<p>I am thinking of majoring in either bio or chem or something that is related to biochm, what is cases's strongest departement in terms of the sciences?</p>
<p>I don't know very much about the chemistry dept, but I can say that there are sooo many opportunities for a bio/biochem major at Case. Currently there's a ridiculous amount of research going on, what with the large undergraduate faculty, as well as the med school. If you're into biochem, there's an entire RNA center (I think there are only a few of these in the country) over in the med school, and they're very willing to take on undergrads (I, as well as several other undergrads are currently working in the labs in RNA center). </p>
<p>In biology, there's research going in virtually every field- developmental, cell, ecology, evolutionary, genetics, animal behavior, etc..- there really is an overabundance of opportunities in biology, and most professors are pretty responsive to students that show interest. </p>
<p>Finally, i'm not involved in chemistry so take this with a grain of salt, but I think its a smaller, relatively weaker department than bio/biochem. This is solely based on how much I hear about each of the departments though, and since i'm much more involved in biology/biochem, its possible that I just don't look for any news on the chem department.</p>
<p>Do BME. I think that's the best way to go.</p>
<p>is BME really harcore?</p>
<p>From what I've heard, its pretty hardcore- as any engineering discipline is. There are more math reqs, computer science, harder physics (and chem?) sequences, and some crazy electives. Still, the material is extremely interesting (I have a friend planning to research in bone regeneration- or something of that nature).</p>
<p>Yes. There is a specific engineering chemistry for those students going to do engineering majors. And the course uses the same text as the Honors chem at Texas(my state school).</p>
<p>Bio/Biochem are okay, but you're really limiting yourself in my opinion. I say go BME because it's one of the few respectable majors at the school. Engineering is hard, usually many students drop out of the major each year (you have to be prepared for the quantitative nature of the major. However, plenty of people do just fine. I think the best part of BME is that you can do pretty much anything you want, pre-med, pre-law, business, even engineering hahaha. It's all open to you. </p>
<p>My friend stayed at Case instead of going to Northwestern because he likes the research better. While Northwestern focuses on making the processes for BME easier, Case focuses on research on developing artificial tissues and things like that. It's really interesting. </p>
<p>I kind of regret not going into engineering, but I think the me now would have been a lot more suited for it, than the me last year. I don't think I would've done BME.</p>
<p>see Sachmoney the way I see it is that because you do engineering, you have more courses to do since the engineering prereq's don't fit into the pre-med sequence of courses. and since you take more courses, more possibility of getting a lower gpa. and also, more people in bme means more competition, and also, a lower gpa. so that's why I chose biochem. and also, lots of people in biomed eng. say it is a h*** of a time there. and what's not respectable about biochem./biology major. I thought that was also a strong major at case.</p>
<p>well I am actually PPSP medicine, so I am set on the pre-med track</p>
<p>Sachmoney, you mentioned that BME is one of the few respectable majors at case, what are some of the others? It seems like no offense but BME is the only one where Case is nationally ranked....high</p>
<p>BME is definitely the most recognized, but I would say that basically all the sciences and engineering here are pretty well-resepected.</p>
<p>Its hard to rank undergraduate programs like biology/biochem- most undergrad curriculums like these are relatively similar.</p>
<p>If I plan on majoring in BME during freshman year and then decide that it will be too difficult to continue with, will changing to Biochem or another biology-related field be a smooth transition? Since some of the courses will overlap, will it really make much of a difference?</p>
<p>Its relatively easy to transfer out of engineering into the sciences. All the engineering chem/math/physics will count as credit for the regular science sequences. Transferring into engineering tends to be more difficult.</p>
<p>Tealover, the other good program is Systems (or systems and control...don't know, as I am not an engineering major) Engineering, which is top 5. And the other sciences are strong (at least as compared to other fields here). But you are right to note that Case does not place well in individual subjects usually. Of course, the continued decline in prestige should have made such a thing obvious.</p>
<p>tealover - Engineering majors have very different requirements than sciences. Engineering curriculums are also less flexible (have a lot more required courses) than sciences. Before making a decision, I would check the curriculums of BME, biochem, biology, chemistry, and chemical engineering. Perhaps talk to an advisor. The rankings for these programs do not mean much since curriculums are standard. For example, Case is a member of Association of Independent Technological Universities (that include MIT, Cal Tech, etc.). Members in the association share curriculums and standards.</p>
<p>icic haha well I am acutally deciding between caltech and case so :P</p>
<p>thanks for the info on engineering. </p>
<p>I thought about it and I think I am going to go into either bio or chem because engineering will require me to take a lot of classes unnecessary for premed. </p>
<p>Any thoughts on bio vs chem?</p>
<p>also do people double major a lot? I think think of doing psychology or econ (?) along with bio or chem</p>
<p>Double majors are common, but can come with some issues. If you choose one BS major and one BA major, that means a large number of extra requirements. But, as BA level studies in either Bio or Chem would do fine, you could pretty easily double major, as many students here do. The bio offerings here seem much stronger, but none of the sciences here are that bad.</p>
<p>I'd almost say neither when it comes to bio vs. chem. </p>
<p>BioChem seems to be growing in popularity. (even though its not officially an undergrad department, its closely associated with the MedSchool/Grad program, and a very strong department at case).</p>
<p>A ton of my friends are BioChem PreMed students. BioChem BA or BS requires ALL of the courses for premed, PLUS the highly reccomended BIOC 307/308, as many med schools look favorably upon 2+ semesters of BioChem in addition to the basic bio and chem courses.</p>
<p>THere are also a lot of double majors, which are much easier if one major is a social science or art, since they usually require MUCH fewer credits (40 or so) classes within the major, as compared to Bio/chem/physics, etc. </p>
<p>Psych is very popular for premeds as well. </p>
<p>Definitely doable.</p>