<p>I was just reading about all these great colleges, but I was wondering if anyone who is in pre-med, taking something other than pre-med as a major. Is there something that I can fall back on if I dont make it in medical school? I want to see what subject others feel is good to major in. post away :]</p>
<p>there is no such major as pre-med major, pre-med just means you get advising from faculty. according to everyone you can major in anything you want and just have to take the pre-med prerequisites such as intro bio gen chem orgo chem etc. major in what you want.</p>
<p>That's not true. Many schools offer premed majors.</p>
<p>lower-level schools offer a "premed" major. its stupid; major in somthing else</p>
<p>here there is a "pre-med" concentration and you can very well graduate without a major if you achieve enough credits and this is by no means a "lower-level school"</p>
<p>What school is that shraf?........ and what are the upper division courses for the major (since the premed courses are all lower division courses and don't even come close to fulfill the required minimum units at my university, as well as most others unless you're probably at some 2 year university I guess, in order for you to graduate)</p>
<p>Edit: Didn't read your post correctly the first time around Shraf. A premed "concentration" is not the same as a premed "major". What exactly are the undergraduates graduating as if they take that concentration only w/ no real major. every university offers a premed "concentration"- that just means you're taking premed classes. Does the student get to actually walk his senior year w/o a major and what does his diploma (if any) say??</p>
<p>JackJackson: What schools exactly offer premed majors?... and what courses do they have to take for their upper division requirements? if you take every single last recommended premed course required for medical school, you'd only have your lower division courses fulfilled and slightly more than 2 years left at a 4 year university if you adequately space out those courses. If that student doesn't get into medical school, what is he to do w/ a bachelor of science in "premed"???</p>
<p>I'm talking about Columbia University....</p>
<p>In many universities u dont have to major in anything, all u need to do to graduate is fulfill the minimum amount of credit requirements, which is 125 here, and then you get a bachelor of ARTS ....in nothing. Your diploma just says that you fulfilled the requirements and graduated, i think. I've only heard of this...dont actually know anyone who is doing it. Since you have to take so many extra classes anyway you might as well major in something. So yes, your only requirement for graduating college is fulfilling course hours or course points or credits or whatever the school calls it. But of course this leaves you nothing to fall back on and unless you took some quite a tough courseload despite having no major, i dont think med schools would be too happy with that.</p>
<p>So at columbia you can graduate by only taking lower division courses? Whats to stop a person from just taking beginning arts classes and beginning humanities courses to breeze through w/ an easy gpa after fulfilling their premed requirements so long as they hit the minimum units required? What's the average gpa? How are those diplomas viewed by the public if its such a breeze to attain?</p>
<p>thats an odd situation...ive never heard of that, but its not like your at a "lower-level" school.</p>
<p>Columbia College (CC) has three graduation options: the major, the concentration, the special premed
concentration. Specifics of each are outlined in the department listings in the Bulletin (not every
department offers a special concentration). You will choose the one that suits your own interests best.
All are equally respected by the College and by medical schools. We have seen no evidence that full
majors are likelier to win acceptance to medical school. Any way you look at it, you will be taking a
minimum of 124 credits in order to graduate. Medical schools are interested in the variety and
difficulty of your courses, your course load, and your grades. Whether or not it adds up to a major or
concentration is immaterial as long as you are challenging yourself along the way. Because the
College core requirements can range from 35 to 55 credits, and the pre-med requirements from 36 to
43, a student who chooses a major (usually another 42 credits), which doesn't overlap with either, is
going to have little room for electives. To preserve some freedom for academic exploration, the
special concentration is a good option. It should be emphasized that this is entirely a matter of
personal preference.</p>
<p>This is from the Pre-med handbook and this is all i know about it. I am in the school of engineering where this is not an option and where you must choose a major.</p>
<p>im talking MAJOR itself, columbia is unique</p>
<p>how many top schools have a "pre-medicine" major; few because colleges want you to study your interests and have a foundation in that; i know some state schools that have "premed" as a major.</p>
<p>From what I've seen reading other threads, kids who major in relatively easier subjects (liberal arts, etc) have a better chance of getting into med school. The first round of admission is just GPA and MCAT. So even though someone may have done the hardest major at thier school, if thier GPA is low they wont even make it past the first round (I dont know if this all correct or not). An easier major should allow you a higer GPA.</p>
<p>The problem would be that if you chose a liberal arts major, like Music or Philosophy, but still didnt get into med school- what would you do? The prospects for a Music degree arent that high.. </p>
<p>If you chose something like bioengineering as your course of study, not only would you be in a somewhat related major, you would have a great 'fallback' if you didnt get into med school. Bioengineers do fairly okay in the job market. But- you'd have a harder time getting a higher GPA in that major and thus reduce your chance of getting into to med school from the get go. So if you really wanted to become a physician, and increase your chances of getting into med school in anyway you could, what would be the best path?</p>
<p>Sigh.. what to do, what to do..</p>
<p>Are there any other good majors that can be a good 'fallback' in case pre-med is not for me? thats mainly what i'm looking for plus opinions on the benefits of the chosen major.</p>
<p>Pre-med isn't even a real major. It's just a set of courses (a shorter set of courses) than many other students in releveant majors have to go through anyways.</p>
<p>Bio, Chem, Orgo, Physics, Calc, Expos = Pre-Med...at least at Rutgers.</p>
<p>But then again, 50% of the students at Rutgers are Pre-med (exaggerating) (rolls eyes).</p>
<p>i'm planning to be a math major while doing premed courses. so if i don't get into medical school i can pursue a PHd easily.</p>
<p>you could just major in something you're naturally good at and enjoy..</p>
<p>economics or psych</p>