Can you really get into Med School with any undergrad degree?

[Dr Wannabee]

I was talking to some Elementary Education majors the other day and they were telling me how they all have 3.9 or 4.0 gpa's and how incredibly easy the classes were because most of them are tought by other elementary school teachers(with masters degrees). Would a med school just look at your 3.9 grade point average and laugh as soon as they looked at your major or would the just consider it a 3.9 just like any other 3.9 gpa?

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[evajaclynn]

As long as you take the pre-req's and you have good stats, I don't think your undergrad major really matters.

 

[krelian]

First, what does the thread topic have to do with the OP's question? Second, this question has been asked so many times. There is a reason that the BCPM GPA is calculated separately from the overall GPA. But... if you really wanna know, why don't you change to an Elementary Education major?

 

[edfig99]

major doesn't matter for application to medical school.


that being said, if someone ONLY took the core pre-med sciences, and ONLY took courses for their major, without any upper-division courses (in or out of their major) or additional science courses, they can be viewed as a less attractive applicant. they may still get interviews but if the sense that they can't do the work is there, it makes them drop on the list.

 

[Dr Wannabee]

First, what does the thread topic have to do with the OP's question? Second, this question has been asked so many times. There is a reason that the BCPM GPA is calculated separately from the overall GPA. But... if you really wanna know, why don't you change to an Elementary Education major?

What the hell is your problem? Did you get picked on in class today so now you have to make your self feel like a big man by browbeating someone online. Chill out.

 

[beep]

as everyone always says: you can get in with any major.

BUT, personally, i would hate to spend 4 years putting substantial time into something that didn't really interest me just because it was easy.

 

[krelian]

What the hell is your problem? Did you get picked on in class today so now you have to make your self feel like a big man by browbeating someone online. Chill out.

Sorry if it seems I'm trying to browbeat you. I was merely commenting that your thread title was asking if anyone got into med school w/o an undergrad degree (which I think apparently does happen, but is very rare). Also, threads about whether undergrad major matters for med school is numerous, and it seems here, you are asking about a certain major: elemetary education. I took a rigorous course of study in college, so I do understand some of the frustration out there towards students who slide through college with easy majors. That said, we do have a choice regarding our majors, and if we chose difficult majors, so be it. In the long run, minor stuff like this shouldn't matter. Furthermore, you should note that the majority of med school matriculants are science/math majors, so it's not like everyone abuses the system by taking easy classes.

 

[Dr Wannabee]

Sorry if it seems I'm trying to browbeat you. I was merely commenting that your thread title was asking if anyone got into med school w/o an undergrad degree (which I think apparently does happen, but is very rare). Also, threads about whether undergrad major matters for med school is numerous, and it seems here, you are asking about a certain major: elemetary education. I took a rigorous course of study in college, so I do understand some of the frustration out there towards students who slide through college with easy majors. That said, we do have a choice regarding our majors, and if we chose difficult majors, so be it. In the long run, minor stuff like this shouldn't matter. Furthermore, you should note that the majority of med school matriculants are science/math majors, so it's not like everyone abuses the system by taking easy classes.

My original post says "Can you really get into Med School with any undergrad degree?

 

[krelian]

s**t, my bad, i was smoking something. yes, i know of students who studied nursing, communications, and education who got into med school. i also know one guy who did 2yrs at a community college and then transferred to a public univ. for the last 2yrs, and he got in to med school too... so there's a wide variety of schooling that med schools accept.

 

[synapse lapse]

You must have at least 90 hours at many schools to enroll, and some require bachelors degrees. Most students with the requisite 90 hours are expected to complete their degree obviously. As far as majors, anything goes!

 

[EllieElle]

s**t, my bad, i was smoking something. yes, i know of students who studied nursing, communications, and education who got into med school. i also know one guy who did 2yrs at a community college and then transferred to a public univ. for the last 2yrs, and he got in to med school too... so there's a wide variety of schooling that med schools accept.

Too true. I'm a Latin and Greek major, and it hasn't been a problem. As for the claim that it's a waste to spend 4 years on something you won't end up doing, I think that's false. Why <i>not</i> spend 4 years on something different? We're all going to be doing science-related things for the rest of our lives... I, for one, am really glad that I did something different during college, as it helped me keep a balance with the science courses.

