I am switching majors...feedback?

[tharealest]

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I am currently an electrical & computer engineering major that is interested in premed. However, with the workload and labs in my classes, there is no way I can pursue doubling up with classes like bio, o-chem, english, etc...and also volunteering and getting clinical experience. Even if I could find the time to take a very heavy courseload, my grades would certainly drop a lot.

The engineering majors are too set in the sense that they say, this is your schedule, you're gonna follow it for all four years, and we'll let you choose a humanities course every other semester. If I wanted to do premed in this major, it would take me around 6 years to graduate, which I don't wanna do.

Basically I wanna get input from you guys. What majors would be suitable for applying to medical school...that I could also apply my strengths in (analytical thinking and math)? I know there is no typical premed major, but I would like to hear back from you guys.

*** EDIT *** From people who have experience, what do you think are the main differences between biology and chemistry? I feel like one is more memorization while the other is more analytical. Please gimme your feedback!

Thanks.

 

[DrMom]

major in something that you like & can make good grades in. Other than that, it really doesn't matter.

 

[kapnut]

did you think about majoring in biomedical engineering, you can focus in biomedical imaging. there is a lot of overlap in electrical in that field and you will get your pre-med reqs as part of your major.

 

[sidewalkman]

Biomed engineering's good. Lots of analysis in math 😀 , biochem of the computational variety, biophysics, physics, even psych (think neuropsych of memory and such). Good luck to you.

 

[tharealest]

Yeah unfortunately they don't offer biomedical engineering at my school...otherwise, i would have taken it. Any other suggestions?

 

[priyanka]

honestly,
biomedical engineering is more engineering and less biology too...
but erm, personally i like neurosciences and animal physiology so i'd biasly recoomend that..
Although its a known fact that every other premed takes biochemistry..
I know for a fact that general biology is considered to be a very open major because u can select your classes relating to any of ther biology areas, u dont have to limit ur self to neuroscience or biochemistry.
Human biology is also good because it covers all the courses you would take in first year med school and the admission committee is actually looking for those courses.
i personally selected neurosciences because i just love it and obssessed to it, so basically it depends on what gets you going do that!
good luck!

 

[Medikit]

You might want to try Biology or Biochemistry instead

 

[latinfridley]

I am currently an electrical & computer engineering major that is interested in premed. However, with the workload and labs in my classes, there is no way I can pursue doubling up with classes like bio, o-chem, english, etc...and also volunteering and getting clinical experience. Even if I could find the time to take a very heavy courseload, my grades would certainly drop a lot.

How far along are you in the EE/CE program? I am a computer science major graduating this semester, and was faced with a simiilar situation that you are in now. I chose to stick with the major, and tough it out. In addition I did volunteer work, and paid work, both clinical and non-clinical. So its definitely doable to do EE/CE and pre-medical. Incidentally, I'm graduating in 4.5 years (taking 18 hours this semester), so while 4 years seems kinda unreasonable, it shouldnt take 6 years to graduate, you can do it within 5 years, which is not bad for an engineering major. If you're far into the program , i.e- a junior, I suggest sticking it out. Despite my low gpa (3.4) as a result of my decision, I recieved an acceptance to a very good medical school. Your call.

 

[Fermata]

You might want to try Biology or Biochemistry instead

Biochem > Bio. 😀

 

[JETER]

Basically I wanna get input from you guys. What majors would be suitable for applying to medical school...that I could also apply my strengths in (analytical thinking and math)? I know there is no typical premed major, but I would like to hear back from you guys.

*** EDIT *** From people who have experience, what do you think are the main differences between biology and chemistry? I feel like one is more memorization while the other is more analytical. Please gimme your feedback!

Thanks

From my experience, analytical thinking and math are extremely valuable tools to have for chemistry. Although I do not have degrees in them, I have taken a lot of bio and chem courses, and I would say that chemistry is a better fit for the engineering mentality. Also, 'analytical thinking and math' skills are just as valuable to physics as they are to engineering, or even math majors. So, this might be something to consider. And the thought of spending 4 years studying biochemistry makes me ill, so I would advise you to investigate this, or any option, fully before jumping in. Good luck.

 

[Soccer Doc]

You can choose any major you want, as long as you fulfill the prerequisites. If you consider yourself competitive, you should try to take difficult courses but still keep your GPA is a reasonable (>3.5) range. Most med schools will look at the whole picture - a difficult major (electrical engineering) in a competitive school with a 3.2 is not as bad as an easy major (like the ones people make up) in a premed factory. Your MCAT should be in the 28-30 or higher range to give you more options. What is critical is that everyone you interview with knows you have passion and focus to be a doctor and that you care about people and not just your own intellectual pursuit. There are a lot of people applying to med schools because they think they are God's gift to the medical profession and are going to teach us a thing or two about academic pursuits - or- the other extreme of people without academic aptitude who think they can teach us a thing or two about compassion and caring. The perfect med student is respectful, humble, intelligent, passionate, caring, and serves others. You, unfortunately do have to take Organic Chem plus labs for a year, calculus (in most places), English, Physics, and Biology classes. I am not sure that computer engineering is considered as competitive as straight electrical engineering or engineering physics. It is in your best interest to take challenging courses because med school is really hard, and if you don't know what the Kreb's cycle is, you are starting behind the power curve.


