A.A, A.A.S, OR A.S? New Guy in need of guidance.

[NukeEmAllJeff]

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I'm in my 2nd semester of college (Yes I'm nowhere near medical school atm, I know). I want to know which degree would be the best choice FIRST. Associates in Arts, Associates in Applied Science, or an Associates in Science. I plan of applying to Med school at USF (University of South Florida) and I just want to know which degree I should be targeting now. Does the Major you choose effect anything? I don't know what to major in for a Bachelors's degree yet either, I was thinking Pharmacy...I'm very new to all of this so give me a break 😀

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

 

[searun]

I'm in my 2nd semester of college (Yes I'm nowhere near medical school atm, I know). I want to know which degree would be the best choice FIRST. Associates in Arts, Associates in Applied Science, or an Associates in Science. I plan of applying to Med school at USF (University of South Florida) and I just want to know which degree I should be targeting now. Does the Major you choose effect anything? I don't know what to major in for a Bachelors's degree yet either, I was thinking Pharmacy...I'm very new to all of this so give me a break 😀

Any advice would be greatly appreciated.

Med school admissions committees do not give preference to any particular major. Select a major that interests you and then do well in all of your courses, especially the science courses that are med school prerequisites.

Your particular degree from community college is completely irrelevant. It does not matter. What does matter is that you excel in the courses that you take at community college and then continue to excel at your 4 year school where you will obtain your bachelor's degree.

 

[GoSpursGo]

An Associates is not helpful; you're going to need a Bachelors. Beyond that, WHAT you major in doesn't matter. Most pre-meds major in a basic science like Biology, Chemistry, or Biochem because they make it easiest to satisfy the med school pre-reqs, but really it doesn't matter; you can be a business major as long as you take the pre-reqs and get a high GPA. Specialized degrees such as nursing and pharmacy, however, might not be the best route, as it leaves you with a very specific degree that is somewhat useless if you don't get into med school and if you don't really want to do those as a backup career.

 

[NukeEmAllJeff]

I figured the AA/AS/AAS degree was irrelevant. I was just curious because the requirements are different between the three. Ex: Composition 2 is required for an AA but not an AS or AAS. Would that matter?


Here are the requirements for each:
http://www.spcollege.edu/program/GENR-AAS
http://www.spcollege.edu/program/GENR-AA
http://www.spcollege.edu/program/GENR-AS

 

[Mattabet]

As above, it doesn't matter. For the purposes of medical school admissions, you don't have to complete any of them. They're not interested in your associate's degree. Bachelor's is the requirement, and even then you can major in whatever your heart desires.

 

[JonathanMD]

Usually, associate's degrees take an additional class or two you wouldn't have to take if you just finished a bachelor's, correct?

At least it did when I was at CC. When I was there I could either take those classes and finish an AS or hurry up and transfer out.

I'd advise you to forget about the associate's degree, transfer to a university, and get your bachelor's degree as soon as possible.