Hi! I’m only a junior so I’m kind of thinking too far ahead right now, but I can’t help it haha.
I’m very interested in Binghamton University and I’m trying to take the pre-med route and take all the prerequisites to hopefully get accepted to med school and so on. I don’t know anyone who has recently gone through/is currently going through pre-med at Bing and I was just wondering what it’s like?
Obviously, the pre-med route anywhere is very challenging and requires a lot of commitment, but all I ever read/hear are the seemingly manufactured responses telling me how hard it can be (don’t worry I am in no way underestimating the difficulty, in fact I might be overestimating it), but I would like some personal experience for once. If possible, do share if there are places to volunteer, do research, maybe intern, if the professors are nice, the classes are difficult, etc. Anything that you wouldn’t mind telling me and can help me.
Also, for any of you wonderfully successful alumni, was Bing worth going to for your undergrad degree before moving on to med school? Like was the cost worth it, did it prepare you well, and any other things you wouldn’t mind sharing?
Also, any advice to give me when/if I go down this pre-med route?
Sorry if I sound like I have no idea what I’m talking about, I am kind of new at this haha
Thank you so much for any responses and advice!
I don’t know anyone who has been through the program recently, but in general if you go to SUNY Binghamton and do well you will be fine – it is a very well respected school. If you haven’t yet, I’d suggest you visit the school and try to talk to some pre-med students there. Financially SUNY Binghamton is attractive as the instate rates are excellent and the OOS rates are reasonable as well.
I went to Binghamton, not for pre-med, but there are a lot of pre-meds there. There’s plenty of advising and workshops to keep you on track and answer your questions. There’s a lot of clubs to get involved in-- I know pre-med people who did things like BU Science, or did research over the summer/winter with professors. I have several friends who are now in med school. The cost is definitely worth it, if what you mean is that you’ll save a lot of money.
Start by learning more about what becoming a strong med school applicant takes. Read thru the very informative FAQ at http://www.rhodes.edu/hpa/15890.asp They also have a nice writeup in the PreMed Essentials link on the left side of that page. There is also an excellent online handbook at Amherst I recommend to get an understanding of the process and what really matters
For even deeper detail you could get a book about medical school admissions.
One thing to avoid is placing any importance into acceptance numbers. Some schools boast incredible rates, but it boils down to one of two things. Either they start with great students (think Stanford, etc) or the school weeds out students. Look out especially for the “committee letter” which small schools with average students coming in wield like an axe to prevent all but the strongest applicants from applying right out of college; to no surprise, they often boast 90% or better med school “acceptance” numbers for their undergrads. Soon a regular poster will chime in to recommend one such school, Holy Cross.
I always ask kids that say they want to be doctors, why an M.D? Not that I know it is wrong for you, it may be the right fit, but have you actually looked into the medical field and considered the alternatives? From the day you start college it will be 11-15 years before you are a practicing doctor, depending on what field you go into. In other words, think back to 1st grade; all those years since then matches the minimum it will take to become a practicing doc! Its almost a reflex action among HS kids, they think of a career in medicine and its “I’m pre-med!” Doctors are far from the only ones in the health field that help people. Physical therapists, radiology techs, nurses, speech pathologists, to name but just a few. Before you go heavily into debt and commit so many years I suggest you explore the alternatives.
That is daunting, MikeMac. Another thing to keep in mind is that age is not frozen and life does not stop and wait while you attend school. So, according to MikeMac’s time frame, you’ll be pushing 30 when you are done with school. That isn’t necessarily a bad thing but people should take that into account. Balancing milestones like marriage, having children and going to school may be a challenge. Be sure it is what you want before you head down that path.