<p>It seems like a bit of an odd question, at least in my mind. But i have an immense passion for both physics and medicine. I did research on getting into med school and many people recommend majoring in whatever you love doing, as long as you get the requirements for pre-med. They also say that your GPA is possibly the most influential factor in you getting into a med school. I am currently a highschooler, so i still have time to think about all this, but i figured i would get some opinions early on.</p>
<p>If gpa is the most important aspect of med school acceptances, should i really go into a physics major? The goal for med school is an undergrad gpa of about 3.8. I personally don't know how difficult that will be in college, but i have heard that a physics major is extremely rigorous, even if you love the subject. But, physics majors also scored the best on their MCATs. Would any of you have knowledge on how tough the physics majors are, and whether it's worth doing if i want to end in pre-med? Or would it be better to major in something easier such as biology, psychology, or chemistry? </p>
<p>D1 earned a BS physics/BS mathematics and is now a MS2. Her GPA took somewhat of hit with her difficult double major and not a single interviewer wanted to talk about her research (medium energy particle physics), but she loves physics. (She did better the farther along she got in her studies. Bs in calc-based general physics for majors, but A+s in grad quantum. She said grad quantum made studying PChem trivial and even helped with OChem since she could derive chemical pathways just by thinking about orbital mechanics.)</p>
<p>The difficulty of a physics major will depend on how good your math skills are (they need to be really good) and how comfortable you are with looking at the world at a very basic mechanistic level. </p>
<p>The other upside to a physics major–your job prospects, should you not get accepted into med school, are definitely better than if you major in bio or psych.</p>
<p>Yes, physics majors do seem to be considered by some employers in computers, finance, and engineering who are willing to take “smart people who can think logically and mathematically”. This is not generally true for biology and chemistry majors, who tend to have poor major-specific job prospects at the bachelor’s degree level.</p>
<p>Exactly. In fact chem and physics majors spend a lot of time studying the exact same science and math. Group theory is group theory no matter what your major is. </p>
<p>OP, any major can be difficult. What determines outcomes is passion for what you are doing. If your passion is physics, then it might just be easy for you. My passion is chemistry, and I am doing very well. Physics is not inherently more difficult than chemistry. When I started college, I was a dual degree student (music, chemistry). I found music theory much more difficult than chemistry, math or physics.</p>
<p>I majored in Astronomy which means I took a lot of physics getting my undergraduate degree and was still accepted at a US allopathic medical school. I had a GPA of 3.7, which amazingly contained two semesters of C in Organic Chemistry. It is true that Organic Chemistry is far more difficult than Relativity, Quantum Mechanics, Celestial Mechanics, Solid State Physics or any other Astronomy, Physics or Mathematics course I have ever taken.</p>
<p>Thank you so much to everyone for your replies. I generally don’t have much trouble in my highschool physics class, and that might be because i have a slightly higher than required background in calculus. It seems to me like doing the physics major, if i’m serious about it would be a good idea. I don’t know much about how the college scheduling system works, however. Would it be possible for me to do a physics major and, if it comes to it, try to cushion my grades with easier classes? How exactly does course selection go when you’re choosing your major? Would this be a smart course of action?
