<p>I'd like to go into medicine one day, especially a field like neurology or ophthalmology, but I don't want to be a Biology or Chemistry major. So...
1) If I major in something that sounds more interesting to me like biophysics or neuroscience, will that leave me much flexibility job-wise, if I decide not to pursue a career in medicine?
2) I'm also okay with a Physics major...I've heard it doesn't really matter what you major in if you want to get into med school, but would something more applicable to medicine (such as biophysics) be more helpful?</p>
<p>For the purposes of getting into medical school, you can major in anything you want. Just make sure that you get all your pre-medical requirements done and do well in the classes. Speaking as a medical school adcom member, I am more interested in applicants with “interesting” majors than the straight biology premeds. Any of the above you mentioned would be fine, you could also major in history, dance, economics or archaeology. (Or anything under the sun)</p>
<p>For the purpose of a back up career in case you don’t end up going to medical school, I would advise that you major in something you enjoy. You can always figure out how to take it in an applied direction later. No one has “much flexibility job-wise” these days without advanced degrees. For example, a neuroscience degree could put you into pharmaceutical sales or research, graduate training to become a psychologist or biomedical engineer or nurse, etc. Presumably, you enjoyed the field enough to major in it, so you will enjoy a job focused on the same field. </p>
<p>Alternatively, If you want a more “flexible” degree to go straight into the job market after a bachelors, I would recommend economics or something finance related, or an engineering degree or other professional track such as teaching certificate. </p>
<p>1) If I major in something that sounds more interesting to me like biophysics or neuroscience, will that leave me much flexibility job-wise, if I decide not to pursue a career in medicine?</p>
<p>*I am not familiar with neuroscience job aspects, but it is difficult to get a job with a bachelors in biophysics only. You’ll need to go to grad school to obtain a Masters, even a Ph.D. It is similar in terms of job aspects to biology/chemistry majors. (the way i look at it)</p>
<p>2) I’m also okay with a Physics major…I’ve heard it doesn’t really matter what you major in if you want to get into med school, but would something more applicable to medicine (such as biophysics) be more helpful?</p>
<p>*From what I’ve heard, yes. It does help if you major in something that is applicable to medical school because the material covered in those classes will prepare you for the MCAT and fulfill the prerequisites required to attend med school. However, it doesn’t really matter what you major if you can fulfill those requirements in some fashion. For example, I will major in Chemical Engineering. Engineering isn’t exactly the best pre-med major, but I am doing the pre-medical option that my university is offering to fulfill my medical school requirements.</p>
<p>Having a BS in neuroscience generally has about the same job prospects as biology. In other words, not the best for a career without grad school, mostly lab tech/research assistant jobs.</p>