<p>I've been advised against it a few times, and am a bit puzzled. Is it simply that it is insanely rigorous, or what? And is it impossibly rigorous? I've also been hearing that I should attend some LAC and major in Humanities if I want to attend medical school, instead of JHU and Biophysics (or any other science, but especially BME), as I'd wanted to, even when said advisors were aware of my predisposition toward the biological sciences. I'm perplexed - why is this?</p>
<p>You don't apply to a major at JHU. You may specify an area of interest, but that doesn't mean you're committed to it. It simply gives the adcoms an idea of how they can shape a diverse incoming freshman class. Since many applicants are attracted to JHU's science-oriented fields, there exists the perception that there is more "competition" when indicating one of those fields as your intended major.</p>
<p>There are significant differences between JHU and a standard LAC. An LAC cannot offer the vast array of research opportunities that Hopkins has. On the other hand, it is much harder (though certainly not impossible) to become intimately familiar with your profs, especially in larger into courses.</p>
<p>Applying to med school from an LAC as a humanities major is fine, if humanities is where your interests lie. However, if you really do enjoy biological sciences, then your advisors' advice makes no sense.</p>
<p>I do have an interest in the humanities, but not comparable to that in science. Apparently, the impression is that it JHU's program is not only highly rigorous, but also overly competetive; I was told that I'd be putting myself through needless difficulty. One said that it's a matter of weighing the nature of studying at JHU and relative ease at a lesser college to personal interest and ability. As such, I'm very concerned that I may shoot myself in the foot by attending JHU, even providing that I get accepted - all the more important, since I'd originally planned to apply ED.</p>
<p>The best thing to do is to visit the colleges that interest you and see what environment you enjoy most. Coming from a Hopkins student who graduated a New England prep school with a close-knit atmosphere, I'd tender the opinion that the feeling of camaraderie among students at Hopkins simply cannot measure up to that which you'll find at an LAC. But you'll have much better opportunities for research at Hopkins, IMO.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that the humanities are strong at Hopkins. One of my best friends was formerly a Writing Sems major who was also pre-med. There's no reason you can't major in something other than science at Hopkins and still take the pre-med courses and go on to an excellent med school. I think the consensus about Hopkins' pre-med courses is that they are extremely rigorous, but not impossible. A lot of people will be in the same boat as you, which you may see as competition. At the same time, those same people will empathize with your frustrations and help you with your successes.</p>
<p>I don't think you'll be shooting yourself in the foot by coming to JHU if you like what you see when you visit the school and understand what JHU has to offer vis-</p>
<p>I'm not big on camaderie, anyway. :p I'm much more into self-focused research.</p>
<p>If the humanities at Hopkins is good, I'll probably minor in it.</p>
<p>I've visited JHU once; however, that was a few years ago, before I was specifically thinking of college applications, and will be visiting again this summer. I liked the atmosphere, having lived near or in urban settings most of my life. I'm not much for the LACs I've visited, most recently St. John's College (simply for its relatively close location). On most accounts, JHU seems like a college I'd really like.</p>
<p>Hence my concern, actually. What does it say when, even with all this, I'm still advised otherwise?</p>
<p>I would say that you shouldn't base your decision on the concern your advisor raised. For so long, the attitude in medical school admissions was that you had to major in biology or chemistry at a national university. Now, people have realized that this is not the case; students are now encouraged to major in whatever subject they are interested in at whatever school they wish to attend. Unfortunately, this change of attitude has been carried too far; now people like your advisor show disfavor toward students wishing to go the traditional route of majoring in the sciences at a well-regarded research university like Johns Hopkins. The bottom line is that medical school admissions committees do welcome humanities majors from LACs- but not so much that they give preference to them. Attend whatever school you feel is the best fit for you and major in whatever subject interests you. Everything will work out fine.</p>
<p>You absolutely, positively must go see other schools. Seeing St. Johns College means you've seen St. Johns College. You absolutely must go see other schools! If you're a candidate for JHU, then you're also a candidate for Colby, Bates, Bowdoin; Kenyon; Dennison; Connecticut College; Trinity (CT), and lots of others LACs. Also, while not a LAC, how about Carnegie Mellon? Also very science-y. And University of Rochester. The more you see, the more certain you'll be of your preferences.</p>
<p>Will probably apply for Carnegie Mellon - interesting that you brought that up, actually. I liked the campus there, too, for different reasons, and it fits as well.</p>
<p>Just wondering why JHU seems to be getting a bad rap about this.</p>
