Hello folks. I'm about to turn 21 in march but I am still a freshman in a community college. I worked full time after highschool and it took me a while to get the ball rolling. But now that Im in school I love it. I love learning and being part of discussion based classes. That's why I'm trying to transfer to umd, I have free tuition there, and double major in History and Philosophy. Now I know adcoms don't care if you double major, but if you're someone like me who just wants to absorb as much information as possible is this a waste of time? And more importantly can one double major in two humanities, complete the pre-reqs for pre-med, and still graduate in time? This is important since I'm a few years older than most freshmen.
is double majoring a waste of time?
- Thread starter Cmaj7th
- Start date
- Joined
- Jul 11, 2011
- Messages
- 689
- Reaction score
- 1
I never understood people who double majored just to have it on their diploma. If you have two subjects that you're interested in, you will inevitably end up taking enough classes in both of them to either double major or major/minor. To overload more than one semester just to declare double major is completely waste of time if doing so will
1. negatively impact your overall GPA
2. take time away from your job/family
3. hinder your ECs
1. negatively impact your overall GPA
2. take time away from your job/family
3. hinder your ECs
- Joined
- Jan 8, 2012
- Messages
- 152
- Reaction score
- 0
If your goal is to absorb as much information as you can, double majoring in two humanities and doing the pre-med classes might force you to spread yourself so thin that you end up being unable to retain very much information. Considering that you already have to take the pre-med requirements, have you thought about double majoring in one of those humanities subjects and in a science subject? I think either history or philosophy could be a really interesting complement to a bio/neuroscience/etc major.
Or you could minor in one of the humanities majors instead of double majoring. You have a lot of options, but be careful to not be too ambitious.
Also, this is a little off topic, but are you interested in/aware of the medical humanities? Many medical schools have programs in the medical humanities, and you seem like someone who would be a great candidate for sometime like that.
Or you could minor in one of the humanities majors instead of double majoring. You have a lot of options, but be careful to not be too ambitious.
Also, this is a little off topic, but are you interested in/aware of the medical humanities? Many medical schools have programs in the medical humanities, and you seem like someone who would be a great candidate for sometime like that.
- Joined
- Jun 14, 2011
- Messages
- 42
- Reaction score
- 0
Your priority needs to be on finishing those pre-reqs, they're not easy. It's a lot more impressive to an adcom if you have one major and do really well in the pre-reqs than double majoring and struggling through them. But I disagree with those who say double majoring isn't worth it, I'm really happy that I did, and a lot of my interviewers seemed impressed by it.
- Joined
- May 6, 2010
- Messages
- 2,893
- Reaction score
- 128
yeeduhh!
- Joined
- Jan 13, 2011
- Messages
- 1,171
- Reaction score
- 433
If you have a strong interest in two subjects, it can be worth it.
I do not know how other schools work, but at mine some of the upper level courses are reserved for majors.
Another benefit is access to advisers specifically designated for students in that department.
There are also notices sent out that are relevant to students in certain departments. For example, the chemistry department emailed me yesterday to let me know there are opening for tutors at the school. It looks like a sweet gig, and if I was not in the major I would not know about it.
That said, doing it solely to pad a resume is silly.
I do not know how other schools work, but at mine some of the upper level courses are reserved for majors.
Another benefit is access to advisers specifically designated for students in that department.
There are also notices sent out that are relevant to students in certain departments. For example, the chemistry department emailed me yesterday to let me know there are opening for tutors at the school. It looks like a sweet gig, and if I was not in the major I would not know about it.
That said, doing it solely to pad a resume is silly.
I'm not looking to pad a resume. I did search the forum before posting and it seems the general consensus is that double majoring does not take the place of a competitive GPA and MCATs. If I were to do so it would be for my own satisfaction. I suppose I've always viewed college as this romantic Faustian endeavor but I will take into consideration that it could be too much at once. Thank you for your posts they were all very constructive!
- Joined
- Jul 19, 2011
- Messages
- 606
- Reaction score
- 99
Having a double major will not compensate for having a lower GPA than other applicants. Ask my friend who double majored and has a 3.4. Overloaded herself some semesters is now applying to grad programs to improve her GPA.
