any suggestions on a interesting major?

If you want an *interesting* major, dont go with bio. Go with mechanical engineering or history. But, if you're forced to settle for a lame bio degree, go for bioengineering or biochemistry, or, on the opposite scale, wildlife ecology. The major differences between the bio majors are on what scale and from what perspective you are studying life. Biology tends towards the macro scale, whereas, molecular biology (obviously), tends the other way. Biochemistry looks at the chemical behavior of life systems and their molecules, bioengineering deals with designing and implementing technology into these systems, microbiology deals with bacteria and viruses, zoology deals with animals, botany with plants, etc etc. Ecology is the study of interrelations of life in its environments.

Degrees like ecology, biology, zoology, and microbiology will tend to be more filled with the memorization type skills that you'll encounter in med school, whereas degrees like bioengineering and biochemistry often involve more technically heavy skill learning, and less pure memorization (which is why many people see them as *harder*). If you want to mirror what you're going to learn in med school, a general bio degree is best, so you can take all different types of classes, like molecular, genetics, immunology, biochemistry, and anatomy. A specialty biology degree is helpful if you are interested scientific medical research (ie: biochemistry, molecular biology, medical microbiology, bioengineering).

Btw, welcome to the forum! Dont take everything here seriously, and dont get stressed out, and it'll be fun.

Business or economics if non-biology. If biology, cell and molecular is the best track. History is boring and totally useless, stay away. Art too; artsy fartsy majors are all bogus, go as far away as possible. Biochem and biomedical engineering are harder than plain biology. I still think you'll learn a lot more practical knowledge in business or eco, and you can still take bio classes and prerecs on the side. You'll meet cooler people in those majors too.

Shredder said:

Business or economics if non-biology. If biology, cell and molecular is the best track. History is boring and totally useless, stay away. Art too; artsy fartsy majors are all bogus, go as far away as possible. Biochem and biomedical engineering are harder than plain biology. I still think you'll learn a lot more practical knowledge in business or eco, and you can still take bio classes and prerecs on the side. You'll meet cooler people in those majors too.

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Econ rules! I was an econ major once. I think you'd find business to be too specialized and difficult to apply to anything else. I mean, who wants to learn how to operate a supply chain management system, or fill out a corporate tax sheet and then, go on to med school and never use it again.

Pretty good analysis. Yeah econ's solid, I only took micro but I'm planning on taking more and reading a book on Greenspan, he's the man. Econ knowledge is broader than biz and applies throughout life. I recommend an econ course or two for anyone who hasn't taken any, it should provide you some enlightenment. Although if you get into medical management or administration business savvy could help, and even in a private practice but that's far down the road. Conservatives unite!

Shredder said:

Pretty good analysis. Yeah econ's solid, I only took micro but I'm planning on taking more and reading a book on Greenspan, he's the man. Econ knowledge is broader than biz and applies throughout life. I recommend an econ course or two for anyone who hasn't taken any, it should provide you some enlightenment. Although if you get into medical management or administration business savvy could help, and even in a private practice but that's far down the road. Conservatives unite!

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Hey shredder, are you going to take an entrepreneurship class? I'm thinking that would be the one really useful business class for doctors planning on starting their own practices.

I seem to enjoy the study of cognitive traits, patterns, and abnormalities, so that's why Psych is interesting to me. Philosophy is also good if you like to study the construction of argument, read challenging books, and study powerful thinkers. Hence, philo and psych are my two favorite subjects.

Depends on what you're into, and if you're mainly focused on majoring in a biology concentrated course, then I can't help you much because I've yet to take any of those classes, so sorry about that.

Physics, Physics, Physics!!!

Thats what I did. Although I decided to go into medicine after my sophmore year. Trust me, you will be extremely unique with a degree in physics. Plus, people are so amazed when you tell them you graduated Summa Cum Laude with a BS in Physics.

