Is it Worth It?

[medbound13]

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Okay, so I was going through my university's catalogue and looked at the various majors offered. As of now I'm a bio major but, while looking at chemistry I realized that I could double major in both chemistry and bio just by adding another 14 semester units. I'm already on track to graduate in 4 years and an additional semester so, would it be worth it to add the second major and graduate in 5 years total? Thanks for any input!

 

[CodeBlu]

I wouldn't do it. That's just me though.

 

[Mahliah]

Me neither.My motto is K-I-S-S-keep it simple stupid.
You don't want to get overwhelmed and have your GPA take a nose dive.

 

[kpcrew]

My gpa took a hit from physical chemistry so unless you're good at physics, you might not want to pick up the chemistry major. Ask upperclassmen who have taken those classes and see if you think you would enjoy them and if you would do well.

 

[Soulstice]

Ask yourself this--what does it do for you? What doors does double majoring open for you? In the vast majority (but not all) cases--the answer is usually none.

 

[HH Holmes]

The general consensus on SDN is that a double major does not give an applicant any significant advantage when applying to medical school. Save your time, money and your GPA.

 

[medbound13]

So in no way will this help me stand out or give me a slight edge during the admissions process?

 

[AugustBurnsDan]

I would choose a single major, but that's me. Save the energy, you have a long way to go, and many beers to drink

 

[UnclePhil]

My gpa took a hit from physical chemistry so unless you're good at physics, you might not want to pick up the chemistry major. Ask upperclassmen who have taken those classes and see if you think you would enjoy them and if you would do well.

people seem to be impressed by pchem though. First thing one of my interviewers said to me was "before we start, I just wanted to say... Nice pchem grades". it seemed to overshadow my incompetence in biochemistry.

 

[Ladoctora44]

If you really love bio and chemistry and you want to do it then do it. But if you are trying to "boost" your application for med school, it is not worth it. Graduate with the major you have in in 4 and 1/2. Use the extra time to get prepared for med school.

 

[lzane1243]

I did this exact same thing. Originally biochem, switched to bio + chem and added a math minor. It sounds really good at the time (and I really do love chem and biology), but when you fill out AMCAS and you barely scrape a 3.6... well, I should have majored in basket-weaving.

 

[MSU2009]

people seem to be impressed by pchem though. First thing one of my interviewers said to me was "before we start, I just wanted to say... Nice pchem grades". it seemed to overshadow my incompetence in biochemistry.

I would think being a well-respected judge who took in a troubled teen from West Philadelphia would overshadow even the worst biochem grade.

 

[flatearth22]

I would think being a well-respected judge who took in a troubled teen from West Philadelphia would overshadow even the worst biochem grade.

Med schools don't like former lawyers and fat people. But they love URM's so it's a wash.

 

[necronomicon]

I didn't know adcoms cared about p-chem...good to know. I did better in p-chem than o-chem.

On the other hand, I wouldn't suggest picking up another major for no good reason. Keep your GPA high in the major you're currently seeking and you will have a strong application. Plus, you don't run the risk of getting bombed by a subject you may not enjoy.

 

[necronomicon]

I did this exact same thing. Originally biochem, switched to bio + chem and added a math minor. It sounds really good at the time (and I really do love chem and biology), but when you fill out AMCAS and you barely scrape a 3.6... well, I should have majored in basket-weaving.

I did this myself, with a much worse outcome. I went from a physics+biochem to math+chem to chem+business and ended up just with chem. I ended up with a 3.23 AMCAS sGPA. Ironically, my worst grades were in classes that I would have taken for any of those majors. I was successful in the core classes for each of those majors, and had my hiccups doing the pre-med curriculum.

 

[JESSFALLING]

So in no way will this help me stand out or give me a slight edge during the admissions process?

No, it might be a negative UNLESS you want to apply MD/PhD...but even then, you'd have better chances if you just spent the extra effort on research. Personally, I only think that a double major stands out if it's in a non-related discipline (i.e. Physics and Philosophy; Biology and Religious Studies; Psychology and Music; etc...)

 

[JESSFALLING]

I didn't know adcoms cared about p-chem...good to know. I did better in p-chem than o-chem.

What is p-chem useful for in med school? Radiology maybe?

 

[Law2Doc]

So in no way will this help me stand out or give me a slight edge during the admissions process?

Nope. If your double major was Fine Arts and Religion, or something like that, then you could probably get some mileage. Maybe. But bio and chem isn't an "interesting" double major to med schools. Most premeds are some combination of bio, chem or biochem. They are all basically looked at the same, whether they were single or double majors. They add no diversity value to a class full of bio, chem and biochem majors. So what if you took an extra chem course or two. Nobody cares. You only want to do a double major if it will make you or your parents more proud, because it's not going to help you any other way.

 

[ponyo]

I want to start out by saying that I was a psych/neuro major who decided in sophomore year to add a chem major, so when I saw the title of your thread I thought "HELLS YES" and clicked. But after reading your situation, though, I think that it might be a bad idea. Here's why:

1. You don't sound like you're that thrilled about chemistry. Upper level chem classes are disgusting and filled with people who are really into it. They will be difficult and if you're not into the material, disastrous for your GPA, which will cancel out any glamour you get from the double major--if any, since as a former poster mentioned, bio/chem is hardly an interesting combo.

2. If you're already graduating in 4 1/2 years, it makes more sense to take that half a year and do something that is enjoyable to you or even to work a job that will teach you things your academic environment will not. At the minimum you won't have to pay the extra tuition + the opportunity costs of a job.

3. If you feel like you would regret not having tried this out, go check out or borrow the pchem textbook and see how you feel about it. When I got my pchem textbook I was ecstatic (seriously). If you look through it and think "holy crap wtf" then chemistry is not for you.

people seem to be impressed by pchem though. First thing one of my interviewers said to me was "before we start, I just wanted to say... Nice pchem grades". it seemed to overshadow my incompetence in biochemistry.

This is so reassuring haha

What is p-chem useful for in med school? Radiology maybe?

Haha I'm not sure anybody uses pchem in real life, but it *definitely* helped me with studying for the physical science section of the MCAT.

 

[HealthHare]

I would think being a well-respected judge who took in a troubled teen from West Philadelphia would overshadow even the worst biochem grade.

👍

 

[DrShazam]

I personally think it would a waste of time. If you really like chemistry, then you should just take classes on a class-to-class basis rather than force yourself to take all the ones required by picking up an additional major. Also, staying an additional semester makes no sense to me (you can use that time to volunteer, travel, get a job, etc.), but that's just me.

 

[Lil Mick]

If you love chemistry, do it. If you don't, don't. Chemistry was one of my majors, and it wasn't so fun in upper division courses like quantitative chemistry, where everyone else was gung-ho about learning the names of machine parts (not sure what's so quantitative about that)...