<p>I know that this makes me seem incredibly indecisive, and honestly, I am, but I'm struggling to choose between pre-med and pre-law. The one thing that I know for sure is that I'm going to go for a B.A. in psych. Being a surgeon and being an attorney in criminal law sound equally attractive to me.
The problem is that I don't want to get halfway through undergrad and realize that the one I chose was the wrong one. Would it be completely insane to take pre-med requirements while taking classes that a law school would appreciate as well? The college I'm going to requires me to take a liberal arts education since my major is in the liberal arts college, so I'll have a bunch of core classes anyway. I don't mind having a heavier workload as I'm used to it already.
Basically what it comes down to is I want to keep my options open for my future and decide med or law when I have a foundation in both.</p>
<p>You have a lot more prospects in medicine than law. The legal market sucks and demand is low. I’d go to med school if I were you, but if you’re not passionate about medicine, med school will be long and difficult!</p>
<p>Law schools have no specific course or major requirements. You can be pre-law with any course selection, so it is not like you need to decide now whether to do pre-law (but you need to get a top end GPA and LSAT to get into a top law school, since graduates of non-top law schools face a rough job market).</p>
<p>I agree with what ucbalumnus said.</p>
<p>You can go to law school with “pre-med” courses, but you can’t go to med school with “pre-law” courses (unless you plan accordingly.)</p>
<p>pre law is a lot easier, no organic chem cell bio bio chem etc…history classes, politics classes etc much easier (traditional pre law route) way too many lawyers out there.
law degree–buyer beware</p>
<p>Some colleges actually offer dual law/med degree, but it sounds crazy. They both have some risks in this economy (as does everything else). It’s easier to get into law school but this typically means massive debt with no guarantee of hire. If you look at the '09 grads, it’s clear that law firms don’t go back and rehire past graduates. If you don’t get a job you’re basically screwed with huge debt. </p>
<p>Med school is a lot harder to get in, but it can obviously pay off and it’s an admirable goal. If you don’t get in, it’s the same dilemma, all those science classes with no med degree.</p>
<p>First of all, I agree that the legal market sucks right now. Even people at top schools are having a harder time finding a job. So I wouldn’t be thinking pre-law.</p>
<p>But the other thing is that you can major in anything and go to law school - there’s no pre-law set of studies. So you could take the pre-med prerequisites and still apply to law school. Just make sure you also take classes that develop your critical thinking and writing skills as electives. Political science, English, sociology, philosophy, or history courses can be good for that.</p>
<p>There are a lot of people on this forum who want to become lawyers. I wonder if it is just this website, or if there is going to be a surge of new law school applicants in the coming years.</p>
<p>I think law is popular among incoming freshman and high school students in general. The job market for it is awful however.</p>
<p>In the end both require a passion in their respective subjects for one to enjoy the profession. Surgery, while lucrative, requires a TON of hours and stress and can be especially taxing to one’s personal life. I remember listening to a surgeon speak in a seminar of how surgery had cost him his family… it’s not a profession without consequence.</p>
<p>Ultimately, college is a period for you to explore various options. Pre-med can be one option and if you are intrigued by medicine, continue with your courses and apply to med school. If something else intrigues you, pursue a career path where you can continue to educate and expose yourself to the subject.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Pre-med is also popular among college freshmen. But many eventually do not even apply to medical school (perhaps because they know that their GPAs are too low). Many pre-meds major in biology, contributing to the oversupply of biology graduates and depressing the job prospects of biology graduates.</p>
<p>
What exactly is the struggle? To apply to med school you need to take 9 or so required classes in college. To apply to law school you need a college degree. In absolutely anything. The only decision it seems you really face is whether to take the required premed classes or not.</p>
<p>Honestly it sounds like you have just a superficial knowledge of what a life as a surgeon or as a lawyer specializing criminal law would be like. Nothing wrong with that as a HS student, but instead of fretting about which pre-X curriculum to follow (which isn’t really an issue, anyway) you’d be better off spending your time learning what it takes to enter and advance in each field, what the career would be like, getting actual exposure via volunteer or paid work, etc. There are so many ways you can get some 1st-hand knowledge that will help you make a decision, and the sooner you start the better.
Yes, it would, because all the classes you take are going to teach you exactly nothing about whether you would enjoy either field. It is insane to focus on derivative areas (eg. qualifying for admission) and ignore the real heart of the matter. </p>
<p>Law schools could care less about what classes you take, BTW. They suggest classes that involve lots of reading and papers because that is good practice for what you’ll be doing in law school, but in terms of admission it all boils down to GPA and LSAT.</p>
<p>Note that the LSAT has logical reasoning questions on it. Perhaps that is why math and philosophy majors tend to do well on it compared to other majors.</p>
<p>Thanks for your opinions everyone. To mikemac, I think you’re assuming a lot about me. I said pre-law to simplify any explanation. I’m fully aware that law schools actually don’t care what you take. I meant classes to take to have you more prepared for law school. I also know about the true lifestyles of each, not just superficial things that you might see on TV. I have had experiences already in high school with both careers. I know what goes into it. I go to a prep school, so I’m not the type to decide what I want to do because it seems like a lucrative career at face value.</p>
<p>i mean, you can major in anything you want and still go to med school, too.</p>
<p>so take pre-med and major in something with a lot of papers.
or mathematics. apparently mathematics majors do the best on the LSAT.</p>