<p>I’m a High School Junior and have me eyes set on a career in medicine. Bowdoin is definitely one of the universities I’d love to attend. </p>
<p>Does anyone know what pre-med at BC is like? Is it harder, easier, than other universities of BC’s standards/prestige? Also what about grade inflation/defaltion, what classes are like, and if it is hard to maintain a high (>3.7 GPA)?</p>
<p>Thank you!</p>
<p>Ahlyahly,</p>
<p>I am a student at Bowdoin College with a lukewarm interest in medicine and my brother went through the medical school application process recently, so i’ll try to be as helpful as possible. </p>
<p>Pre-med at Bowdoin is similar to pre-med at other colleges and universities. All “pre-med” is is a set of course requirements for students to fulfill, and these usually include a semester of English, 1-2 semesters of Math (Calculus and Statistics), 2 semesters of biology (introduction and usually some more intermediate classes), 4 semesters of chemistry (2 semesters of Organic and 2 semesters of Inorganic) and 2 semesters of physics. These standards are set-up by the AAMC (American Association of Medical Colleges) and have slight variations from medical school to medical school. </p>
<p>Pre-med at Bowdoin is just a set of these requirements and not a major of any kind. One can major in anything and explore a variety of courses (which Bowdoin recommends) and be a great candidate for a medical school, as long as prerequisites are fulfilled. In fact, the Chemistry major at Bowdoin requires students to fulfill almost all the medical school prerequisites within the curriculum. </p>
<p>Pre-med might be considered “harder” at Bowdoin over other universities, but solely on the fact that classes at Bowdoin are usually more challenging than classes at other universities. This academic rigor is often noticed in the GPA of some medical school applicants at Bowdoin as our average GPA on campus is around 3.3. As you mentioned a 3.7, I think the cut-off for Dean’s List students (top 20% of student GPAs) was around a 3.7. Science classes are very challenging. That being said, Bowdoin students are often quit well prepared for the MCAT and usually have a great list of ECs and research. Students can do well in the sciences at Bowdoin as long as you are focused and work hard. </p>
<p>While there is not grade deflation, the standards for an A may be a little extreme at times. For example, an A in an introductory chemistry course was 94 for me, which was high. </p>
<p>Classes are pretty small for the most part, especially after the introductory courses and I think students come away with a large amount of information and appreciation and understanding, even if an A is not always achieved. As for prestige, medical schools know that Bowdoin is a difficult college and well-known among most medical schools. Every year students go to top research medical schools, state medical schools, and other medical schools. </p>
<p>I personally believe that Bowdoin is a great place for a pre-med student (I’m a little bias), especially because the academic environment is not competitive, but rather communal and there is little GPA comparison on campus. It is also a great place because of the course variety, social scene, and extracurricular life. By choosing Bowdoin, you do not assure yourself a spot at a medical school, but if you are successful here, you will most likely have a range of medical schools to go to.</p>
<p>Hope this helps!</p>