<p>Engineering programs like RPI/AMC demand physics to be taken in high school. Princeton, Yale, Cornell , Rutgers, TCNJ, did not demand it in High school for bio majors as long as there is plenty of AP science courses being taken. I personally called those schools 4 years ago and asked. Accordingly, a physic subject test would not needed. My D took AP anatomy instead since it was taught by an adjunct college professor she admired.</p>
<p>2 things:</p>
<p>1) RPI/AMC is not an engineering program. It’s a physician-scientist program that focuses on research. </p>
<p>2) AP Anatomy? There is no such thing…</p>
<p>Ditto…you are exactly CORRECT</p>
<p>In New Jersey high school students can take anatomy and physiology for college credit. You pay several hundred bucks and get the credit from a local college after taking their final. It is not an official AP course but you get the college credits which is the common goal.</p>
<p>RPI is scientist not engineering but they require physics in high school and the school is a very respected engineering school.</p>
<p>It all depends on what level of prestige you are looking for and how much you want to pay. It seems like you are a resident of Tennessee. If that is correct, your best bet for undergrad in terms of state schools will be University of Tennessee, Honors College. All Honors Colleges at major state universities provide excellent undergraduate education with small classes. If you maintain good GPA and do well at MCAT (which I think you will do, any school you go to) you will have a good chance to go to a top medical school. Also with all the APs you have taken, you will be able to graduate in 3 years if you want and go to med school. As far as med schools are concerned, unless you want to go to academia and be a faculty member later, it does not matter much which medical school in the US you attend. Your residency acceptance mostly depends on your USMLE scores. Having said that it really depends on you where you want to go. You have good grades and scores and are qualified for any undergrad program (of actual acceptance depends on the pool of candidates and interview). As Texaspg said U of Alabama will most probably give you a free ride and admission in honors program (I would prefer Tuscaloosa over Birmingham unless you get accepted into BS-MD at Birmingham). Vanderbilt is the most prestigious in Tennessee and you have a good change to get in with significant financial aid package. If you want to be at an ivy, apply to most of them and I think you will get in at one. The financial aid criteria is different for different ivy schools and you should consult their web-sites. Some of them are totally need based like Harvard and you may have to pay a lot to attend. California schools are way too competitive. You may get accepted into Stanford or Berkeley but do not expect Financial aid. There are so many excellent schools nationwide and some of them have generous financial aid packages. Do you have a geographic preference?</p>
<p>Berkley IS a Cal State U…so yes…limited financial aid but Stanford is PRIVATE with tons of money for those in NEED…yes… NEED BASED AID and a whole bunch of it! Stanford is one of the toughest APPs on the planet but if you get in…the vault is available if your financials are weak…lots of AID!!</p>
<p>All ivy aid is need based and there is no merit period. HYP give real big until 150 - 180 k of parents income. The rest give big until 60k of parents income. The 5 smaller say their endowments are much smaller to give like the big 3.</p>
<p>Couple comments.
First, make sure to attend UG as cheaply as possible. As one example, Case is offerring huge Merit awards to top caliber students. Med. School is very expansive. If you attend the UG for free, you may negotiate with your parents paying for your Med. School.
Second, you do not have to give up Medical Schools like Northwestern, Case, if you do not get into respective bs/md programs. Keep in mind that getting into these Med. Schools regular route is easier than getting into their combined bs/ md programs.
One more point. I am talking from experience, not in theory.</p>
<p>Completely agree with MiamiDap. Keep it cheap all the way and you will have so much more freedome during residency and as an attending. Also remember that medical schools earn their prestige through research not teaching. To move to the next level (residency) you have to demonstrate a strong grasp of the fundamentals through your boards and competency through LOR’s. Prestigious residencies = less volume of practical experience but more academic training and research. I personally observed sophomore residents from less prestigious residencies blow the pants off of senior residents from prestigious institutions when it comes to practical abilities. But academically they do not have the fundamental knowledge behind the practice. So, know what you are getting into when you chase an institution.</p>