hey !
so my name’s ari, im a junior at a private school in ontario, canada
eventually, my goal is med school, either in canada or in the states?
here’s the problem, though: i realize that the major itself isn’t going to make or break your application, but of course I need a major that’s relatively easier to get a high GPA in. now what I planned on doing originally was astrophysics or particle physics, but obviously those majors don’t offer 4.0s without an insane amount of dedication and work.
what I hear a lot is that bio is a really good choice? but since bio bores the hell out me there’s no way i can study it for four years.
another idea i had was chemistry then, since i’d enjoy it immensely and thought that it would be relatively easier to get a good GPA in? but after doing some research, it seems that chem majors have one of the lowest GPAs total.
is it still a good idea to go into chem? is it really that difficult to get a 4.0 while studying it? how much work would I need to put in?
personal experiences would be great!
thanks !!!
Biology bores the hell out of you and you can’t imagine studying it for four years? What do you think you’ll be studying in medical school?
general biology is what bores me. medicine and the human body is super interesting!
US med schools don’t care about your major. Don’t know about Canadian. As to US med schools, pick major that actually interests you because if you like material you’re more likely to do well GPA wise. Your GPAs will be very important to US med schools. Although most premeds are bio majors and may actually like bio, bio is often chosen because it kills to birds with one stone (ie, satisfies major and premed reqs at same time) whereas if you’re an art history major you’ll need to somehow fit in premed reqs.
Chemistry can really mess up your GPA, if your good at it than do it. If you cant keep it over 3.4 GPA in your first two years in chemistry classes you need to change your major to something easier, such as Art History/Education, or whatever you can keep a high GPA in.
You’re going to have to take general biology, regardless of what you major in as a med school prerequisite. Depending on what your school offers and how they structure their biology programs, you may be able to take many classes on medicine and the human body as a biology major–anatomy and physiology, human genetics, courses about particular human disorders (cancer, diseases of the nervous system, etc), courses on infectious diseases, etc. The basic biology courses are also very important to really understanding medicine and the human body–things like molecular biology, cell biology, biochemistry, etc. Don’t disregard all of biology because you only want to study medicine. Many fields of biology are very important for the understanding and practice of medicine.
That being said, what you can do well in will depend a lot on what you are good at and what interests you. Major in something that you like and that you have done well in in the past. No one can tell you what that is.
Also, keep in mind that while a 4.0 is certainly possible, it may be an unrealistic goal for many students. Don’t bank everything (including your choice of major) on getting a 4.0. Above a 3.7-3.8 is really all considered the same anyway.
Like an early post said to get in Med school in America you can literally get any Major as long as you can explain to the med school how that pertains to a future in medicine. Also never tell a med school I got this degree because it was easy to get a good GPA in. You need to pick something that you are passionate in and can do well in.
Any major is fine. Do not need to explain how it pertains to a future in medicine.