<p>This is some really great information!
I have been accepted to Notre Dame and have an intent to go to medical school. However, throughout the application process i applied to engineering schools with an intent to major in biomedical engineering. I understand that ND does not have a BME major, but students are able to tailor the curriculum that would fit a BME. In any case, after many campus visits to Case Western, U Mich, Vanderbilt, ND these past weeks, i have been told that a student's GPA is extremely important and that what a student majors in is not as important as the school this student came from.
So how successful are engineering majors applying to medical schoool. Do you recommend it? What do u find as the most successful route to getting admitted to med school? i bet engineering is not a part of this route....
i am extremely confused right now between doing BME or just concetrating on getting into med school. i have recieved full tution from vanderbilts school of engineering and full tuition from notre dame. If you could just offer me what you have found to be the most successful course of action that would be great.
my ultimate goal is to become a doctor, but i just feel that BME would be very interesting to study in college.</p>
<p>I don't think we can thank all you current students enough, this is so helpful! I know I'm getting ahead of myself, but I have some more questions on study abroad and research... Do any current students know if the Puebla program fills up in the fall so the premed program is offered in the summer? And... which science courses do professors prefer to be completed before an undergrad assists with research?? Thanks so much!</p>
<p>hey i couldn't sleep and was googling stuff to find father foster's email and found this. Princess did you stay with anyone when you visited Vandy?</p>
<p>i'm an nd grad and vandy med</p>
<p>Princess,
In an earlier post you stated - quote: "Also, ND's premed program ranks pretty high. Three years ago it was 6th in the nation (higher than Princeton and Stanford)."
Could you please elaborate - what is the ranking of the top 10 or 20 pre-med programs, and where can we find it?</p>
<p>Hi Dancing Feet,
Honestly, the more preparation you have, the better off you will be. But it sounds like you have plenty. I'm not very familiar with the IB program. What is included in the curriculum for adv. science I and II? I would say that ND's premed program is pretty rigorous, so a good background in Chem would definitely make your first year a lot easier. In terms of physics, I've had premed friends who didn't take physics in high school and did fine in premed physics (which you take in your junior year of premed). There are plenty of opportunities for students who don't have extremely strong backgrounds in science to catchup. As a freshman, there is free tutoring, and professors are more than willing to set up appointments to help you one-on-one. </p>
<p>Here's a suggestion: call the First Year of Studies Department and ask them to give you the names and email addresses of general chemistry professors this year. You should email the professors and ask for their advice.</p>
<p>Chinese Hog,
Wow, you are incredibly ambitious! Biomedical Engineering is fascinating and I commend you for wanting to take on such a challenging program. In terms of medical school, if you were an engineering major with a 3.5 and above, I would think most schools would be fighting for you. However, a 3.5 in engineering is pretty difficult to obtain. Remember that for med school it is very important to be EXTREMELY well rounded; schools want to be sure that you have people skills, so if you're in that difficult of a major you need to think about whether or not it would be difficult to succeed both academically and in your other activities. Medschools want to be assured that you're not only academically talented, but also that you're humanistic as well. Keep that in mind as you choose a major. I'm all for doing what you love, but choosing this as a major may prove counterproductive to your longterm goal. If you're really interested in BME, you should look at summer fellowship/research opportunities to get hands on experience in the lab. This would really enhance your medical school portfolio, especially if you're thinking about MD/PhD. Just my two cents, though. Follow your heart!</p>
<p>Hey guys,
I've been pretty busy as of late. I'll try to answer the rest of your questions by tonight. :) Peace.</p>
<p>that's really great advice. thank you so much. i understand that many people at notre dame do pre-med. so is it hard to stand out from the rest of them? if so what would be something that would help someone really stand out and catch the eye of an med school admissions officer? or what have you found that set apart your success to someone else who did not make it into such prestigious med programs? also how is the atmosphere with all these pre-meds? is it extremely competitive, stressed? </p>
<p>sorry for all these questions. i just want to gather as much information as possible. thank you for all your time.</p>
<p>So these posts have been wonderfully helpful as i'm trying to decide between schools. did you decide to go to notre dame for the school itself or because its premed program was so strong? was premed an interest for you before college or something you developed interest in while at nd? </p>
<p>is there somewhere on the notre dame website that i can go to see some stats and information about premed students and the schools to which they are accepted, or someone whom it would be best to contact?</p>
<p>thanks!</p>
<p>Hi Princess, thanks so much for your response. Adv. Science I includes earth science, chemistry, and physics. It's all pretty basic (freshman level class) but at least it's some background. And that was a great suggestion, I'll be in touch with ND soon. Thanks again!</p>
<p>Can you please tell me a few things?:
