Schools with specialized pre med programs?

[PrepschoolDR]

Hi,

I'm a high school Junior looking into colleges that offer pre med programs. I go to a very competitive private high school (ranked #1 nationally) and have a very good GPA/top percent of my class. My high school is called a feeder school to most of the ivies, but I've realized that I really want a school that focuses on science and will allow me to pursue a very specialized track. That being said, I've had a hard time finding colleges that are ranked highly academically in the USA that offer these programs. Form what I've found, USciences and Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences are the only ones that seem to specialize solely in health sciences. That being said, neither are especially highly ranked academically although I would qualify for large scholarships at both since my GPA is high. Are there any other programs out there that offer similar opportunities with better academics? So far, I'm considering UK schools because they're top notch education and they offer specialized programs and I love London, but they have very strict admissions requirements for US student that even with my GPA and scores I'd be worried about getting a spot in medicine because they do pre-med and med school combined in 6 years and offer limited spots for international students.... Any US schools that would be comparable?

USA Schools:
MCPHS
USciences

UK schools:
Imperial College London (top choice)
University College London
Oxford (St. Anne's in particular)

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[Doudline]

Don't go to the UK unless you want to practice there (and funding is extremely difficult to get for foreign students).

Specialized "premed" or "prehealth" programs have a bad reputation here. At the end of the day, they offer nothing a regular biology/physio/biochem/etc program does not offer, and they needlessly pigeonhole you. Many will see you as a tool for attending such a program.

Any college with significant research opportunities -most Ivies/top tier, but aim for the bigger ones if you can- will fully satisfy your goals. What research you do during undergrad doesn't matter - it's what you learn that's important.

 

[aegistitan]

You don't need to major in health sciences to be a premed, you can major in anything. Specialized premed programs are likely not worth your time. General Bio is general bio no matter where you take general bio.

If you want to practice medicine in the US it might be best to go to college in the US so you are not considered an immigrant when you apply to US medical schools. If you are interested in 6 year programs look for BA/MD or BS/MD programs.

Picking the appropriate undergrad is important because the number 1 most important factor when applying to medical schools is GPA (in terms of getting your foot in the door, not getting screened out). More prestigious universities will feed you into and give you a better chance of being accepted to medical school; undergrad prestige is a factor that is weighed. Some prestigious schools are grade inflated (Harvard, Yale) while other prestigious schools are extremely grade deflated (cornell, johns hopkins, chicago). And you have to remember that at these prestigious universities competition is a huge factor, while it is not as much so at state universities. I've seen a couple threads on SDN about people at ivies like Cornell, Columbia barely able to scrape by with a 3.2 and needing to do postbac GPA repair because they get screened out on applications due to their low GPA.

Simply put, you want to go to the most prestigious university with the most grade inflation. Don't even think about schools like MCPHS, your state university would be a better option, and as you said state universities give out scholarships.

You should read this thread: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...state-school-my-firsthand-experience.1105853/

 

[eteshoe]

You could also look at schools that focus on undergraduate education - these tend to be smaller but they do tend to have some of the best instructors/professors. The prestige of your undergrad plays some part in admission but it really boils down to your numbers and ECs (research, clinical volunteering, shadowing, etc.). If you know the material well and score in 95th percentile on the MCAT in addition to maintaining a ~3.9 GPA (in whatever major - just making sure you take all the appropriate pre-reqs) you will have no trouble getting into top tier med schools.

 

[PrepschoolDR]

Hi,

Sadly my state school isn't great and I personally hate the campus, so that's out. I'm interested in ivies (Harvard, Columbia, Cornell, Dartmouth) and I visited MIT already, but honestly I'm just not sure where to go. And I have time to figure it out, don't get me wrong, but I have to give my college counselor a list of colleges by friday, so that's why I was curious. Thanks for the answers.

Has anyone heard about a USA student doing their pre-med and med school over in the UK? Honestly, I've wanted to go to college in the UK since I was little and I know that practicing in the US is hard but I'm really interested in prion biology for research and UCL has one of the top notch prion biology institutions. Unfortunately, to get their research fellowship you have to be a UK college graduate; the process is much longer and harder for international students.

 

[PrepschoolDR]

Also, in the UK you have the opportunity to international rotations and I have a ton of connections to doctors that run programs through harvard med (my pulmonologist heads all of the pediatric programs there through MGH) so I would have a few ways to get my foot in the door. Plus you can get your Bsc, MBBS (british MD), and Phd in 8 years total so that would be a plus cost wise. I would have to study for the boards on my own, I know that.

 

[darkjedi]

It would be rather unwise to choose a college purely based on if it provides a specialized pre-med track. Nearly every school offers the pre-reqs for med school. The point of college is to learn about a variety of things and really expose yourself to cool new opportunities. Pigeon-holing yourself into a track so early would only do yourself a disservice.

Don't do an MBBS if you hope to practice in the US. It's possible to come back, but you face an incredible uphill battle.