- Joined
- Jul 19, 2011
- Messages
- 606
- Reaction score
- 99
Do it if you can keep a good GPA, there is nothing wrong with studying topics you are interested in, so long as it doesn't sick your medical school chances. 🙂
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2009
- Messages
- 9,235
- Reaction score
- 3,810
Ok, so to answer your actual question, in your case, double majoring seems like a wonderful idea. You'll get to concentrate in two areas that you love, and your diploma will commemorate your interest in those programs. You also have free tuition at your state university, meaning that you likely will not have to work a strenuous job while attending school, which will likely make your lot better.
Keep in mind, though, that while it's possible to major in two humanities subjects and complete all of the pre-med reqs, it's difficult. If you don't particularly care about the commemoration on your diploma and just want to enjoy a bunch of humanities courses that you love, take a buttload of them, major in just one, and do your pre-reqs as you go!
You're double majoring for the right reason: You love learning and want to pursue two fields. Just think about, practically, what that means for your undergraduate education, and whether you can accomplish your goals in a satisfying way without majoring in both fields. If it's going to happen anyway due to the number of humanities classes you're going to take, it's a wonderful thing to have on your diploma, even if Adcoms "don't care about it." Though I'm not even sure why that's relevant in this case.
- Joined
- Jul 29, 2011
- Messages
- 1,108
- Reaction score
- 6
wouldn't that just make things harder?
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2009
- Messages
- 9,235
- Reaction score
- 3,810
I don't think the OP is asking about impressiveness. I think he's looking for guidance about how to navigate his college life in a way that's satisfying for him. Given his interests, I don't think he wants to go the route of that particular Rhodes scholar.
A more relevant Rhodes scholar is featured below.
[YOUTUBE]OLsKt4O4Yw8[/YOUTUBE]
- Joined
- Jan 13, 2011
- Messages
- 1,171
- Reaction score
- 433
That reminds me of Ninja Pirate Zombie Robots.
http://tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pmwiki.php/Main/NinjaPirateZombieRobot
Everything to impress anyone is a waste of time. And if you're only a few classes away from getting an extra major while graduating on time, go for it. You don't have to do two completely different subjects. You can if you want to. If you see the kid above, there were 4 majors; each of them are slightly related. I'm sure he had a load of AP credits so if you do, you have almost a whole year and a half of credits to earn towards your major and more importantly, learning about something you're interested in.
If the only thing you will ever attempt to do is go to medical school, then just set yourself for an easier future in order to maximize time for extracurriculars. But, if you plan to take time off, a more specified degree may help such as engineering or biochemistry.
If the only thing you will ever attempt to do is go to medical school, then just set yourself for an easier future in order to maximize time for extracurriculars. But, if you plan to take time off, a more specified degree may help such as engineering or biochemistry.
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2009
- Messages
- 9,235
- Reaction score
- 3,810
I didn't know what "for posterity" meant in this context. Now I do. You win.
This thread is a wonderful testament to the complete lack of reading comprehension seen on these forum (how do you guys expect to get a decent VR score if you can't even understand the question part of the of the OPs question?).
OP, it's free, you're interested, I say do it. Just keep in mind that, as it has already been said ad nauseum, that you might find yourself strained. Take an extra year if you're willing, just don't sacrifice your GPA. It might take you more time, but you seem to love what you're learning, and I'm guessing it's enriching you as a human being (asking questions you otherwise wouldn't know to ask, exposure to ideas never considered, yay!), so to me it seems well worth it. Better what you're doing than my utilitarian (for med school admissions anyways) bio degree w/ a minor in chemistry.
OP, it's free, you're interested, I say do it. Just keep in mind that, as it has already been said ad nauseum, that you might find yourself strained. Take an extra year if you're willing, just don't sacrifice your GPA. It might take you more time, but you seem to love what you're learning, and I'm guessing it's enriching you as a human being (asking questions you otherwise wouldn't know to ask, exposure to ideas never considered, yay!), so to me it seems well worth it. Better what you're doing than my utilitarian (for med school admissions anyways) bio degree w/ a minor in chemistry.
- Joined
- Sep 28, 2009
- Messages
- 9,235
- Reaction score
- 3,810
Hey! Not COMPLETE lack of reading comprehension. You and I both understood the question.
