Ask a BS/MD, second year medical student (almost) anything.

[DrizzyDrake]

Hey guys,

I'm willing to answer questions entertaining these BS/MD programs. I am currently a second year medical student. I cannot say where I went to college, or how long my program is (6, 7 or 8 years) just due to confidentiality. Everything else is fine.

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[Developer]

Do you have any regrets about taking the BS/MD route as opposed to taking the "normal" route to med school?

 

[huskerstk]

What is your workload like?
Any tips for applying?

 

[Tolbert]

What are some of the ec's you've done so far (if you could), and how do you balance your school, social life, and ec's?

 

[docwei88]

Is it any sense better or worse than the traditional route? Is the experience any different? Is anything omitted because of this program (Ecs, personal life, other classes, majors, minors, etc)?

 

[SweetBurger]

My question is will you ever answer any of our questions?

 

[Arayh]

My question is will you ever answer any of our questions?

Even though I wasn't a BS MD student, it seems like DizzyDrake isn't replying much, so I will attempt to answer some of these questions. I applied the traditional route like most people because I wasn't sure what I wanted to really do in high school. If you have your mind set in HS, then by all means try the BS MD route. It's less stressful in the fact that you don't really need to "apply," or deal with the MCAT, though some programs will still make you take it, but you just need to get above a certain score and maintain a certain GPA to stay in the program. It does, however, limit your choices in med schools, if you have a specific one in mind that you would want to go to, but med schools are mostly the same.

Generally, it was always my understanding that if you got into a BSMD program, you don't really need extracurriculars for the application process since you don't need to apply. Though I may be wrong. You can just do whatever you enjoy, whether that's volunteering, shadowing or research...etc.

 

[inycepoo]

Great thread! OP really offered lots of insight

 

[feli_owl]

Hi! Since the original poster didn't answer your questions, I figured I would. I'm a freshman in a 7-year BS/MD program.

Do you have any regrets about taking the BS/MD route as opposed to taking the "normal" route to med school?

No, I don't have any regrets. I feel so relieved that I do not have to stress out about my MCAT and grades too much (I still need a minimum GPA and MCAT, but they are not as competitive as they would be for regular admission into a medical school).

What is your workload like?
Any tips for applying?

Right now, since it is my freshman year, I'm strengthening my knowledge in my pre-requisites (like calculus, chemistry, and biology). Since I've already taken them in high school as AP classes, the workload is pretty easy. I do about 3 hours of work per weeknight and about 6 hours on weekend nights. However, I do expect to spend a lot more time on studying once I start more difficult classes, like organic chemistry, biochemistry, physics, etc. Last semester, I took 16 credits and I am taking 17 this semester. It's definitely manageable, but you have to put the time in.

It seemed that my interviewers loved that I was diversified in other areas besides just medicine. I was editor of my school newspaper and a member of the National Honor Society, and they were very interested in that. One of my friends in my program was a big debater. With this in mind, it is also important to do some sort of medical experience. I shadowed two different kinds of doctors in high school over one summer. I also was a teaching assistant for my AP Biology class. Although it isn't necessary to do crazy research jobs (and least it wasn't for my program), you should have some extracurriculars to show that you like science and biology!

What are some of the ec's you've done so far (if you could), and how do you balance your school, social life, and ec's?

In high school, I was in the National Honor Society, Science National Honor Society, Newspaper, and Academic Trivia team. In college, I shadow a doctor one day a week and am in the club for students doing the BS/MD program. I also plan to research in a lab during my sophomore year. Although I don't have to go "above-and-beyond" as far as ECs because I am already accepted into Medical School, my program does require its students to do a form of "medical experience" each semester. I enjoy shadowing because it helps me determine which fields I like and which fields I don't want to pursue.
It is manageable to balance it all, although you do have to make some sacrifices. Because my program is 7 years, I'll have to take 2 semesters of organic chemistry this summer. I also have to take more credits per semester than the average college student. And sometimes I have to stay in my dorm and study when I'm invited to hang out with friends. But I still think that I have a good amount of free time. Also, the students in my BS/MD program are in the same boat as me, so it's comforting to know that I'm not alone and can come to them with questions and advice.

Is it any sense better or worse than the traditional route? Is the experience any different? Is anything omitted because of this program (Ecs, personal life, other classes, majors, minors, etc)?

I wouldn't use the words "better" or "worse," I would use the word "different." It isn't for everyone. There are some students who have dropped out of the program to pursue other majors or apply to other medical schools. For some students, like myself, it is a great option because I know I want to stay in this medical school and the pressure is off about getting a spectacular MCAT score. The experience is slightly accelerated if you're pursuing a 6 or 7 year program. You'll probably take a class or two more than your pre-med friends and might take a few summer classes. But ultimately, I don't think that I'm missing out on anything. I still have time to see friends and family (and post on SDN ), and it is possible to get a minor if I wanted to (in fact, students at my school get a chemistry minor just for taking all the classes required for a biology major!). After I take my MCAT in the spring of my sophomore year, I'll have more time to take the electives, medical and otherwise, that I've been wanting to take.

If anyone has any other questions, feel free to ask me! I'm here to help!!!

