MS Biomedical Science vs MS Biochemistry

[Warrenc]

I've been accepted with both comparable assistantships to traditional MS programs that are thesis based. One program is at a state school offering free tuition and a stipend. This program is for Biochemistry with an emphasis on medicinal chemistry (a lot of drug development, interactions, HIV/Anti bacterial etc research). The other program is for Biomedical Science and works directly with a medical school for research (one I previously interviewed at several years back and wasn't accepted). They've offered a stipend not as comparable to the Biochemistry program and I haven't heard anything about tuition assistance, either.

Obviously the biomedical science program would be very more beneficial to medical school and because it researches with faculty/staff of the medical school and hospital, I would imagine it would be helpful to the cause of attending medical school there. This medical school would be one of my top choices simply because of its cost of attendance and preference to students from the state I live in.

On the other hand, the free tuition is very hard to pass up. I worked for several years after my undergraduate studies to pay off student loans and don't want to add anymore, especially if I get to medical school and will have an incredible amount. I obviously have interests in biochemistry; I think it's incredibly fascinating. I think the MS biochem program would allow me to learn even more about a subject I wouldn't have the chance to if I went with the biomedical science. My thought process is, if I go with the biochemistry route and eventually medical school, I'll have the best of both worlds: learning about biochem in detail while also eventually learning the biomedical science later. On the other side, if I just went with biomedical science, I would essentially be repeatedly learning the same thing.

Any advice would be helpful. I've emailed the admissions group at the medical school for their opinion and any information on if their MS students fare any better for the MD admission.
Thanks!

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[JustAPhD]

Free tuition + stipend + area that interests you more >>> lesser stipend + area of lesser interest + maybe tuition + maybe a small chance that it might help you in medical admissions.


No contest in my mind. I will say though, get the MSc because you want to learn more and conduct research, not because you think it'll help you get into medical school because it's not likely to have that large of an impact.

 

[Catalystik]

I've been accepted with both comparable assistantships to traditional MS programs that are thesis based. One program is at a state school offering free tuition and a stipend. This program is for Biochemistry with an emphasis on medicinal chemistry (a lot of drug development, interactions, HIV/Anti bacterial etc research). The other program is for Biomedical Science and works directly with a medical school for research (one I previously interviewed at several years back and wasn't accepted). They've offered a stipend not as comparable to the Biochemistry program and I haven't heard anything about tuition assistance, either.

Obviously the biomedical science program would be very more beneficial to medical school and because it researches with faculty/staff of the medical school and hospital, I would imagine it would be helpful to the cause of attending medical school there. This medical school would be one of my top choices simply because of its cost of attendance and preference to students from the state I live in.

On the other hand, the free tuition is very hard to pass up. I worked for several years after my undergraduate studies to pay off student loans and don't want to add anymore, especially if I get to medical school and will have an incredible amount. I obviously have interests in biochemistry; I think it's incredibly fascinating. I think the MS biochem program would allow me to learn even more about a subject I wouldn't have the chance to if I went with the biomedical science. My thought process is, if I go with the biochemistry route and eventually medical school, I'll have the best of both worlds: learning about biochem in detail while also eventually learning the biomedical science later. On the other side, if I just went with biomedical science, I would essentially be repeatedly learning the same thing.

Any advice would be helpful. I've emailed the admissions group at the medical school for their opinion and any information on if their MS students fare any better for the MD admission.
Thanks!

If your ultimate goal is to apply to med schools again, in what way do you think earning a traditional masters degree is going to help you? If you are lacking research and/or teaching credentials, the program may give you that experience. But if low GPAs are the issue, it's important to know that the vast majority of med schools do not consider the GPA of a traditional masters degree, due to the widespread assumption that grades are inflated. And also because head-to-head comparisons with most other applicants is not possible.

 

[Dro133]

I did a thesis-based MS program directly out of undergrad, so I'll share my thoughts:

Despite getting a 4.0 gpa, the MS program did not help me get into the medical school it was associated with, although to be fair, I did have other deficiencies in my application (good MCAT, low uGPA, average everything else). That being said, it did provide me with another research experience on my app, and a couple of extra recommendation letters that I'm sure helped me get into the medical school I eventually got accepted to. Now normally, I wouldn't recommend someone shelling out $30K+ for a research experience and a couple of recommendation letters; if someone's goal is to get into medical school, I think doing a DIY post-bac with some unpaid research on the side would be more effective. However, the out-of-state MS being paid for changes the equation.

