pre-med/engineer?

[StPlayrXtreme]

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Awesome, quite a few premed engineers!

I'm a bioengineer. I'm definitely happy with my choice of major....it's not easy, but deep down inside I love it most of the time.

 

[vpv]

I definitely appreciate the advice. Since I am from Ontario, Canada, I have two major engineering schools which offer co-op to choose from: Waterloo and Toronto. I have heard Toronto is quite notorious for curving marks, which is the reason I feel I don't want to attend.

Waterloo on the other hand, is know for its co-op as it was the first ever co-op program to be created. I am quite interested in the Nanotechnology engineering, chemical engineering and another engineering program (i forgot which one) that offers Biomechanics option. I do not really care about whether I graduate an MD, DO, or FMG. I want to think long term as engineering definitely interests me and prepares me well.

The problem is that I don't know whether there are any prospects if I decide not to go to med school (prospects in nanotech, chemE, and biomech). Also, I dont think waterloo has a research component in its engineering lab, which from what I have heard can really strenghten a med school app. Any advice on that?

Thanks.

 

[Ricegrad05]

Mechanical Engineer here.

Being an engineer teaches you how to think and problem solve, which I think is useful in any field. It's hard work, but I think it's worth it in the end.

 

[MU BIOM]

Biomechanical Engineering here. I think that a background in engineering will become more and more valuable in the future. After all, advanced technologies are only going to become more prevalent in clinical medicine in the future.

 

[Kickback]

I'm a Freshman Biomedical Engineer. Right now, I couldn't be any happier with my decision. The next couple of weeks we are going be designing a "phantom" that tests x-rays/tomosynthesis machines on the detection of Osteoarthritis (basically making a fake knee).

I'm so glad with my choice of school, and major. Nowhere else have I heard Freshmen get involved this early with projects like this. I have always wanted to do something in the medical field, and this just plays into all of my talents. Even though I don't know 100% for sure if I want to go through med school, I will be happy where I am if I choose not to.

 

[stooges287]

Hey guys,

I'm glad to see there's so many pre-med engineers! It's always good to have fellow engineers in medicine because we all seem to share a common way of thinking. Anyways, I just wanted to offer my two cents on anyone who maybe isn't sure about whether or not an engineering major is right for them:

1) If you know you want to do medicine, don't do engineering, unless you really really really really (I can't stress this enough, and it will not apply to 99.9% of people) love engineering. It's not worth it.

2) If you're not sure about whether you want to do engineering or medicine, try to get an inkling, ASAP. If you're doing it just to keep some doors open, please research medicine and engineering some more, because both fields require a lot of commitment, so hopefully you walk into the situation knowing that you will truly be content with either career.

For the posts above regarding how much engineering helps in the apps process, I'll offer my experience on the matter. Even though my post count may not show it, I've read SDN on an almost daily basis for the last few years. As you can imagine, posts that spoke on the engineering pre-med topic were of particular interest to me. From this, it is my general belief that for some schools, they will certainly take the major difficulty into account. Others will take the stance of "since you picked the major, you should excel in it regardless". There is no definitive list of which schools do what. Therefore I would suggest proceeding on the assumption that no school you are applying to will give you a bonus for being an engineer.

That being said, make sure to stress the strengths of the major. Some good points were made in previous posts, but I would like to add one: teamwork. As engineers we are usually expected to work in teams and groups to achieve a goal. Healthcare, much like other jobs in this case, is not much different. There are few physicians that do not have to interact with fellow physicians, nurses, healthcare workers, etc... on a daily basis. Having a goal-oriented, team-based approach can be a huge asset to stress in an interview or essay.

Hopefully this post helps and please feel free to PM me if you have any questions! Good luck guys!

 

[SirGecko]

I'm a Freshman Biomedical Engineer. Right now, I couldn't be any less happy with my decision. The next couple of weeks we are going be designing a "phantom" that tests x-rays/tomosynthesis machines on the detection of Osteoarthritis (basically making a fake knee).

