How I wish I approached being premed

[chillinillinkillin007]

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What I wish i did instead of pursuing premed right from freshmen year is...

1) Enter as some BS major freshmen year such as music that adcoms will like that is easy to get a 4.0 compared to science majors
2) Volunteer somewhere for the sake of putting it on my application starting freshmen year 😉
3) Switch to premed curriculum junior year...a bit more mature so I can easily knock out A's in the prereq's
4) Take the MCAT end of senior year
5) Take a year off to gain "life experiences"
6) Get into medical school

Hardly any effort put it and good chance of success. This my friends is how you play the game.

 

[Lamel]

You've figured it all out.

 

[gettheleadout]

1) Enter as some BS major freshmen year such as music that adcoms will like that is easy to get a 4.0 compared to science majors

I'll take a wild guess that you've never taken music classes at the university level.

 

[Spinach Dip]

 

[chillinillinkillin007]

I'll take a wild guess that you've never taken music classes at the university level.

I took two...I usually agree with your posts but don't be so quick to judge

 

[Spinach Dip]

I'll take a wild guess that you've never taken music classes at the university level.

Poetry, then. Or Spainsh. Or Ethnic Studies.

 

[listener23]

don't forget to get research experiance

 

[hoihaie]

If i Could redo premed, i would:

1. get excited about medicine in hs - either through reading a lotta books about medicine (there are a bunch out there written by doctors about life in medicine) or through shadowing.
2. cultivate a hobby/sport/passion that I can tangibly pursue.
3. get in to a college with research opportunities
4. get in a research lab as freshmen
5. take all the boring college GE classes first in case my grades suffer liek it did now cause i didn't like those classes
6. continue cultivating my passion/hobby/sport
7. volunteer at a hospital that allows for hands on activites
8. shadow a doctor
9. study better, focus more, on MCAT
10. take more fun courses
11. take a gap year

 

[MidwestLovin]

me: not care so much about where I went to college and enrolled in a college I would be the best at

 

[PanRoasted]

I took two...I usually agree with your posts but don't be so quick to judge

Music appreciation 1 and 2 =\= university level music courses.

 

[justAstudent]

Have you thought about charging other pre-meds for this information?

 

[Mornhavon]

.

 

[Hemorrage]

What I wish i did instead of pursuing premed right from freshmen year is...

1) Enter as some BS major freshmen year such as music that adcoms will like that is easy to get a 4.0 compared to science majors
2) Volunteer somewhere for the sake of putting it on my application starting freshmen year 😉
3) Switch to premed curriculum junior year...a bit more mature so I can easily knock out A's in the prereq's
4) Take the MCAT end of senior year
5) Take a year off to gain "life experiences"
6) Get into medical school

Hardly any effort put it and good chance of success. This my friends is how you play the game.

I disagree with most of these sentiments. Music is a pain in the ass if you're not naturally interested and good at it. The other thing is that many people including myself want to enter right after undergrad and this doesn't allow for that.. but then again what you propose is quickly becoming the "traditional" route

 

[Aerus]

I took two...I usually agree with your posts but don't be so quick to judge

Learning about music =/= learning music. Once you get further, actual music classes are NOT easy unless you literally developed a great ear for it early on and had an extensive background in it.

 

[Blizzard18]

Yeah except you lose valuable critical thinking skills developed from taking your upper level chemistry (or other science) courses and you don't really end up with an undergraduate degree in anything this way. Then if you don't get in, you don't have a degree to fall back on. You definitely have it all figured out. (There was a ton of sarcasm in that last statement if you couldn't hear it).
P.s. Just to clarify, I did get in this year to M.D. really early. November 1st to be precise. And yes, that was my first year.

 

[Calumniam]

Couldn't imagine taking gen reqs as a junior a few years out of HS level science courses. Most of my gen reqs were filled with a majority of kids who got 4-5 on AP/IB level bio/chem (sometimes physics, calc as well) and the professors responded by ensuring the classes were sufficiently difficult to keep averages in the 60s. Have lots of respect for non-trads because the lack of knowledge coming into those classes, relative to the majority and expectation of the prof, is extremely large.

 

[phunky]

The only thing I wish I did was apply myself during my first 2 years of college. When I could put in next to no work and get a 3.5, I didn't see a reason to put in a bunch of extra work to get a 4.0 until I decided on medicine. Oh well. It was fun.

 

[tigga2013]

Yeah except you lose valuable critical thinking skills developed from taking your upper level chemistry (or other science) courses and you don't really end up with an undergraduate degree in anything this way. Then if you don't get in, you don't have a degree to fall back on. You definitely have it all figured out. (There was a ton of sarcasm in that last statement if you couldn't hear it).
P.s. Just to clarify, I did get in this year to M.D. really early. November 1st to be precise. And yes, that was my first year.

 

[Escape_Goat]

If I could redo my morning, I would:

1. Not click this thread.

 

[Mad Jack]

Don't forget to go to a low-ranked university where the competition is slimmer and the classes are easier.

