I screwed up and I need help.

College Majors Math/Computer Science Majors
1

Hello everyone,

I messed up my freshman year of premed. I have 2.33 GPA which I know is not acceptable but I just took it too lightly. I graduated from highschool with a 3.67 and a A in AP class but it all went downhill from there.
Now I am not too good at math even with a 2.33,I have had a A- in biology and D in math subjects and chemistry is what dragged me down. I can’t fathom chemistry.

My brother’s girlfriend is a programmer and she makes good money and she asked me to look into a CS major. She told me web development is relatively easy compared to getting into a med school. I am a bit lost at what I want to do and need help from people who are in the field to guide me!

My entire family is made up of doctors, both of my parents are doctors and so is my brother and I have always had the pressure on me.

Thank you.

PS: I know this is male dominated field (atleast thats what I have been told)and being a girl will make it a bit difficult for me but yeah.

2

If you have problems with math, you’re going to have a hard time getting through a CS program.

3

Ok, so med school and DO school are out now.
Have you taken an intro to CS class already?

4

Create an account on CodeAcademy.com and start doing some of the tutorials. You’ll discover very quickly whether it’s something that speaks to you, or whether it’s really difficult and not your thing.

It’s a fast, low-commitment way to discover if CS would be something you would be good at and enjoy. Both my husband and older daughter program, and they enjoy it. I think that’s key.

5

Computer Science is the closest to the purest applied mathematics you can get. In fact, Carnegie Mellon Univ called Computer Science “Applied Math” back like a few decades ago because of this.

In other words, if you dislike the idea of math itself, Computer Science might not be for you.
Please do not follow for the “sake of money”. There are other just as good jobs that are similar to “medical school” if you truly love that route. One route is nursing. A very stable career. Sure it is competitive to get in but it is less competitive than most medical schools.

Having said that, CS depending on your university could be easy or extremely difficult. In fact, in many top universities, I can argue that CS is probably the most time-consuming major in all of undergrad.
It is not abnormal to take 1 CS course that demands 40 to 70 hours of week of studying to do well in the course (this is not the norm but certain schools tend to have a few courses that requires such effort). Now, consider you have 4 to 5 other classes (maybe another 2 is also CS) and it can be very plausible that you might fall in a state of depression, etc. simply cause of the work ethic and even lower your GPA more.

With all that said, take an Intro to Comp Sci class. If you like it, follow it. Follow your passions. Programming (NOT computer science) requires at most Pre-Algebra in majority of careers.
Also, within computer science, if you TRULY love medical or biological related careers, you can study in a biology related field that utilizes heaving programming. Bioinformatics, Computational Biology, BioMathematics, etc. etc are all viable careers.
And then there’s also biomedical engineering.

Just note, in average, a computer science major spends more time studying (in his or her desk) than that of an average pre-med student.
Take a CS intro course and see yourself. You never know~. Also, … message of the day:

IT’S ALL RIGHT. YOU CAN DO IT!
Don’t be scared. It’s alright. It’s just 1 year. You got 3 years left to correct it. Learn from your mistakes and just make sure you don’t make such mistakes again.
You can do it. Don’t be discouraged. You can stand up.
Just note, if you really know that you are weak with math, be careful with your later CS courses (be picky). Some upper CS courses are very math-intensive. In fact, CS is very math intensive in itself. Fortunately, computer programming isn’t math intensive but just do note that your “weakness” in math is very abused in many higher CS courses.

6

Computer Science degrees tend to be very math intensive. Many computer science degrees give you enough mathematics coursework to complete a minor. If you are not strong in math, you will probably have a very hard time with the math courses that you will need to take as well as some of the computer science courses (Analysis of Algorithms, Automata Theory). Computer Science is definitely easier than the medical school route but it is still going to be tough if you aren’t good at math. You should only consider CS if you are very passionate about it.

7

My brother suggested a major in biology and minor in CS and then if I like it, I can go on to do a masters in CS. I emailed my advisor for the intro to CS class . I also registered on codeacademy.

8

I’d only recommend you do an MS in CS if there is a very specific area of CS that you are interested in like data analytics, machine learning, etc. Otherwise, a BS in CS would suffice. It’s not really possible for you to have a good idea about that, though, until you take more CS coursework. You might try the intro CS course and take it from there if you are interested.

9

Honestly, there are some very helpful youtube channels on how to get into medical school. Also, you can retake yourr D’s, but you have to perform. It is possible to recover. You don’t have to do biology; you just need to kill your pre-req’s for med school and can boost your GPA high with a major like English. I think her name is Angela Tooley on YouTube. Plenty of advice.

You’re not going to like computer science if the university you’re attending makes it quite mathematical. Now, I can’t say that I’ve done a lot of math as someone who works as a programmer, but the courses will be at least at university.

The only really way you might be able to tell is if you can find some kind of internship/apprenticeship that will allow you to go to school while you work so that you can get an idea of what it might be like. I know my company does this.

10

Don’t pick a subject area simply because you heard people make good money doing it. They make good money because 1) they are good at it, an 2) because they like it (which allows them to really immerse themselves in it). You need to find something that you are good at and you enjoy. You don’t want to become a software mercenary who kills bugs for money. It will suck the life out of you if you don’t enjoy it.