Pre-dents dropping out

[Undecided94]

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It's my first semester at a Universirty and I noticed that a lot of students used to be on a pre-med track and they're now Accounting, Sociology, or any other major and they don't plan on doing anything in the medical field.

Most of them told me that they switched out because it was too hard, they didn't like it, or they didn't have the motivation to continue with the science classes. Is this common? How do you know for sure that you won't end up doing the same?

I feel discouraged because i've changed my mind about being on a pre-dent track so many times after having a hard day in chm but I never officially changed it. I don't want to be one of those students.

 

[sweetdaises2000]

It's my first semester at a Universirty and I noticed that a lot of students used to be on a pre-med track and they're now Accounting, Sociology, or any other major and they don't plan on doing anything in the medical field.

Most of them told me that they switched out because it was too hard, they didn't like it, or they didn't have the motivation to continue with the science classes. Is this common? How do you know for sure that you won't end up doing the same?

I feel discouraged because i've changed my mind about being on a pre-dent track so many times after having a hard day in chm but I never officially changed it. I don't want to be one of those students.

Don't ever give up on anything you really want just because you think it's too hard. Anything is possible as long as you are willing to give your all. True, the number of Pre-meds/pre-dents drops drastically after O-Chem, but that's because these kids underestimate what it takes to get that almighty A/B. My personal wake-up call was my first gen-chem quiz. After that, it was do or die! T.A hours, office hours, reading/re-reading/ editing ochem lab reports over and over. Have fun in college, but push yourself from the beginning so you don't end up having to endure an uphill battle. Don't be discouraged, I am not the best at science either, it does not come natural to me at all, but I think I have a pretty good work ethic,combined with prayer lol. Just do your best, so at the end of the day, when you apply, you know you gave it your all 😀

 

[Sunspear]

Don't ever give up on anything you really want just because you think it's too hard. Anything is possible as long as you are willing to give your all. True, the number of Pre-meds/pre-dents drops drastically after O-Chem, but that's because these kids underestimate what it takes to get that almighty A/B. My personal wake-up call was my first gen-chem quiz. After that, it was do or die! T.A hours, office hours, reading/re-reading/ editing ochem lab reports over and over. Have fun in college, but push yourself from the beginning so you don't end up having to endure an uphill battle. Don't be discouraged, I am not the best at science either, it does not come natural to me at all, but I think I have a pretty good work ethic,combined with prayer lol. Just do your best, so at the end of the day, when you apply, you know you gave it your all 😀

Well said! Don't back away from a challenge. Imagine yourself achieving your goal and use that as motivation! Believe in yourself no matter what you do.

 

[jonishere5]

I started out at a community college. I had a close group of friends consisting of 6 people, we were all pre- dental or premedical majors. out of all my friends I am the only person still pursuing dentistry at this time. One of my friends became a dental hygienist, another became a police officer, and the rest are still in college right now. Many of them dropped out and then came back. I think it's common for a lot of pre-dental and premedical majors to switch majors just because the sciences are much harder than many other majors.

my advice is to stick to it, I think we have all had quarters where we start to reconsider dentistry due to how tough these classes are, but if you really think about it do you want to go through life wondering what if?

 

[lmaozedong1]

As someone who recently got accepted to dental school...all the crap you go through is worth it. I can assure you that it'll be worth it in the end.

There is a great quote I like to live my life by:

"I can't tell you it will be easy, but I can tell you it will be worth it."

My mom told me this and it just kinda stuck w/ me.

 

[Undecided94]

Thanks for the advice! It really is reassuring to know that I'm not the only one. I'm going to keep on trying.

 

[MuskieMan33]

I noticed that the more I read about dental school and read the forums on here, and shadow and talk to other dentists, helps keep my motivation high. Don't give up because you don't understand every concept in chem the first time you hear it. I know I sure don't.

 

[AwesomeTeeth]

It's my first semester at a Universirty and I noticed that a lot of students used to be on a pre-med track and they're now Accounting, Sociology, or any other major and they don't plan on doing anything in the medical field.

