A&M people- Biomedical science or Animal science major? Or even something else?

[MiniHorse]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

I will be attending A&M starting this fall. When I submitted my application, I automatically just picked Biomedical Science as major seeing as I had not given it too much thought. For me, I guess I have always just linked that major with vet school. Anyway, I am now starting to wonder if I should consider Animal Science instead.. I guess I am just asking if there is one over the other that looks better when it comes to vet school admissions? What are the pros and cons of each major?

 

[jlindp]

I will be attending A&M starting this fall. When I submitted my application, I automatically just picked Biomedical Science as major seeing as I had not given it too much thought. For me, I guess I have always just linked that major with vet school. Anyway, I am now starting to wonder if I should consider Animal Science instead.. I guess I am just asking if there is one over the other that looks better when it comes to vet school admissions? What are the pros and cons of each major?

First of all, congrats on your acceptance to A&M! It's a wonderful school, if I do say so myself. :} As far as picking a major--do something you'll enjoy! I went through the same struggle as you the summer before I matriculated, as vet school had always been my end goal. I started as BioMed, but did not like some of the classes and I wanted more animal knowledge, so I was going to go Zoology. Didn't like those classes (this was before they lumped Zoology into Biology), so moved on to Animal Science...didn't like the meat production aspect, so I finally settled on Wildlife & Fisheries Sciences and couldn't have been happier with my choice. WFSC had a "pre-vet" option, so it planned out all the courses needed for vet school admission, plus the courses needed for completion of the major (all of which I LOVED)--ornithology, ecology, natural history of the vertebrates, herpetology, mammology, conservation biology, etc. As far as adcoms see it, I don't think any one major has more benefit over another (I have a vet school interview with A&M next week!), so long as you can manage all the pre-reqs...which isn't hard to do in 4 years (or less). The only thing I've ever heard BioMed peeps complaining about was their UG advisor. I never met with the man, so I can't say for sure. -shrug- If you like the BioMed curriculum, then I'd say go with it. If you like Animal Science more, then go with that! Enjoy A&M! ;D

If you have any other questions or comments, feel free to PM me. :}

 

[Foxhunter]

Hey MiniHorse- I don't go to TAMU, but I'm from right down the street and did take some summer classes there and met a lot of pre-vet students. You can major in whatever you want to major in and go to vet school. The admissions committee doesn't necessarily prefer one major to another, they want to see that you have excelled in your classes and have proven outside the classroom that you want to be a veterinarian and know what the job requires. When I was at TAMU this summer every pre-vet student I met was BIMS or Animal Science. I'm not saying they're not good majors, but they are cliche. If you're more interested in Psychology or Computer Science or Business, then major in that and do the prerequisite courses. My major is Biophysics, which I honestly think has made my application stand out everywhere I've applied, as it's not what most vet students major in.
Also, not to be rude or say any one major is harder than another, but depending on the difficulty/renown of your program GPA's are weighted differently. I know I've been told that even though my GPA is on the lower end, most admissions committees thought a Physics major was probably more difficult than some other majors so I was given some leeway with the GPA. Just some things to think about.
Also, if you know that all you want to do is be a vet and you can make the grades and are from Texas, you don't even need to complete your degree. I worked for a vet who got into TAMU's vet school after 3 years of undergrad at Texas Tech. This isn't common, but it is possible.

 

[jalyndani]

Just wanted to throw my 2 cents in here. I graduated from TAMU in 2005 with my BS in Animal Science after starting out in the BIMS department. If you're wanting more hands-on animal classes with more practical applications, go Animal Science. Their pre-vet curriculum is called the "science option" and that ensures you have all of the necessary pre-requisites for vet school. The ANSC department makes it a point to know your name, call on you personally in class, and know who you are when you walk into the advising office. In the BIMS department, I always felt like a student ID number. That was just my personal experience.

Welcome to the Aggie family! Like jlindp said, feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions. 🙂

 

[T_Rose]

Also, if you know that all you want to do is be a vet and you can make the grades and are from Texas, you don't even need to complete your degree. I worked for a vet who got into TAMU's vet school after 3 years of undergrad at Texas Tech. This isn't common, but it is possible.

It's also possible to complete a degree in three years of undergrad, but that's not common either.

