I’m a rising sophomore at Oberlin College seeking advice re: transferring. I’m on a pre-med track, and anticipate majoring in neuroscience. I loved my first year at Oberlin; the professors are incredible, and the student body is “my type”. I also loved taking classes across all subject matters. I involved myself with many organizations on campus and tried to utilize every resource given to me.
However, upon completion of my first year, I started to realize that one aspect in my college experience was lacking; resources and development to prepare me for medical school. I feel so lost and unprepared in comparison to other students my age at other institutions. Our pre-med community is so small that we don’t even have a medical careers club or society active currently. I find the pre-med advising to be underwhelming and disorganized. I feel like I’ve had to find every research/volunteer/clinical opportunity by myself – I don’t mean to sound lazy, I just wish there were better resources and connections for me considering the tuition of this school!
In summary, I’ve found these issues the most concerning…
we lack any affiliations, partnerships, or connections with research hospitals or universities to provide internships. There is nothing offered for the summer or for the school year
Lack of alumni outreach
Not many students matriculating directly into medical school; being prepared to take a gap year is one of the first things mentioned to pre-med students here
Lack of MCAT preparation resources / medical school preparedness (according to conversations with upperclassmen)
However, the double edged sword here is that we don’t have a cut-throat pre-med environment. Research opportunities for biology, neuroscience, and chemistry are also vast and easy to get involved with. I’m also happy here.
When I research other schools, I read about how there are partnerships with hospitals and research universities to provide undergraduate students with paid opportunities during the school year and summer, or about how there are alumni networks to get pre-medical students shadowing alumni physicians. I know some universities offer advance admission into their MD programs.
I guess I am beginning to wonder if there is a better place for me to reach my goals. I picked Oberlin because of their gracious merit aid and a lack of other options (I wish I could do my college applications all over again). I wonder if a research university in an urban area would offer better opportunities, connections, and experiences.
Personally, I think you have found the perfect place to be a pre-med! You will have many years to be a doctor and focus on medical things. Now is the time to enjoy college, follow your interests, and socialize with peers you like. I am a doctor, but as an undergrad I wasn’t even pre-med, and I’m so glad I wasn’t! As a biology major, I happened to take all the required classes, but never had to stress or grade-grub. I did research, but did it based on which labs on campus were most fun, not based on how I thought it would look to a med school admissions committee. I volunteered in causes that actually interested me. Over some summer breaks and other times, I did work in a nursing home, but that’s because I needed the money (and I enjoyed it.) Later, when I changed direction and decided to apply to medical school, finding shadowing hours on my own was no problem. Medical Careers Club? No thanks! For the MCAT, you can buy a prep book or take a summer course or something. If you tend to be a strong standardized test taker, you don’t even need to do that.
If you are happy at Oberlin, doing well, and the school is affordable I see no reason to transfer out. Continue to seek out opportunities and experiences.
FWIW almost every med school applicant I know has taken a gap year to work in the field (ex. as a medical scribe, EMT etc.) and study for the MCAT.,
My kid is a premed at a tippy-top school with a famous med school. They’re having the exact same experience as yours. No premed advising to speak of. They’re having to find it all for themselves (with my help). They’ve ignored any premed clubs - finding better opportunities on their own.
If you are happy there, I suggest you stay there. Continue to get the highest grades you possibly can. Do some research on studentdoctornetwork and reddit’s premed threads - you’ll get plenty of advice about how to prep for the MCATs. Ask to shadow doctors with whom you and your family have connections in your own home town - many will be willing. Try to get a job as a medical scribe, or as a medical assistant, or as an EMT. Research would be nice, but it’s certainly tough to get out in the boonies, I agree. But not everyone has time for research. See if there are volunteer opportunities near school. Maybe Oberlin has a school EMT response team that you can get involved with. Maybe Oberlin needs some sort of medical service club that you could found.
I think that you’ve got a good thing if you’re happy at Oberlin, and if the fin aid is good. I’d stay and just put in more effort to get what you need outside of Oberlin, or to start up a club yourself there.
Pre anything is advising and like academic advising, there is often a lot to be desired.
That you love everything about Oberlin is why you need to stay.
There are enough resources out there that one can advise themselves.
I’m sure you can also find resources at med schools or private counselors that can guide you.
But you’re in a wonderful situation as is and it wouldn’t necessarily be better elsewhere.
You can also seek to spend more time with your advisor there. You might be surprised if you truly grind on them. And perhaps you can start a club at school to support your needs - that leadership always stands out. .
This is becoming true at nearly every undergrad institution.
Like parentologist’s kid, I didn’t do a lot of my pre-med stuff through my undergrad place even though it was a “tippy top” with resources for that. On campus I was focused on my nonscience major and my very nonmedical ECs (and my social life). Summers at home were used for advancing the outside-of-classroom premed stuff: research, MCAT studying (on my own), etc.
Oberlin is a respected name and won’t hold you back at all during admissions. You are wise in seeing the advantages of not having intense pre-med competition surrounding you to stress you out right now. Good luck.
Research experience on a med school application is not an absolute must have.
When S went through premed and time for MCAT prep came, students at his school seemed to have 2 choices: take a formalized prep course (e.g. Princeton Review); or get prep materials and study alone or with a few fellow premeds.
Happy student tend to do better. Since you’re happy at where you’re at and with added perk of generous financial aid, it’s not always greener on other side of pasture. Good luck.
Doesn’t oberlin have a hospital right there? I remember it being literally right next to the campus on our tour. There should be opportunities there if you seek them out, or with the local ambulance company. But you have to make an effort to reach out to them and be willing to start at the bottom. No one is going to seek out these opportunities for you regardless of where you go to school.
I’m not seeing the problem, tbh. You can start a premed club at Oberlin, and in fact, it might benefit your app.
If your grades are high and you’re happy, I see no reason to leave. And the financial aid issue is going to be a problem as a transfer student. Transfers don’t often get much, if any, merit aid.
Becoming a doctor is really hard work. Work being the key word here. You seem to be doing a great job so far.