Advice on Majors

[The Sultan]

Hi,
I am an undergraduate majoring in Languages and Cultures of Asia. I love what i am studying, and find myself completely absorbed in the subject. However, I am of indian origin. Would this fact count against me when I apply to med-school? Should i consider a double major? Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks •••quote:••• ••••"Read not books alone, but man, and amongst them chiefly Thyself." - Francis Quarles

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[pwrpfgrl]

I think you should keep at what you enjoy. as long as you do well in your pre-med requirements, having a humanities major should not count against you. it may even make you stand out (which is always good with med schools!! )

i'm not really sure why being of indian origin would make a difference - it seems to make sense that you would be interested in something that you can relate to.

 

[Epi]

You should definetely major in what you enjoy, and make sure to do some indepth studies into it as well. Med schools dont care what you major in, at long as you complete the pre med requirement science/math/english classes. Having a unique major will make you stand out from the crowd. Keep it up!

 

[Hercules]

As a former humanities major (Classical Civilizations) myself and a current MS-1, I can say that a humanities major will be in your favor and help you to stand out in the application process. It should also help you out on the Verbal Reasoning section of the MCAT. On the other hand, I urge you to use your electives wisely and take some good courses that will prepare you for med school. Not a ton of courses, just add 1 to your course load each semester. Some courses I would recommend are: anatomy, physiology, biochem, histology, cell bio, and embryology. I didn't take many sciences outside of the premed reqs, and a lot of the ones I took didn't relate all that well to med school.

 

[none]

I agree with the poster who said to focus your electives on the science (biology) side of things. However, if it is possible to do a double major without a major extra time requirement, then sure, go for that. It's certainly not needed for med school admissions, but would help. That goes for any single science major as well. And you being Indian has nothing to do with anything.

 

[TommyGunn04]

I've found that the most important thing to do is show admissions committees WHY you studied what you did, and WHY you're interested in a particular area. It also helps to figure out a way to describe how your studies in the humanities will help you as a physician. In any case, just be sure to do what YOU like, not what you think someone else will like you for doing. In this process, it's critical that you be yourself

 

[Doc AdamK in 2006]

Med Schools look for your passion. They want people passionate about what you majored in and that you will be passionate about medicine.

If you can prove your passion during an interview you will be fine

Good Luck

 

[mpp]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by Doc AdamK in 2006:
•Med Schools look for your passion. •
••••Probably true for the most part but not always. I distinctly told interviewers that I was not passionate about what I am studying in graduate school (atmospheric physics) and that is why I am pursuing medicine. I got accepted...

 

[Doctora Foxy]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by The Sultan:
•Hi,
I am an undergraduate majoring in Languages and Cultures of Asia. I love what i am studying, and find myself completely absorbed in the subject. However, I am of indian origin. Would this fact count against me when I apply to med-school? Should i consider a double major? Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks [•••••Hi, welcome to SDN . I am double majoring in Spanish Lang & Lit and Latin American Studies (I'm not Hispanic). It has greatly helped me in my interviews because i can talk about something I LOVE and relate it to being a better doc (cultural awareness, etc). My suggestion is to maybe volunteer clinically for an Asian population, possibly in an underpriveledged setting (Boston/Tufts has a great clinic like this). Then you can put what you learned in school to use in the real world! That's what I did

Good luck to you!

 

[BlameItOnTheNurse]

The Sultan,
Stick w/ humanities. not b/c you like it but b/c the major w/ the highest MCAT score for past few years has been humanities. I always thought that those majoring in sciences would score better. go figure. By the time you get done reading all the literature involved in the major you will be prepared for that blasted Verbal section.

Verbal section sucks! I dont need to be a frigin english expert to be able to read an anatomy book. Good luck w/ the major.

Also,many of the schools require so many hrs of social sciences... humanities is definitely an edge there. The admissions office in flooded w/ science geeks like myself, so you'll help diversify the class profile