I've switched majors and now I'm having an academic crisis. Please help me..

Graduate School
1

First of all, I’ve posted this in multiple (appropriate) places to try to get varying views, so I’m sorry for being a forum hog.

Before I even started college, I knew I wanted to go into medicine. So, I chose to major in Biology Pre-Professional (pre-med). Because I planned on going to med school, I decided to add a second major: Psychology. I thought that a background in Psychology would give me a leg up later down the road. I guess maybe it did.

Throughout the past few years, I’ve been taking a mix of Psychology and pre-med courses, such as Physics, Biology, and Chemistry. I’ve done pretty well with the Psych stuff, mostly B’s and A’s, but have had setbacks with the natural sciences - a lot of them. I have had to take some courses more than once, and barely passed some of the others. This wasn’t because I’m dumb. I have a lot of trouble with attention AND I have bipolar disorder (diagnosed, not medicated) which makes it difficult to maintain consistent motivation, which is ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY when taking courses such as Calculus based University Physics and Organic Chemistry.

I’ve currently finished roughly 3/4 finished of my Bio degree, and I’m only lacking 2 classes to finish my Psych degree. There are 2 major problems I’m faced with. 1) What medical school is going to accept me with the grades I’ve received for their required courses? and 2) I’m almost out of financial aid, so it will be physically impossible for me to finish the Bio degree anyway.

Since I can graduate with Psych in May of 2016, I’m going to abandon the Biology degree along with my dreams of going to medical school.

I’ve always known that my interests were neurological in nature; I planned on specializing in Neurology once in med school. With my primary focus now shifting to Psychology, I’ve learned that there are plenty of areas within the realm of Psychology that will allow me to do the same thing I’ve always wanted to do, if not more, such as Cognitive Neuropsychology or Psychobiology.

So why am I depressed?

I know part of the answer. My GPA is irreparable. The stress and anxiety of failing or barely skimming by in the science courses majorly interfered with my progress in the other courses required by the University, such as Literature and History. My transcript does not look good. Another reason I think I lay in bed at night unable to sleep is because I truly feel like I’ve given up on my dreams, which I have, but not really. I’m still going to be doing what I’ve dreamed of (except without the white coat) but the method has changed. I’ve wasted so much time and money working toward a degree that I won’t even get.

I just feel like a complete idiot and a complete failure, and I believe that any graduate admission committee will glance at my transcript and think the same thing.

It may be silly, but there are times that the thought of suicide wears on me because what I wanted to be my life for so many years seems to have just dissipated (this could be the bipolar talking, and I plan on seeing someone).

So… I think I just want to see if anyone else has ever been in a slightly similar situation…

2

Hi! You’re not a failure. You’re going to graduate with a degree that you have a future in. Do you know how many people, just in the U.S. alone, don’t have degrees? You had trouble, but you stuck with it and should be proud of yourself. Yes, maybe you won’t graduate with the degree you originally hoped for, but you didn’t just quit. There are so many students in the same situation you are in that decide to just leave. I’m one of them. Now 10 years later I’m finishing what I started. I regret so much that I quit.

Everything in life happens for a reason. Maybe this is the path you were always intended for. Keep your head up and stay focused on the fact that you’re graduating next year!!

3

:slight_smile: I’ll do my best. Thanks so much for the friendly advice :slight_smile:

4

Instead of beating yourself up for what you didn’t accomplish ( and welcome to a very large and distinguished club of people who will NOT be doctors after all), how about a little applause for what you have done? Gotten through college with a degree in a field that interests you, despite a diag of bipolar disorder? What’s idiotic about that? Lots of people switch directions many times in college until they find their niche. Some don’t find their niche at all - it happens later once they are working. There are no prizes for going directly from A to B in your life (although I grant you there is less stress and uncertainly if you are single-minded, which is why people pursue goals that don’t always make the most sense). But some of the most interesting people I know have zigged and zagged their way through life.

