<p>I'm a high school junior who aspires to go to a top university, but I also want to major in chemical engineering. And as if that wasn't enough, I want to minor in Political Science or African American studies while also pursuing the pre-med requirements. Do you guys think that's feasible? I'm near top of my class with a 2360 SAT, and I have a strong work ethic, but I'm not sure if it's even possible to fit that many classes into a university schedule.</p>
<p>I think it’s not too smart to minor in humanities because it won’t help you at all. You would probably be automatically minoring in biology to satisfy the pre-med requirements.</p>
<p>^this. Minoring in poli-sci isn’t gonna help you much (if at all) in getting a job in the future. But do it of course if you really want to.
But a biology minor would be great because you’re gonna be taking so many classes to satisfy it anyway</p>
<p>Also, why would you do ChemE on a pre-med track? You’re gonna need a really high gpa for head school which isn’t impossible but incredibly hard to do. Coming from a current ChemE major, it’s pretty hard</p>
<p>Lastly, your SAT score is completely irrelevant once you get to college</p>
<p>I wonder if the previous posters know the correlation through of humanities (more so philosophy) and med school acceptances/job offers and acceptances…but I digress. :)</p>
<p>Taking humanities classes won’t hurt you, but that is not to say they won’t help you. Minoring in humanities…eh…surprisingly, you might be better off majoring in humanities than minoring in it in terms of medical school acceptances. Taking classes, nonetheless, is extremely beneficial. Take your humanities!</p>
<p>Now, your choice of minors: political science and African American studies won’t help you much, if any. You’d be much better with a minor in a philosophy of some sort. But, however, I am an advocate for doing what you enjoy. If you enjoy those classes. Take a few and if you have enough to minor. Declare your minor in it. </p>
<p>Most important is the big picture: Your degree and acceptance to medical school. The feasibility of this depends greatly on the schools you’re involved in (the requirement of your university and the requirement of the medical school). Some schools have a pre-med track for ChemE. It’s not easy and it requires focus and dedication. You may be able to handle it. You may not be able to handle. What’s most important is that you leave yourself with options that allows you to change your mind if things aren’t going the way they should. </p>
<p>These options could be summer school, an extra year to finish your degree, and maybe even foregoing your minors. Options are important. </p>
<p>This is NOT to say that a ChemE hasn’t made it to medical school. Plenty chemical engineers have. Just as plenty of engineers have. It all depends on how hard you want to fight for it. </p>
<p>@Wayne I’m sure OP included their SAT to show they caliber of student they are. An 1800 is different from a 2360.</p>
<p>Sure maybe it won’t help you get a job but it might keep you from being overwhelmed by strictly science courses. The advice on this part of CC usually leans towards “why would you want to minor in anything except science/engineering/CS?” but I’m all for minoring in humanities, especially if it’ll help you knock out all your GenEd requirements (planning to use my GenEds to complete a Spanish minor). That said, maybe poli sci would be too much, as you’ll likely wind up with a bio minor or something as a result of doing premed.</p>
<p>Why minor? Why not just take some political science classes and African-American classes that interest you. It’s not like minors really mean anything anyway. Take them as electives that you’re interested in and possibly to strengthen your GPA.</p>
“Feasible” depends on a lot of things that you did not and probably can not list. Most people would struggle severely with that load, including many people who are near the top of their class, have a high SAT score, and say they have a high work ethic. Not trying to offend, but college is a very different experience and many people misjudge their ability level going in.</p>
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Well, that depends on how many years you want to be there. If you stretch it to 5 it is probably not hard, just long and expensive (since aid drops or disappears after 4), under 5 will take some finagling.</p>
<p>Do I think it’s feasible? Sure. Everything’s possible, but it’ll depend largely on the school and on you.</p>
<p>The major barrier will probably be what you’re willing to sacrifice in other to take more classes (it is quite possible that you may have to overload on classes during certain terms). Keep in mind that getting into a good med school isn’t just about grades. You’re GPA is important, of course, but it’ll also really help your application to have good extracurriculars related to biology, medicine, and healthcare (volunteering, shadowing, TA-ing, research, whatever). If majoring in engineering, getting a minor, AND taking all the prerequisites for med school are taking away time that you could be spending on more enriching activities, then I would recommend against it. It’s entirely possible to take an extra poli sci or African American studies class without getting a minor in it. That may lighten up your schedule so that you can spend some time on other activities.</p>
<p>If you want to do it, just try it. Stay very aware of what you can and cannot handle, and be prepared to readjust if you find that it’s unreasonable for your particular situation. Plan out the classes when you know what school you’re going to (or when you have a selection of choices) and see if it’s practically feasible (can you fit all of the classes that you need to take in four years). Also consider any GE’s your school has, and any limits they have on the amount of units you can take per semester and the cap on the total amount of units you’re allowed to take.</p>
<p>I’m confused, do you want to be an engineer or a doctor? I’m guessing it’s the latter because your ultimate goal is med school but then why do you want to do chem e? Why not an easier major?</p>
<p>@Niquii, I agree getting a 2360 is an incredible feat. A lot of people don’t do that and I’m aware that would take a ton of work. But what I’m saying is that studying hard for the SAT is nothing like studying hard for a ChemE test (nearly any test in college really). </p>
<p>I go to Georgia Tech and supposedly we’re a pretty tough school but I know most colleges are gonna be super tough</p>
<p>I think chemical engineering is good because the mCAT has all the subjects of a 1st and 2nd year chemE. It will help take care of halft he pre med reqs. Although, chemical engineering is tough and to add other classes on top will be another challenge. It’s possible just make sure you have good time management. Going into medical school as a chemical E major will help you, because engineering is tough and it requires a certain work ethic, after chemE, it’ll help you with the ton of studying you’ll do in medical school. The harder the major, the more you are preparing yourself for medical school. Also Extra Currics are IMPORTANT. You need to develop a schedule and follow it. Do some lab work, research, shadowing , as much as you can that really shows your passion. You’ll be fine.</p>