The majority of of incoming freshman in gen chem think they're going to change the world by being a doctor. Then they realize they actually have to study and work hard for it. You've already made it this far. There's no reason you're not going to go all the way. You'll make it in the end. Just hang around SDN for motivation.

 

[dantemac]

The worth of the prize is equal to the difficulty of the fight. Dentistry is a rewarding career. Don't worry about a bad grade or lab report here or there, just keep on truckin!

 

[herkulease]

It is not uncommon to see people bailing.

Many 17/18 year old first year students, pursue a track they have no idea what it is about. they do it because of their friends or pressure from family.

Its probably best imo that they realized this isn't something they want to do than 4 years later when they are nearly done with a degree but stuck with poor grades and having to switch to a different major.

I can't say if you'll leave or not but do spend time with a dentist. Find out if it is something you want to do. Don't do just because you're sibling, cousin, parents is a dentist or wants you to be one. that is a horrible reason. It is going to be your life and you will have to live it. Not them. If you hate it something and forced to do it day in and day out you will have a miserable life.

If you do the spend time and feel it is what you want then you have to power through it. No one said it would be easy. Its not the 80s, they don't exactly let everyone get in.

 

[yappy]

I noticed a large outing after O chem and also the students graduating. Alot have of my friends are going into fields that dont require another four years of education - which they say is the reason for not wanting to do it anymore. One is doing nursing school, another got a financial job (math minor/chem major), cop, and the other sales. They were all premed but I think they just got burned out.

 

[AwesomeTeeth]

No one said it would be easy. Its not the 80s, they don't exactly let everyone get in.

I would kill to go back to the 80s. Or 90s. Or even early 2000's since they had Internet. Those were definitely funner days.

 

[Dgeorg6]

Most people think being a doctor is pretty easy so they start school thinking they can do it, then realize "wow this is way to hard for me and all i want to do is party" etc...

For example, at my university, over 1000 incoming freshman started off majoring in some form of science/pre-med (biology,chemistry,microbiology,nutrition\pre-med,Kinesiology, etc..) The first year of biology is basically used as a weed out class at my college, and i assume most others. The average person who is SERIOUS about being a doctor usually gets an A or a B. The other 800+ people end up making D's and F's.. My first biology class started out with 370 and by the end it was down to 250 due to all the people who dropped and the average grade in the class was around a 55...

So basically.. A lot of people end up changing from pre-med not because of a change of heart or because they thought it was to hard. They simply do not want to put forth the effort and were not serious about it in the first place..

 

[UCLAzy]

consider this: the stereotypical pre-med mentality [at least the one people seem to believe most commonly] is that they'd be encouraging them to drop...less competition is good for your bottom line.

so..you're not encouraging them to drop [yay, you can sleep at night]...but it's still beneficial. win/win?

 

[SN1]

It's my first semester at a Universirty and I noticed that a lot of students used to be on a pre-med track and they're now Accounting, Sociology, or any other major and they don't plan on doing anything in the medical field.

Most of them told me that they switched out because it was too hard, they didn't like it, or they didn't have the motivation to continue with the science classes. Is this common? How do you know for sure that you won't end up doing the same?

I feel discouraged because i've changed my mind about being on a pre-dent track so many times after having a hard day in chm but I never officially changed it. I don't want to be one of those students.

Hang around people that share the same goals as you. The ones that have good work-ethic and actually "care" about their studies.
Seriously, if you don't have that 24/7 party mentality, spend time studying before tests and quizzes, do all your homework and other assigments, you should be OK.
Once you have done all your prerequisites and did well in them, your motivation will double or even triple like I did. And the rest of the classes you need to take to graduate will be CAKE, or at least thats what I am hoping them to be

 

[dantemac]

Most people think being a doctor is pretty easy so they start school thinking they can do it, then realize "wow this is way to hard for me and all i want to do is party" etc...