 

[dr.h]

I want to apply to apply to a 6 year bs/md program (NEOmed, if youve.heard of.it) but Im freaking out about whether I would be accepted or not
Ive taken AP US History (4)
Im in AP Stats, Comp, and Psych
And will be taking AP Bio, Chem and possibily Lit
EC wise Im very active in Drama Club and our local youth group
Right now I have an unweighted GPA of 4.0 but Im sure thatd probably drop a little next year (Im a junior.right.now)
What do you guys think?

 

[feli_owl]

I want to apply to apply to a 6 year bs/md program (NEOmed, if youve.heard of.it) but Im freaking out about whether I would be accepted or not
Ive taken AP US History (4)
Im in AP Stats, Comp, and Psych
And will be taking AP Bio, Chem and possibily Lit
EC wise Im very active in Drama Club and our local youth group
Right now I have an unweighted GPA of 4.0 but Im sure thatd probably drop a little next year (Im a junior.right.now)
What do you guys think?

If you have the ACT or SAT scores to be accepted, I think you should apply! It doesn't hurt to try. The interview is an important component so make sure that if you are invited for one, you come off as friendly, confident, and ambitious!

 

[SunnyB]

How important is the interview process at NEOMED i think I did really bad how does it play out

 

[feli_owl]

How important is the interview process at NEOMED i think I did really bad how does it play out

I don't know about the NEOMED specifically, but the admissions staff in my program weighed the interview heavily. Then again, you might have done better than you thought you did. Some of my friends in my program thought their interviewers were super mean people who tore their applications apart and criticized them, but my friends ended up getting in anyways. Good luck!

 

[Venko]

I completed the BS / MD program through NEOMED (previously called NEOUCOM). I cannot speak to the details of their current admissions structure, but I can speak to the concept of going through a BSMD program versus the traditional pathway. I have no regrets about my decision to go through the BSMD pathway. I am not big into parties, or other things that are stereotypical for the college experience. I was more into the education in a way that I would not come out the other end with astronomical debt. When I went through NEOUCOM, I went through the akron campus along with 35 other kids (this was in 1999). The selection process was rigorous enough that most of us had turned down ivy league college acceptances to come to the shortened and guaranteed route.

The workload was high but not too high back then. We averaged around 37-40 credit hours per semester and studied through the summer. There was something called intersession and one of the two years I took public speaking and tennis, and bowling during that time and walked away with a lot of requirements. The workload was manageable especially if you didn't have to have a job on top of it. There were two students I believe who tried to carry jobs while doing this and both quit the program after one year. This was in part because of their lack of commitment to the career (one wanted to be in theater, the other I think business), but also had to do with the demands on their time.

As for the ECs in college, I did none. I spent most of the time courting my classmate who is now my wife. I have to admit it was the biggest time distraction from my studying but that time investment has yielded the biggest dividends over my life. In medical school, I did many ECs but for the life of me I cannot remember them very much right now. At that time, the acceptance into medical school was contingent upon your GPA, your math / science GPA, your MCAT scores, and lack of disciplinary action history. I don't know if this is still true, but it meant that if you didn't want to do any ECs in college, you didn't really need to. They don't necessarily count for much when you go into residency except if you work on the same EC through college into and through medical school…that may be different.

As for the differences from the traditional route…you don't savor the journey. If you like to eat a nice meal slowly and savor the experience before eating another nice meal its probably not for you. Certainly I'm joking, but its kind of meant for the person who knows who they are (not trying to find themselves), knows where they want to be at the end, can work and focus on a large volume of schoolwork (40 credit hours was no joke). So difference one is the intensity of the time. You don't get to spread the intensity of the premedical curriculum across four years, it is bunched into two or three.

The second difference has to do with the connections. My experience (others had different experiences) was that our outside of school lives revolved around the other 34 kids. The ones who went all the way through with me are lifelong friends. I could not speak to one of them for years but if I ran into them on the street or in the hospital or at a medical conference, it is always a true pleasure. I don't think I would have walked away from pre medical education with the same degree of closeness with people…just because of the intensity of the program, we lived with each other on the same floor throughout the year, we took the same classes, and we were not really competing with each other over the year…we competed within an individual class and at times that got out of hand but it wasn't necessarily like my success was to the detriment of my colleague.

If you need pressure to push yourself to succeed it may be difficult for you to have success here. It does take long for some folks to realize that if you just pass with a B you'll still get into medical school (at least in the previous model). Then some kids (myself included) would hover around the required GPA a bit too closely and some would fall below and face disciplinary actions. If you need the pressure of getting into medical school to push yourself to succeed you may have difficulty here (not necessarily but its a possibility).

The cost was vastly different back then. My annual tuition was around 14K and because I only had two years of living expenses to account for as well, it became much cheaper than four years at Harvard or Wash U.

The name recognition is different too. Now that I am well out of college it rarely comes up as to where I did my undergraduate work but when I applied for residency a lot of people asked what NEOUCOM was or where is the university of akron. I don't think it was much of a hindrance but it was an annoyance I think to my pride. In my heart I was a highly competitive student but on paper it kinda looked like I trained in "no-name" environments…it sorted itself out easily though. To me it would not be a signifiant issue, but it is a difference than if I trained at Wash U and then went to medical school etc…everyone knows about Wash U in St. L. very few know of U of Akron.

I will try and check back to see if more questions get posted about BS/MD…and sorry if my thoughts are out of date…I went into NEOUCOM in 1999, so I am sure much has changed. It is weird the OP never checked back to answer any of these questions. Good luck everyone in your life and careers wherever and whatever they may be.