Hey everyone! I’m going to be a freshman this fall and I’m planning to major in neuroscience, but I heard it is a GPA killer. Is this true? I am planning to go to med school, and while neuroscience interests me a lot I think my GPA comes first. I also heard psychobiology is similar but much easier. What would you recommend?
Psychobiology is one of the earliest for the premeds.
Current senior about to graduate with a degree neuroscience, also a premed. While I’ve loved most of the classes and remain fascinated by the subject, It’s definitely been a challenging major for a number of reasons and if your focus is to go to medical school, then yes, I would recommend majoring in something else.
First off, the core classes are demanding and time-consuming (especially Neuro 102) and for many students (myself included) are a major reason for their GPA dropping. Each class (101A, B, and C) is divided into 3 modules (a single module lasts 3-4 weeks), each taught by a different professor. This means you’re taking midterms written by 3 different professors, which may or may not be a downside for you. In addition, the amount of material covered in 3-4 weeks can sometimes be overwhelming (there were about 300 slides worth of material covered for the first module of 101C). Neuro 102 (Neuroanatomy) is another challenging class due to the breadth of material covered and amount of material you’re required to memorize. The textbook is a book commonly used by medical students during their medical neuroscience module. I suppose it’d be a good way to preview what you’re in for if your plan is to go to medical school. You’ll most likely need to take it concurrently with Neuro 101A, as well, so that’s two heavy classes you’ll have to take during the quarter.
Once you get past the core classes, however, the rest is pretty straightforward. Most of the electives I’ve taken in the neuroscience department, as well as the neuroscience-related courses I’ve taken in the psych and phy sci department, have been pretty interesting and not too demanding. I’ve had professors who are pretty renowned in their field, as well as professors who are passionate about their field and just awesome people in general.
In retrospect, however, it would have been better to take these classes in a different major. Neuroscience students only get first pass enrollment for courses in the neuroscience department. This isn’t that great a benefit for 2 reasons. 1) Neuroscience majors are guaranteed enrollment in the core classes, as the department will always make space, so you usually don’t need to prioritize enrolling in Neuro 101A/B/C. 2) There aren’t that many electives actually designated under the neuroscience department that you can sign up for. I have NEVER seen a single elective offered in the fall, and usually only 2-3 electives are offered during winter/spring quarters, as many of the professors are typically busy teaching graduate classes or research, so certain electives are actually only offered every 2 or 3 years. Most of the electives I’ve taken have actually been in the psychology or phy sci department, and you are not given priority enrollment for either.
If you are interested in neuroscience, I would recommend majoring in psychobio or psych and perhaps audit one or two neuroscience core classes during your 2nd year and see if you’d be interested in taking up the minor. As a psychobio major, you’ll also have priority enrollment in classes that are much harder to enroll in if you were in neuroscience (particularly the Psych 119 series). Psych classes tend to be significantly easier than neuroscience classes as well. The tests are typically much more straightforward (often all M/C, rather than essay/short-answer type questions), and the material typically isn’t as dense. To give you a perspective, I’ve done well in psych classes where I didn’t study very much for, while I’ve done considerably less well in neuroscience classes that I’ve spent much more time and effort in. Being in a less demanding major will also free up much more time, so that you can dedicate more time on your extracurriculars and studying for your MCAT. As a neuroscience major, you’ll find that you’ll have much less time to be involved in extracurricular activities on campus, particularly if you choose to do the Student Research Program for your capstone route.
I will say this, however. The neuroscience department here is phenomenal and the research done here is cutting-edge. If you are up for a challenge and are willing to go the extra mile, then you may find the neuroscience major worthwhile. I’ve had friends who are exceptionally good students and have performed well in the major, but they worked hard to earn their grades and were passionate about the subject. It’s not impossible to do well if you put in the work (although that can be said for any major). Don’t be afraid to go into the major if you see yourself up for the challenge and don’t mind sacrificing a lot of time to study for your classes. You’ll definitely come out well-prepared for medical school, if you develop the study habits needed to do well as a neuroscience major.