I am trying to decide between College of Charleston or Furman for pre-med. Specifically, I intend to major in biology at either college. I’m trying to consider the statistics of how students perform within their respective programs (average GPAs, MCAT scores, average acceptance to medical schools… etc.). I also would like to consider what both programs have to offer in terms of opportunity. I have seen the statistics from Furman (found here: http://www.furman.edu/academics/pre-health/prospective-students/Pages/medical-school-admission-statistics.aspx) however, I cannot seem to find the same for the College of Charleston. I am aware that there should be more taken into account (type of school, where located, etc.) which I have, however I have come to a deadlock between the two based on that and I’d like to decide solely on factual information/statistics and essentially, which will provide me with better opportunity to advance in my future.
Does anyone have any insight/advice/factual information for each schools program? And are the numbers given on Furman’s website spectacular/something that should be a large defining factor?
Thanks so much!
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My son attends CofC in the Honors College. He is not a premed major , but he does have several friends who are. One thing that they find helpful is there are many opportunities for undergraduate research. Another benefit is the close proximity to hospitals and opportunities for volunteer hours. One thing that I found out at orientation that I found interesting is that the EMS service on campus has student employees who use their work hours to aid in med school applications. Good luck. Both schools are great schools . You should meet your goal by attending either school.
I think 75% is a good number, but that number (for all UG universities) tells only half the story. That is on about 30 students applying to med-school. It is likely that more than 30 entered their Freshman year with a plan to apply, so you have to consider what happened to all the others. I believe that Furman has a program with the U. of SC that gets automatic admission to Med School there for a few top students. With so few actually applying to med school, you may only need to be in the top 10% of your pre-med peers to get that opportunity!
bless you, but sadly there is no “right” factual answer for you. @NashvilletoTexas makes an important point: the admissions stats tell only part of the story, not least b/c you never get to know how many start out as pre-med. One of the biggest is “weed-out” courses, but there are lots of other ways that pre-med students get diverted other directions.
@mom2collegekids is the maven of pre-med on CC, so she may pop in to give you some useful info, but in the meantime: either college will give you everything you need to get into med school, so some useful factors to consider in choosing which one include:
- unless money is absolutely no object- now or for med school- which one will cost you less/leave you with less debt?
- where will you be able to get the best GPA?
- If, against all the odds, you decide not to go the med school path, which school would likely to be the best place for you?
After that, getting in to med school will be about your hard work and self-discipline.
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Super late, but thank you all so much!