For the state that the out-of-state MS program is in, how friendly are their medical schools to IS applicants? Some states have pretty lenient residency requirements, and will allow you to apply as an in-state applicant after just a year of living there. It might be worth looking into. If this is one of those states, I think the decision is a no-brainer. However, keep in mind that the connections you make and the way in which you integrate your experience and motivation to pursue a Masters degree in your essays/secondaries may very well be more impactful than your gGPA when it comes to medical school applications (at least, I felt this was the case in my experience).

 

[Warrenc]

If your ultimate goal is to apply to med schools again, in what way do you think earning a traditional masters degree is going to help you? If you are lacking research and/or teaching credentials, the program may give you that experience. But if low GPAs are the issue, it's important to know that the vast majority of med schools do not consider the GPA of a traditional masters degree, due to the widespread assumption that grades are inflated. And also because head-to-head comparisons with most other applicants is not possible.

I wasn't accepted to this medical school several years back due to "non-clinical volunteering". GPA 3.5 (low sGPA: 3.3 but strong+ upward trend. triple major, bloated credit hours per semester), MCAT 30. Very average. I did have some minor research and tutoring. I think a Masters would be okay for me because I've worked in the professional Chemistry world for 2+ years (pharmaceuticals) and wasn't happy. Thought this would better segue into getting my med school application back in order while also taking more adv. classes/stronger research. I believe this particular medical school considers graduate GPA, too. The big reason is it's free. I am not interested in going back to undergrad just for post bacc to take more classes with no reward and to pay more tuition without assistance. At least with a Masters, if Med school never pans out, I'll have that to fall back on.

 

[Warrenc]

I did a thesis-based MS program directly out of undergrad, so I'll share my thoughts:

Despite getting a 4.0 gpa, the MS program did not help me get into the medical school it was associated with, although to be fair, I did have other deficiencies in my application (good MCAT, low uGPA, average everything else). That being said, it did provide me with another research experience on my app, and a couple of extra recommendation letters that I'm sure helped me get into the medical school I eventually got accepted to. Now normally, I wouldn't recommend someone shelling out $30K+ for a research experience and a couple of recommendation letters; if someone's goal is to get into medical school, I think doing a DIY post-bac with some unpaid research on the side would be more effective. However, the out-of-state MS being paid for changes the equation.

For the state that the out-of-state MS program is in, how friendly are their medical schools to IS applicants? Some states have pretty lenient residency requirements, and will allow you to apply as an in-state applicant after just a year of living there. It might be worth looking into. If this is one of those states, I think the decision is a no-brainer. However, keep in mind that the connections you make and the way in which you integrate your experience and motivation to pursue a Masters degree in your essays/secondaries may very well be more impactful than your gGPA when it comes to medical school applications (at least, I felt this was the case in my experience).

Just to clarify: the MS school is in state. The medical school only accepts students from my current state (North Carolina: you probably know which one by this point). Thanks for your insight!

 

[Catalystik]

I wasn't accepted to this medical school several years back due to "non-clinical volunteering". GPA 3.5 (low sGPA: 3.3 but strong+ upward trend. triple major, bloated credit hours per semester), MCAT 30. Very average. I did have some minor research and tutoring. I think a Masters would be okay for me because I've worked in the professional Chemistry world for 2+ years (pharmaceuticals) and wasn't happy. Thought this would better segue into getting my med school application back in order while also taking more adv. classes/stronger research. I believe this particular medical school considers graduate GPA, too. The big reason is it's free. I am not interested in going back to undergrad just for post bacc to take more classes with no reward and to pay more tuition without assistance. At least with a Masters, if Med school never pans out, I'll have that to fall back on.

If you get reliable information that they consider gGPA, be so kind as to post an addendum on this thread that lists schools that do likewise (and might therefore be of interest to you): http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...t-actually-matter.796298/page-4#post-16530218

If you aren't from the Eastern part of NC and/or have no rural shadowing, might I make a strong suggestion to get some before you reapply.