 

[eteshoe]

Also, in the UK you have the opportunity to international rotations and I have a ton of connections to doctors that run programs through harvard med (my pulmonologist heads all of the pediatric programs there through MGH) so I would have a few ways to get my foot in the door. Plus you can get your Bsc, MBBS (british MD), and Phd in 8 years total so that would be a plus cost wise. I would have to study for the boards on my own, I know that.

You can certainly do that but just know that it will be an uphill battle getting to practice in the US. It's usually easier to just school in the US but if you're up for the challenge, no internet forum post can tell you what to do.

 

[PrepschoolDR]

You can certainly do that but just know that it will be an uphill battle getting to practice in the US. It's usually easier to just school in the US but if you're up for the challenge, no internet forum post can tell you what to do.

Yeah, I know its not easy to do and this is completely based on the hypothetical of if I get in (high chance I won't because they're so selective). I'm definitely still looking at US schools. I guess a better question for you guys is what schools you recommend for having good pre med programs? I know there is no pre med major; I'm interested in neuroscience and molecular and cell biology for US undergrad majors. I like that harvard you can do a Molecular and Cell bio major with a minor in neurobio, so stuff like that. Also there's probably tons of these questions out there, so if you know of a pre established forum with these answers any links would be great! And thanks for being honest with me about the UK stuff, I know its probably unrealistic, I guess my childhood dream just still has a bit of a hold over me

 

[WedgeDawg]

moving to hSDN

 

[Aggie95]

1. If you want to practice in the US, you need to go to undergrad and med school in the US. A 4th year med student at the bottom of their class in the US would generally have better luck in the match than a UK med student at the top of their class.

2. Choose whichever undergrad you think you will be happy at, and also has grade inflation. The prereqs you take for med school are the same no matter where you take them, whether it's State U, Harvard, or a health sciences school. So this isn't a good reason to pick which school to attend.

 

[PrepschoolDR]

What about pre med at UW? I went to a coxswain camp there over the summer and really liked the campus, also having the best crew team in the country is a big plus . I have, however, head some mixed things about their pre med program...any thoughts? Also, I know I'm out of state and that it'd be hard to get into, but my school is very well regarded and I know people who have gotten in from out of state plus crew and potentially getting recruited would make the process a little easier for out of state students.

 

[Aggie95]

What about pre med at UW? I went to a coxswain camp there over the summer and really liked the campus, also having the best crew team in the country is a big plus . I have, however, head some mixed things about their pre med program...any thoughts? Also, I know I'm out of state and that it'd be hard to get into, but my school is very well regarded and I know people who have gotten in from out of state plus crew and potentially getting recruited would make the process a little easier for out of state students.

There's really no such thing as a pre med "program". The only thing being a pre med really means is that you aspire to apply to medical school in the future, and are taking the pre reqs for med school. As I said in my above post, the things you will learn in these classes is the same no matter where you go to school, so choosing a school based on the quality of their " pre med program" (whatever that means) doesn't make a lot of sense.

If I were you, the factors I would consider when choosing an undergrad would be cost, grade inflation and how much you like the school.

 

[PrepschoolDR]

There's really no such thing as a pre med "program". The only thing being a pre med really means is that you aspire to apply to medical school in the future, and are taking the pre reqs for med school. As I said in my above post, the things you will learn in these classes is the same no matter where you go to school, so choosing a school based on the quality of their " pre med program" (whatever that means) doesn't make a lot of sense.

If I were you, the factors I would consider when choosing an undergrad would be cost, grade inflation and how much you like the school.

Hi, yes I know there is no pre med program. When I say that I just mean that they have a pre med track where you get a pre med advisor etc. I plan on majoring in neuro and minor in genetics. As far as grade inflation, which should besides harvard has it? Ivies are super tough to get into for me bc a majority of students from my school apply. Academics wise, I could hope to get in but we have a big ivies problem at my school because right now they're taking a lot more athlete recruits than purely academic apps.

 

[Medstart108]

Hi,

I'm a high school Junior looking into colleges that offer pre med programs. I go to a very competitive private high school (ranked #1 nationally) and have a very good GPA/top percent of my class. My high school is called a feeder school to most of the ivies, but I've realized that I really want a school that focuses on science and will allow me to pursue a very specialized track. That being said, I've had a hard time finding colleges that are ranked highly academically in the USA that offer these programs. Form what I've found, USciences and Massachusetts College of Pharmacy and Health Sciences are the only ones that seem to specialize solely in health sciences. That being said, neither are especially highly ranked academically although I would qualify for large scholarships at both since my GPA is high. Are there any other programs out there that offer similar opportunities with better academics? So far, I'm considering UK schools because they're top notch education and they offer specialized programs and I love London, but they have very strict admissions requirements for US student that even with my GPA and scores I'd be worried about getting a spot in medicine because they do pre-med and med school combined in 6 years and offer limited spots for international students.... Any US schools that would be comparable?

USA Schools:
MCPHS
USciences

UK schools:
Imperial College London (top choice)
University College London
Oxford (St. Anne's in particular)

Hi prepschool, I went to the UK from high school for medicine as well. If you have questions ask away.