I have now narrowed my choices down to two schools: BC and Holy Cross. I want to major in Biochemistry, preferably Chemistry, while on a pre-med track. I am extremely stressed out and lost.
I don’t mind the location of either school, that’s not the issue for me here. What’s really bogging me down is the academics, and I keep hearing mixed reviews everywhere. I have removed BU from my choices because grade deflation seems to be a huge problem there, and I certainly can’t afford that for pre-med, seeing as a high GPA is crucial for medical school admissions.
BC I hear is not very strong in the sciences, and that advising is awful. I also hear that the curve is a big problem as well. The chemistry dept. seems good, but biology seems to be lacking. It is more of a humanities or business school, so I don’t know if it will benefit me very much with sciences. BC also has that preppy-white aura, and I’m not sure if I can fit within that environment. Is BC good at getting kids into medical school? That’s the essential question here.
Holy Cross is tough on choosing who gets to continue on applying to medical school and who does not. However, the work load is also very tough there, but I certainly do not mind that, seeing as college is hard work (and pre-med is obviously hard, so no surprises in either case.) However, there is supposedly a “health professions” program which gives priority to register for required pre-med classes, and as for the rest of the pre-med kids, they are left to register last and rot in the dust. In addition, when applying to medical school, the committee controls who applies and doesn’t apply, hence, if they tell you “we’re not writing a letter”, then you’re screwed.
I will also be making an attempt to appeal my rejections at Brown and Tufts. It may be futile, but I at least need to try.
As a Holy Cross alum who chose it over BC, I’m going to be inherently biased. But I’ll give you my point of view. It really comes down to whether you prefer a large university (BC) or liberal arts college (HC). For me, I preferred Holy Cross for its unified campus, exclusive focus on undergraduate education and more intimate environment. It just seemed clearer to me what the school stood for and what it wanted to be. A lot of people from my high school went to BC too, and I preferred having my own school with HC. I can’t really speak to the strength of the science programs at BC, but I do know the sciences are very strong at HC. But the two schools are very, very similar in most regards; composition of student body, overall vibe, academic profiles, etc. It really comes down to a preference for large or small. I do think the vibe at HC is less conservative than BC, and for me that was a fit too. Best of luck to you in your choice. Both are great schools.
HC is harder. You need a great GPA for med school, it will be easier to get that at BC, and you will have your shot at med school even if you screw up some classes at the beginning, where HC may not admit you to the premed track ( all students are undeclared majors going into HC, so they need to accept you into premed advising after freshman year). Go to BC.
You can’t appeal rejections. Move on from Brown and tufts.
BC sciences are definitely a lot stronger than 10 years ago and the whole white aura thing is overblown. According to the stats, BC is 56% white, while HC is 69% white
@suzyQ7 Not to mention I keep seeing BC pop up in med school profiles where they list undergrad institutions. I also cannot afford to get a low GPA, or let a stupid program decide my future.
While it’s been hard these past few days after getting rejected, I’m slowly moving on. I even called Brown to appeal, and as expected, they said that decisions are final. My regional officer wouldn’t tell me the specifics as to why I was rejected either, so its very clear that the process is arbitrary.
I think the two are academic peers: they will likely have similar quality in most majors and overall.
So I think you should – surprise, surprise – base your decision on fit. Base your decision on:
Finances - which will leave you with less debt?
Academics - look at available programs and classes, sit in on a class or two, bend the ear of a prof or dean with some questions if you can, etc.
Setting/Environment - urban/suburban/rural pros and cons, weather, architecture, trees/gardens, safety, etc.
Social scene/culture - school vibe, norms, party scene, things to do, sports scene, living arrangements/food, etc.
What you want to do is figure out which one you’d rather call “home” (and most affordably…), because that is what it will be for at least four years. Definitely try to visit both if you have not already.