I am not anywhere close to A&M, but I'd like to offer advice as well. As the other replies said, you can major in whatever you would like as long as you complete the prerequisites for veterinary school and do well in your courses. I started out as a bio major from my university, but after meeting with someone from the animal science department, I changed my major to animal science. Similar to what jlindp said about A&M, the animal science department at my university does also have a bunch of meat production related classes, and I'm not a fan of it, but I wouldn't choose any other major. If it wasn't for those meat-production classes, I wouldn't have had as much large animal experience and not all classes in the major are meat production related. Also, the animal science department at my university is made-up of wonderful professors who have helped numerous students in their quest for admission into veterinary school. Every semester, I also take unique challenging classes outside of my major because I enjoy them, so that makes my application stand out a little. If I don't get into vet school this application cycle, I have decided to double major in biochemistry because I came to love the subject. Look into the majors you are considering and what courses are required for each. Which one are you more interested in? 😉

 

[Foxhunter]

Also- I did take Animal Science at TAMU this summer and I loved the class, professor, and people. I ended up working on a research project that summer.

 

[MiniHorse]

Thanks everyone! I can't wait to be an Aggie! Anyway, I have a strong background in math and science in high school (I've worked my butt off in high school in ap and dual credit classes!). However, now that I'm really considering animal science, it just seems more.. me. If that makes sense at all! I am going to think about it for a little bit, but I'm really thinking I am going to switch over.

Jlindp, my best friend wants to work in wildlife conservation and is majoring in wildlife and fisheries. She's super excited about it!

 

[jlindp]

Thanks everyone! I can't wait to be an Aggie! Anyway, I have a strong background in math and science in high school (I've worked my butt off in high school in ap and dual credit classes!). However, now that I'm really considering animal science, it just seems more.. me. If that makes sense at all! I am going to think about it for a little bit, but I'm really thinking I am going to switch over.

Jlindp, my best friend wants to work in wildlife conservation and is majoring in wildlife and fisheries. She's super excited about it!

I'm sure you'll do fine and enjoy whichever major you choose. The new catalogs for A&M allow for a good deal of electives. Mine were parasitology, companion animal science (this course is da bomb!), and equine behavior and training. I also did 4 semesters at the Wildlife Center (tell your WFSC friend about this place!). The cool thing about ANSC is that there's nearly a dozen ways you can go and still fit in your prerequisites. Good luck!

Also, your friend is going to have a blast and she'll get one of the coolest advisors there is--Mandy Schwede. Ah, sometimes I wish I could go back and relive my UG years all over again.

 

[TXvet]

I was a BIMS major and loved it. I took all the pre reqs and was admitted after 3 years. I also worked at the BIMS office. This was 20 year ago so things probably have changed🙂. Have fun at A&M and get involved-I can say those were some of the best years of my life🙂.

 

[Nelonelo]

Hey! I'm going to be attending A&M in the fall as a BIMS major, too. 👍 Gig 'em!!!!!
I'm pretty excited, as I chose BIMS after much thought because I had read negative/mediocre things about it but also heard from people who have stuck with it that really enjoy it. Personally, I'm going to give it a chance because it sounds interesting to me even though I know it's not hands on like animal science is. We're going to need a bunch of veterinary and animal care experience outside of school anyway, and I'm going to make it a point to get to know my advisor and be sure that they know me personally despite complaints about the advisors.

I'm sure I'll be seeing you in Pre-Vet Society meetings next year! 🙂

 

[Trying2GetIn]

I may be biased but I truly believe that the best major for any premedical course is in some field of engineering. If you can handle the course load while taking the prerequisites for vet school you will absolutely stand out. Your methodology and critical thinking skills will improve tremendously and you will end up more well rounded. A&M has a pretty good engineering dept. too so if you have any interest in the subject matter you might consider such a path.

 

[HopefulAg]

I graduated in '09 and did BIMS. Honestly I kind of regret BIMS. I thought it was too heavily based in theory and you didn't get enough hands on with the animals. I found myself taking more and more ANSC classes towards the end and I think I would've been happier, and perhaps salvaged a chunk of my GPA, had I just gone ANSC instead of BIMS.


I will say this, however: BIMS does a good job of preparing you for vet school. The transition was quite smooth even though I had a year long gap between the two. But then, the ANSC majors don't seem to be having a problem either so I'm not sure it matters much.

But if you do decide to go ANSC, be sure to take Physiology and Anatomy in your senior year (or whenever), as they'll help out tremendously to already have that background going in.


Oh and just for the record, it doesn't much matter which major you pick as long as you have all the pre-requisites, so if you want to do a major in, say, Business (I wish I had taken more business classes in undergrad personally), Entomology, Arts, Engineering, or whatever, go for it,, but you'll have to just plan out that much more what your schedule will be like.

One last thing: if you've any questions about A&M, vet school, BIMS, or whatever feel free to PM me. It might take me a few days to get back to you though.