WayOutWestMom: That’s extremely cool, though just to be clear does MS2 mean a second year medical student? And how exactly can you get past a lower gpa if you’re applying to med school?</p>
<p>Yes, MS2 means she has finished her second year of med school. (Her school has a compressed second year that ends in January.) She will be starting her clinical training (MS3) in April and takes her USMLE in 10 days.</p>
<p>Her GPA wasn’t terrible, but it was below the norm of 3.6. She compensated in 2 ways: 1) her MCAT score was in the top 4% nationally; 2) her grades in key pre-reqs were top of the class (highest grade in OChem out of 320 students. Also one of just 3 A+ in anatomy & physiology course taught by the same prof who teaches anatomy to med students)–and she had strong LORs from those profs.</p>
<p>~~~~</p>
<p>Physics has pretty well defined core of classes offered at all universities. There aren’t a whole lot of electives–especially not any ‘easy’ electives for majors. Most physics degrees require a significant number of higher level math classes as part of the program. (Essentially you’ll end up doing a math minor along with your physics major no matter what school you enroll in.)</p>
<p>Once you add in med school pre-reqs like Ochem, bio, biochem, soc, psych–you won’t have much room left for ‘grade fluffing’ classes. You will have to shape your schedule very carefully so you don’t end up with a bunch time-intensive classes with labs all during the same semesters.</p>
<p>Alright, thanks again, just one last question Would it be an alright idea to not aim for the most high-end undergrad college? I say this with the idea that, a place such as U. of Michigan will have a very tough Physics major, one where my gpa will, in all likelihood, take a hit. Instead, if i were to go to a school that had high rates for medical school application and while also having a relatively less rigorous, course, would that work? What i have in mind currently is Rhodes College, although i’m still looking for others that meet these requirement. Speaking of which, if this is a good idea and you know of some colleges that match the description that are in the North, from Michigan to North Carolina, i would definitely love to hear about them.</p>
<p>Any rates of successful med school applicants posted by a college are not to be trusted.</p>
<p>Why?</p>
<p>Because there is no uniform way this number is calculated. (Does it include alumni applicants or just college senior applicants? Does it include just MD programs? Does it include DO and MD? ND? Caribbean med schools? Does the school restrict who applies by withholding committee letters from weaker candidates?)</p>
<p>Rhodes College’s physics program may or may not be less challenging than UMich’s. (You might look up old posts by curmudgeon whose D attended Rhodes and take a look at his observations.) </p>
<p>I am most familiar with western and southwestern schools, but if you post your stats, FA requirements and state residence, I’m sure some of the knowledgable posters here can make some suggestions.</p>
<p>Oh, that’s interesting, i hadn’t thought about that. I’ll definitely look into it. </p>
<p>So, this is my junior years. My weighted GPA is a 4.2.</p>
<p>Calculus AB AP: 75 (Although this is low, he is recognized as one of the toughest highschool professors and they do send a special letter regarding every students grade that’s in his class)
Computer Science AP: 88
Physics AP: 92
US History AP: 98
German 2 Honors: 94
English Literature AP: 95</p>
<p>I also do Debate, I’ve placed at all but one tournament this year. My plan is to volunteer this summer at the veterans hospital. My state of residence is TN, though i am not sure i want to stay here for college. Financially, my family is at the boundary between lower and middle class, so we do not receive massive aid, but we also can not afford massive tuition, so a scholarship/full-ride would definitely be a major plus.</p>
<p>A couple of comments regarding Rhodes. My D is a Rhodes grad, and is currently in a highly regarded MD/PhD program. Rhodes has excellent pre-med advising (even for a student who didn’t decide to take that route until very late in her undergrad experience). The physics department is excellent (but small), and there is a nice, competitive scholarship for prospective physics majors.</p>
<p>Ahh, alright, thank you. Rhodes sounds like such a great school, but it again comes to me not wanting to stay in this state. I can’t tell whether or not i should be aiming for a school with an easier program. </p>
<p>Wayoutwestmom, would you mind telling me where your D graduated from? </p>
<p>Also, do you think it would be a good idea to call the schools and ask about their programs? I’m not particularly familiar with how that works.</p>
<p>You could call various schools, but you might get better responses and more detailed answers if you emailed various physics depts with specific questions. Look at the dept page for the undergrad advisor’s name–and contact him/her.</p>
