Best pre-med schools?

[chickpeas]

I'm wondering if anyone has thoughts on the best schools for undergraduate pre-med studies, considering that I'm planning on studying Osteopathy?

I have an ACT of 29 and attend a competitive high school, so I'm looking at selective-very selective colleges.

Thank you for the insight!

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[QueenJames]

The one that you get a 4.0 in and earn stellar letters of recs from is the best school.

 

[DoctorSynthesis]

Cornell 😛

 

[costales]

I highly recommend MIT where the Medical Institute of Technology is located. Avoid Princeton and its med school.

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

Don't think about it in terms of schools in general but in terms of learning environments. Do you like small classrooms with a lot of professor interactions? Go to a small private. Do you want to be left alone and compete with other great students? Try a UC campus. Research the schools you like based on your interests and learning styles. There is not a single DO school that will discriminate based on where your undergraduate degree came, except perhaps if it was Univ. of Phoenix or ITT Tech.

 

[HotandCold]

Selective colleges don't matter, just don't go to a community college. And selective high schools (?) don't mean anything past a college application, and that's only if you're going to one of those high-roller 30k a year private highschools.

I went to a very costly private college for 1 year. Then, I switched to a state school. Peers from that college who wanted to do medicine never did it. I did.
At a state school, you can hustle. You can go talk to research professors. You can shack up with a nice little research assistant program. You can get publications. If you go to a liberal arts school on a smaller scale that costs twice as much, you're not going to be able to do that in any significant depth. You want a place with bigger names in research, and ties to hospital systems to more exposure to that and easier shadowing opportunities to pop up.

Here's a little advice though- seeing as how you're in highschool, go in with an open mind. Medicine is not what highschool students think it is. And osteopathic medicine = allopathic medicine for all practical purposes at the moment, unless you want to dive into some OMM. But MDs will probably have the option to do that in the next couple of years. So go somewhere you'd feel comfortable spending at least the next 4 years of your life at, and somewhere you feel like you could thrive in, regardless of your career choice.

 

[Fargofargo]

Kaplan University.


Lol jk. Obviously if you have the capability, go aim for Ivy schools. If not, go where you will be most happy and able to maintain good grades.

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

Selective colleges don't matter, just don't go to a community college. And selective high schools (?) don't mean anything past a college application, and that's only if you're going to one of those high-roller 30k a year private highschools.

I went to a very costly private college for 1 year. Then, I switched to a state school. Peers from that college who wanted to do medicine never did it. I did.
At a state school, you can hustle. You can go talk to research professors. You can shack up with a nice little research assistant program. You can get publications. If you go to a liberal arts school on a smaller scale that costs twice as much, you're not going to be able to do that in any significant depth. You want a place with bigger names in research, and ties to hospital systems to more exposure to that and easier shadowing opportunities to pop up.

Here's a little advice though- seeing as how you're in highschool, go in with an open mind. Medicine is not what highschool students think it is. And osteopathic medicine = allopathic medicine for all practical purposes at the moment, unless you want to dive into some OMM. But MDs will probably have the option to do that in the next couple of years. So go somewhere you'd feel comfortable spending at least the next 4 years of your life at, and somewhere you feel like you could thrive in, regardless of your career choice.

Ridiculous. I'm living proof at CC doesn't stop you at all.

 

[HotandCold]

Ridiculous. I'm living proof at CC doesn't stop you at all.

:/
I know they don't stop you, but I was trying to push a larger state school for the reasons below/ opportunities. Sorry if I came off like a douche.

And to be fair, I knew a lot of folks who went to community colleges with the intent of doing medicine, but couldn't do it. You're probably more an exception than the rule.

 

[Beargryllz]

Community college for the first 2 years

You can get most or all of your prereq classes for less than $100/credit hour.

The classes are small enough to pretty much guarantee easy access to professors and the letters of rec that go along with that. Pretty much a win/win/win decision.

 

[sudo]

Community college for the first 2 years

You can get most or all of your prereq classes for less than $100/credit hour.

The classes are small enough to pretty much guarantee easy access to professors and the letters of rec that go along with that. Pretty much a win/win/win decision.

Be careful with this. Lots of med schools prefer you take high-level science classes at non-community college institutions.

 

[kalat]

Be careful with this. Lots of med schools prefer you take high-level science classes at non-community college institutions.

