<p>Hi,</p>
<p>My friend just asked me yesterday, "What makes BME so special or rewarding"? and I was stumped. I mean, its not as well paying as some other medical fields(sugeons, dentists, etc), or is it? Can somebody enlighten me? I will be studying BME in Johns Hopkins and find the field interesting, but I hope I am not making a big mistake. Also, I heard it is much more work than being a doctor, so does it pay off in the end?</p>
<p>BME is not a "medical field" ...it is an engineering field</p>
<p>BME grads get paid on par with other engineering grads</p>
<p>If you want to be a doctor though, I would not recommend doing BME since it is alot more work than you have to do and it will hurt your gpa.</p>
<p>Unless you like it and know you can get a good gpa as in 3.5+ don't do it. If you can do well, and you do like it, go ahead and do it.</p>
<p>i'm doing BME and getting a 3.5+ (barely) and I THOUGHT i'd like it but i was wrong</p>
<p>It comes and goes for me at least. Sometimes I love it, others I hate it. Definitely NOT an easy major to do.</p>
<p>Does it pay off in the end? What do you like/hate about it?</p>
<p>Well, I think it's a good option if you like engineering, but are considering a career in medicine.</p>
<p>I entered college as a biology major, and then switched to biological engineering because I simply had no idea what I'd do with a biology major if I decided I didn't want to go to med school. First year went well! So I'm happy with it so far.</p>
<p>I started off as an Electrical Engineer because I didn't know if I had the drive to go through undergrad and med school. Then I started working as an Engineer while obtaining a Masters in EE and found that I absolutely could not do this as a career.</p>
<p>Now, I am getting a Masters in BME for 2 reasons.</p>
<p>A) I have to take the prereqs for Med school which also are required for my BME, and only 1 additional year of schooling on top of the prereqs will give me a BME degree (that additional year will be during the application year, so it was either be idle for a year or get the second masters)</p>
<p>B) I have something to fall back on just in case I don't get into a med school for whatever reason, at least I can do Engineering (Bio-MEMS) towards medicine, which is not a bad plan B.</p>
<p>Engineering is more difficult than more "traditional" majors, however, if you can't get through an undergraduate Engineering program, it is likely you won't be able to get through Med School.</p>
<p>agrophobic, i think you should go to the open houses during your orientation week (or is it a little after? i dont remember) when you're at hopkins. you will learn more about what that major (and other majors) is about and what you will be doing. try doing bme first semester and see for yourself. since it's s/u, you can learn more about the major without killing your med school chances. meanwhile, you'll be doing the design team and can see if you want to stick with the major and it's crazy workload.</p>
<p>MichEngGrad...glad someone thinks about the major the way I do.</p>
<p>You totally summed up my reasons for majoring in BME.</p>
<p>I was taking to the engineering premed advisor and in his words (approximately)...</p>
<p>"Don't worry about the difficulty of the program, it's a hard road, but if you keep focused on the work and do well you'll be fine. Medical schools tend to look at engineering majors a little differently than other majors because they know you are taking multiple math/science classes and tech classes at the same time."</p>
<p>Plus, the course work is definatly not a bad preperation for the MCAT.</p>
<p>Oh, btw, he also mentioned that extracuriculars OUTSIDE your field of interest are very important in med school applications if you're majoring in engineering. In his words...</p>
<p>"If you major in engineering, you have to prove to the admission board that you're not a geek"</p>
<p>lol, I liked that quote. Pretty easy advice to follow, I still do a lot of music stuff back home, and hopefully get involved in some music group at school.. Ski club's fun too!</p>
<p>StPlayrXtreme, Outside of volunteering what do you do that classifies as extra curricular? </p>
<p>I play pick up basketball and hockey regularly, play golf and love to run, but I do not participate in any organized group for these activities, nor do I plan to. I love my pickup games of basketball at the rec center and outdoors in the summer. I just hope that I can list these as "activities." </p>
<p>Considering I am involved with the above, work 40 hours a week and take Engineering courses, as you and I both know is very difficult, I do not have much time for other "extra curricular" activities.</p>
<p>Just curious on what you do.</p>
<p>Well engineering does cut you some slack but not much. You still need to get at LEAST a 3.5 to be in good standing as far as getting into med school, and in bme that isn't a piece of cake, but is doable. The MCAT for engineering majors is weird. We are used to physics and that stuff so engineer tend to do better on the physical part than most, but what we don't do well on is verbal. In general no one does really well on that part.</p>
<p>One more question,</p>
<p>If BME is so hard and so much more work, why would an undergraduate choose to study it as oppose to choosing the medical school route?</p>
<p>Well, I haven't even matriculated for next fall, but I'm choosing it because it offers a good back-up option and it's also a subject I like--well, of course, take these words with a grain of salt, as I have not experienced the hell for myself yet. Although, I did do an internship in hs in this area, but it was probably more sugarcoated for my part. :P</p>
<p>Its worth is because you can pretty much be an all in one doctor. Thats the way I look at it. I will feel that the degree is complete once I have an MD. Then I will be able to design, research, and test the stuff I think up. As a BME MD you have the knowledge to design the BME devices and the MD knowledge to know how they would be used if its practical, if it would work etc etc. Sure its harder, but if you make it through undergrad you are prepared for anything because it was so challenging.</p>