For example, at my university, over 1000 incoming freshman started off majoring in some form of science/pre-med (biology,chemistry,microbiology,nutrition\pre-med,Kinesiology, etc..) The first year of biology is basically used as a weed out class at my college, and i assume most others. The average person who is SERIOUS about being a doctor usually gets an A or a B. The other 800+ people end up making D's and F's.. My first biology class started out with 370 and by the end it was down to 250 due to all the people who dropped and the average grade in the class was around a 55...

So basically.. A lot of people end up changing from pre-med not because of a change of heart or because they thought it was to hard. They simply do not want to put forth the effort and were not serious about it in the first place..

This is so true, you can just tell who has a mentality centered around success and who is at school because their parents made them go or because they want to party.

 

[tayloreve]

Most people think being a doctor is pretty easy so they start school thinking they can do it, then realize "wow this is way to hard for me and all i want to do is party" etc...

For example, at my university, over 1000 incoming freshman started off majoring in some form of science/pre-med (biology,chemistry,microbiology,nutrition\pre-med,Kinesiology, etc..) The first year of biology is basically used as a weed out class at my college, and i assume most others. The average person who is SERIOUS about being a doctor usually gets an A or a B. The other 800+ people end up making D's and F's.. My first biology class started out with 370 and by the end it was down to 250 due to all the people who dropped and the average grade in the class was around a 55...

So basically.. A lot of people end up changing from pre-med not because of a change of heart or because they thought it was to hard. They simply do not want to put forth the effort and were not serious about it in the first place..

Haha. My cousin went to the same university as you and said the exact same thing about how they weed out a lot of people in the intro bio classes. It's crazy how so many people come into college wanting to be doctors, etc. and then after 4 years only a few have made it through. This always motivates me, I don't want to be the one talked about at home that I changed majors because it was too hard, or partied too much and let it affect my grades. I'm going to work as hard as I can to get that Bio degree and get into dental school! Plus being on SDN all the time is a major motivator..so many supporting and positive people on here!

PS...It's why I went to a smaller school...I can't imagine having a class with 300+ people and you're competing against all of them 😱

 

[Undecided94]

Tayloreve,

It's the same with me. I don't want everyone to think of me as "The One Who Couldn't Make it through" and being on SDN is a huge motivator.

I didn't think my school would be so big. It's summer and my chm class has 200 ppl in it.

 

[AwesomeTeeth]

PS...It's why I went to a smaller school...I can't imagine having a class with 300+ people and you're competing against all of them 😱

Well it's not like you're in law school and everything is based on a curve. Half the people taking those classes are going to med, some are going for dental, others for pharm, some for PA, etc. etc. You're not exactly competing for spots. As long as you find yourself as one of the A students, that's all that matters.

 

[reely989]

Thanks for the advice! It really is reassuring to know that I'm not the only one. I'm going to keep on trying.

To be honest with you, it just depends on what you really want. The classes do end up being a pain. It is difficult at times (Though the actual difficulty gets overstated). It basically just doesn't let you have a stress free college experience. I'm not saying other majors necessarily do, but it is a lot different having to keep close to a 4.0 in Organic Chemistry, Biochemistry, etc. I honestly nearly transferred out, but when i sat down and evaluated career options, something in the health field was just really really hard to compete with.

 

[reely989]

Haha. My cousin went to the same university as you and said the exact same thing about how they weed out a lot of people in the intro bio classes. It's crazy how so many people come into college wanting to be doctors, etc. and then after 4 years only a few have made it through. This always motivates me, I don't want to be the one talked about at home that I changed majors because it was too hard, or partied too much and let it affect my grades. I'm going to work as hard as I can to get that Bio degree and get into dental school! Plus being on SDN all the time is a major motivator..so many supporting and positive people on here!

