GPA Question

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Hi SDN.

I've been debating on what I want to major in and I've been contemplating on either CS ( Computer Science ) or Biotechnology. Now take mind that I will be attending a community college for 2 years. I had a plan for taking all my pre-med courses at the 4 year universities. But my question is, I know computer science is said to be a rigorous degree in college does it effect your chances for getting into med-school? For example if I end up with a 3.5 but Ace all my pre-med courses, how does that work out? I see people stating Cumulative GPA and Science GPA? How does this work?

 

[NickNaylor]

Your cGPA and sGPA will still be important, regardless of what your grades in your pre-reqs are.

Your cGPA is the GPA calculated from all of the courses you've taken. Your sGPA is the GPA calculated from only the courses that are considered biology, chemistry, physics, or math (BCPM).

 

[HH Holmes]

The general consensus on here is to "major in what you like the most", which I find to be nice advice, but it may not be a good idea if something you like (like CS) is extremely rigorous and you're looking to go to medical school. Definitely major in something you're interested in, but if it's such a hard subject area like engineering or computer science, it may be a better idea to reserve that to a minor and major in something with less demanding requirements. Again, this is all my opinion -- you need to make decisions on your own.

What Nick said above is correct... Both your cum and BCPM GPAs matter, and seeing as computer science demands multiple higher level mathematics courses, you need to assess yourself to see if you can handle such coursework and decide if it's worth taking a risk for your GPA.

Good luck!

 

[CuttingCorneas]

The general consensus on here is to "major in what you like the most", which I find to be nice advice, but it may not be a good idea if something you like (like CS) is extremely rigorous and you're looking to go to medical school. Definitely major in something you're interested in, but if it's such a hard subject area like engineering or computer science, it may be a better idea to reserve that to a minor and major in something with less demanding requirements. Again, this is all my opinion -- you need to make decisions on your own.

Agreed! One of my friends started off freshman year as a Zoology major (3rd hardest at my university, after Meteorology and Engineering). She took a communications class that year and decided she loved it. So, she switched her major to Comm and just took the med school prereqs too. She said it was the best decision she ever made.

HOWEVER: She got a C in a class and it definitely dropped her sGPA a lot, because she didn't have too many science classes. I'd keep that in mind too, if you're really worried about your sGPA when your AMCAS deadline comes around.