<p>Hi girls, I’m a junior in high school considering my options, and Barnard has been high up on my list of prospectives for quite a while now. I intend on being Pre-Med, and I thought that if I chose this course at Barnard, I could take any classes at Columbia. Recently, I’ve been hearing of many bad experiences of going pre-med at Barnard, so I was wondering if my initial thought was true. Can I take any classes not developed at Barnard at Columbia?
Thanks!! :)</p>
<p>
[quote]
Can I take any classes not developed at Barnard at Columbia?[/qipte]</p>
<p>Yes you can. But why is this important to you?</p>
<p>Since I’m sure, at this point, that I want to go into medicine, I want to narrow my options down to schools with decent biology classes, and I’ve heard that that’s where Barnard is lacking.</p>
<p>Where did you hear that? </p>
<p>(oh, and I apologize for my poor typing in my previous post. Sheesh)</p>
<p>It’s true that Barnard HAS over the past several years (it began prior to 2005 when my D started there) re-vamped their science dept. There biology department is certainly better than “decent”. And my d thought the science classes taught through Barnard were more rigorous than the ones at Columbia. She was a neuroscience major (currently working on her PhD).</p>
<p>I have been involved in medical education for almost thirty years. The Barnard science education (D2) exceeds that of he vast majority of four year colleges. That being said, for medicine beyond a certain point the quality of Biology education in the undergraduate years is of minor importance. Medical concepts are simpler than the concepts in college Biology,they are just way more numerous. The undergraduate curriculum allows you to discover if your love the subjects and to demonstrate a strong work ethic. We look at humanism, breadth of education and interest.
I would not pick one college over another based on the strength of science education unless that gap was very large. I would rate the ‘feel’ of the place as more important. Science is a group activity, as opposed to solo. The students are the main people with whom you will work.</p>
<p>Okay, that makes sense. I just assumed that a school centered around the liberal arts wouldn’t be as developed in the science, but I guess that’s inaccurate. Thanks both of you!</p>