<p>DH was PhD research physicist and he either knew someone at all the U’s D1 applied or or knew someone who knew someone. (The profession isn’t all that big when you’ve been active in it for a couple for decades.) He researched the dept offerings and contacted individuals he knew to get their personal assessment of the dept’s strength.</p>
<p>If I were you, I’d draw up a list of potential schools, then check the physics offerings at those schools. See how often key courses are offered. At smaller schools, upper level electives/requirements (stat mech, quantum, thermo) may be only offered every second or third year. (Every other year is OK so long as you plan carefully; other 3rd year is not.)</p>
<p>I’d also look for things like student research opportunities. (DH had trouble finding a research lab for physics at his LAC and ended up doing his senior thesis in chemistry. His only other choice was to drive 80 mile several time each week to work in a lab at different school. D2’s has a friend who was a physics major at SLAC, and he couldn’t find any research opportunities at the school and spent his summers doing REUs OOS to get any research opportunities at all.) The reason physics major have problems finding research at small schools is because state-of-the-art physics labs are very expensive to build, run and staff. Physics is also usually a small dept.</p>
<p>I would also check to see what research areas various profs are working in and if they have published anything (and anything recently). You can find this out by looking at the name of physics dept faculty on the physics dept page and then checking out their individual pages.</p>
<p>You might also see how many physics students there are at the school. It’s helpful to have a critical mass of students. If a school only averages 3-4 physics majors a year–it might be tough to find a compatible peer group to study with. (You can find out the number of physics majors by looking at graduation stats to see how many physics degrees have been awarded in the last year or two.) Also with that small of a cohort–key classes can get unexpectedly cancelled. (A number of smaller colleges are actually closing their physics dept because they cannot get a sufficient number of majors enrolling. It’s a terrible thing!)</p>
<p>Ah, thank you for all the information, that was extremely helpful The list that i have so far goes like this(in no particular order):
University of Rochester
Tufts
UMass Amherst
Northeastern
UMich
Duke</p>
<p>Basically, i’m just looking for higher end colleges in the states of NY, Penn, Mass, and NC. Umich is really the only university i’m looking at in Michigan, but there are several that i’m looking at in the other states. My aim is to find find a school where the students aren’t super competitive, but are instead cooperative. Of course, academic quality is also a huge factor, as are the school advisers. Financial aid isn’t as huge a problem, but it’s definitely something i’m going to take into consideration if all the academics are equal. Would you have any experience or knowledge about these schools, or schools in this region?
I’ve heard that Rochester’s area isn’t very pretty, though i doubt i’d be spending huge amounts of time outside anyways. I’ve heard mixed reports about their advisers.</p>
<p>Just a note, my PSAT was 211(i really should have done better, i hadn’t known it was serious at the time), and my ACT was 33, but i can pull that up if a prepare for it a bit. </p>
<p>Thank you again for all of the help you’ve given.</p>
<p>URoch has an outstanding physics program–particularly in optics–with up-to-date/new research facilities. (Well, except in nuclear physics…it’s not an area they deal much with.) DH worked in optics and optical materials for a period of his career and worked with numerous UR [PhD] grads.</p>
<p>Also URoch as a adjacent med school–literally right across the street from the physics/engineering classrooms. (Disclosure: D2 is a 2012 UR grad. I’ll try to answer some of your questions via PM.)</p>
<p>UMich also has an excellent undergrad physics program and there’s also an adjacent med school. The problem with UMich is that OOS students do not get good FA.</p>
<p>Don’t know much specifically about the physics programs at the other schools you’ve mentioned.</p>
<p>EDIT: UR does do nuclear. Just not anywhere near campus and not nearly as much as they did 35 years ago. All research is located at other facilities–like Brookhaven (Long Island, NY) and Argonne (IL, near Chicago) Labs.</p>
Would it be an alright idea to not aim for the most high-end undergrad college? I say this with the idea that, a place such as U. of Michigan will have a very tough Physics major, one where my gpa will, in all likelihood, take a hit. Instead, if i were to go to a school that had high rates for medical school application and while also having a relatively less rigorous, course, would that work? What i have in mind currently is Rhodes College, although i’m still looking for others that meet these requirement. Speaking of which, if this is a good idea and you know of some colleges that match the description that are in the North, from Michigan to North Carolina, i would definitely love to hear about them.</p>