<p>There was apparently some book published in the 80s about how cutthroat and overly competitive the environment (and especially the premeds) at Hopkins were back then, and a lot of the common stereotypes of Hopkins come from that book.</p>
<p>Can I assume, though, that there are truths behind them, for them to have perpetuated this long? After all, I've been seeing it on CC quite a bit as of late, too.</p>
<p>In my experience, I think the rumors about Hopkins are just that - rumors. Yes, the campus is competitive - that's what you're going to get at any top university where you have a lot of smart people taking classes together. But is it cutthroat? I've never seen or heard of anything like the stories I read on CC before I came here. I remember reading about people sabotaging other people's experiments or stealing books from the library or doing things like that - but in reality, people here tend to help other people when it comes to studying. If you come by anytime before a big test, you'll see the common study rooms in the dorms and the libraries filled with people working together to study - people tend to be very collaborative. So whether Hopkins is competitive really depends on how you define competition. If you mean that the people all work hard and try to do well on the tests, then yeah, it's competitive. But if you mean people trying to do well at the expense of others, I really don't think that's the case.</p>
<p>PrescitedEntity, no you cannot. I'm a sophmore @ JHU. Hopkins is very competitive but the competition is fair. There may have been isolated incidents of cheating/throating but I don't imagine them to be any more common than at any other school. </p>
<p>The only thing that believing the rumors does is actually convince the freshmen that they are true and that they should behave accordingly. Not good.</p>
<p>That's fine, then. Now it's not a question of whether I'll have JHU, but whether JHU will have me. :)</p>
<p>I think part of the reason that JHU gets a bad rap for being competitive is because a high percentage of the students are Pre-med. Premed programs in all top colleges are going to be competitive. I guess some other schools don't get such a reputation because there are more students doing other things (that are generally considered less competitive). The fact that JHU is very science oriented may attribute to such a reputation.</p>
<p>Boy, that hard, huh? :p</p>
<p>PrescitedEntity deadline is approaching fast. Are you going to apply?</p>
<p>Edit: I hope you do!</p>
<p>Just a few thoughts that ran through my mind as I read this thread:</p>
<p>(1) Only current students at JHU (or recent alums) really can comment about what it is like to be a student at Hopkins. </p>
<p>(2) The best way to really make a determination about a school and whether it fits one's personal college search characteristics is to visit the campus and talk with real students.</p>
<p>(3) Who are these "advisors?" I truly hope they are not just random people on College Confidential who have no clue about the Hopkins of today. I also hope they are not people who just go on rumors and myths, because then you are not getting good advice about Hopkins and probably many other schools you are looking at.</p>
<p>(4) It amazes me how a student's opinion changes about Hopkins between the time before they arrive at JHU, and one week after their freshman year begins. And then it just keeps changing after their first visit to the library, their first meeting with an advisor, their first round of mid terms, their first round of finals, etc. </p>
<p>Just some random thoughts, that probably no one will really listen to.</p>
<p>These "advisors" are two alums of JHU - one who is now in her fellowship in New York (family friend), another who now attends Pritzker School of Medicine, along with my guidance counselor (who I don't think truly knows much about the matter, actually). In any case, they may just be behind on the times? Ah...</p>
<p>Why do you assume that I won't listen? I may be a mere teenager (not exactly a breed known for keen insight into the machinations of the world, ha), but I'm not wholly, er...deaf? Blind? :p</p>
<p>In any case, I loved what I saw of JHU, and it is the university I most want to attend (has been ingrained in me, as I recently found out, since a visit when I was seven - I'd been wondering where my idea of what a university should be came from! :D). I'm not about to put all my eggs in one basket, but from what I see (hear?) here, and from my own preferences, I'd love to attend, if possible.</p>
<p>IF possible. :p</p>
<p>And as for applying, I'm a junior! I'll be applying next year; this actually will only make the difference between applying ED or regular. I've just got the jitters already.</p>
<p>I am still really curious about a question PrescitedEntity previously brought up. Why is it advised that people who might want to go to med school not major in BME in particular? (Even one of the speakers at a JHU open house said that premeds are not right for the BME major. Nevertheless, at least one of the JHU student ambassadors is BME and premed.) I am just utterly confused.</p>
<p>Because to get into a good medschool you need a high GPA. The BME major is very difficult and you're not likely to have as high a GPA as a BME as you would in a different major. </p>
<p>Aside from that, if you want to go to medical school why would you major in BME? If you don't want to be a biomedical engineer why major in it, given its difficulty?</p>
<p>Of course, there are plenty of BME premeds, non-the-less.</p>