<p>Hi all! I will be attending Bama as a freshman in the fall. For the longest time, I have been attracted to a career in the field of law/international relations. Currently, my major is set to be Political Science. BUT I’m taking an anatomy course right now, and it has me thinking that I want to be a doctor. I’ve been looking up information on required courses for pre-meds and the MCAT, and it seems that most of these courses would be covered in the Biology Major. Anyone know hard it would be to double-major in something like Political Science and Biology? Or do a minor in either? </p>
<p>I’ll be coming to Bama with about 17 credits, but I do also really want to study abroad for a semester (I’m in the IHP) and I’ve been looking forward to learning Arabic. Any advice for me in general? Thanks so much!</p>
<p>I have a son who is pre-med at Bama, so I have done a lot of investigation into the whole pre-med/med school requirements and prep.</p>
<p>If you want to change your major online, do so on MyBama…academics tab…down left column.</p>
<p>you can major in whatever you want…Bio, Chem, whatever. Actually, the Chem major also covers many of the pre-med req’ts because there are 4 chem req’ts for pre-med. Gen Chem I and II, and OChem I and II. </p>
<p>Do you have a scholarship to Bama? If so, which one?</p>
<p>Which 17 credits are you coming in with? Are they dual credits or AP?</p>
<p>You will want to schedule your classes so that the fall of senior year is light…preferably with school only on 2 or 3 days…or no classes on Fridays…to have time for med school interviews. </p>
<p>If needed, you can take some summer classes at a CC, but don’t take any pre-med pre-reqs or courses for your major(s) at a CC. Med schools don’t like that. But, if want to take a sociology class or an art history class at a CC to make more room in your schedule, then fine.</p>
<p>But, I have to say…don’t consider double majoring if it will in any way hurt your GPA. Med schools will NOT give you “bonus points” for double majoring. You need for your GPA to be a 3.7+. And you need your science/math GPA to be as high as well. So, if double majoring will jeopardize that at all, don’t do. You can always do a minor or just a few classes in your other interest.</p>
<p>Thanks! I have the NMF scholarship. My credits will be a dual-enrollment anatomy course I’m taking right now (8 credits for BIO 201/202), 6 credits for AP U.S. History, and 6 credits from dual-enrollment English 101/102. </p>
<p>I’ve been reading that med schools (esp more prestigious ones such as Johns Hopkins, etc) prefer non-science majors to show that they are well-rounded. I don’t want to change my major just yet, because of a) that reason and b) I’m not completely sure I want to be a doctor yet. I enjoyed my biology class and my current anatomy class, but I am generally more strong in areas like English and history.</p>
<p>It looks like you are already in good hands. M2CK can help you once she knows a little more. I would encourage you to select a major that is marketable just in case you change your mind or have trouble getting accepted to medical school. Back in the day I majored in biology as well but would have had to wait tables with the degree if I had not been accepted to medical school. Majoring in something like Chem E would be more marketable should your career course change AND it is a great pre-med major. If not Chem E, some other major that would allow you to be employed shortly after your graduate would be preferable to biology.</p>
<p>*I’ve been reading that med schools (esp more prestigious ones such as Johns Hopkins, etc) prefer non-science majors to show that they are well-rounded. *</p>
<p>I don’t think that is true. I think that as long as you have a high GPA in all classes (which will include Core Curriculum) you’ll demonstrate that you’re not just strong in math/sciences. However, major in whatever interests you…Poly Sci, business, engineering, bio…even music…anything goes.</p>
<p>My pre-med son is a Chem Engineering major…his minors are in Chem, Bio, and Math. He’s found it better to minor rather than doing a second major because he can avoid any courses that might hurt his GPA.</p>
<p>I completely agree with having a back-up plan in case you decide that med school isn’t right for you.</p>
<p>Bama does have a high acceptance rate to med schools, so if you have good grades and a good MCAT and do your medically related ECs, you should be fine. As a NMF, you’ve already shown your ability to test well…that’s half the battle… :)</p>
<p>Thank y’all so much for the information so far. However, a career in engineering is really not very appealing to me. I am strong in sciences, and I do well in math, but it is definitely my least-favorite and least-strong subject. </p>
<p>I did not realize that you could do more than one minor. Can you tell me more about that? Difficulty, number of minors, do they have to be related to each other, etc?</p>
<p>zgrace, My daughter is an International Studies major in the Pol Sci dept. and on the NM scholarship too. She is in her 2nd semester of Arabic and loves it. It’s her favorite class, and she loves her instructor. UA is a State Dept. critical language lab school, so they offer languages that are in demand by the military and government. The classes are small, about 12 students. Since her teacher is from Egypt, they have spent some time talking about current affairs there.
She told me this weekend the students registered to study abroad in Egypt are still going unless the US state dept tells them otherwise. She is not one of them, but plans on study abroad in Egypt in the future.
On the other hand, she hates science, and hasn’t taken any courses yet. Can’t help with that.</p>
<p>*I did not realize that you could do more than one minor. Can you tell me more about that? Difficulty, number of minors, do they have to be related to each other, etc? *</p>
<p>Minors do not have to relate to each other. You can do as many minors as you want. </p>
<p>One of my sons is graduating in May with a Computer-Based Honors Program minor and a Philosophy Minor. His major is mathematics. My younger son is ChemE (pre-med) and will have 3 minors…bio, chem, and math. But, his minors could be whatever he wanted. He wanted to do a Spanish minor, but it requires too many upper division courses. </p>
<p>Minors usually require 18-22 credits…altho a Spanish minor (and maybe other Foreign language minors) require a lot more. Usually a minor requires 2-3 upper division courses and the rest can be lower division or upper division. Usually a student has choice/flexibility with course selection with a minor that he doesn’t have with a major.</p>
<p>you might want to consider doing New College at Bama. you could design your own major incorporating 2-3 majors and pre-med reqt’s. (You’d still be free to do a minor as well). </p>
<p>I think if I were pre-med or pre-law, that’s what I would do. </p>
<p>You could meet with a New College advisor and come up with some combination that might include: Poly Sci, History, Biology (or Chem) and maybe some business courses, Philosophy courses, and Literature courses…and include the pre-med pre-reqs as well. You would certainly be able to present yourself as a well-rounded applicant to med (or law) schools.</p>
<p>catfan, I am impressed! My DH took one year of Arabic in graduate school (until his advsor insisted that he drop it). He said it was the hardest course he’s ever had in his life. And, since he had only one year, he can hardly remember a word of it!</p>