Emergency Medicine or Biology for undergrad major?

[cloud99]

I know most would say your major doesn't matter to med-schools as long as you have the grades in pre-req's, strong MCAT score, good extracurriculars, etc...

The Emergency medicine degree (at U. Pitt) allows time for pre-req's in the first 2 years, then classes to become a paramedic and for health care management, leadership, and administration the last 2 years. Classes include pathophysiology pharmacology, cardiology, respiratory, etc... with labs as well as clinical rotations for direct patient care. It's pretty demanding, with 18 credit hours taken fall and spring of the junior year, but just seems so much more interesting and applicable. Plus there is the added perk of actually having a degree where you can gain meaningful employment in the event of a gap year.

How would adcoms look at this degree? Does a degree in Biology with all the upper level sciences trump a paramedic with administrative capabilities?

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[music2doc]

I know most would say your major doesn't matter to med-schools as long as you have the grades in pre-req's, strong MCAT score, good extracurriculars, etc...

The Emergency medicine degree (at U. Pitt) allows time for pre-req's in the first 2 years, then classes to become a paramedic and for health care management, leadership, and administration the last 2 years. Classes include pathophysiology pharmacology, cardiology, respiratory, etc... with labs as well as clinical rotations for direct patient care. It's pretty demanding, with 18 credit hours taken fall and spring of the junior year, but just seems so much more interesting and applicable. Plus there is the added perk of actually having a degree where you can gain meaningful employment in the event of a gap year.

How would adcoms look at this degree? Does a degree in Biology with all the upper level sciences trump a paramedic with administrative capabilities?

[sarcasm]
EM absolutely. You want to let that adcom know you are ALL IN for Emergency Medicine. Win the hearts of those EM interviewers and let there be no question about your intention to enter the field of Emergency Medicine. They'll forget that your major was a health sciences major stereotyped as being even fluffier than Nursing. They'll eat that **** up.















[/sarcasm]

 

[CliveStaples]

Study what you are more interested in studying. Take all your pre-reqs. Get As in your classes, particularly those that contribute to your sGPA. Having one major over the other doesn't give you any leg up in medical school admissions - it's just how you did in those courses that matters. And you're going to do better in courses that interest you, so pick the major that interests you. I promise if you apply to medical school and you don't get in, no ADCOM is going to tell you that it's because you majored in something they "look down" upon. I higher percentage of applicants with majors other than Biology get into medical school every year, so obviously there isn't any bias in favor of Biology majors.

 

[sliceofbread136]

I don't really know if there is a stigma against emergency medicine majors like that of nursing majors (the two seem pretty similar), but if there is I would say biology is definitely better.

 

[cloud99]

That's the worry...is the major considered a "fluff" major?

Years 1-3 are hard core, but the fourth year, which is comprised mostly of classes in health care education, legality, finance, accounting, management, and leadership, can actually be taken on a distance learning model. This is an option for licensed paramedics with 51+ college credits, but I think the "regular" students can go distance learning too.

The whole distance education thing sounds so university of phoenix...ugh... Plus, you take six 2-credit classes the fall semester. 2 credit classes look even fluffier. Spring semester looks better on paper with 3 and 4 credit classes but still only 12 credits. Obviously would have to throw in a 3 credit elective of some sort both semesters to total 15 credits, but that's not a problem.

Even with the E.M. major, biochemistry would be taken at some point due to new MCAT 2015 requirements, and probably anat. and physiology too, so at least there's a few upper level science courses in there above and beyond pre-req's.

Just feel like the hands-on patient care would be great and give an answer to the adcom question "why should we choose you for this seat in med school?" Plus bio can be so......yawn....

 

[TheMightySmiter]

The only useful major for a pre-med is a foreign language.

 

[sliceofbread136]

The only useful major for a pre-med is a foreign language.

Not necessarily true, it depends on the premed's goals. Things like business or engineering could be useful for certain premeds.

As for the OP, I wouldn't major in EM. It just sounds too sketchy to me, although I don't know much about it.

 

[PreMedOrDead]

The only useful major for a pre-med is a foreign language.

 

[pkwraith]

What a confusing/misleading name for a major.