That said, you really need to find a qualified therapist right now. Make it a priority. If you don’t click with the first therapist, find a different one that is a fit. Thoughts of suicide - and even just sleeplessness and general depression - should never be treated dismissively. Give yourself the gift of support as you work through the big changes that will be coming into your life as you approach graduation.

5

First of all, I’ve posted this in multiple (appropriate) places to try to get varying views, so I’m sorry for being a forum hog.

Before I even started college, I knew I wanted to go into medicine. So, I chose to major in Biology Pre-Professional (pre-med). Because I planned on going to med school, I decided to add a second major: Psychology. I thought that a background in Psychology would give me a leg up later down the road. I guess maybe it did.

Throughout the past few years, I’ve been taking a mix of Psychology and pre-med courses, such as Physics, Biology, and Chemistry. I’ve done pretty well with the Psych stuff, mostly B’s and A’s, but have had setbacks with the natural sciences - a lot of them. I have had to take some courses more than once, and barely passed some of the others. This wasn’t because I’m dumb. I have a lot of trouble with attention AND I have bipolar disorder (diagnosed, not medicated) which makes it difficult to maintain consistent motivation, which is ABSOLUTELY NECESSARY when taking courses such as Calculus based University Physics and Organic Chemistry.

I’ve currently finished roughly 3/4 finished of my Bio degree, and I’m only lacking 2 classes to finish my Psych degree. There are 2 major problems I’m faced with. 1) What medical school is going to accept me with the grades I’ve received for their required courses? and 2) I’m almost out of financial aid, so it will be physically impossible for me to finish the Bio degree anyway.

Since I can graduate with Psych in May of 2016, I’m going to abandon the Biology degree along with my dreams of going to medical school.

I’ve always known that my interests were neurological in nature; I planned on specializing in Neurology once in med school. With my primary focus now shifting to Psychology, I’ve learned that there are plenty of areas within the realm of Psychology that will allow me to do the same thing I’ve always wanted to do, if not more, such as Cognitive Neuropsychology or Psychobiology.

So why am I depressed?

I know part of the answer. My GPA is irreparable. The stress and anxiety of failing or barely skimming by in the science courses majorly interfered with my progress in the other courses required by the University, such as Literature and History. My transcript does not look good. Another reason I think I lay in bed at night unable to sleep is because I truly feel like I’ve given up on my dreams, which I have, but not really. I’m still going to be doing what I’ve dreamed of (except without the white coat) but the method has changed. I’ve wasted so much time and money working toward a degree that I won’t even get.

I just feel like a complete idiot and a complete failure, and I believe that any graduate admission committee will glance at my transcript and think the same thing.

It may be silly, but there are times that the thought of suicide wears on me because what I wanted to be my life for so many years seems to have just dissipated (this could be the bipolar talking, and I plan on seeing someone).

So… I think I just want to see if anyone else has ever been in a slightly similar situation…

6

I agree with the above - if you are not already in mental health care, please get into it. You don’t necessarily have to take medication, but you should know that the feelings of worthlessness and suicide are not normal, even as a response to a perceived loss of a dream. There are people who can help you. So please seek out some help.

Now, onto your question. Psychology is my field, although not neuropsychology.

Simplistically, there are two kinds of psychologists who study brain stuff. [Clinical neuropsychologists](Clinical Neuropsychology) actually assess, diagnose, and treat neurological/neurodevelopmental disorders. Many (most?) clinical neurospsychologists also conduct research - sometimes they have a clinical practice and a professorship at an academic medical center, or they are affiliated with a research department in a hospital. In order to treat and diagnose, you would need to get a PhD in clinical psychology with a subspecialty in neuropsychology.

Then there are psychologists who purely do research, no clinical treatment. These psychologists have PhDs in a lot of subfields of psychology - neuroscience is common, but so is cognitive psychology, some specialized neuropsychology programs, some in biological or physiological psychology, some experimental psychology, some developmental…the training and mentorship is really what matters moreso than the subfield (as well as the opportunity to actually do some fMRI work and other such techniques). You don’t need to get licensed or anything, but the caveat is that you cannot practice. These psychologists primarily do research and maybe teach - sometimes in a medical school, sometimes in a psychology department, sometimes in other places like a school of public health, and sometimes in a non-university setting like a hospital, for the military, in a think tank, etc.