 

[magicaldinosaur]

The only thing I wish I did was apply myself during my first 2 years of college. When I could put in next to no work and get a 3.5, I didn't see a reason to put in a bunch of extra work to get a 4.0 until I decided on medicine. Oh well. It was fun.

If you could put in no work and get a 3.5, then you should have nothing to regret. I'd rather drink and party every night for a 3.5 then kill myself over a 4.0. Right now I'm killing myself for nothing near that. Gotta love differences in schools.

 

[aspirantmed]

 

[WillburCobb]

I took two...I usually agree with your posts but don't be so quick to judge

You should try Form and Analysis, Counterpoint, Contemporary Theory, a music history sequence for majors, or some of the more subjective courses like conducting, lessons, or recitals where point-wise you've earned an A but the prof(s) feel that you just didn't make "enough" improvement and knock you down to a C. Then come back and let us know how it went.

 

[Zelda840]

Have lots of respect for non-trads because the lack of knowledge coming into those classes, relative to the majority and expectation of the prof, is extremely large.

Thank you!
I came back into school at 29 and I'd dropped out of high school so young. I had never taken a physics or chemistry class. I think the last science class I had taken was Life Science - lol. I knew nothing. As for the topic, I wouldn't change a thing. 🙂

 

[Planes2Doc]

The one thing I really wish I had done differently was discovered the Khan Academy during my post-bacc. 🙁

Otherwise, I was very happy to do a post-bacc. Going the traditional route really sucks, and non-traditional is the way to go if you can afford a few years.

 

[chillinillinkillin007]

Everyone took the music major too seriously. I said I would personally "Enter as some BS major freshmen year such as music". Only reason I said that is because I've been playing violin and piano for 10 years and I was able to skip to advanced music classes during my sophomore year and they were easy as hell. There are lot more BS majors out there that let you enjoy college and get a 4.0.

 

[Optimus-Prime]

Everyone took the music major too seriously. I said I would personally "Enter as some BS major freshmen year such as music". Only reason I said that is because I've been playing violin and piano for 10 years and I was able to skip to advanced music classes during my sophomore year and they were easy as hell. There are lot more BS majors out there that let you enjoy college and get a 4.0.

B.A. in glass blowing? yes my school offered that; I hope someone jumps in to defend the fine art

 

[WillburCobb]

Everyone took the music major too seriously. I said I would personally "Enter as some BS major freshmen year such as music". Only reason I said that is because I've been playing violin and piano for 10 years and I was able to skip to advanced music classes during my sophomore year and they were easy as hell. There are lot more BS majors out there that let you enjoy college and get a 4.0.

Theory and Aural Skills I & II are definitely "advanced" 🙄

B.A. in glass blowing? yes my school offered that; I hope someone jumps in to defend the fine art

Mad respect for the quality "water pipe" makers out there.

 

[Being]

Theory and Aural Skills I & II are definitely "advanced" 🙄

Ear training can get pretty intense, especially if you don't have a strong musical background. Obviously depends a lot on what school you're at, though.

 

[WillburCobb]

Ear training can get pretty intense, especially if you don't have a strong musical background. Obviously depends a lot on what school you're at, though.

No denying that - I despised the four semesters of ear training I had to take (I &II were easy, III a bit harder, IV sucked). Though, it is a class (or series of classes) that I don't think anyone would suggest taking unless you have a reasonable musical background.

 

[circulus vitios]

Yeah except you lose valuable critical thinking skills developed from taking your upper level chemistry (or other science) courses and you don't really end up with an undergraduate degree in anything this way. Then if you don't get in, you don't have a degree to fall back on. You definitely have it all figured out. (There was a ton of sarcasm in that last statement if you couldn't hear it).
P.s. Just to clarify, I did get in this year to M.D. really early. November 1st to be precise. And yes, that was my first year.

A degree in the hard sciences is absolutely worthless unless you want to make $10/hour as a temp contract lab tech.

 

[orangeman25]

If you could put in no work and get a 3.5, then you should have nothing to regret. I'd rather drink and party every night for a 3.5 then kill myself over a 4.0. Right now I'm killing myself for nothing near that. Gotta love differences in schools.

Or it could be differences in the person, rather than the school. If I recall from the MCAT forums, Phunky did mind-blowingly well on the MCAT (>37). He/she may just not have to put in as much effort to do that well in school.

I have to scrape tooth and nail to get above a 3.8, but for those that don't, kudos.

 

[Planes2Doc]

A degree in the hard sciences is absolutely worthless unless you want to make $10/hour as a temp contract lab tech.

I agree with you for most part, but it's a double-edged sword. I struggled a lot during M1 because I didn't have any science background as a business major. I think it would have prepared me better. But on the contrary, those hard science majors who fail to get into medical school get royally screwed. I know some people that unfortunately went down that route.

 

[hoihaie]

UC IRVINE offers underwater basket weaving.

 

[WillburCobb]

A degree in the hard sciences is absolutely worthless unless you want to make $10/hour as a temp contract lab tech.

