<p>I am an incoming freshman attending Drexel University as a Biomedical Engineering Major with Neuro concentration in the fall. I just wanted some input on two different paths I could take. Ultimately, my goal is to earn a PhD in Neuroscience and go into research academia. </p>
<p>Drexel offers a BS/MS program that is accelerated. I could earn a Master's in Biomedical Engineering along with the Bachelor's in the five year co-op I am in. I think this is great as it would save money, and save time. However, I do have my doubts, as staying at Drexel could prevent branching out to different universities and network, and I also am considering a neuroscience degree where is where my true passion lies - Neuroscience. I also love Biomedical Engineering, but I have that as my Bachelor's as a back up in case getting into Grad school doesn't work and I need to get into the workforce right away. I certainly hope that doesn't happen. Also, Drexel is already trimester based (10 weeks instead of fourteen), so I do worry if an accelerated pace may be too fast enough already.</p>
<p>If I decide to get my Master's in Neuroscience instead, I could apply to a more highly regarded institution to earn that, and that may work in my favor (nothing against Drexel). I would also branch out to more people that way, and it may or may not look better to some PhD programs I am thinking of applying to. Even one PhD student at Drexel told me that getting my PhD somewhere else besides my undergrad is better, and to reach for that higher institution shows initiative. He said he "wished he did that, since now I [he] have to work extra harder to connect with other scientists". But there is also like I mentioned earlier, the extra 2 years and money. </p>
<p>I know for sure I want to go to a different school for my PhD.</p>
<p>Some Grad Schools for Master's/Doctorals I am considering are:
Lehigh
UPenn
UPitt
Brandeis
Notre Dame
Dartmouth</p>
<p>Sorry for the long post, but thanks for your consideration! Good Luck to whoever is starting college really soon as well!
:)</p>
<p>Hey, thanks but I have decided to get my Master’s as well, to increase my chances of admission. And also because a Masters is required nowadays. </p>
<p>Masters are not required at all. This is a fallacy that many students believe. If you want a Ph.D. ther eis no reason to do a masters first. Yes there are programs which require this but it is not universal.</p>
<p>But it’s not everywhere, and you may not need a master’s degree at all.</p>
<p>You’re an incoming freshman, so I honestly think you are thinking a bit too far ahead - most of these BS/MS programs allow you until your junior year to decide whether you want to do them. With that said, though, I would wager that most PhD programs in neuroscience do not require a prior master’s degree, and that at this point most neuroscience PhD students probably don’t have a prior MS (although many do). If you do very well in your classes and get adequate research experience, you probably won’t need an MS. Since you already know what you want to do as a freshman, you have given yourself plenty of time to acquire that needed research experience and focus on your coursework.</p>
<p>Nevertheless - if you are very set on getting an MS, and you know you want a PhD in neuroscience, it wouldn’t make much sense to get a master’s in biomedical engineering. A year is not very much time to worry about saving.</p>
<p>As a side note, if you haven’t yet identified a research area of expertise it is too early to narrow down graduate schools. Your choices need to be based upon who’s doing research there and whether there is a lab doing research you want to do. You should spend your first two years volunteering in a research lab and trying to figure out what you like to do, and start making a list in your junior year at the earliest.</p>
This program at Drexel also allows you three 6 month co-ops where you will meet many hard working folks in the field. The question should be is an accelerated degree BS/MS in Biomedical engineering at Drexel on par with say a MS from Case Western?