Psychology would be a really cool major (mainly because I am a psych major haha) but its a really interesting field where you get to learn about human behaviors and how we tend to think.... the first two lower division psych classes are fun but the last 2 kinda sucks (applied statistics for psych majors, and applied english literature for psych majors) upper division psych courses offer very interesting topics from; abnormal psych to perception to health psychology

Ross434 said:

Hey shredder, are you going to take an entrepreneurship class? I'm thinking that would be the one really useful business class for doctors planning on starting their own practices.

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I'm going to be an MD/MBA candidate, so my bias toward the fields I have mentioned is undeniable. Thus, I'll learn the real deal soon enough hopefully. I do think a little biz and eco knowledge is beneficial for everyone though. For starting a practice I think there's more to it than just entrepreneurship, like accounting, finance, and other things. I guess it depends on how thriving you want the practice to be and how much innate biz sense you have. I wouldn't really know for sure...I'm sure older people around here do though. An entrepreneurship class seems a little ironic because I wonder if the most successful entrepreneurs ever took them.

Shredder said:

I recommend an econ course or two for anyone who hasn't taken any, it should provide you some enlightenment.

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It was a required class for me in high school and I liked the class pretty well, so I've considered taking a higher econ course within the next year or two.

I know that there's some math that's implented into the advanced econ classes, but can you give me a brief description on how it's used, or more precisely, how much is applied?

I ask because I'm not an avid fan of taking two math courses at once.

Shredder said:

I'm going to be an MD/MBA candidate, so my bias toward the fields I have mentioned is undeniable. Thus, I'll learn the real deal soon enough hopefully. I do think a little biz and eco knowledge is beneficial for everyone though. For starting a practice I think there's more to it than just entrepreneurship, like accounting, finance, and other things. I guess it depends on how thriving you want the practice to be and how much innate biz sense you have. I wouldn't really know for sure...I'm sure older people around here do though. An entrepreneurship class seems a little ironic because I wonder if the most successful entrepreneurs ever took them.

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wow, bioengineering, mba, and md. thats a killer combo!! Guaranteed to make $$$. Yeah, i meant more along the lines of a "how to start a small business class". Even the most successful entrepreneurs at one point needed to know how to obtain funding for their business, how to advertise, and how to register and do the paperwork. Its hard enough as it is to start practicing medicine after residency. Trying to start a practice with no knowledge of how the business environment works is even more killer.


Edit: Dave - I've taken intermediate micro and macro. I'm not sure about "advanced" econ, but, depending on the rigor of your school, you shouldnt need anything more than calc, and, in my experience, they teach you the math as you go along. Its a good idea to take econ, its a lot of fun, and really develops useful analytical thinking skills. The real math starts in economics graduate level courses, where you're getting into really advanced multivariable calc and differentials. However, no need to fear this in undergrad.

Ross434 said:

Edit: Dave - I've taken intermediate micro and macro. I'm not sure about "advanced" econ, but, depending on the rigor of your school, you shouldnt need anything more than calc, and, in my experience, they teach you the math as you go along. Its a good idea to take econ, its a lot of fun, and really develops useful analytical thinking skills. The real math starts in economics graduate level courses, where you're getting into really advanced multivariable calc and differentials. However, no need to fear this in undergrad.

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Sounds just about right for me then. I'll have to look into it further later on. Thanks, man.

I, too, can't decide on what major to get since, from what I hear, it doesn't matter as long as the pre-reqs are completed. Would medical school admissions look down on a psychology degree?

Swenis said:

I, too, can't decide on what major to get since, from what I hear, it doesn't matter as long as the pre-reqs are completed. Would medical school admissions look down on a psychology degree?

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No, they don't care what you major in. Just be able to explain why you chose that particular major. One of the docs I have told me people usually do the bio or psychology thing. Just major in what you're interested in.

Shiet...I'm a Biological Sciences major and I have no intention of switching it at all, mainly since I really like biology. Am I making a bad decision by majoring in bio sci? I'm minoring in psych...should I now double major in bio AND psych to compensate for the bio sci major?

Aero047 said:

Shiet...I'm a Biological Sciences major and I have no intention of switching it at all, mainly since I really like biology. Am I making a bad decision by majoring in bio sci? I'm minoring in psych...should I now double major in bio AND psych to compensate for the bio sci major?

