sophomore sons college choices for biology/pre-med Do they stack up well?

College Search & Selection
1

My son has started looking for biology/premed in Pa. He would rather stay in the central eastern part of the state.

I have told him our budget is 30k per year. He is not into very large university’s like Pitt or Penn State.

We think these choices so far are pretty good. What does the forum think?

Ursinus, University of Scranton, Muhlenberg , West Chester University, Bloomsburg University, Elizabethtown College

Alvernia University

Thanks

2

I am more concerned about the major than the school. The reality is that the likelihood of him actually starting Med School is <10%. Does he really want a Bio degree if he doesn’t go to Med School?

3

Pre-med
If you want to go pre-med then think about:

  1. The cheapest reasonable college so you/your parents can use the money for med school
  2. The college needs to prepare you for MCATs but still allow you to get a good GPA
  3. Access to volunteering opportunities (e.g., near a hospital)
  4. Success in graduates getting into med school
  5. Options if you don’t go to med school. I am sure right now the student is convinced they will go to medical school. But first they have to get through Bio, Chem, Organic Chemistry and Physics and get a good GPA. They need to Volunteer, Shadow and maybe do research. They have to take the MCAT and do well. Then they have to be admitted.
    My daughter got through senior year taking all the pre-reqs, and then decided she didn’t want to have the stress of 4 more years + residency.
4

Susquehanna, Juniata?

5

Good list. I’d replace Alvernia with York.
Seconding Susquehanna.
Run the NPC on Dickinson in case he has the stats to get in.

Why Biology? The major has very low ROI and professional prospects. Very few high school students ever make it to med school so there’s an oversupply of bio majors flooding the job market. And you can be pre-med with any major.

6

I know this is getting away from the topic and none of us our aware of your sons capabilities, but pre-med isn’t exactly the easiest path. If your son is interested in medicine, there are other careers in that field that still offer the challenges of medicine. If he’s committed to pre-med, the safest bet would be to go to a cheap state university (which I’m aware is a tough find in Pennsylvania). Maybe the old cliché will hold true for him that you can make a big university feel small, but you can’t make a small university feel big.

7

^Actually, the universities listed would likely be the same price or cheaper than PSU/Pitt/Temple…
(They are very aware of costs and thus target something competitive with these behemoths).

8

I feel like I’m jumping on the bandwagon, but I’m going to post what I always do in threads like this.

IMHO you have put the cart before the horse. When a lot of HS kids think of a career in medicine it becomes “I’m pre-med!” and happily embark on a track that will take 11-15 years of school/training plus enormous debt. Doctors are far from the only ones in the health field that help people. Physical therapists, radiology techs, nurses, speech pathologists, physician assistants, nurse practitioners, to name but just a few. as you can see on http://explorehealthcareers.org

Given he is a sophomore I suggest he find a way to volunteer in a health care setting (hospital, nursing home, etc). Experience in a health care setting is an unwritten requirement to get into med school and actually required for some such as many PT schools. Don’t worry about picking premed colleges until he’s spent a year volunteering and still is interested in medicine, and if interested in medicine still wants to be a doctor. Then would be the time to start picking colleges, and as a junior he’ll have plenty of time.

9

Does his high school offer any pre-health careers classes that could lead to a CNA license or First Responder ot EPT certification? Those would give him practical hands-on exposure to some medical experiences, and would give him job skills that could make it easier to find flexible paying work once he does get to college.

10

^^doesn’t have to be through the HS- most community colleges offer the classes in the evening. You can start EMT (and similar) training before you are 16 (but you have to be 16 to do the qualifying party). My nephew in Pennsylvania was a fully qualified EMT before he graduated from HS.

11

Good point @collegemom3717 !

12

Thank you for all of the replies. He will think about other science majors since that is where his interests lie
. He is a very strong student. He is first in his class and has a 3.9 GPA… He has scored 98% on psat as a sophmore.
We have 4 children total and I need to make my money last for all four. He has been told that our budget is 30k per year. He wants to be closer to a city so right now he likes Ursinus. He and I think it best if he stay smaller since I think it better for recommendations and getting more attention from your professors.
Juniata and Susquenhana are both kinda rural he says.
I do not think Dickenson gives any merit aide. We will not qualify for any need aide so all Ivies are out.
I am glad that for the most part no one seems to have any negative to my list for what I see. Thanks for all of your suggestions and insight.

13

Obviously he should apply to at least one of Penn State, Pitt and Temple honors. All three has direct Admission programs (highly competitive, typically hundred of applicants for a dozen spots) and
Penn State has a program for 4 Schreyer freshmen that takes place in Hershey/medical school.
Although he wants a smaller setting, there is a lot of personal attention through the Honors college (especially at Temple and Penn State - Pitt’s a looser program).