Can I still go to Med School with an Engineering Undergrad?

[FreeTris]

---

Members don't see this ad.

Hello everyone, I am currently 19 years old and I have decided that I'd love to go to medical school. I am a current undergraduate student in Electrical Engineering with around 2 and a half years left.

I took general bio 1/2 + lab dual credit in high school , college algebra, and some other pre requisites.

While in college so far I have taken General Chemistry 1+ lab and will soon take calculus based physics 1 and 2 with the labs.

I am probably going to take general chemistry 2 during the summer as well as organic chemistry next year so I have all of the pre requisites met for med school in the USA.

I know I need to study for the MCAT so I have begun doing that, and now that I've chosen Engineering I know that my GPA might be screwed as a result, since electrical engineering is definitely not an easy major, but it could be a good fallback plan if I don't get accepted.

I also soon want to start shadowing, does anyone have advice for this as well? I am genuinely passionate about going into medicine, because I was thinking to myself, how can I make a real impact on people on a day to day basis, and this would be the perfect career path for me.

Any advice would greatly be appreciated thank you.

 

[X0001234]

You can definitely get into medical school as an engineering major--I had a few pre-med classmates who studied biomedical engineering and pretty much all of them were admitted to great med schools. I think you might be right that your GPA might suffer a bit. As for shadowing, does your school have an advising office/service for pre-health students? They can sometimes put you into contact with physicians at nearby med schools.

 

[FreeTris]

You can definitely get into medical school as an engineering major--I had a few pre-med classmates who studied biomedical engineering and pretty much all of them were admitted to great med schools. I think you might be right that your GPA might suffer a bit. As for shadowing, does your school have an advising office/service for pre-health students? They can sometimes put you into contact with physicians at nearby med schools.

My school is kind of a no name in a small town but it is still an accredited state school, so I think it will be okay. I'll see what I can do about finding physicians , but there's no med school around me.

 

[SpicyHotSauce]

Yes. I do have people in my class who earned a bachelors of engineering. There is no restrictions on what you major in.

Furthermore, there are medical schools that do have a focus on engineering in their MD programs such as Carle and Texas A&M. These might be of interest for you.

For shadowing, I would highly recommend to cold call clinics and ask them. I went a step further but you can get your resume printed out and go to clinics door to door and hand out your resume while trying to talk to the receptionist if you can volunteer there. Through my position this way, I was able to shadow the physicians (after spending some time there) while also getting some clinical volunteering hours.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

How to Engineer a Health Professional Career | SDN

NOTE: In this article, “engineering” can refer to quantitative analytical subjects like physics, mathematics, computer science, or finance/economics, but

www.studentdoctor.net

 

[FreeTris]

Yes. I do have people in my class who earned a bachelors of engineering. There is no restrictions on what you major in.

Furthermore, there are medical schools that do have a focus on engineering in their MD programs such as Carle and Texas A&M. These might be of interest for you.

For shadowing, I would highly recommend to cold call clinics and ask them. I went a step further but you can get your resume printed out and go to clinics door to door and hand out your resume while trying to talk to the receptionist if you can volunteer there. Through my position this way, I was able to shadow the physicians (after spending some time there) while also getting some clinical volunteering hours.

What kind of GPA do I need for the A and M admission, that's honestly an ideal school but I know but getting into that program in particular would probably be pretty difficult correct, I might not be able to.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

What kind of GPA do I need for the A and M admission, that's honestly an ideal school but I know but getting into that program in particular would probably be pretty difficult correct, I might not be able to.

Spend $30 to get MSAR access from AAMC. If you have a prehealth advisor, they may have an access code.

 

[FreeTris]

Spend $30 to get MSAR access from AAMC. If you have a prehealth advisor, they may have an access code.

Alright I'll try to contact my school about this, thank you.

 

[SenatorTractor]

Check out Carle in Illinois. They like engineering

 

[Dr. Robb Bassett]

Hey FreeTris, thanks for sharing your journey so far — it’s really inspiring to see someone thinking so intentionally about their path at 19. You’re clearly putting in the thought and groundwork now that a lot of people don’t get around to until later, so give yourself some credit for that.

Balancing electrical engineering and preparing for med school is no small feat — that shows a strong work ethic already. It’s true that engineering can be GPA-tough, but med schools look at trends, context, and resilience too. So instead of asking “will my GPA be enough?” maybe try asking: “How can I structure my schedule and study habits now to support both strong performance and long-term well-being?” Because burnout is real, and pacing yourself smartly will matter just as much as acing Orgo.

