Studying medicine at 32 yo

[Jean]

I'm already FI if I stay as frugal as I am. My plan is to build a second appartment in my house over this spring and then being FI even with the possible event of fatherig a few child.
But then, I'm really thinking about starting studying medicine.
I would be 32 at the begining. First 6 year are school, then you need to work 60-80 hours (earning about 70k a year)work weeks for 6 years under someone else's supervision before you can start having your own patient.
I could commute by bike during the first year of studying. Then accomodation could likely be found, worst case would be camping in a nearby forest, but I have family in the area whose kid are going to leave, so renting room there during the week could be doable.
My goal is

Raise kids that will be able to be happy and reducing the problem around them in the future world

For this I need a lot of time, but I also need to provide them long enough with food and shelter.

If everything stay as usual, I could simply rent my house out like I do, and spend time hiking with my kids
But otherwise, I'm afraid that my renter will not be able anymore to pay is rent, that I won't be able to buy food, and that the peasant will not like me enough to give me food in exchange for working on the field to replace mechanical work that can't be done anymore, that other people in the village kick me out of my house and garden because my hairs are red and they don't like me. Being a doctor has a very high barrier of entry, and people are always going to give something away to be healed by a doctor. An unless an abrahamic faith gets amok (which by writing it, I reallize it is a possibility) again and start burning witches, doctor should be kept alive.

Studying medicine is going to be enjoyable for me. WIthout the prospect of kid or apoclypse, this is what I would probably do, with some gap years in beetween to travel, interview people and record music.

So the trade off for me is between time spent with kids, and hedge against apocalyptic scenario.

[daylen]

There are numerous other ways to hedge your bets. Studying medicine probably isn't the most efficient option. You sould think long and hard about what you expect to get out of it. What if X, Y, or Z happens in the middle of it all? What about nursing?

[Jean]

Nursing has a too low cost of entry for me to feel safe.

[CS]

My advice is to go for it.

1. You have a plan
2. You will enjoy it
3. The are a lot of upsides to being a doctor - including the ability to do locums (very semi-retirement friendly)
4. You are going to get older ANYHOW.

You are obviously smart enough, and flexible to change plans as needed if some unusual thing comes up. Trust yourself.

[classical_Liberal]

...

[Jean]

@Augustus
Yes, that's exactly what I fear.
OTOH not studying because I hope my GF to want kids in the next 6 years. She might not want, we might break up, and I might only become a dad in more than 12 year.
I just worked on a farm. A pair of friend living their just had a baby. The dad was working 6h30 to 18 6 days a week, mom was staying with the baby. It seemed to work fine. They had time to spend together, and the baby recieved plenty of attention. Of course they were tired. But happy. And I think that studying medicine is going to take less of my time than 69h per week.
Worst case is I take a year off from studying.
What I would like to know is if my kid are going to be negatively impacted if I can only spend 3 day a week with them when they are between 4 and 10.

[NPV]

Nursing has a too low cost of entry for me to feel safe.

This seems a bit backwards to me. You are paying this entry cost hence you are taking more risk with a larger investment, not less. Are you worried that too many people will become nurses because it is easier and they will break the market for nursing labour? Quite unlikely given:
1. Hasn't happened so far - quite the opposite actually, many countries are facing shortages of nursing talent
2. Huge headwinds for medical services demand globally, especially in rich countries, fueled by population aging which is not slowing down any time soon
3. The job of nurses (more physical and emotional than analytical) is likely to be less automatable than the job of many doctors (especially highly analytical, e.g. radiologist, but also other diagnostic procedures), hence less risk here as well

On pure financial risk-reward basis, the answer will depend on investment required (time and money) and expected return (salary level) for each of these medical specialties.

[Jean]

@NPV
It's not only financial. It's about SHTF scenario. Being able to take care of sick people isn't a rare enough ability to make me valuable. Even if getting a nurse degree will make me better at it.
I thought about becoming a veterinary too, because many knowledge can apply to other mamals, and there is a huge shortage in vet for cattle (opposed too pets).
@Augustus
That's a point.
I always wanted to have kids young and be available for them. I centered my whole life around this. I choose my degree because I thought it would be the one were getting job would be the easiest. Now they aren't there (kids and job). If Ihad knew they would come so late, I would have studied medicine in the first place. I'm really worried about those 6 years where you have to work under someones supervision because there is no part time and you make huge hours. Good point is that you have weird hours, so you are often free during the day, which let you half of it to sleep and the other half for the kid.
My plan is then to open a practice in an isolated village and just get with the few patient I'll have, because th 6 years I'll have worked will set me up for life. (I'm already Fi).
I don't know if not needing the money is going to give me some leverage during the 6 years.

[BlueNote]

Becoming an MD, doing the ERE lifestyle and having a kid simultaneously sounds like too much without some serious support. I wouldn't do it without a very supportive and capable spouse /family and possibly a live in nanny. I know it's not ERE sounding but where I am from people with twins often get a live in Nanny because it's cheaper than day care for two infants. The Nanny will usually do some cooking, cleaning etc. too, they're like a full time employee. It's usually someone from overseas who works for cheap in exchange for an immigration program, maybe that's an option where you are too. I would seriously consider some sort of formal child care support in order to avoid the almost guaranteed hellish moments of 24+ hours of no sleep and being responsible for patients and/or a screaming baby.

[thrifty++]

You are in Switzerland is that right? Is education free there? If so then yeah why not, you dont have anything to lose as you are not doing anything else at the moment. Hell go for it. Thats what FI is all about. You wont really know if you like it until you are deeply ensconced in doing it, but then if you dont then you can just leave as you say, or take a year off. Whats to lose? Nothing it seems.

But if you are in the US or somewhere that education costs money, and usually it is very expensive, then fuck no. That could destroy you financial independence.

[Jean]

It's not free but cost are symbolical (around 600.- per semester).