I'm so glad with my choice of school, and major. Nowhere else have I heard Freshmen get involved this early with projects like this. I have always wanted to do something in the medical field, and this just plays into all of my talents. Even though I don't know 100% for sure if I want to go through med school, I will be happy where I am if I choose not to.

You mean couldn't be happier.

 

[day]

Ee!

 

[Perrotfish]

I disagree. If medicine somehow doesn't work out - you have a good salary to fall back on.

Second. It's a priorities thing: the vast majority of premeds don't turn into medical students. Even of those that get as far as an AMCAS application only a little over 1/4 get in. My friends who didn't get in and were engineering majors shrugged and entered the workforce, the ones who were bio majors now are in terrible near minimum wage lab jobs and are feeling pretty miserable.

 

[vpv]

I'm a Freshman Biomedical Engineer. Right now, I couldn't be any less happy with my decision. The next couple of weeks we are going be designing a "phantom" that tests x-rays/tomosynthesis machines on the detection of Osteoarthritis (basically making a fake knee).

I'm so glad with my choice of school, and major. Nowhere else have I heard Freshmen get involved this early with projects like this. I have always wanted to do something in the medical field, and this just plays into all of my talents. Even though I don't know 100% for sure if I want to go through med school, I will be happy where I am if I choose not to.

May I ask which university you go to for BME? Also, what other components are incorporated in your BME program?

 

[Kickback]

You mean couldn't be happier.

😱 Thanks!

May I ask which university you go to for BME? Also, what other components are incorporated in your BME program?

Marquette University. I have no clue which other components are in our program as of now, though.

 

[Emmet2301]

I'm a freshman engineer who wants to do biomedical engineering. At my school you have to apply for the program and only about 70 people get in. Hopefully I'll get in, but I'd be fine with a different major also.

Can someone explain the BME curriculum and what it is specialized towards? Also anyone care to explain their experiences with BME?

 

[whysoserious]

I am NOT ALONE!!! Congrats and good work to all of those that treaded down the engineering/pre-med road.

Just to provide my penny or two cents on the topic, I agree with some posters that the work load is daunting at times. I recall some nights after a day of classes and work-study, I came home and headed to a ER to volunteer 4-8 hrs. I usually got back near midnight and finished up fluids hw or thermo hw. (calculating reynolds # at 2am in the morning... yuck)

The style of class is different. Engineering courses are based on homework, quizzes, and tests. It's alot of problem solving, so you need to practice it to learn it. I spent a ton of time just doing homework and spent little else time preparing for the tests.


I felt that my pre-med reqs were much easier because those relied more on memorization by a certain midterm date or final date.


My only word of advice... plan and organize your schedule so you can fit your activities, pre-reqs, and your major reqs to finish in 4yrs (if thats your plan).

 

[Rachman]

I definitely appreciate the advice. Since I am from Ontario, Canada, I have two major engineering schools which offer co-op to choose from: Waterloo and Toronto. I have heard Toronto is quite notorious for curving marks, which is the reason I feel I don't want to attend.

Waterloo on the other hand, is know for its co-op as it was the first ever co-op program to be created. I am quite interested in the Nanotechnology engineering, chemical engineering and another engineering program (i forgot which one) that offers Biomechanics option. I do not really care about whether I graduate an MD, DO, or FMG. I want to think long term as engineering definitely interests me and prepares me well.

The problem is that I don't know whether there are any prospects if I decide not to go to med school (prospects in nanotech, chemE, and biomech). Also, I dont think waterloo has a research component in its engineering lab, which from what I have heard can really strenghten a med school app. Any advice on that?

Thanks.

First things first, re: the post on salaries, yes, engineers start off high but they plateau very quickly (3 promotions, you're a senior engineer and you're done), so consider that as well.

About the quote above, UT is dangerous because the average for engineering majors (esp Eng Sci) are similar to the average for all other majors, so you will definitely be at at least a slightly disadvantage since you're competing with geniuses. Waterloo's research isn't as good as UT's though.