1. GPA
2. MCAT
3. Any other factors which you believe contributed significantly to admission into med school?
4. Why is Biochem not a common pre-med major? Or is that only at ND? I was set on taking Biochem at any university as my pre-med major.</p>
<p>83er,
You might want to search around on the ND website. Search for the Puebla program and contact them with any specific questions. They'd be able to give ya the most precise answer on that one. </p>
<p>In terms of research, it is very dependent on which professor you'd like to work with and in what department. I'd suggest looking on the ND website and emailing those professors you'd be interested in working with. Tell them you're going to be a freshman, that you'd like to be involved in their project, and you are wondering how to go about that. Go to the science departments (chem, bio, etc) and look under faculty. Each prof. has his/her own webpage with info about his/her research. Quite handy.</p>
<p>Hi Ruffian,
I stayed at a hotel. How do you like VMS?</p>
<p>Hi Gadler,
This information was in a handout supplied to all premeds last year before we started applying. If you'd like a copy, call the preprofessional office and ask them to send you this information. Go to the ND website directory and search for Kathleen Kolberg. Call that number.</p>
<p>Chinese Hog,
I really think it's not so much about setting yourself apart as it's about doing what you love. You don't just want to do something because you think you should, but because you are truly passionate about it. I think this was what REALLY set me apart from the other applicants, so I was told by those who interviewed me. There's no magic formula honestly, but medschools want to see that you've translated your passions into your academics, your extracurriculars, service, etc. </p>
<p>For me, I'm quite interested in med. access for the underserved. My application was full of clinical, research, and service opportunities that reinforced that. I wish i could give you a better answer than this, but this is really how it worked for me. </p>
<p>Also, most med applicants say they want to be a doctor to "help people". Your record should most definitely indicate that you've done that in your life so far. Many medschools are very dedicated to humanism in medicine, so you should show them, by your record, that you love people!</p>
<p>Feedme,
I think we (ND students) all have unique stories that brought us to this incredible place. I am no different, but I'll spare you the dissertation. Let me start by saying that I think it's an incredibly bad idea to choose a school just because of the reputation of one of it's undergraduate majors. Overall, name recognition of the institution itself (you can't beat ND's name recognition) seems to have much more weight than a particular program's reputation. There's schools ranked above us (i.e. Rice, Wash U, UChicago) that are fabulous schools but don't have half the fame of ND. But this is my opinion. </p>
<p>ND has a fabulous alumni network that is unmatched by any school. I can't tell you how many times I've been at a tailgate or working at a summer internship and been offered special opportunities by alums. It's just fantastic. </p>
<p>You should choose somewhere you're going to have a fantastic education and a great college experience. Academics are important, but so are those memories and the friends you'll make. ND offers an incredible college experience: it's a closed campus with a killer athletic program, great dining halls, THE BEST SCHOOL SPIRIT, etc. </p>
<p>I must end here, i could talk about this all night. No, the fact that ND's premed program ranked so high was just gravy. You ask us any question of this semblance and we just get all delirious. :)</p>
<p>How common is it for somebody in BME to apply for medical school? What are the career goals for somebody like this? Practice medicine and invent prosthetics at the same time?</p>
<p>afruff:
1. Pretty good
2. Pretty good
3. See response to Chinese Hog
4. Don't read too much into this. If you want to do Biochem do it. Just know that it's difficult and your spare time will be minimal. When i went on medschool interviews there were students from other schools (though not ones as tough as ND) that majored in biochem. Also know that if you start as biochem at ND you can easily change to Bio, or one of the preprofessional tracks; i don't know that this is that easy at other schools.</p>
<p>Please tell me your GPA and MCAT. :P. Send me a PM if you don't want it public.</p>
<p>Is there time to do research/internship during the school year if you're doing biochem at ND (or any other schools of your knowledge)?</p>
<p>p.s. Have you chosen where to go yet? I would choose WUStL if I were you.</p>