Biology Major

[kristofer]

<p>I'm a rising high school senior, and I'm thinking about majoring in Biology for my undergrad. However, I didn't do that well in my AP Biology course in high school (I earned really borderline Bs (borderline, as in really close to As)), but I got a 780 on the Biology SAT and a 5 on the AP test. Would the 2 Bs in AP Biology "prevent" me from getting into a top tier Biology school like UC Berkeley? </p>

<p>My other stats are alright.</p>

<p>Any advice would be appreciated!</p>

[sschoe2]

<p>What are you planning to do with the biology degree. In of itself it is only useful as a prerequisite for professional school. You need to go med, pharm, dental, PT, PA or some other program to be able to have any sort of career that would even make going to college at all worth it.</p>

[TwylaBloo]

<p>I don’t think those grades in and of themselves will prevent you from getting into a top school like Berkeley. The fact that you did well on the bio SAT and AP test will certainly help you. </p>

<p>Also I don’t agree with sschoe2. While many people with bio degrees go on to health professional school, there are certainly other options. If you love research, you can get a PhD. If you love teaching, you can become a teacher. If you’re also interested in law, you can go into patent law and focus on bio-based inventions. If you love writing, you can become a science writer. There are more possibilities out there!</p>

[labeisoup]

<p>You actually should trust sschoe2. You would like to think that there is great opportunity for most Biology majors to find fulfilling careers. In reality, the state of science careers these days is dismal. </p>

<p>It’s not really possible to deny it anymore. Here are some posts on an online community (Reddit) regarding this issue:</p>

<p>

“This is, sadly, old news among people in the field. The journal Science, one of the most widely-read research publications in the scientific world, can’t go for more than two weeks without a commentary on graduate education, the dwindling PhD job market, or some other related topic.”

– Cersad</p>

<p>

"Its horrible. If you look at my previous posts you know i am one of the many who left science. I’m now getting paid more in an IT position. (and more importantly, i am actually good at it and high sought after).</p>

<pre><code>I think basically you will have to be amazing to do well in the typical research jobs - academia or industry. Otherwise there are MANY tangental paths that people end up on that still utilize your scientific background, but not in ways you would think (for example where and how much you published are topics that nobody cares about).
</code></pre>

<p>I advise you to actually do some research and figure out if you really really love it, and if you don’t, find something else."

• gibbie99</p>

<p>

“If science is your love, your passion, your dream, go ahead, get your phd. If you want to make a lot of money, do something else.
What bothers me about the current academic system is that they let all these nice, smart grad students into PhD programs, and don’t tell them they are royally f----- when they get out. But even before that:
Graduate school is not all fun, learning, and science. Bill f----- Nye does not pop up out of a fridge and high five you for doing The Science. It is long, long hours working with high-strung, egotistical people who hold your career in their sweaty little hands. I was lucky, I got into an excellent lab because I saw an opportunity and jumped on it. But before this I worked for 2 years in the lab from hell, where if you didn’t come in on the weekend, your ass was chewed off (yelling, screaming, throwing things). I worked literally 12 hours a day, was yelled at even when I did things right, and was in general, miserable. I did huge amounts of work and was told (daily) that I was a failure. “Why didn’t you report this to HR” you ask? A) there is no HR, B) you complain and people tell you to suck it up that’s just what grad school is, C) you are a graduate student, you have no rights. Your life is not your own. Right now, graduating college, that 25k a year they are offering you to do your phd sounds like a lot. But when you are cranking out 80hr work weeks, it is not sh–…”

• frank<em>the</em>cat</p>

[Columbia09]

<p>I agree. As a bio major seeking M.D/D.O school or PA school, a bio major is useless unless you want to do something medical related. DON’T get a phD, it’s a big time and money waster.</p>