<p>Pre-Freshman: I'm torn between majoring in biology or history. I don't know which path to take. I really enjoy history, but if I don't get into any medical school, what am I left with? I don't want to become a historian, museum curator, librarian, marketing/advertising director, etc. I only like some topics in biology, but for the most part I find it extremely boring and a big waste memorizing a plethora of information that is going to drain out of my brain after taking a test or an exam. I don't want to have a science-intensive course-load. Personally, the pre-requisites will be enough science for me. To Biology or to History?</p>
<p>Why decide now?</p>
<p>Why not start with the normal pre-med pre-regs and the other Gen Ed (Core) curriculum that an incoming frosh would take, including a history class…and see how it goes? </p>
<p>If you have a schedule like this in the fall, you can delay a final decision…</p>
<p>Bio I
Gen Chem I
Frosh Composition
History of some sort
Psych, Fine Art, Calc I, or whatever.</p>
<p>Don’t get yourself all worked up now when a final decision isn’t needed at this point.</p>
<p>Great advice from mom2collegekids…listen to her.</p>
<p>You can major in virtually anything as long as you fulfill pre med requirements. Majoring in something you enjoy is always a plus. It’s a VERY long haul that often can be a drag. Enjoying what you are studying can help break the tedium.</p>
<p>I’ll third the advice above - no need to pick a major before you start school. Take a course in every department you might be interested in (just make sure the course you take will count towards your GE requirements) and go from there. Med schools don’t care.</p>
<p>I am undeclared now, and I already picked my classes: chemistry, biology and calculus. Only three, but they total 15 hours. I’ve got around 5 AP credits, therefore I think taking those 3 will be a good course load. I asked because sooner or later I’ll have to pick a major. Maybe I’m just thinking too much, but I don’t like uncertain short-term goals.</p>
<p>Airforcepilot,</p>
<p>FYI, your description of the awful nature of biology is basically what the study of medicine is…</p>
<p>Not really. Mostly everything you learn in medicine is helpful to your career, because it is all related to anatomy. Unlike medicine, biology has lot of useless crap. It may be interesting to others, but not to me.</p>
<p>You may state that I’ll be learning a lot of useless information in med. school as well, because when I choose my speciality, everything unrelated to it will be useless. Incorrect, I’ll have to learn everything so that I can choose my speciality.</p>
<p>Thanks for the advice though, I guess I’ll stick to undeclared for the first year, and hopefully I get an epiphany next year.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>I could sell you a bridge if you need one… </p>
<p>In all seriousness, you’ve obviously got a lot to learn about medicine (and med school) - first, it’s most definitely not “all related to anatomy”. And second, you will learn a ton of minutiae in med school that you will never use again in your career.</p>
<p>What would you be learning in medical school that is not going to help you in your future career, or at least help you decide which career path to take?</p>
<p>I am undeclared now, and I already picked my classes: chemistry, biology and calculus. Only three, but they total 15 hours.</p>
<p>your classes are 5 credits each? Is this the quarter system?</p>
<p>I think on the semester system, your load would be 12 credits. </p>
<p>**
- I’ve got around 5 AP credits, therefore I think taking those 3 will be a good course load.***</p>
<p>What class did you get 5 AP credits in?</p>
<p>*** I asked because sooner or later I’ll have to pick a major. Maybe I’m just thinking too much, but I don’t like uncertain short-term goals. ***</p>
<p>What good will it do you if we all take a vote today and vote for History as your major??? So, you choose History because of us. Then, after this year is over, you decide that you find History boring. You’ll have to change. </p>
<p>You may not like uncertain short-term goals, but they’re a part of life. And it takes maturity to have a “wait and see” approach when there’s no harm in waiting. </p>
<p>BTW…as a doctor, when there’s no serious harm in waiting, you WILL have to take a “wait and see” approach. To do the opposite can sometimes be more risky. So, get used to it.</p>
<p>I’m taking three classes, but two of them have labs, which totals to 15 hours. I’ve got 5 AP credits, meaning that I took 5 AP exams and passed. I just wanted some insight on the history major/pre-med route. Let’s say I do not want to go into medicine after all, will I just then go to graduate school with a history BA? </p>
<p>Yes, it is true, I will have to learn to adapt to uncertainty. It’s going to take some time though.</p>
<p>Sorry I guess I didn’t count the labs as classes. 3 subjects, 5 classes.</p>
<p>I’ve got 5 AP credits, meaning that I took 5 AP exams and passed.</p>
<p>What AP tests did you take?</p>
<p>What classes did you get credit for? And for how many total credits.</p>
<p>5 AP classes could mean about 30 credits (more or less).</p>
<p>“What would you be learning in medical school that is not going to help you in your future career, or at least help you decide which career path to take?”</p>
<p>By this logic, everything you’re learning now that you don’t like is just helping you figure out which career to pursue.</p>
<p>Medical school is very much a brute memorization process. Sure, you can think of reasons it’s important, but at the end of the day, this year for me was about memorizing in one year as many facts as I learned pretty much my entire time in undergrad. Many people compare the first couple years of medical school to memorizing a phonebook, and I remember one of my friends at a different school had a professor tell them before their first midterm that they had learned 6,000 new terms at that point (pretty sure that’s a bit of an exaggeration but you get the point). In terms of medicine vs. biology, I think pretty much everything in AP Bio except for plants and ecology is built upon in medical school, but obviously it’s been a while since I took AP Bio.</p>
<p>AP credit for US History, French, Government, Human Geography and Environmental Science.</p>