<p>I am currently about to enter my freshman year at Stanford and I will be on a premed track. Of course, I've also been deliberating over which major would best suit me (premed reqs don't give me much time/room to explore) and would be bearable given the rigor of premed. This is complicated by my interest in programming at Stanford, which naturally deals with a major (Computer Science) that typically seems to be considered hellish (and relatively grade deflated) as it is. However, I've stumbled upon what appears to be a designed "biomedical computation" major and I was wondering how it differs from computer science ( other than its research component) and in general would be more doable (read as not GPA killing) in conjunction with premed. I am no genius by any means if that means anything.</p>
<p>On a more unrelated note, I have also been considering a major in humbio (I like humanities too)/bio with a possible minor in CS (though I could exclusively do humbio as well X_X), though I doubt the overall practicality with regard to this as a contingency option in case medicine falls through. It should be obvious by now that I am rather lost with regards to this issue so I would really appreciate any help on this matter.</p>
<p>I can’t speak to CS, but I’m a premed HumBio major with a minor in PubPol, so I have some experience with the HumBio/minor/premed combination. I also have one friend doing BMC, but I really don’t know too much about it. From the classes he takes though, I’d say it’s split pretty evenly between more traditional bio/chem classes and CS ones. It sounds like something that might be up your alley, and if you do change your mind about medical school there should be some solid research jobs open in the future. </p>
<p>First a recommendation about CS: the CS majors here are really into it. They work hard, they’re passionate about it, and they get great jobs at great companies upon graduation. They are who you will be competing with. That said, I don’t know any who are premed. The classes themselves can be one of two ways: highly time consuming and challenging, but enjoyable, or super-highly time consuming, incredibly challenging, and almost miserable. The difference between the two is the perspective of the kid taking them: if CS is something that comes naturally for you, and you have a real passion for it, then you’d fall into the first category. If either of those isn’t true, the second. Most of my friends who were thinking CS when they started and fell into the second category ended up changing their major. Just note though, that regardless of which type you are, the programming and work and all is very time-consuming, so balancing that with some of the premed classes would be difficult. </p>
<p>For me, balancing HumBio and the PubPol minor hasn’t been a problem. Some of the med school weeder classes are tough, sure, and at times it’s a lot of work, but if you can manage your time well it’s not too bad. I’d imagine switching the PubPol minor for a CS one would make it a bit more difficult, but still manageable. I’d urge you to learn more about the major, specifically the options you have for your concentration within it. Everyone takes a core sequence, then we split off and sort of design what angle we want to take; my track is more medical based, but I know kids doing environmental-type stuff, neuro-focused, and a bunch of others. You could probably work in some CS; since you typically complete the core classes sophomore year, you have a good amount of time to develop the major as you like.</p>
<p>Thanks for the help. Your advice is very helpful. If you (or anybody here) also know(s) anything of or anyone in the symbolic systems major, I would really appreciate the information.</p>