If you're heading into biomech and nanotech and you decide not to do med later on, you're essentially going into academia or at least will be in academia for a long time. There are few jobs out in the industry in either of these fields and the ones that do exist will likely require a Ph.D from you. HOWEVER, if you opt to head down to the States to find work you'll find many more industry opportunities, even with your BASc.

ChemE, jobs are easier to get, less of a problem.

(but IMO nanobioengineering is awesome, awesome, awesome).

 

[vpv]

First things first, re: the post on salaries, yes, engineers start off high but they plateau very quickly (3 promotions, you're a senior engineer and you're done), so consider that as well.

About the quote above, UT is dangerous because the average for engineering majors (esp Eng Sci) are similar to the average for all other majors, so you will definitely be at at least a slightly disadvantage since you're competing with geniuses. Waterloo's research isn't as good as UT's though.

If you're heading into biomech and nanotech and you decide not to do med later on, you're essentially going into academia or at least will be in academia for a long time. There are few jobs out in the industry in either of these fields and the ones that do exist will likely require a Ph.D from you. HOWEVER, if you opt to head down to the States to find work you'll find many more industry opportunities, even with your BASc.

ChemE, jobs are easier to get, less of a problem.

(but IMO nanobioengineering is awesome, awesome, awesome).

LOOOL NANOBIOENGINEERING?? Anyways, I also looked in on a good chemE program at UW, which offers the option to do Biochemical/Biotechnology engineering. Is this anything similar to the BME program?

Thanks.

 

[atomi]

-

 

[atomi]

-

 

[Captain Fantastic]

It doesn't work like that. Companies have a technical track and a managerial track for engineers. If you stay on the technical track, then you typically get a promotion after 5-7 years from junior engineer, then another after 5-7 years, then after about 20-25 years, you can get promoted to a senior engineer. The top of the food chain is a senior technical fellow, which you generally have to be a really old fart to obtain. That's a pretty good gig if you get it as you become the go-to guy for senior management and legal for any technical issues/advice. Pay typically doesn't get beyond the lower 100s at any level, which is a very good salary and comparable to other professionals (with the exception of doctors, who only have astronomical earning potential because the AMA cartel artificially limits physician supply). You can earn more if you go the managerial track, which is irritating considering that the managers wouldn't have jobs if it weren't for the engineers.

You don't just get 'done' in engineering. (usually you get laid off, haha!)

This was pretty much my experience in a large (Fortune 100) company as an engineer. It was a good time, just not something I wanted to do for the rest of my life. I got my promotion, vested my pension, and then punched-out for medical school.

 

[BuffGold]

Hey guys,

I'm glad to see there's so many pre-med engineers! It's always good to have fellow engineers in medicine because we all seem to share a common way of thinking. Anyways, I just wanted to offer my two cents on anyone who maybe isn't sure about whether or not an engineering major is right for them:

1) If you know you want to do medicine, don't do engineering, unless you really really really really (I can't stress this enough, and it will not apply to 99.9% of people) love engineering. It's not worth it.

2) If you're not sure about whether you want to do engineering or medicine, try to get an inkling, ASAP. If you're doing it just to keep some doors open, please research medicine and engineering some more, because both fields require a lot of commitment, so hopefully you walk into the situation knowing that you will truly be content with either career.

For the posts above regarding how much engineering helps in the apps process, I'll offer my experience on the matter. Even though my post count may not show it, I've read SDN on an almost daily basis for the last few years. As you can imagine, posts that spoke on the engineering pre-med topic were of particular interest to me. From this, it is my general belief that for some schools, they will certainly take the major difficulty into account. Others will take the stance of "since you picked the major, you should excel in it regardless". There is no definitive list of which schools do what. Therefore I would suggest proceeding on the assumption that no school you are applying to will give you a bonus for being an engineer.

That being said, make sure to stress the strengths of the major. Some good points were made in previous posts, but I would like to add one: teamwork. As engineers we are usually expected to work in teams and groups to achieve a goal. Healthcare, much like other jobs in this case, is not much different. There are few physicians that do not have to interact with fellow physicians, nurses, healthcare workers, etc... on a daily basis. Having a goal-oriented, team-based approach can be a huge asset to stress in an interview or essay.