Pretty much. Nursing, engineering, architecture, and education are probably the only degrees that can consistently lead to "reasonable" employment straight out of undergrad without additional education.

 

[WhippleWhileWeWork]

I agree with you for most part, but it's a double-edged sword. I struggled a lot during M1 because I didn't have any science background as a business major. I think it would have prepared me better. But on the contrary, those hard science majors who fail to get into medical school get royally screwed. I know some people that unfortunately went down that route.

What was missing from your post-bacc in terms of preparing you for MS1? Just curious.

 

[mimelim]

I agree with you for most part, but it's a double-edged sword. I struggled a lot during M1 because I didn't have any science background as a business major. I think it would have prepared me better. But on the contrary, those hard science majors who fail to get into medical school get royally screwed. I know some people that unfortunately went down that route.

What exactly do you think you missed out on in undergrad sciences that made you struggle more as an MS1? I think there is a lot to be gained from doing a science major in undergrad, but I honestly think that it's applicability to medical school is lost on most people. On the other hand, people struggle all the time in MS1 because you know... its hard... 😛

 

[Planes2Doc]

What was missing from your post-bacc in terms of preparing you for MS1? Just curious.

Well I took only the required basic sciences. Fellow classmates with hard science majors took things like physiology, anatomy, etc... Now I heard that those classes aren't anything compared to the medical school counterparts, but I'm guessing it left people with some kind of stronger foundation.

What exactly do you think you missed out on in undergrad sciences that made you struggle more as an MS1? I think there is a lot to be gained from doing a science major in undergrad, but I honestly think that it's applicability to medical school is lost on most people. On the other hand, people struggle all the time in MS1 because you know... its hard... 😛

After thinking about it, I'm not sure what I was missing. Since I never took physiology, anatomy, or biochemistry in undergrad, I have no idea how those classes compare to the ones in medical school. I think that I got too relaxed working a 9-5 job after completing my post-bacc. I would come home and relax every day. I spent my weekends traveling. After getting thrown into medical school, I was in no way prepared to drink out of the fire hose as they like to say. But yes, MS1 is really hard! It's very hard to prepare yourself for it. And I would still urge for people not to pre-study, and to enjoy their lives to the fullest before embarking upon the medical school journey!

 

[WhippleWhileWeWork]

Well I took only the required basic sciences. Fellow classmates with hard science majors took things like physiology, anatomy, etc... Now I heard that those classes aren't anything compared to the medical school counterparts, but I'm guessing it left people with some kind of stronger foundation.



After thinking about it, I'm not sure what I was missing. Since I never took physiology, anatomy, or biochemistry in undergrad, I have no idea how those classes compare to the ones in medical school. I think that I got too relaxed working a 9-5 job after completing my post-bacc. I would come home and relax every day. I spent my weekends traveling. After getting thrown into medical school, I was in no way prepared to drink out of the fire hose as they like to say. But yes, MS1 is really hard! It's very hard to prepare yourself for it. And I would still urge for people not to pre-study, and to enjoy their lives to the fullest before embarking upon the medical school journey!

I too have been doing this 9-5 post-post-bacc life. It's almost June, should I brush up on some science?

 

[Planes2Doc]

I too have been doing this 9-5 post-post-bacc life. It's almost June, should I brush up on some science?

No. There's no point. Even if you studied your butt off this summer, that might only get you a few days ahead at most. Pre-studying will only make things worse down the road. Just enjoy the time you have left! If you got into medical school, I'm sure that you can handle it. Good luck and enjoy yourself! In fact, you should probably quit your job and maybe do some traveling.

 

[WhippleWhileWeWork]

No. There's no point. Even if you studied your butt off this summer, that might only get you a few days ahead at most. Pre-studying will only make things worse down the road. Just enjoy the time you have left! If you got into medical school, I'm sure that you can handle it. Good luck and enjoy yourself! In fact, you should probably quit your job and maybe do some traveling.

Haha well then I won't try. I took the whole summer off between my first degree and first career for travelling. Then another 4 months between quitting first career and starting post-bacc to live abroad. This is "re-pad the savings account" time.

 

[WingedOx]

Don't forget to go to a low-ranked university where the competition is slimmer and the classes are easier.

 

[deleted407021]

If we lived in a collegiate environment in which people didn't jump into fields of study where they had no appreciable passion or talent, only for the sake of perceived "easiness", the world would be a better place.

 

[phunky]

.

 

[deleted407021]

Computer science and math have excellent career prospects.

That and IT give me the impression of eventually becoming terribly over saturated in terms of job market. I just see so many of them all over the place, with a huge emphasis on IT within the tech school community, as well.

 

[WillburCobb]

That and IT give me the impression of eventually becoming terribly over saturated in terms of job market. I just see so many of them all over the place, with a huge emphasis on IT within the tech school community, as well.

I have a friend who graduated with comp sci and MIS degrees in the mid 90s and has been working IT since. He complains about this all the time and has more than his share of anecdotal evidence to back it up. His two former supervisors who had MS degrees have both been replaced by people with AS degrees - not a promising outlook IMHO.