I’m a junior in high school. I’ll start by saying that my dream career is to be a clinical and surgical pathologist. That is, study specifically disease in surgical settings as well as administering laboratory tests, in what some universities have described on their websites as research-physicians. It would seem that for medical drug discovery, (the clinical aspect), Biomedical chemical engineering is perfect. However, I also want the pre-med add-on to help prepare me for medical school. First of all, does this seem like a major that would compliment the pre-med? Is it even doable since engineering is such a hard major? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!
Your major doesn’t really affect med school applications so it’ll be fine if you can get good grades. But if it is too hard you can transfer to biology because gpa matters a lot. Really depends on what u can handle
I just talked to a 3-year medical school student whose undegrad major was English. She did all her med school requirements but then focused on literature because she loved it as much as she liked science. When she interviewed at one med school – an Ivy – she says she spent most of her time discussing Shakespeare! (She got in, too.)
Study what you’re passionate about. Odds are, your passion will be reflected in your GPA. And if you do well on MCATs, you’re well on your way to med school.
If your interest is really in that kind of research, then a major in biology or biomedical engineering sounds perfect for you (chemical not so much). You’ll need the pre-med classes to prepare for medical school. Then you can get your MD and after the MD, do a postdoctoral fellowship to help you prepare for a career as a physician scientist. (There’s also the MD/PhD route.)