<p>Hi, everyone.
I'm currently a high school sophomore and I'm plan to study Molecular and cellular biology in college since i wanna enroll in a medical school and im strongly interested in biology. But i am really passionate in music, especially jazz piano. In addition, i want to minor in Japanese because i might go Japan after college or medical school, that's my dream place to live in.</p>
<p>Is it possible to double major in music and bio and minor in Japanese? </p>
<p>Thank you for paying attention on my question.</p>
<p>At Earlham College (in Indiana), practically everyone double-majors. They have a strong molecular/cellular bio program including study-abroad fieldwork, and one of the best Japanese programs in the country. They also have a music program, but I don’t have any knowlege about it.</p>
<p>It’s certainly possible, but a lot of work, with pre-med on top of all that.</p>
<p>Keep in mind, you don’t need to major in music/minor in Japanese just because you are passionate about them. A degree in those fields is most useful if you are perusing them as a career. If you just love music, just keep loving and playing music, maybe take a course or two. Same with Japanese- Take courses and learn the language, but you don’t necessarily have to get a degree. Hell, my friend (at Yale now) self studied Japanese during his senior HS year. Speaks it fluently, and certainly wont be getting any degree in it.</p>
<p>If you have the grades and test scores Washington University in St Louis would be an excellent choice. They have a great premed program and medical school and an awesome Japanese program. The music school is OK, but is very flexible so it is easy to double major etc… There are a lot of students that do both premed and music there.</p>
<p>It really depends on the college whether you can do that or not. Even if it isn’t possible to have that combination of majors/minors, you can still take extra classes in those areas.</p>
<p>A molecular bio major will most likely fulfill all your premed requirements. A music major alongside is possible provided you are at a liberal arts college or university that grants a BA in music. A BM in a separate School of Music, which generally focuses on music performance, involves hours and hours of intense practice time and isn’t compatible with a lab-heavy science major. Many premed students at UVA, where I teach, major in music and participate vigorously in the Jazz and other ensembles. A few enterprising students have even combined a music major with an engineering degree.</p>
<p>Obviously, you will want to look too for a school that offers Japanese. Generally the requirements for a minor are fairly weak–it’s not very different from just taking a bunch of courses alongside your work in your major.</p>
<p>Get yourself a good faculty advisor to help you through the process, starting with freshman year. Most colleges assign you a faculty advisor when you arrive, but provisions for advising, and the effectiveness of individual advisors, vary widely from institution to institution. Generally, however, you are allowed to pick your own advisor, so you just need to be proactive. If the college you attend does not have a solid advising program, just make an appointment with the directors of undergraduate studies in the majors and minors in your probable majors, to get their advice. Both music and bio (and Japanese, obviously) typically have a bunch of required courses which must be taken in a prescribed order. You’ll need to stay on top of those requirements.</p>