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Major switch....conflicted?
Started by SN20SCH
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There wasn't any judgment...it was a legitimate question. One you may be asked in the future considering the breadth of your interests - so I'd suggest you prepare a less defensive response. Below is one of the questions you asked in your original post. I'm not sure how you'd expect people on this forum to know?
Is there any overlap between the IE classes and your pre-med requirements? I'm unfamiliar with what the IE major actually consists of.
Also, I'm not sure if your school offers anything like this, but at mine there's this honors business program that's basically designed for people like you who want to do something in business while combining other degrees. It's a thing you have to apply for, but you basically complete some basic business requirements and they give you a generic business degree, and then you have plenty of time to get minors/majors in other subjects. I'm not sure it would be possible to major in everything you wanted to, but if your school offers something like this it would at least allow you to take courses in all of these fields that interest you while still getting a degree (and possibly even multiple majors).
Also, I'm not sure if your school offers anything like this, but at mine there's this honors business program that's basically designed for people like you who want to do something in business while combining other degrees. It's a thing you have to apply for, but you basically complete some basic business requirements and they give you a generic business degree, and then you have plenty of time to get minors/majors in other subjects. I'm not sure it would be possible to major in everything you wanted to, but if your school offers something like this it would at least allow you to take courses in all of these fields that interest you while still getting a degree (and possibly even multiple majors).
If it came off as defensive I apologize. It wasn't meant to be. I can very clearly articulate why I want to become a physician (personal reasons). The statement you quoted was merely in case of a back up plan. Just in case something happened where I did not end up in medicine. Also, I think our different interests are what contribute to better healthcare professionals. If everyone had the same interests, it would be boring. Therefore, I think it is important to be able to show your interest in other things when it comes to applying to medical school. It shows how they can be integrated together to improve patient care.
My school does offer a program like this but it unfortunately requires you to take some pretty boring classes and major in something I don't want to. Great idea though.
Honestly, just based on what your said in your OP, I wouldn't switch to IE. If you have an interest in it, you can take a few classes in it without having to fully commit to that degree plan. Also, not to try and talk you out of anything, but you don't actually need a science major to get your pre-reqs done and get into med school. I'm a business major with a chem minor. The fact that I didn't major in bio/chem/etc. hasn't been a problem in med school interviews. In fact, I feel that being a business major has given me more to talk about with my interviewers as it's different from what most applicants come in with. Economics is a cool degree as well. 😉
I completely agree that you don't need to be a science major! I'm just worried that with IE and economics that I won't have the time to complete my prereqs. That's the reason why I'm conflicted about switching. I don't want to end up not taking the courses I need for the MCAT because at the end of the day med school is still the route I want to take.
Yeah, I was just pointing that out because it sounded like you were just doing the molecular bio major to check your pre req boxes. 🙂 As someone who doesn't have a major in sciences, I just wanted to assure you that not having one will not hold you back. Even if you were to drop the molecular bio major and just go with econ, the courses you've already taken (and ones you will take in the future to complete your pre reqs) will probably give you enough for a minor in molecular bio.
That's actually sort of what happened to me. I started out chem, then switched to business after shadowing a physician who owned his own practice. Was meeting with my advisor last semester and asked if she could look up what else I would need to take for a minor in chemistry. Turns out I'd already done everything!
I understand you like engineering...but historically speaking engineer majors tend to have the lowest GPAs just because of the nature of the classes. Just be warned, GPA is arguably the, if not one of, the most important factors in medical school admissions. You can retake the mcat, but it’s really difficult repairing your GPA. Not saying you won’t be successful, but be warned. Not too many people get straight A’s as engineering majors (and you’re also throwing in premed classes on top of that..recipe for disaster imho).
Just reconsider before you jump in!
Just reconsider before you jump in!
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For what it's worth, my dad was a physics major 30+ years ago. He works in cybersecurity now and says he's retained a minority of everything he learned in college. I'm sure it would come back if he actually used the information on a day-to-day basis but that's not the point. My point is that a college major is nothing more than a platform to other bigger things, mainly a career.
