<p>Pre-med programs are like that pretty much anywhere, particularly because of the rigor of the program. You have to take so many science classes at once that require a huge capacity for memorization. My alma mater was well-known for its pre-med program and although biology pre-med was the biggest major freshman year, by senior year the biology department was not even in the top 5 biggest majors and less than half of the kids who started out pre-med were not pre-med anymore.</p>
<p>Part of that is because some kids, even those who really want to be pre-med, can’t handle the work; but a big part of it is because when you’re in high school you don’t know about the huge range of careers that exist out there. Being a physician is one the most prominent ones and seems like a good idea - you’re well-respected, you make a lot of money, you get to help people, and you have no idea what it really means to be a physician at the top. But when you get into college, you can discover so many other jobs that fit you better and that you actually like more, and a lot of people leave pre-med for that reason, too. (One of the reasons I’m kind of against BS/MD programs, but that’s a different subject.)</p>