PS...It's why I went to a smaller school...I can't imagine having a class with 300+ people and you're competing against all of them 😱

You end up competing with all those people at bigger universities anyway. You can't view the actual classes as competition. Just do your best. You are competing for spots in dental school, but the professors just want you to know the class material. I imagine professors get infuriated at the fact most students don't honestly care about their class and just view it as a step toward graduate school. Something everyone here is guilty of, but something to think about.

 

[two thirty]

All the core science at big public schools are weed-outs.

 

[UltimateHombre]

It's my first semester at a Universirty and I noticed that a lot of students used to be on a pre-med track and they're now Accounting, Sociology, or any other major and they don't plan on doing anything in the medical field.

Most of them told me that they switched out because it was too hard, they didn't like it, or they didn't have the motivation to continue with the science classes. Is this common? How do you know for sure that you won't end up doing the same?

I feel discouraged because i've changed my mind about being on a pre-dent track so many times after having a hard day in chm but I never officially changed it. I don't want to be one of those students.

at the beginning of my bio lecture this year my professor asked for all pre med field srudents to raise their hands..... 3/4 the class raised their hands and he just started laughing. A lot of ppl were offended and he said that a 1/4of the class would drop by the end of the semester and another 1/4 will have changed their major track. he took the survey again at the end of the class and he was correct.... about a 1/4 of the class raised their hands again!

dont get discouraged, just know your goals and work harder than anyone else! it is a sad reality, but not everyone can be doctors.... but those who want it bad enough and work hard enough will get there!

"Some say good things come to those who wait. Truth is, good things come to those who work; who work later, who work harder. Their willing to go further to go further than anyone else to get them. If your waiting for good things to come to you... you'll be waiting a long time" -Dr. Dre

 

[tayloreve]

You end up competing with all those people at bigger universities anyway. You can't view the actual classes as competition. Just do your best. You are competing for spots in dental school, but the professors just want you to know the class material. I imagine professors get infuriated at the fact most students don't honestly care about their class and just view it as a step toward graduate school. Something everyone here is guilty of, but something to think about.

I agree! I care about my classes because I know I will see most of it in a year or 2 when I take the DAT..
I know I'm not directly competing against them, it's just a little awkward when you have an entire class of pre-med/pre-dents.. Sometimes I am embarrassed to say what I'm majoring in because then it leads to: "Oh what do you want to do with that?" .."go to dental school"...and I know they've probably heard it a thousand times over and might not believe I will make it. Reminds me when I was in high school and you have homecoming and they announce what everyone is going to major in at college, and half of them are pre-meds... lol

 

[tayloreve]

To be honest with you, it just depends on what you really want. The classes do end up being a pain. It is difficult at times (Though the actual difficulty gets overstated). It basically just doesn't let you have a stress free college experience. I'm not saying other majors necessarily do, but it is a lot different having to keep close to a 4.0 in Organic Chemistry, Biochemistry, etc. I honestly nearly transferred out, but when i sat down and evaluated career options, something in the health field was just really really hard to compete with.

Is organic really that hard if you study? I have heard so many horror stories and I take it this fall. I'm pretty nervous 🙁

 

[SN1]

Is organic really that hard if you study? I have heard so many horror stories and I take it this fall. I'm pretty nervous 🙁

Nothing will be too hard if you study. But to answer your question, No, organic is not that hard. You are going to have to memorize a bit in the beginning, but once you have the general idea like nucleophile always goes after a carbon, where electrons go, etc then you will find them easy. The reactions really share common principles, just a few nuances here and there.

I don't know how each university teaches its orgo class, but my tests were 10-11 questions, drawing out reactants, products and arrows of what attacks or grabs what.

 

[AwesomeTeeth]

Is organic really that hard if you study? I have heard so many horror stories and I take it this fall. I'm pretty nervous 🙁

It's different at every school. For example, at my school, me and the majority of my classmates thought freshman/sophomore biology was pretty easy and straightforward. Most people passed that pretty easy with a decent grade. But organic and gen chem are the real weed out classes. Everyone always seem to disappear after those semesters.