People have gone to graduate school with bad undergraduate GPAs. The thing to do is put some distance between yourself and undergrad. If you don’t already, you’ll need some research experience; many people get that post-college by working as a lab assistant/project manager/research associate. Any variety of places will hire people to do this: public and private research labs, university research groups, nonprofit organizations, think tanks, etc. You can also take a few graduate-level classes as a non-degree student (if you work at a university you may be able to do this for free). Get As in them to prove you can handle graduate-level work.

Lastly, do realize that not everyone’s life takes the very straightforward high school → college → graduate school → “life dream I have had since age 17” path - in fact, most people’s lives do not. It’s usually a more meandering path - trying things out and failing or disliking it, switching ideas, trying new things, so on and so forth. So don’t feel like an idiot - you are just like everyone else, trying things and seeing what works.

7

A family member of ours did not get into medical school after two attempts. She went back to a local 4-year college (low tuition) for one year and completed the remaining prerequisites for a BSN nursing degree. She then applied to a local BSN program at a nearby SUNY (15-minutes commute) and completed her BSN in less than two years. Worked for one year in an ICU and applied to a local Nurse Anesthesia program. She completed the NA program in 2.5 years (while receiving a bi-weekly stipend, free tuition/fees - less than $10K debt) and had a few job offers. She averages about $200-250K per year as a CRNA and like the work that she does and the not so hectic pace of her profession.

Moral of the story is, your life is just getting started and you have many pathways to a successful career in Healthcare (if so desired). You can try to get in a Physician Assistant Program, become a Psych Nurse Practitioner, Anesthesia Assistant (similar to a CRNA), Cardiovascular Perfusionist and a ton of other rewarding careers that former premed students have pursued. If you can squeeze Anatomy and Physiology I or I&II before leaving undergrad, that might give you some additional options in the future.

8

Thanks so much for the advice.

“juillet”,

I’m still trying to decide if I want to go the clinical route or not. Based on some of my interests, my academic adviser suggested that I look into Clinical Neuropsychology and I think that might be my niche.

You mentioned that it might be good for one to have some research experience under their belt when applying to graduate school. As it turns out, I do. When I was taking a research course at my University, I wanted to do some cognitive research, which was surprising to my professors since most students do things like surveys and rat research. Because our resources were limited, I reached out to other institutions to see if I could “borrow” a lab. Fortunately, I got in touch with a professor at Virginia Tech who was gracious enough to set me up with his graduate student who was conducting similar research using fNIRS technology. I felt like I was on top of the world.

In addition to this tremendous experience, I convinced our Psych department head to purchase a portable EEG headset that I could use to conduct research that was still within the realm of cognition without having to drive over an hour to VT.

I’m also doing an internship under the supervision of a Psychologist. This clinic’s focus is on testing and she allows me to administer some to patients. Unfortunately, there are no Cognitive Psychologists or anything like that in my area.

So my curiosity is whether or not experiences such as these will help, to some degree, make up for the deficit in my bleeding GPA provided that I also do well on the GRE? Could it be possible that my natural-science background actually helps me instead of hurts me? Some relevant classes include A&P I & II, Chemistry and Physics (useful lab experience?) and Medical Terminology. I doubt things like Ecology or Botany will be of much use.

Thanks for any insight guys.

9

That is great that you are involved in various research projects. But due to the GPA issue I think the advice to put some distance between yourself and your undergrad studies still is important. Find a job related in some way to your degree or career interests, and eventually enroll in a few grad courses as a nondegree student. Get As, and then consider applying for graduate programs. You will be able to get into a better program later on.

10

Alright. Thanks for the direction.

11

Yes, research experience will help make up for the GPA deficit. But you will still probably need to take some time off, like @CheddarcheeseMN said.

You never did say - what is your GPA?