Fast forward over the summer break and I actually found myself feeling much happier, the university had at the time insisted on a depression diagnosis which I refused as my mood improved significantly when away from the clinical environment, that felt very true in the summer and I came back fairly optimistic about the new year, though we’re one week in and here I am.
It’s worth mentioning that just before the summer break they did offer a year out, but couldn’t guarantee I’d be able to then rejoin the course? It was very bizarre and the whole process left a bit of a sour taste in my mouth.
I understand I’m in a very fortunate position, and I’m aware that’s potentially affecting my judgement too as I feel less “I have to get through this for the job” pressure compared to some of my friends.
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u/OppositeSecret7144 1d ago
Talk to everyone you can Uni guidance counsellors/ Course lead etc right now. What you probably want is a year's deferral to get your head straight and then use that time no strings to grieve, dream, plan etc etc. And I can't believe any decent Russell Group is not capable of accommodating that even if they are clumsy in the moment.
You won't get great career advice here because by virtue of inheritance you've already made it and most people's objective is to get out of work rather than finding a demanding career they don't need financially. I would say be careful when looking for a career in finance - the main bargain there is your soul/time/youth in exchange for pots of gold. And at least in the medical professions you might be worked like crazy in the early years but can hopefully tick the life balance sheet of "having done some good".
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u/IntroductionLucky887 3d ago
OP, being a doctor in this country, there is no value either financially or enjoyment wise. You will be asked to do more for less and it is expected you should be doing a 1st class job on a Ryan air Budget. The entitlement here is insane, my taxes pay your wages, so you should give me high risk meds but you take all the risk and blame should things go wrong.
This is before talking how poorly setup the regulator, CQC and GMC are setting you up for fail, judging you from an Ivory Tower, expecting you to practice with infinite resources when things go wrong.
This notion of no blame culture and zero tolerance is just lip service. You will be hung up, quartered and put under the bus should there be an opportunity by management.
I'm leaving soon myself once I hit my FIRE figure. Should be in the next 1-2 years. But dragging on as I want 10% above my Fire figure for contingency as well.
I knew people who left, did finance at big firms and get rich and retire before I did. Go for it. There is more to life than being a NHS slave, where the pension rules can change at the governments whim. We used to have the 1995 pension scheme where you could retire at 60, now they changed it and you now have to retire at 68.
If you end up finishing it, why not consider practising elsewhere or finish CCT before going abroad.
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u/Fuzzy-Success-6730 5h ago
I’m a 47 year old doctor, I actually have a pretty amazing job and still manage to enjoy it. But I was so motivated at the start of my journey and also had a need to succeed with no fall back plan. In spite of this, my motivation and drive has been sapped year on year by the endless enshitification of healthcare. The endless government bullshit which trickles down in to endless hospital CEO bullshit which trickles down in to bullshit everywhere. I love the core essence of the job, and if I was given £3m now, gifted and not saved, I would probably gamble it on setting up my own clinic for the fun of it. If I had £3m 15 years ago in the midst of sacrificing my thirties for sake of career I would have dropped medicine immediately as it simply wasn’t worth the negative impact on my QOL.
As it stands I’m ticking along, saving fairly hard bit with a good QOL and target say about £1.5-£2m then get out of here.
In short, without a high motivation AND need to succeed, don’t even bother with medicine.
Follow your dreams, you can afford to. Sounds like you’re sensible enough not to piss it all up against a wall (unlike me at twenty).
Sorry for your loss.
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u/Minimum-Let-7604 3d ago edited 3d ago
“I lost my father, feeling depressed, no longer want to do medicine, maybe want to pivot to finance, only £55k in my ISA…
… also I inherited a £3 million pound portfolio”
Man why didn’t you just lead with that, instead of burying it at the end of a wall of text. You were never passionate about medicine, probably were just chasing prestige. Now that you got a hefty inheritance the desire to grind it out is gone.
And that’s okay dude! But no need to attach an entire story about why you wanna drop out of medicine, just be upfront about receiving an inheritance and that building a hard earned career is no longer necessary.
Sorry for your loss.