Hopefully this post helps and please feel free to PM me if you have any questions! Good luck guys!

Couldn't disagree more.

Think on a bigger scale past the application process. If you can handle it, having an engineering mind set will help you be a better doctor. If that is your goal, admissions shouldn't be too bad.

And I don't think you are right about schools not respecting the tough major. A good GPA in a tough major like engineering will set you apart.

 

[whysoserious]

For those that feel that it is a waste, consider the possibilities if you have the mathematics and physics to understand thermodynamics, mass transfer and fluid dynamics of the human body.

If you have not heard of this man, you should read about him. He's considered one of, if not, the leader in drug-delivery development.

Robert S. Langer

He's an engineer applying his knowledge and ability to medicine.

I'm not saying that we're all going to be Robert Langer's, but if he can apply his engineering background to medicine, I don't see why anyone who is interested in engineering and medicine can't.

 

[Mang]

I'm almost done with civil and recently started thinking about med school..
and just like most of you, i believe engineering is easy and doesn't require much studying but i think that's not a good habit to acquire for med school

 

[strinky]

Starting this summer as a BME major at Georgia Tech and couldn't be more excited. The field looks fascinating, and it's something that I'd want to continue to be involved in if I go to med school. So potentially MD/PhD.

As for the difficulty of the program...I'm going to try my darndest to maintain a med school-friendly GPA. But I'm not going to stress too much (ok, possibly a lie), as I can easily see myself going completely in the BME direction.

It's nice to see so many others here.

 

[theofficePBandJ]

Architectural Engineering

 

[engineeredout]

Any other premed engineers going to med school in the fall, and thus are having a really hard time giving a rats ass about their senior research or senior design projects?

 

[RawR]

Aerospace Engineering.
I enjoyed the curriculum, but after a co-op with in the aircraft industry, I re-evaluated what I wanted to do with my life. I decided on medicine, and I don't have any regrets.

 

[Kickback]

Aerospace Engineering.
I enjoyed the curriculum, but after a co-op with in the aircraft industry, I re-evaluated what I wanted to do with my life. I decided on medicine, and I don't have any regrets.

Haha, I feel you. I really wanted to do aerospace until I shadowed my dad, who works for a smaller military contractor.

 

[andrewnwi]

I use to be BME, now I'm just biotech/chem. So, technically, I don't even need to post...

 

[RnD4Lyf]

Mechanical Engineer here...I mostly chose engineering because 1) I had a fallback in case I didn't directly get into medical school from undergrad and 2) I would feel like my education would have been somewhat cheated if I didn't get to take all those awesome math classes 😀

 

[littlefred]

I'm a Computer Engineer. CE is a tough major and I don't regret one bit finishing it, the only thing I regret is that I didn't take the org. chem and biology classes to apply for med school right away. The way you think analitacally sets you apart from the rest and I know this by experience. Most Biology/Chem majors just memorize stuff and don't ponder the real science behind the stuff they're learning.

I also agree with some posters that say that a 3.5 in engineering is way better than a 3.5 in biology. 🙂

 

[135892]

I also agree with some posters that say that a 3.5 in engineering is way better than a 3.5 in biology. 🙂

Yeah, but a 3.8 in bio is way better than a 3.5 in engineering, and is also probably easier to do.

But anyways, I don't know if I'm even allowed in this thread... physics major here 😀

 

[littlefred]

Physics, much respect. 🙂

By the way would it be bad to use both titles after graduating from med school?
For example Eng. John Doe, MD...

 

[YBFdoctor]

I did bioengineering for my undergrad. I don't regret it, but I do wish that I could have taken more upper level science classes. If there are any pre-meds that are considering an engineering major, I would definitely recommend doing a BME or even MSE that will allow you to tailor your curriculum to focus more on the human body.

