Pre-med vs Pre-law? I need some opinions.

College Search & Selection
1

<p>Hey! (:</p>

<p>I'm a very soon graduating senior and I'm also enrolled at my local community college as a freshman. </p>

<p>I decided to stay at my community college and I currently have a 3.6 cum. GPA - which will def. go up after this quarter - and I have been working on finishing up my AA.</p>

<p>I would graduate in Winter quarter '12 with my AA,</p>

<p>however,</p>

<p>I always wanted to become a doctor.</p>

<p>I would've tried to get my Associate in Biology to finish all the prerequisites for med. school... but I'm scared I won't make it.</p>

<p>I know that I'd love to be a doctor because I volunteered a lot at my local hospital and I always liked reading up on various illnesses, how to fix a broken bone, etc.</p>

<p>I also was a lifeguard for a few years and I know how to do CPR and first aid.</p>

<p>Medicine just always interested me - but I'm scared I won't get A's and B's in all the science classes and math classes that I'd need to have A's in...</p>

<p>Would it be wise to do what you love to do - and I really know that I'd love to be a doctor - or should I continue with pre-law (I'm currently double majoring in Poli Sci and Journalism).</p>

<p>I'm afraid I'd be a crappy doctor if I get crappy grades... but then again I could still re-take some classes and go to a not that well known med. school - and I could still do what interests me and what I know I like doing. </p>

<p>I also thought about nursing because it doesn't require that much science and math - but I realized when I did a job shadow that it wouldn't be the same.</p>

<p>BTW, I would graduate about two quarters later if I'd do an Associate in Bio. - but I would be okay with that.</p>

<p>I know Poli Sci and Journ. is easier than all the prerequisite courses for med. school but that's exactly why I need to hear a second opinion on this.</p>

<p>I'm open for any suggestions on what I should do :)</p>

2

<p>Do you know what people call the guy who got the lowest grades in Med school?</p>

<p>Doctor. </p>

<p>Don’t let that sort of concern stop you from doing what you think you really want to do, especially if you’re doing as well as you evidently are.</p>

<p>As far as law school vs med school, both are incredibly difficult. You might get by in undergrad poli-sci breezing by classes like state/local politics and basic philosophy courses, but law school won’t be anything like that. Between those two, go with the one you have an honest draw for. DON’T let the challenge scare you; nothing worth the effort is easy.</p>

<p>Also, there are so many lawyers out there right now that it really isn’t the safety occupation it used to be. Only go to law school if you REALLY have passion for the law. </p>

<p>For the record, this is coming from somebody who loves law and is seriously considering law school [also a poli-sci minor]. </p>

<p>Bottom line: One strong vote for med.</p>

3

<p>Neither law nor medical school requires a specific undergraduate major, although medical school does require a set of pre-med courses. You can be both pre-law and pre-med in your undergraduate studies, in any major.</p>

4

<p>

Not the same; sure, but perhaps a fit. Or consider the next rung on the hierarchy. I know someone who is in residency after going to a top-5 med school and she says that if she was doing it over she’d be a Physician Assistant or Nurse Practitioner. So it isn’t just a consolation prize to enter one of these fields; you might want to it as a goal instead of the 11-15 years of school/training you have in front of you right now if you go for the MD.</p>

5

<p>Note that getting into any medical school in the US, or a top 14 law school (which greatly increases the chance of getting a good lawyer job, as opposed to a low paid lawyer job that will be difficult to pay off law school student loans with) requires a very high GPA and a very high test score (MCAT for medical, LSAT for law).</p>

<p>Be sure to consider alternative academic and career goals if it looks like you won’t have the GPA for medical school or a top 14 law school.</p>

6

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<p>The number of medical schools is tightly controlled, so there are no “bad” medical schools. My school, JHU, has really good pre-med placement (among the best in the country), but even there a substantial percentage of applicants don’t get into a single medical school. </p>

<p>On the other hand, there are bad law schools that place only a tiny percentage of their grads into good legal jobs. You can find tons of “law scamblogs” complaining about earning 20/hour in manhattan working in temp doc review, all with huge loads of debt. </p>

<p>In any case, this is a bit of a conundrum. For med school you’ll need to complete some required science classes and you’ll want to medical shadowing, interning, research. Law school is really more about high GPA and LSATs and there are no course requirements. So unless you feel like chemistry and biology are your strongest subjects, the pre-med path will be detrimental to your pre-law chances (because it will hurt your GPA). One option is completing school as a pre-law (getting a really high GPA) and then just doing a post-bacc if you later want to go to medical school.</p>