Yeah, people often blur the line on this. It's perfectly okay to take all your core curriculum classes (e.g. english, political science, psychology, etc.) at a community college as no one will discriminate based on those, but some medical schools do actually discriminate against pre-requisites (e.g. inorganic chemistry, organic chemistry, physics, etc.) being taken at a community college. This is particularly relevant for those people who take transient classes (i.e. a lot of people in my state take organic chemistry outside of their university as a transient student). They'll pick up on these subtle things sometimes. With that said, this isn't always the case, and if your application is good enough I doubt it'll even be a consideration. One final thing to take into account though is these pre-requisite science classes are often good networking at a four year university to get you into a lab or a letter of recommendation from someone who is important. A community college letter may not be as strong and usually there's no networking.

Just as an anecdote... I took the first lecture of physics at a community college and it was a hundred times harder at the community college than the four year I'm graduating from. So, I'm not making a judgment on the difficulty.

 

[Beargryllz]

Be careful with this. Lots of med schools prefer you take high-level science classes at non-community college institutions.

True, and you won't get a bachelor's there either. But anything from calculus to physics to organic chemistry is covered. Literally every prerequisite for medical school was available where I'm at, which was nice. After that you simply transfer and take whatever immunohistogenetics courses you need to finish off a proper B.S.

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

:/
I know they don't stop you, but I was trying to push a larger state school for the reasons below/ opportunities. Sorry if I came off like a douche.

And to be fair, I knew a lot of folks who went to community colleges with the intent of doing medicine, but couldn't do it. You're probably more an exception than the rule.

I might be, but I've found that people that go to CC are in 3 categories: 1) Are just there to waste time or aren't very smart (majority), 2) Older career changers (me), 3) Serious students that are there for financial reasons (smallest group). It's all about knowing yourself and associating with the right people.

 

[EvolutionaryRevolutionary]

Community college for the first 2 years

You can get most or all of your prereq classes for less than $100/credit hour.

The classes are small enough to pretty much guarantee easy access to professors and the letters of rec that go along with that. Pretty much a win/win/win decision.

I am all about cc's saves me MONEY!

 

[golfman7]

I would go to the cheapest school, so maybe your state school, unless you have parental help or scholarship money. I am very thankful I went the state university route at least due to cost.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

Honestly, despite people giving me hell for saying this go to the highest ranked school that gives you the best offer. Medical schools despite potentially not wanting to say it love prestige and they love people from Ivy or top 20 schools ( Which is why they're greatly represented).

 

[sudo]

Honestly, despite people giving me hell for saying this go to the highest ranked school that gives you the best offer. Medical schools despite potentially not wanting to say it love prestige and they love people from Ivy or top 20 schools ( Which is why they're greatly represented).

if i could do it over again, i'd probably go this route...


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[Drrrrrr. Celty]

if i could do it over again, i'd probably go this route...


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Pretty much, I mean I can't complain where I am now from a state school but I feel like it would have been easier from a top 20.

 

[sudo]

Pretty much, I mean I can't complain where I am now from a state school but I feel like it would have been easier from a top 20.

Exactly my feelings.

 

[AlteredScale]

Though going to a CC was nice for finance reasons, you will end up having to "prove" yourself when transferring to a 4-year. So in many ways you are setting yourself up for challenges but if you feel confident in yourself switching pace and intensity then you will be just fine.

Also, if you can go to a school affiliated with a health system or research campus then I would go there!

 

[doreegon]

Undergrad is a very special time and you only get to do it once. It would be a shame to pick a school that you didn't fit into simply because they have good stats or a prestigious reputation. Pre-med is very competitive, especially at prestigious schools. If you're not super type A, then going to a smaller liberal arts college with good stats on matriculation and MCAT prep might be better for you. Many small colleges, like my alma mater (Canisius College) have over 90% matriculation rates, offer 1-on1 tutoring, and great guidance.

Call the schools that you are interested in and ask them what percentage of premedical students matriculated into a medical school, what their mean and median MCAT scores are, and if you can talk to the director of the premed advisory committee. Ask about medical mission trips and service learning opportunities. Ask if they have any partner institutions that take on undergrads to get them clinical experience. Make sure you visit schools, and try to spend the night if you can.