Torn apart between Pure Math, Applied Math, and BioChem

<p>If you want to apply during your senior year (that is start med school immediately after you graduate), you must take the MCAT no later than the spring of your junior year. Preferably April or May. You can take it in June but then you risk applying late in the cycle since it takes 4 weeks to receive your scores.</p>

<p>The new MCAT goes into effect in 2015. It will have 4 sections instead of 3. Biochem, psych and sociology (understanding human behavior) will be added to the new test as well an increased emphasis on cellular and molecular biology.</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2011/4/11/students-mcat-new-more/[/url]”>http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2011/4/11/students-mcat-new-more/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>It’s unclear if medical schools will change their entrance requirements to be more in line with the new test, but I expect to see changes in the recommended pre-med coursework in the next couple of years.</p>

<p>*I sympathized with those who go to a state school because they are required to choose a major sooner than those who are going to a private college.
*</p>

<p>??? </p>

<p>I don’t think that’s necessarily true. Kids are often undeclared for awhile at state schools.</p>

<p>^^^ Agree, None of our state school require students to declare a major before the end of sophomore year. (And a some kids go even longer than that and eventually end up with a BA in “general studies”–meaning they never did pick a major.)</p>

<p>Theoretically, if they were to change premed requirements (because of the 2015 MCAT) while I was a sophomore, wouldn’t that throw me off entirely and not let me apply to med school as an APMS major?</p>

<p>

My mistake then.
I swear that, when DS was applying to colleges, one selling point of many private colleges is that they allow the students to postpone their decision on the majors later than most public schools do. I guess these private schools can no longer use this as a selling point to entice the parents to pay big bucks for this flexibility.</p>

<p>At that time, there were “tiers” of colleges/programs (business/engineering/natural science/etc) in our state’s public university:</p>

<p>The top tiers are like business honor, some special honor programs, and engineering. At the bottom are those liberal art or undecided majors. (top 10 percents students with low SATs might be put into this kind of program.) When the university tried to enforce some general education requirements, the top tier ones have enough power to say no to the admistrator of the university – as they claimed the students in their programs are already better than the requirements (maybe more AP/IB credits before entering the college as compared to those students on the lower-tier tracks.)</p>

<p>Also, if a student ended up at the lower tiered tracks as a freshman, it is very difficult for him to transfer to a top-tiered program.</p>

<p>This was then, but I do not know what it is like now.</p>

<p>Bump…</p>

<p>Theoretically, if they were to change premed requirements (because of the 2015 MCAT) while I was a sophomore, wouldn’t that throw me off entirely and not let me apply to med school as an APMS major?</p>

<p>Since the changes are still only “proposed” changes and not actual changes, no one really knows what’s going to happen. Your best source of information (rather than speculation which is what you’ll get here) will be the pre-med advisor at your college. (But then again, they may not have idea yet either.)</p>

<p>Is it helpful to learn Latin in college? (isn’t med stuff in Latin?)</p>

<p>Thanks</p>

<p>Only if you want to translate Cicero…</p>

<p>*I swear that, when DS was applying to colleges, one selling point of many private colleges is that they allow the students to postpone their decision on the majors later than most public schools do. I guess these private schools can **no longer use **this as a selling point to entice the parents to pay big bucks for this flexibility.</p>

<p>*</p>

<p>they never should have been implying this.</p>

<p>Just because some privates were saying that doesn’t mean that publics were doing anything different. I went to public U over 25 years ago…didn’t have to declare then either. </p>

<p>It was rather misleading for any privates to word their statements in a way to suggest that they were doing something different or unique. Were they also implying that they were superior because they grant degrees or that they have beds in their dorms? Oh, I know, they had books in their libraries…what a novelty. lol</p>

<p>That said, many privates and publics want kids to declare engineering as frosh because of the sequenced requirements. But, that’s nothing new either.</p>

<p>wayoutwest - you said one D was double majoring in Applied Math and Physics. Is she graduating in four years? also what specialization of APMS is she doing? Would it be possible with a Bio emphasis.</p>

<p>Thanks a bunch</p>

<p>D1 was physics and applied math–physics/engineering concentration. She graduated in 2009. She finished in 5 years, but mostly because she had transferred after freshman year from a college on the quarter system to one on semesters and about 2/3rds of her credits went poof. She also changed her major a couple of times. She started in physics, then changed to civil engineering then to econ, the back to physics. She only added the applied math as senior, then spent her super senior year doing math, math, more math, CS [required for applied math degree], grad quantum mechanics, grad field theory [physics version, not math version], French and philosophy. Got accepted to a Top 10 grad program in BioPhysics, THEN she decided she wanted to go to med school instead, turned down grad school, got a 2 part time jobs and took her med school pre-reqs plus PChem and A&P over 2 years while working 35 hours/wk. (Kid never does anything the easy way. Never.)</p>

<p>D2 is neuroscience and applied math–bio concentration. She’s on track to graduate in 4 years and without taking any summer courses. Thank goodness.</p>