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I'm sorry, but for some reason I find the idea of majoring in Psych to compensate for majoring in Bio hilarious!

Anyway, major in whatever you want to. No one cares, as long as you don't major in bio because, as a premed, you think you have to. Personally, I'd recommend majoring in a subsection or cross-disciplinary version of bio (like Neuroscience) or something completely different (like Russian Studies) but that's just me.

With a little more research, you should be able to identify one or two areas of Bio that interest you most.

If you really don't have a preference amongst the Biology majors, I would choose the major with the best professors/instructors at the university you are transferring into, or with the highest reputation. For instance, if University A is well-known for it's Biochemistry Dept, choose Biochemistry. Or, if current students rave about the instructors in Zoology, choose Zoology.

I wouldn't be dissuaded from a non-Science major. A major in History, Philosophy or Fine Art will make you stand out from other applicants. More importantly, study in another discipline will give you a broader, deeper perspective on medicine and additional analytical skills.

javert said:

Anyway, major in whatever you want to. No one cares, as long as you don't major in bio because, as a premed, you think you have to. Personally, I'd recommend majoring in a subsection or cross-disciplinary version of bio (like Neuroscience) or something completely different (like Russian Studies) but that's just me.

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I agree with this--major in what you like as long as it's keeping you interested. If the bio department at your school offers more classes than any other that get you enthused, major in it. From observation, there's a faction of people who think they have to major in bio to get into med school (wrong), and another lot of people who think they won't get into med school if they major in bio (also wrong). The key is to be something of a standout in whatever track you choose.

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I started out majoring in biology. However, I started feeling a little uneasy when I realized that a biology degree is pretty much useless by itself. If you are rejected from med school your first try, you are stuck with this useless degree, unless you have a desire to teach or do research. I would consider that settling for less if your dream is to become a physician.

Look into a degree in Medical Technology. You can use this degree by itself if you are turned down the first time you apply to med school. These guys work in hospital labs. When the doctor takes your blood and sends it to the lad, Medical Technologist are the guys that run your blood test which help inform the doctors what is wrong with you. This requires 3 years of prerequsites and one year of clinicals. You will also take most of the classes that you need for med school along with useful courses like anatomy and physiology, microbiology, toxicology, general biology, organic and inorganic chemitry and so on. Unfortunately, physics is not part of the program. Take it anyway though. If you are turned down your first year you can use this degree for a year or so. Then med schools will look more favorbly at your application because you have worked in a hospital. This looks great on a med school application! Look into a BS in Medical Technology. I have mentioned that this degree offers you a viable choice if you are rejected. However, it can easily get you in the first try as well. I believe that medical technology offers something extra. So look into it. You might like it, you might not.

Yours,
Caraway

my Anthropology major has been one of the few things that has kept me sane during the pre-med classes. A lot of the Anthro classes had medical relevance (women's health, human growth and development, energetics and physiology, etc) so i didn't stray too far from what i'm interested. Anthro also factors in a lot of cultural aspects of medical issues. I think it's a great major to balance my interest in medicine. if your school offers a medical anthropology major (or even just an anthro one) i'd do it. problem is, if you don't get into med school you pretty much have to go on to a higher degree in anthro do to anything with the major. but i'm ultimately gunning for med school, so i'm not too worried about that.

If there was 1 major that interests every single person, every single person would take that major. In other words, we are all different. I might like chem while you like bio. The best thing you can do is to grab a catalog from the university you intend to transfer to. Read up on the majors and go from there.
I jumped the gun and picked Bio as my major. Unfortunately I'm too far into the game now to turn around and select Chemistry. I'd like to, but it's just not a sound idea. Either way, be careful w/ your choice... make sure you research it enough so you don't end up like me.

MrDreamWeaver said:

If there was 1 major that interests every single person, every single person would take that major. In other words, we are all different. I might like chem while you like bio. The best thing you can do is to grab a catalog from the university you intend to transfer to. Read up on the majors and go from there.
I jumped the gun and picked Bio as my major. Unfortunately I'm too far into the game now to turn around and select Chemistry. I'd like to, but it's just not a sound idea. Either way, be careful w/ your choice... make sure you research it enough so you don't end up like me.

