Pediatrician Career Goals

What was your career goal as a child? Usually children have endless imaginations and believe in themselves enough to want an extravagant or very highly trained and well paid career. I was not a child who wanted to be an astronaut or a circus performer; I was a child who wanted to help children. I wanted to be a pediatrician. A pediatrician is a children's doctor who provides medical care to patients from birth up to 21 years of age. They can help with infections, injuries, behavioral difficulties, developmental disorders, and many more medical and mental problems. They can give children with life threatening diseases a better outlook on life. Making a difference in children’s lives is the reason that even as a child, I wanted to grow up to help children.
The road to becoming a pediatrician is long and arduous. It requires that the student complete of a four-year degree at a medical school. Once medical school is over, three years of residency in a pediatric residency program has to also be completed. Following residency, the student has to complete and pass board exams to become board certified by the American Board of Pediatrics. They then must be recertified every seven years.
I didn't realize how much schooling and time was involved with this career. It was a little discouraging when I realized that I most likely wouldn't become a pediatrician. Helping children was a huge goal of mine and it still is. Becoming a pediatrician would be ideal, but I don't think I am quite cut out for that career. My goal for a career is still doing something with children and possibly still in the medical field. Some thoughts I have considered for a career goal now that I am older would be a pediatric nurse, social worker, child psychologist, and possibly an early elementary education teacher. One thing I also want to do during my career is to visit third world countries and help children