 

[tayloreve]

It's different at every school. For example, at my school, me and the majority of my classmates thought freshman/sophomore biology was pretty easy and straightforward. Most people passed that pretty easy with a decent grade. But organic and gen chem are the real weed out classes. Everyone always seem to disappear after those semesters.

Lol really? I have 4 days left of gen chem! Woohoo! Then I take a full year of organic starting Fall....so nervous... hope I don't get weeded out. I made it all the way through my first year with a 4.0 so I will also be very sad if I get a B now..yes I'm one of those people, shoot me 🙄


NOT MEANING TO HIJACK THREAD..sorry for rambling!!!!

 

[dentalWorks]

It's my first semester at a Universirty and I noticed that a lot of students used to be on a pre-med track and they're now Accounting, Sociology, or any other major and they don't plan on doing anything in the medical field.

Most of them told me that they switched out because it was too hard, they didn't like it, or they didn't have the motivation to continue with the science classes. Is this common? How do you know for sure that you won't end up doing the same?

I feel discouraged because i've changed my mind about being on a pre-dent track so many times after having a hard day in chm but I never officially changed it. I don't want to be one of those students.

Thats the problem with the USA educational system. Most high schools are just one big giant 4 year joke. You don't learn anything meaningful (skills wise ~ like studying techniques). Heck, I practially failed EVERY single sophomore class in high school (failed with F), and somehow, my transcript at the end of the year showed all Ds lol... I dunno how, but I passed on to junior year.

So then, when the student arrives into first semester college on a "hard" major like pre-med, they get hit with a bunch of material and they are ACTUALLY EXPECTED TO KNOW MOST OF IT (and sometimes even more), but their highschool mentality (and the freedom of college life) is too over-wheeling at first, and thats when they start falling back (and failing) the "harder" / more serious pre-med courses... so they switch majors. I have alot of first cousins, and I swear, most of them wanted to be doctors right out of high school, that mentality quickly changed after couple of months into college (they are all bigtime party-ers)

You wanna be a successful college student? Heres the trick, college professors (even the great ones) do NOT teach you the material, they simply direct you into the right direction of what material they expect you to know for their exams. What does this mean? You have to do alot of self-learning / studying to do well. Master this simple concept (and most of the time) you'll be happy with your performance.

 

[herkulease]

Thats the problem with the USA educational system. Most high schools are just one big giant 4 year joke. You don't learn anything meaningful (skills wise ~ like studying techniques). Heck, I practially failed EVERY single sophomore class in high school (failed with F), and somehow, my transcript at the end of the year showed all Ds lol... I dunno how, but I passed on to junior year.

So then, when the student arrives into first semester college on a "hard" major like pre-med, they get hit with a bunch of material and they are ACTUALLY EXPECTED TO KNOW MOST OF IT (and sometimes even more), but their highschool mentality (and the freedom of college life) is too over-wheeling at first, and thats when they start falling back (and failing) the "harder" / more serious pre-med courses... so they switch majors. I have alot of first cousins, and I swear, most of them wanted to be doctors right out of high school, that mentality quickly changed after couple of months into college (they are all bigtime party-ers)

You wanna be a successful college student? Heres the trick, college professors (even the great ones) do NOT teach you the material, they simply direct you into the right direction of what material they expect you to know for their exams. What does this mean? You have to do alot of self-learning / studying to do well. Master this simple concept (and most of the time) you'll be happy with your performance.

Its politics. schools are too afraid even more so now than 10 years or so ago to tell students you're just too stupid/lazy whatever to go on to the next grade. The sooner they pass you the sooner you become someone else's problem.

 

[dantemac]

Another part of the problem is that a clique of people I shall not name, namely the bros, think that biology and chemistry knowledge flows freely from the tap at the frat houses.

 

[tayloreve]

Another part of the problem is that a clique of people I shall not name, namely the bros, think that biology and chemistry knowledge flows freely from the tap at the frat houses.

LOL👍 agreed!