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I am currently an electrical & computer engineering major that is interested in premed. However, with the workload and labs in my classes, there is no way I can pursue doubling up with classes like bio, o-chem, english, etc...and also volunteering and getting clinical experience. Even if I could find the time to take a very heavy courseload, my grades would certainly drop a lot.

The engineering majors are too set in the sense that they say, this is your schedule, you're gonna follow it for all four years, and we'll let you choose a humanities course every other semester. If I wanted to do premed in this major, it would take me around 6 years to graduate, which I don't wanna do.

Basically I wanna get input from you guys. What majors would be suitable for applying to medical school...that I could also apply my strengths in (analytical thinking and math)? I know there is no typical premed major, but I would like to hear back from you guys.

*** EDIT *** From people who have experience, what do you think are the main differences between biology and chemistry? I feel like one is more memorization while the other is more analytical. Please gimme your feedback!

Thanks.

 

[evajaclynn]

I wanted to major in biomedical engineering, but it wasn't offered at my college either. So I ended up deciding to major in chemical engineering with a biomedical emphasis. Thus, I ended up filling all my pre-med requirements.

However, if I could do it all over again, I probably wouldn't have majored in something as difficult as ChemE. Though I am proud of myself for being able to get through the rigorous curriculum, I despised the majority of my upper level ChemE classes. By then, I didn't feel like switching majors, but just wanted to be done with school.

So you're in a tough situation, but like several others have said, I would really focus on finding a major that you will both enjoy and completely successfully.

 

[TX_Longhorn]

I am currently an electrical & computer engineering major that is interested in premed. However, with the workload and labs in my classes, there is no way I can pursue doubling up with classes like bio, o-chem, english, etc...and also volunteering and getting clinical experience. Even if I could find the time to take a very heavy courseload, my grades would certainly drop a lot.

The engineering majors are too set in the sense that they say, this is your schedule, you're gonna follow it for all four years, and we'll let you choose a humanities course every other semester. If I wanted to do premed in this major, it would take me around 6 years to graduate, which I don't wanna do.

Basically I wanna get input from you guys. What majors would be suitable for applying to medical school...that I could also apply my strengths in (analytical thinking and math)? I know there is no typical premed major, but I would like to hear back from you guys.

*** EDIT *** From people who have experience, what do you think are the main differences between biology and chemistry? I feel like one is more memorization while the other is more analytical. Please gimme your feedback!

Thanks.

hmmm...i was in the same dilema 2.5 years ago. I am an ee major (guess what school 😉 ) and started out as one. I will graduate this december (took me 4.5 years). Well, the best advice i can give you is to know your strengths. If you are purely analytical and a thinker, medicine might not be for you. However, if you love lifesciences then go for it. Since you feel that your obvious strengths lie in math, etc, i would stick with engineering and also do premed. This will be incredibly difficult, you will have to utilize your summers wisely (for research, volunteer work and classes). FEWER PARTIES and LESS SOCIALIZING. It is definitely doable but it will take a lot. Once you do come out though, you will be ready to handle ANYTHING. Good luck in whatever major you choose.

 

[JDAD]

BIOCHEM!!!!!!!!!!!!! It can't be beat.

 

[Medikit]

BIOCHEM!!!!!!!!!!!!! It can't be beat.

I would like to reiterate this.

 

[PKP719]

Stick through it , EE&COE degrees are valuable programs. Remember , when you graduate your going to be an ENGINEER ! Much different status than other b.s degrees.
Not everyone can be an engineer ,
be happy with that 3.5 and do it up kid !

 

[Code Brown]

You can always switch to Economics. It is a highly analytical field with quite a bit of math and a low level of memorization. Another bonus is the fact that AdCom's love people with econ degrees. Just my biased two cents worth.

 

[Fermata]

You can always switch to Economics. It is a highly analytical field with quite a bit of math and a low level of memorization. Another bonus is the fact that AdCom's love people with econ degrees. Just my biased two cents worth.

It's rather odd.

There seems to be a disproportionate amount of surgeons who were economics majors in ugrad.

I can't fathom a reason why. 😕

 

[Code Brown]

It's rather odd.

There seems to be a disproportionate amount of surgeons who were economics majors in ugrad.

I can't fathom a reason why. 😕

Why the correlation? I'm not exactly sure. I'm an econ major and guess what, I am also leaning heavily towards surgery (well, at this point anyway).