Does Major really not matter for med school admissions?

[deleted1017120]

Heh funny you mention that since i had the exact opposite experience. Chemistry and physics profs were absolutely incredible who made difficult subjects like ochem and E&M understandable and enjoyable to learn.

On the other hand, bio profs were straight up garbage and made me want to smack my head against the wall many times out of sheer boredom (the only exception was biochem, the profs there were awesome).

I don't doubt that you did and I'm sure that it made those classes much better; I wish that more schools had quality instructors. One of the problems is that graduate programs don't actually teach their students how to teach; it is just expected that you'll walk into an undergraduate classrom and start teaching.

Unfortunately, physics/math/chemistry classes have a pretty negative stereotype concerning the quality of their teaching, and that stereotype seems just as valid as the "bio/psych degrees are useless" stereotype.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[DoctorFate]

Adcoms here disagree. Your anecdote is just that.

Actually I'm curious. No examples here talked about MIT specifically. Adcoms, how would your schools process a 3.5 GPA from MIT Engineering? How about MIT science or MIT liberal arts?

 

[Doctor-S]

FWIW ... may or may not care about major for MSTP, and will look keenly at 3.5 science GPA, from undergraduate schools, including MIT, Caltech, etc. Degree may be earned in any discipline so long as academic coursework plus strong and sustained research experience demonstrates intellectual rigor/analytical/problem-solving skills necessary to succeed in MSTP.

 

[Goro]

I'm echoing the other person. A 3.5 from MIT will almost undoubtedly be noticed as equal to or better than a 4.0 from some random university. A final year Harvard MD-PhD student i talked to had a 3.5 from MIT and no pubs.

SDNers are advised to not focus on single metrics

 

[LeeAnnGennaria]

This thread is absolutely brilliant! I'm dreaming of becoming a doctor, and being admitted to a medical school has been a lifelong goal of mine. However, I always thought you'd need a Major to have a real chance of being chosen, so reading these comments is an incredible relief. Thank you so much! Seeing my grandad aging and suffering from his health issues, I want to learn as much as possible to be able to help him. Now he is taken care of by the https://homecareassistance.com/palm-beach team, but I'd like to do it myself after a while. Cheers!

 

[voxveritatisetlucis]

This thread is absolutely brilliant! I'm dreaming of becoming a doctor, and being admitted to a medical school has been a lifelong goal of mine. However, I always thought that you need a Major to have a real chance of being selected, so reading these comments is an incredible relief. Thank you so much!

Why schools don’t have majors? Isn’t it only Brown?

I always suggest that students pick a practical major in addition to their premed studies so that they can find a job if they don’t get in. Remember, most who apply won’t get in

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Actually I'm curious. No examples here talked about MIT specifically. Adcoms, how would your schools process a 3.5 GPA from MIT Engineering? How about MIT science or MIT liberal arts?

Like every other applicant. Fill out a WAMC. Often we blind the reviewing team of GPA, university, and major.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

This thread is absolutely brilliant! I'm dreaming of becoming a doctor, and being admitted to a medical school has been a lifelong goal of mine. However, I always thought that you need a Major to have a real chance of being selected, so reading these comments is an incredible relief. Thank you so much!

I think most schools require some level of academic accomplishment, usually in the form of completed course hour minimums. I'm sure there have been medical school students who either have not completed degree requirements for a major or decided to make a major of their own. Be assured