I felt like all the posters above were mainly males. I'm just curious, but are there any FEMALE pre-med engineers out there?? I know I can't be the only one!

 

[SirGecko]

Physics, much respect. 🙂

By the way would it be bad to use both titles after graduating from med school?
For example Eng. John Doe, MD...

... I wasn't aware Engineer was a title now. (so no I don't think anyone will every refer to you as Engineer John Doe, MD)


(oh and Biomedical Engineering represent!)

 

[bmeshedoc]

I felt like all the posters above were mainly males. I'm just curious, but are there any FEMALE pre-med engineers out there?? I know I can't be the only one!

i'm a girl bme 😀

to reiterate what a lot of people here have said, in my opinion, engineering is a totally rockin' undergrad degree -- at the very least, you have a very solid foundation in critical thinking. the classes are harder (in my experience) than the pure sciences, which i would like to think gives a little sway with adcoms, but who knows.

in other news, our engineering dept likes to say that engineers ON AVG score 3-4 pts higher on the MCAT. i have absolutely no legit source for it, but it seems to be true from people i know, too....

 

[ChairmanMao]

in other news, our engineering dept likes to say that engineers ON AVG score 3-4 pts higher on the MCAT. i have absolutely no legit source for it, but it seems to be true from people i know, too....

I think this is only on the physical science section, not the Bio or the Verbal section. I have noticed that the Physical Science section seems easiest to me (even when all the Bio and liberal arts people are complaining about how hard it is), however, the verbal section is a total **** and the Bio section is just so-so.

 

[Kickback]

in other news, our engineering dept likes to say that engineers ON AVG score 3-4 pts higher on the MCAT. i have absolutely no legit source for it, but it seems to be true from people i know, too....

I think I can back this up. We had a poster in the physics building that showed average MCAT's by major, and the highest average was BME, with a 30, and the lowest was a declared Pre-Med major, with a 26. It made me laugh a little.

I'm going to find that poster tomorrow...

 

[DrJosephKim]

I was a Mech E and went straight to medical school

I also knew many other engineering majors who pursued medicine. People with engineering backgrounds tend to do quite well because of the refined problem-solving skills.

 

[Igor4sugry]

I'm a BS MechE and I'm now in Medical School.

Let me tell you, the only reason I'm surviving is because engineering school has taught me how to work hard. Medical school is all about effort and comitment.
Yes, it took me 3 extra semester to finish my degree, but in the large scheme of things it only benefited me.

The other benefits of an engineering degree are :

-> I paid my application expenses with summer internships
-> You have a great career to fall back on in case you don't get in OR don't like medical school
-> You can get involved in medical device development (consulting)
-> Physiology is a breeze.

 

[ricebowl1988]

BME with emphasis on EE here, so interesting stuff actually decreases my drive to go to med school.

 

[seanparsel]

a

 

[YeOldeMan]

Started out as an Aerospace Engineer.

Ended up taking the theoretical road, up to math and physics.
You get a lotta respect there. Became heavily research oriented, and the coursework didn't get too tough after it *clicked* with the theory. Didn't have to pack 19 hours a semester like many engineers here did....and the engineering profs here just SUCK. constant constant constant weed out and you never seem them after class. Average engineering GPAs are in the high 2's.

And I just hated the engineering course loads...forever weed-out.

No regrets with the applied math. I even went to take some graduate courses and they were just fine.

So yeah...THEORY FTW!!!!😎

seanparsel:
you just caught me with this 3 months old thread. ^^

 

[GTV]

EE major w/ a BME minor graduating this december. Good stuff. Oh yeah, and I LOVE how a good number of med schools won't accept letters of recommendation from engineering professors because "engineering isn't science." It makes me want to lash out violently. As a pre-med, I've taken all the med school pre-reqs and a TON of engineering classes and let me tell you, organic chemistry and molecular biology are cake walks compared to the raping you take from classes like DSP, random signal analysis, or microelectronic circuits. But the thing that makes me even more angry is the fact that so many medical schools say on their websites something to the extent of "we actively seek out humanities majors because they have a stronger foundation in the human side of medicine." That's some serious BS.