Plus, it's something interesting to talk about on interviews

 

[seethrew]

I was a fine arts major in college - specifically painting. I am applying this year and have had some acceptances and a waitlist. My prereqs were completed at a post-bac program several years later. So... I guess I'm proof, studio art seems like a pretty far off major for med school.

Interestingly enough, I had one interviewer ask if all art students get A's - do some get C's. Pretty silly, but a common misconception that anyone can ace an art class. It wasn't enough of a misconception for them to disredit me - that particular school was one that offered an acceptance.

 

[vikaskoth]

as long as you dont major in john edwards you should be fine

 

[katiew]

At what point in your Undergrad do you choose your major?

 

[Pontifex Maximus]

as long as you dont major in john edwards you should be fine

Heh.

 

[Cat's Meow]

as long as you dont major in john edwards you should be fine

 

[masmaha1234]

I'm an anthropology major- even though it is a social science, anthropology covers a broad base of biology,anatomy, chemistry, physics, sociology, psychology, and linguistics...great major for future docs!

 

[MsEvolution]

I did three years at community colleges and the last two at a University. I majored in Anthropology (and all my electives were premed requirements).

I have one acceptance to med school and 6 interviews so far (3 MD, 3 DO).

I think community college and majors are not consideration factors.

 

[synapse lapse]

Yes, I'm a philosophy major....but Anth is a great major for doctors!

 

[Neuronix]

Would a med school just look at your 3.9 grade point average and laugh as soon as they looked at your major or would the just consider it a 3.9 just like any other 3.9 gpa?

They pretty much consider a 3.9 GPA like any other 3.9 GPA. You could argue that some really difficult majors might get some bonus points, but that's more speculation and logic than reality. Just look at mdapplicants.com some time for the top schools. You'll see all high numbers of all kinds of majors. Meanwhile, the 3.3 - 3.5 engineering or other difficult majors are getting weeded out. Fair? Maybe not. But, as long as USNews is looking at GPA as a factor and undergrad schools all have variable major/courseload intensities, med schools are going to do things this way.

PS: I agree with everything AsianDoc below me said. I was also a dual bio+psyc major.

 

[AsianDoc816]

Surprisingly, "weird" major people (i.e., even elem. ed. majors) might even be preferred because they are "different" than the typical bio major. I doubled in bio and psych, and I definitely have to say that psych is a lot easier than bio. However, my psych classes were also more interesting. You can say it's unfair to have a 4.0 with an elem ed. major, but the med schools don't look too seriously at it. On that same note, I don't think having a double major has made THAT much of a difference in my application.

The short answer to the OP's question is NO, your major doesn't matter all that much. Your GPA is much more important.

 

[Lindyhopper]

Of course, they still have to take that great equalizer, the MCAT. And they have to know a little science to do well on it.

 

[PublicEnemy]

They pretty much consider a 3.9 GPA like any other 3.9 GPA. You could argue that some really difficult majors might get some bonus points, but that's more speculation and logic than reality. Just look at mdapplicants.com some time for the top schools. You'll see all high numbers of all kinds of majors. Meanwhile, the 3.3 - 3.5 engineering or other difficult majors are getting weeded out. Fair? Maybe not. But, as long as USNews is looking at GPA as a factor and undergrad schools all have variable major/courseload intensities, med schools are going to do things this way.

yeah this is very true. some med schools will give a little consideration for the reputation of the school you attended and the difficulty of your major, but its definitely mostly a numbers game. for borderline applicants with lower numbers, things like having good performance in difficult upper-level science classes is important, positive trend in academic performance, etc. but again, thats only because they're borderline and they're borderline simply because of #'s.

i don't like the way in which usnews puts so much emphasis on the "caliber" of entering students as criteria for ranking. i feel like knowing a school has 100% board pass rates and average scores around 220 or something like that with lots of students matching in derm, ortho, ophtho etc. would tell me more about the ranking and quality of education there than the entering classes avg. gpa.