As for shadowing — that’s a great next step. Don’t overthink making it perfect. Start with your own network — family doctors, friends’ parents, student orgs, or even just calling clinics in your area. Also most teaching hospitals will allow shadowing. Find one in your area and reach out to the “Office of Graduate Medical Education” and ask about shadowing opportunities. Sometimes a sincere, well-written email or a quick phone call is all it takes. And once you’re in the room, try to be curious and present more than “impressive.” Ask yourself after each experience: “What did I notice about the way this doctor connected with people?” or “Could I see myself doing this every day?” You’ll build clarity through exposure.

And your “why” — wanting to make a real, daily impact — is beautiful. Keep coming back to that when things get heavy. A lot of people lose sight of their why under pressure, but anchoring to it can really guide your decisions and keep you going.

You're already thinking like someone who belongs in medicine — keep learning, asking questions, and showing up with that kind of heart. You're on the right track.

Wishing you all the best as you move forward!

 

[MDMechEngr]

I know I need to study for the MCAT so I have begun doing that, and now that I've chosen Engineering I know that my GPA might be screwed as a result, since electrical engineering is definitely not an easy major, but it could be a good fallback plan if I don't get accepted.

Engineering technology-electrical may be more gpa friendly. Consider switching to ET-Electrical if your school has that option and it's not too late. I think ET major take the same math, chem and physics series as the business and life science majors, and your core ET classes/text books are geared toward applied engineering and less heavy on math theory. You can still be an engineer with a BS ET-Electrical if med school doesn't pan out. You want to maintain a high gpa for med school. It is EXTREMELTY DIFFICULT to maintain a 3.5+ gpa in EE because of the Calculus, Differential Equations, Linear Algebra, Laplace Transform Fourier, etc... If you are required to take Statics, Dynamics, Thermal, Fluids, etc., than that may hurt your gpa also. All your lab classes are extremely time consuming as well. Maintaining a gpa uptrend may also be difficult as the classes get more difficult. GL.

 

[anon2]

An engineering technologist is an engineer the same way a PA is a physician. They are related, but absolutely not equivalent career paths.

Engineering (and medicine) is hard for a reason, and it's your choice whether to take an extremely demanding major that med schools generally don't give credit for.

As a math PhD, my grades in all the classes you mentioned (including statics/dynamics/thermodynamics/fluids) are vastly better than my bio grades. Go figure.

 

[MDMechEngr]

An engineering technologist is an engineer the same way a PA is a physician. They are related, but absolutely not equivalent career paths.

Engineering (and medicine) is hard for a reason, and it's your choice whether to take an extremely demanding major that med schools generally don't give credit for.

As a math PhD and incoming M1, my grades in all the classes you mentioned (including statics/dynamics/thermodynamics/fluids) are vastly better than my bio grades. Go figure.

A PA cannot be board certified as a physician, but a BS ET-Electrical, -Mechanical, -Civil, etc.. can be board certified as a Registered Professional Engineer if they graduate from an ABET accredited university and pass their FE and PE exams. You may be referring to an engineering technician, which only requires a 2-year AA degree. An ET degree is a 4-year bachelor of science degree, alghough in applied engineering (some time refer to as engineering light). Kind of like MD vs. DO thing lol. You are compairing orange to apples.

As a resident in a competitive specialty at a T5 program, I am recommending OP to make his/her pre-med journey a little easier. I did graduate from a top Uni with a 3.98 gpa in Mech Engineering (Magna Cum). If I had to do it over again, I would make my life easier by majoring in art, but I would probably flunk out of the art program. LOL.

 

[anon2]

Graduates from ABET-accredited bachelor level engineering technology degree programs are also eligible to become registered professional engineers by the same process in many (but not all) states.

What Programs Does ABET Accredit? - ABET

www.abet.org

Emphasis added. Guess that is indeed equivalent to DO not being recognized in many countries.

My point is what's a "hard" course varies per person. My major GPA in math is 3.97, 4.0 in mech eng.

 

[FlowRate]

Absolutely possible, but I wouldn't specifically recommend it if you think you're 100% committed to med school. It's the most masochistic way to try and get in to med school with the degree of additional effort required to get a good GPA in most engineering programs (compared to basically any other program aside from maybe math and physics.)