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I agree. Don't try to create a personality. In other words, be yourself. If you like biology, study biology. If you like art, study art. Not trying to be cheesy, but "be true to thyself."

Register another vote for economics! I'm a dual econ and bio major and absolutely love things that I am learning from each. However, I was an econ major first and only picked up the bio major after I had 5/6 of it done through pre-reqs.

While economics doesn't teach you how to start a business, or how to do accounting, it DOES teach you how to approach life in terms of trade-offs (cost/benefit). I have a professor who brags on econ as "the science of choice." While economics has been good for me because it is close to the way I have always approached life, it has been a great opportunity to quantify and polish that point of view. In particular, I am really interested in policy and issues, and this makes econ almost like applied philosophy for me. (BTW, philosophy is my minor, too....goes to show that if you arrange your schedule perfectly, you can maximize your opportunities in college...and maximmization/efficiency is all economics)

Anthropology hands down. It's my minor, but Biology is my major.

If I wasn't going into medicine that is what I would have majored in. (Possibly)

It takes the best of the social sciences, biology, medicine, humanity, and culture into one field.

njbmd said:

Hi there,
First of all, I was an Analytical Chemistry major with a minor in Math and Physics. After that, I did a Ph.D in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology before attending medical school. If I had it to do all over again and I knew for sure that I was going to apply to medical school, I would major in American Studies and minor in Spanish. Both are infinitely more useful for what I do now than all of that science (still I do miss mass spectrometry).

Majors related to Biology: Molecular Biology, Microbiology, Vertebrate Zoology, Invertebrate Zoology, Botany, Ecology, Marine Biology and Entomology. All are interesting as well as General Biology.

Cheers!
njbmd

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what is american studies?

math

Communication is a sorely overlooked major by pre-meds. There are a plethora of articles pointing to the fact that most physicians just don't know how to talk or listen. This is a problem because according to some studies about 75% of all diagnosis come from the patient interview alone.

Also, the better a physician is at building a relationship with patients through communication, then the less likely they are to be slapped with a malpractice lawsuit.

I graduated with a double major in English and Interpersonal Communication, with a minor in Psychology. As a pre-med I chose Communication b/c I know from abundant personal experience as a patient that there are too many physicians who lack basic people skills. Of course, docs aren't the only profession out there lacking in people skills, but when you are discussing intimate/embarrassing/frightening/etc... details of your life and health, it makes it easier if the person who is suppossed to be "helping" you actually treats you like a human being who has feelings. It's also nice if the doctor has feelings, too.

Consider at least a minor in Communication. I recieved the highest recommendation from my school's pre-med committee, so I can tell you, Communication is not a bad degree to go into medicine with.

Communication, english, and psychology. Holy trinity.

If you decide not to go to med school, you'd be ******.

wutwinb said:

my Anthropology major has been one of the few things that has kept me sane during the pre-med classes.

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I totally agree, anthro is awesome. And the classes aren't full of other premeds, which can be a nice change.
I've found that my interest in cultural anthro coincides extremely well with my public health minor. The undergraduate anthro adviser took one look at my transcript and practically begged me to stay in anthro instead of going to med school. He mentioned using it to go the public health route and maybe work for the CDC or something. I think that does sound interesting, and I definitely would consider that if the med school thing didn't work out.

vp826 said:

Ok so the time is here for me to pick my major for my bachelors degree. I was thinking I would major Biochemistry and minor in Econ. BUt i also want to make sure i can use the degree to get a decent job in a hospital if i dont get accpeted in med school my first try. is biochem a useful degree if i dont get into med schoool?

i am going to look into a degree in Medical Technology. the last post really got me interested in that..

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I would like to know the answere too? I am also thinking about majoring in Biochem only if I can get a decent job in hospital if I don't get into med school. I am going to also look into Medical Technology.

i wud suggest economics...med schools luv econ majors...maybe one day it would be economically feasible to provide healthcare access to all?