 

[PreMedOrDead]

 

[KnuxNole]

Since when is "Emergency Medicine" a major? I guess when that random pre-med at a party mentions that they are in college majoring in EM, they aren't lying

 

[PreMedOrDead]

Since when is "Emergency Medicine" a major? I guess when that random pre-med at a party mentions that they are in college majoring in EM, they aren't lying

There are even some schools that offer a 'premedical' major.

 

[sliceofbread136]

There are even some schools that offer a 'premedical' major.

Atleast to me a premedical major sounds less ridiculous than an emergency medicine major

 

[ToldYouSo]

agree with learning a foreign language

 

[PreMedOrDead]

Atleast to me a premedical major sounds less ridiculous than an emergency medicine major

I'm majoring in pediatric anesthesia and vascular surgery. It should be very effective in landing me a spot in an anesthesiology residency, of course.

 

[CuttingCorneas]

That's the worry...is the major considered a "fluff" major?

If you're planning on applying the summer between your junior and senior year, years 1-3 are the ones that matter the most anyway...

 

[CuttingCorneas]

I'm majoring in pediatric anesthesia and vascular surgery. It should be very effective in landing me a spot in an anesthesiology residency, of course.

I majored in Janitorin'. Didn't matter, though. My JCAT score wasn't competitive enough

 

[ljpm8224]

Since when is "Emergency Medicine" a major? I guess when that random pre-med at a party mentions that they are in college majoring in EM, they aren't lying

I think Emergency Medicine came about as a major when Paramedics started wanting bachelor degrees. Paramedic started as and still is a 2-year certification. Then various programs started doing a bachelors in Paramedicine, etc.

There are also 4 year bachelors in Respiratory Therapy (and for that matter even a masters degree in Respiratory Therapy), which is another typically 2-year associates.

OP- I'd say until these programs become the new minimal standard requirement for national certs, they're a waste of time and many of them have... poor reps. Especially the distance ed ones. A better choice would be to do a regular undergrad in a heavy, hard science like bio or chem and if you're really serious about EM do your EMT-b cert and then a Paramedic on the side during or after your regular classes. Harder road, but best of both.

One other thought- a Paramedic with a bachelors degree in Emergency Medicine but who's never been employed in the field is a far weaker applicant than someone with a 1 or 2 year "patch factory" medic cert but has been employed full time in a high-volume ALS system for several years (and has a bachelors in whatever else)... assuming equal GPAs.

 

[Ismet]

Since when is "Emergency Medicine" a major? I guess when that random pre-med at a party mentions that they are in college majoring in EM, they aren't lying

I attended Pitt undergrad, now at Pitt Med, and EM/EMS is pretty huge here. You apply to the BS in EMS program at the end of sophomore year (or pre-freshmen can apply and be guaranteed admission for their junior year) so for year 1-2 of undergrad, you're taking all the pre-reqs like every other pre-med. OP, as you said, it might be difficult to work in biochemistry, but I think it will be doable (maybe over the summer, or take it during senior year and then take a gap/work year?). I found out about the BS in EMS way too late (when I was already a junior), and if I could go back, I would definitely do the program.

I don't think it's a "fluff" major at all. You should major in what interests you. If you don't like biology, please don't major in biology, because you will spend 4 miserable years studying something you're not that interested in. Personally, I'm pretty sure I want to go into EM, and while I enjoyed my neuro major, I think I would have really enjoyed the EMS major. Don't worry about what adcoms will think of your major. Do well in the pre-med pre-reqs, do some ECs and probably research (Pitt has an EMS research lab), and you'll be fine.

And if you're really worried about how the EMS major prepares you for med school...a person in my class was an EMS major at Pitt.

tl;dr If EMS is what interests you, DO IT!!!

 

[music2doc]

The only useful major for a pre-med is a foreign language.

An M2 friend of mine at your school said the same thing. What're they putting in the water out there?

 

[cloud99]

Thanks all for the opinions. Still a lot to think about, but it's good to know that e med majors actually do get into med school (and at Pitt, no less). Definitely going to get at least the emt-b cert. No matter what the major is.

 

[BABSstudent]

agree with learning a foreign language

No school has cared about my degree in zoology. When I mention my degree in Spanish, the adcoms have tons of questions and talk about all the cool things I have done with it.


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