 

[dantemac]

I'm not saying frats and sororities are a bad thing; they aren't. But people have to learn to balance their pre-med study needs with the partying. I can honestly say that the majority of my friends who switched majors did so because of their frat.

 

[tayloreve]

I'm not saying frats and sororities are a bad thing; they aren't. But people have to learn to balance their pre-med study needs with the partying. I can honestly say that the majority of my friends who switched majors did so because of their frat.

At my school if you are in a frat or sorority, you get a special section in the school newspaper if you make a 4.0!!!! 😱

Motivation!

 

[dantemac]

Haha was the section empty? Or full of sociology majors? ;P

 

[tayloreve]

Haha was the section empty? Or full of sociology majors? ;P

Lmao. I actually typed ".....but they were mostly elementary education/sociology/nutrition & fitness" but I didn't want anyone to take offense!

 

[Dgeorg6]

I agree in some part. I know a lot of people in fraternities/soroities who came in wanting to be pre-med or pre-dent and after there first year the greek life completely screwed there chances because they partied to much.. but then again, partying is basically a religion where i go, some people cant handle it.

 

[tayloreve]

I agree in some part. I know a lot of people in fraternities/soroities who came in wanting to be pre-med or pre-dent and after there first year the greek life completely screwed there chances because they partied to much.. but then again, partying is basically a religion where i go, some people cant handle it.

Hey Dgeorg, ironically I read in the news today that your university was ranked #13 party school in the US!

 

[Dgeorg6]

Lol yeah i saw that as well. What can i say.. We do it big!

 

[reely989]

Is organic really that hard if you study? I have heard so many horror stories and I take it this fall. I'm pretty nervous 🙁

Not really honestly. I studied a good bit for it, but I've had classes that are much harder. I don't really get the rep it has. And I say that simply because it has a terrible reputation at my school as well, and once the class was underway, it felt just like anything else. Though, I also thought it was really interesting, so that helps out a good bit. I don't know about everywhere else, but I thought Physics 2 was much more difficult than Organic, but you never really hear about Physics being tough at my school unless you take the calculus based stuff.

Don't get too caught up in horror stories, though. I've yet to have a class where I thought an A wasn't well within reach. Senior and grad level bio classes can seem like a bit much sometimes, but even then it isn't too bad to figure out enough of it to get an A on the test.

 

[UCLAzy]

@taylor

i found that the classes i go into thinking are easy..i dont do as well because i'm like wow it's easy i dont have to work as hard.

if u psych (or sike?) yourself out before going into the class you're setting yourself up for failure.

the horror stories probably come from the same people that flock to the courses deemed 'easy' but still barely manage a B.

the moral? treat every class like it has a horrible reputation and you'll find yourself setting the curve rather than relying on it

 

[Noble6]

Thats the problem with the USA educational system. Most high schools are just one big giant 4 year joke. You don't learn anything meaningful (skills wise ~ like studying techniques). Heck, I practially failed EVERY single sophomore class in high school (failed with F), and somehow, my transcript at the end of the year showed all Ds lol... I dunno how, but I passed on to junior year.

So then, when the student arrives into first semester college on a "hard" major like pre-med, they get hit with a bunch of material and they are ACTUALLY EXPECTED TO KNOW MOST OF IT (and sometimes even more), but their highschool mentality (and the freedom of college life) is too over-wheeling at first, and thats when they start falling back (and failing) the "harder" / more serious pre-med courses... so they switch majors. I have alot of first cousins, and I swear, most of them wanted to be doctors right out of high school, that mentality quickly changed after couple of months into college (they are all bigtime party-ers)

You wanna be a successful college student? Heres the trick, college professors (even the great ones) do NOT teach you the material, they simply direct you into the right direction of what material they expect you to know for their exams. What does this mean? You have to do alot of self-learning / studying to do well. Master this simple concept (and most of the time) you'll be happy with your performance.

This is very true. I took 2 years of calculus during high school and apparently didn't learn a thing because I couldn't understand a word that my calc prof said on the first day of class at a university.