Love the concept of becoming a doctor, but suck at biology

[Vertu]

I have shadowed physicians/podiatrists and I love what they do. I just recently participated in a health fair where I got to take some vitals for patients from 8am-5pm, and never did I feel tired because I loved what I was doing.

There's only one issue: I suck at biology. I'm pretty proficient at Chemistry, Physics, and Math... but there's just something about biology that just doesn't click with me. I'm really good at understanding and applying concepts in Chem/Phys/Math, but not so good at memorization or understanding Bio concepts. I thought it was simply my effort (I tend to understand concepts really quickly in Chem/Phys/Math), but there have been times where I have studied my butt off in bio classes and still only score at the mean on an exam. Never have I ever scored above average on a biology exam in college, which really concerns me. Am I just not fit to go the med school route? I feel like if I'm studying so hard just to still score average on bio exams, I won't be able to handle medical school.

Thanks for any insight.

Sincerely, a concerned 3rd year college student

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[ftdoc11]

I have shadowed physicians/podiatrists and I love what they do. I just recently participated in a health fair where I got to take some vitals for patients from 8am-5pm, and never did I feel tired because I loved what I was doing.

There's only one issue: I suck at biology. I'm pretty proficient at Chemistry, Physics, and Math... but there's just something about biology that just doesn't click with me. I'm really good at understanding and applying concepts in Chem/Phys/Math, but not so good at memorization or understanding Bio concepts. I thought it was simply my effort (I tend to understand concepts really quickly in Chem/Phys/Math), but there have been times where I have studied my butt off in bio classes and still only score at the mean on an exam. Never have I ever scored above average on a biology exam in college, which really concerns me. Am I just not fit to go the med school route? I feel like if I'm studying so hard just to still score average on bio exams, I won't be able to handle medical school.

Thanks for any insight.

Sincerely, a concerned 3rd year college student

If you're able to proficiently understand chemistry, physics, and math I certainly do not think you're unfit for medical school. Based on those subjects, it sounds like you naturally pick-up topics easier when they're based on quantitative reasoning. Out of curiosity, have you ever taken a upper-level physiology course? Understanding how the cardiovascular and pulmonary systems work is based on understanding a fair amount of equations, which typically trips many people up that can get away with simply memorizing terms.

An important lesson that I learned the first few weeks of pod school is that not all studying is created equal. A technique that works for one class/subject (i.e. flashcards) may be very inefficient for a different class/subject. The way I study for gross anatomy, which is almost entirely memorization, is very different from what I do for classes such as physiology or biochemistry. My advice would be to try different modes of studying for your biology classes. If you normally study alone, find a group. If you've tried using flashcards, then find a whiteboard and try lecturing the material to yourself. Everyone has their challenging subjects (mine was chemistry), what separates those who get into medical school from those who don't is that the students who get in did not give up and found a different technique for understanding the challenging information. Learning this lesson now will make you much more prepared for medical school (if that's what you decide to pursue) than I was on day 1.

 

[Moose A Moose]

Perhaps nursing? They enjoy taking BPs too.

 

[de Ribas]

If you're able to proficiently understand chemistry, physics, and math I certainly do not think you're unfit for medical school. Based on those subjects, it sounds like you naturally pick-up topics easier when they're based on quantitative reasoning. Out of curiosity, have you ever taken a upper-level physiology course? Understanding how the cardiovascular and pulmonary systems work is based on understanding a fair amount of equations, which typically trips many people up that can get away with simply memorizing terms.

An important lesson that I learned the first few weeks of pod school is that not all studying is created equal. A technique that works for one class/subject (i.e. flashcards) may be very inefficient for a different class/subject. The way I study for gross anatomy, which is almost entirely memorization, is very different from what I do for classes such as physiology or biochemistry. My advice would be to try different modes of studying for your biology classes. If you normally study alone, find a group. If you've tried using flashcards, then find a whiteboard and try lecturing the material to yourself. Everyone has their challenging subjects (mine was chemistry), what separates those who get into medical school from those who don't is that the students who get in did not give up and found a different technique for understanding the challenging information. Learning this lesson now will make you much more prepared for medical school (if that's what you decide to pursue) than I was on day 1.

I agree with this post.

I was like you. In high school and at the beginning, I was math, physics, and chemistry guy. I loved it and could do it any time. In fact I was best senior in mathematics in my high school. I did not like biology so much due to memorization and lack of reasoning. Once I progressed through college, biology courses became my favorite one's. Now, my brain does not process physics and chemistry so much, but I get As all the way in all biology courses.

Once I started taking Cell bio, biochem, physiology, pathophysiology, miceobiology and such, I started to love bio due to its application to real life situations.

 

[Cranjis McBasketball]

The thing that I love about biology is it doesnt change. I was an accounting major for a bit and I would study super hard for tests. I would know all the concepts and the formulas perfectly but I would never get a perfect score cause I would have a miscalculation. You dont have that in biology. If you know the answer then you know it and it wont change. Honestly, its just memorizing. Another thing is biology is its own language. You will get it the more youre exposed

 

[DexterMorganSK]

I have shadowed physicians/podiatrists and I love what they do. I just recently participated in a health fair where I got to take some vitals for patients from 8am-5pm, and never did I feel tired because I loved what I was doing.

There's only one issue: I suck at biology. I'm pretty proficient at Chemistry, Physics, and Math... but there's just something about biology that just doesn't click with me. I'm really good at understanding and applying concepts in Chem/Phys/Math, but not so good at memorization or understanding Bio concepts. I thought it was simply my effort (I tend to understand concepts really quickly in Chem/Phys/Math), but there have been times where I have studied my butt off in bio classes and still only score at the mean on an exam. Never have I ever scored above average on a biology exam in college, which really concerns me. Am I just not fit to go the med school route? I feel like if I'm studying so hard just to still score average on bio exams, I won't be able to handle medical school.

Thanks for any insight.

Sincerely, a concerned 3rd year college student

Concepts will still play a big role during and after Pod school. That said, if you're good at memorizing and recalling then that would also make your life a bit easy.

If you haven't already, I suggest taking classes like Anatomy & Physiology, Biochemistry, and Micro/Immuno. If you do well in these courses, then you should be fine in Pod school as well. Try taking them at a 4-year college.

 

[AttackNME]

I did best in physics and worst in biology in college and for my mcats.. something about undergrad bio, maybe my professors didn’t really teach it in a way I could logically follow, so then people who do well with rote memorization kicked my butt. It’s hard for me to conceptualize tyrosine kinase receptors and the Kreb cycle, but it’s easy for me to conceptualize foot reconstruction.

 

[SnozzBerry]

Sounds like you’d be a good fit for podiatry! So go for it !