How important is your major for Pre-Allo?

[swim97]

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Hello all,

If you look around SDN, the general advice is "We don't care, just do well", but if you look well enough, many admits with unique majors tell us that they were asked to speak about them during their Interviews, some saying "I don't think I would have gotten in if I hadn't chosen this major". Medical Schools strive for diversity in academic enrichment, and if Biology majors are a dime a dozen, then wouldn't having a different major be advantageous?

I am currently deciding between going for a double major or just another minor in music, the difference in that it's just one more awful class I would need to take. I am first-gen URM if it matters, so that adds to my "uniqueness", I guess. Many classmates loathe the course due to the professor, but the average GPA is well over 3.6.

edited for typos

 

[puahate]

Look if you dont want to major in biology then dont.

Also consider the practicality of your major. You want some insurance but i would not stress it too much.

 

[swim97]

I am very deep with this Biology major, only missing a few classes, and I like it. Asking about Music, is it worth going for the Major?

 

[puahate]

I am very deep with this Biology major, only missing a few classes, and I like it.

Then continue with it

 

[swim97]

...

 

[labscience]

Are you a musician besides being a music major? Being in an orchestra, band, choir etc. is much more of a talking point than a music major alone, and I don't think you have to "legitimize" a passion for music with a major! I was a double major in bio and Spanish and did feel like I wanted the major on top of my extracurriculars to prove my language proficiency, but this is a slightly different case.

 

[907914]

To the medical school your major is Of little to no significance. As an applicant, as stated above, you should definitely keep practicality in mind as there is a chance you are not going to get in first go round.

My school offers a pre-MED major, but I am going the biotechnology route because what do you do with a pre-MED/generic biology major if you don’t get in? Either work for the forest service, as a bench tech for low wages or apply to graduate school.

Students with specific majors who think they wouldn’t have gotten in without the major it may be more correlation than causation. Students with diverse educational backgrounds are more likely to get asked about it because they may have experiences to talk about beyond the typical pre-MED/biology track. It isn’t that the major itself is interesting, it is that the students themselves demonstrate further experiences than their peers.

 

[puahate]

...

The issue is your major honestly does not matter. Idk why you dont just finish your current major

 

[cantankerous]

Major in something that can get you a job out of undergrad or use the time in undergrad to study something you will not have the opportunity to really focus on after you graduate undergrad. Many people nowadays take gap year(s) and I don't think a BS Biology buys you much in the job market. Lab jobs are hard to come by since many of them are filled by people with connections.

 

[907914]

The issue is your major honestly does not matter. Idk why you dont just finish your current major

It depends on the major and the coursework - I am two classes from a dual chemistry major, but PCHEM is a waste of my time. Being happy > finishing prereqs >>>> the major that appears on your degree.

 

[swim97]

@labscience

That's exactly my fear, that my passion for music is less obvious with just a minor than a major. I am involved with teaching, studio, and piano ensemble stuff every semester, but as a class. My school is very vocal-oriented, and my sight reading skills aren't good enough to keep up with doing more.

@samualjhatfield

Yeah I thought about that, and I definitely agree so I considered Music only as a double major, my primary one being Biology. It makes sense, you are right, extracurricular experiences are superior to coursework in terms of expressing a passion for something.

@cantankerous Is a Biochemistry degree more marketable?

 

[swim97]

Oh, I should clear it up, maybe there's some confusion.

I definitely want to take the coursework for a Music Minor/Major, that is a plan for my own personal enjoyment. I am three-four classes away from finishing a Biology major, and have quite some time before graduation. I wanted to know if ti was worth completing the minor into a major in order to show more passion for music, or just leave it as a minor to avoid a terrible class people loathe

 

[puahate]

Major in something that can get you a job out of undergrad or use the time in undergrad to study something you will not have the opportunity to really focus on after you graduate undergrad. Many people nowadays take gap year(s) and I don't think a BS Biology buys you much in the job market. Lab jobs are hard to come by since many of them are filled by people with connections.

Idk i have a bs bs biology and i had decent job prospects

 

[siliso]

JMO having done it but I think a liberal arts degree is excellent preparation for medical school as long as you get the prerequisites in. You will have medical school to cram cell bio and so forth into your head - you won’t have opportunity in medical school to get a foundation in history, sociology, philosophy, humanities and arts - and since we take care of human beings in the human condition it’s a valuable foundation to have. And, you will have a solid career path to make a living that a philosophy/literature/politics/whatever major who’s not going into medicine would not have.

 

[capriccio]

@labscience
That's exactly my fear, that my passion for music is less obvious with just a minor than a major. I am involved with teaching, studio, and piano ensemble stuff every semester, but as a class. My school is very vocal-oriented, and my sight reading skills aren't good enough to keep up with doing more.

No, no, no. Your passion for music will be evident through your activities (which you're obviously very involved in—teaching, studio, and ensemble stuff are all great things to do!) and through the essays you write in your application eventually. I played an instrument at a very high level, wasn't a music minor or major, and interviewers loved asking me about my musical activities.

 

[puahate]

It depends on the major and the coursework - I am two classes from a dual chemistry major, but PCHEM is a waste of my time. Being happy > finishing prereqs >>>> the major that appears on your degree.

I dont see the real benefit switching majors and spending more time and money in college just because you "feel" like swiching majors. This makes it even harder to justify for medical school.

 

[swim97]

@puahate I'm not planning on abandoning my Biology major, lol, I am planning on double majoring or getting a minor with my Bio major with all this time I have.

 

[907914]

Oh, I should clear it up, maybe there's some confusion.

I definitely want to take the coursework for a Music Minor/Major, that is a plan for my own personal enjoyment. I am three-four classes away from finishing a Biology major, and have quite some time before graduation. I wanted to know if ti was worth completing the minor into a major in order to show more passion for music, or just leave it as a minor to avoid a terrible class people loathe

To echo what others above have stated - your passion for extracurriculars is best shown through your activities and essays, not your formal education. My liberal arts college offers outdoor recreation as a major....but I just go hiking and volunteer for SAR instead.

 

[swim97]

I think I got my answer, thanks all! Go for the minor (only because I want to take those classes), and use the extra time from a less-dense course-load for more extracurricular activities!

 

[907914]

@puahate I'm not planning on abandoning my Biology major, lol, I am planning on double majoring or getting a minor with my Bio major with all this time I have.

Don't do the major in music if you won't enjoy the class. Take classes that satisfy the prereqs and elective classes you will enjoy. Again, happiness and life-satisfaction should be your primary goal in undergrad, not what your degree says.

 

[dr_kateb]

Your degree doesn’t matter at all. The only benefit is that you have a backup incase you don’t get into/finish medical school, but since you want to do biology and music, two of which don’t have great job markets, stay with bio and get into medical school.

 

[cantankerous]

Is a Biochemistry degree more marketable?

It's as marketable as your resume in total. Like the user below, you can be marketable with a biology, biochemistry, etc., but you will need other things to back it up as far as experiences (lab experience and knowledge, teaching, etc.)

Idk i have a bs bs biology and i had decent job prospects

The city I live has several large universities with lots of pre-something BS basic science graduates, so that's just been my experience.

 

[puahate]

@puahate I'm not planning on abandoning my Biology major, lol, I am planning on double majoring or getting a minor with my Bio major with all this time I have.

How easy is the minor to get?