 

[dingyibvs]

EE here....it sure as heck hurt my GPA, a LOT. I took a boatload of science courses as well, and with with a 3.8 sGPA my overall is still below 3.5

 

[dingyibvs]

EE major w/ a BME minor graduating this december. Good stuff. Oh yeah, and I LOVE how a good number of med schools won't accept letters of recommendation from engineering professors because "engineering isn't science." It makes me want to lash out violently. As a pre-med, I've taken all the med school pre-reqs and a TON of engineering classes and let me tell you, organic chemistry and molecular biology are cake walks compared to the raping you take from classes like DSP, random signal analysis, or microelectronic circuits. But the thing that makes me even more angry is the fact that so many medical schools say on their websites something to the extent of "we actively seek out humanities majors because they have a stronger foundation in the human side of medicine." That's some serious BS.

That is soooo friggin true. Every single science course I've taken has been a cakewalk compared to the upper level EE classes. I remember getting mediocre grades in Orgo exams because I had to spend so much time on my solid state and DSP classes. All I had to do in the end was to spend a couple days studying my Orgo final, destroy the curve, and get an A in the class. I tried to pull the same thing on my EE courses...it wasn't pretty. The hardest science course I've ever taken is still a good step away from the difficulty of an introductory EE course like Circus I.

 

[ChemEngSoonMD]

Who here is doing engineering as undergrad, and pre-med? If so, what engineering?
To start off Chemical Engineering here

Hells yeeeeeeah.

Too epic, words are not necessary. BTW, petroleum engineering are chemical engineers that work for oil industries.

 

[vinniekan]

Too epic, words are not necessary. BTW, petroleum engineering are chemical engineers that work for oil industries.

probably the most accurate salary figures I have seen for a while, a lot of my friends who got engineering degrees (ChemE) from the Northeast moved to Texas to work for Exxon, all starting $80k+

 

[Engineer2MD]

LOL, ChemEng! Yes, the salary figures are extremely accurate.

Nuclear Engineer here (BS + MS + 3 years with large government contractor). I'm a non-trad though.

I have to add.... the pre-med science classes are cake compared to Senior Year of engineering undergrad. Once I figured out the trick was to just memorize facts and not waste time learning concepts and applications, it was all downhill. 🙂

Oh and GTV- I totally understand what you mean by "raping". One time I got a test back and I had scored 33%. I just knew I had to drop the class. Until the prof stuck the average up on the board...... 20%. I got an A!!!!! I still laugh about that.

 

[ChemEngSoonMD]

probably the most accurate salary figures I have seen for a while, a lot of my friends who got engineering degrees (ChemE) from the Northeast moved to Texas to work for Exxon, all starting $80k+

LOL, ChemEng! Yes, the salary figures are extremely accurate.

Nuclear Engineer here (BS + MS + 3 years with large government contractor). I'm a non-trad though.

I have to add.... the pre-med science classes are cake compared to Senior Year of engineering undergrad. Once I figured out the trick was to just memorize facts and not waste time learning concepts and applications, it was all downhill. 🙂

Oh and GTV- I totally understand what you mean by "raping". One time I got a test back and I had scored 33%. I just knew I had to drop the class. Until the prof stuck the average up on the board...... 20%. I got an A!!!!! I still laugh about that.

I'm an engineer, of course my data is accurate. Come on now.

 

[vinniekan]

I'm an engineer, of course my data is accurate. Come on now.

I've been reading some of your posts, you've gotta be either one of the most conceited or the most sarcastic SOB I have ever come across. If you're sarcastic, then I must be mistaken.

On the other hand, sarcasm is my second language as well

 

[Engineer2MD]

You are right, ChemEng, of course your data is accurate. I never should've doubted! 🙂 We engineers are such an odd brand of people. Ever watch an action movie to specifically dispute what could/could not happen? Then run calculations on the back of a pizza box? We are nerds, and we are proud of it!

(only 6.5 months to St Patty's day!)