Pre-med major question

[erin26]

I know that pre-med students usually major in things like bio or chemistry, but I was wondering if it was possible to major in something else, like psychology, and still be considered for getting into med school. I will do all my pre-reqs like the organic, inorganic chem. etc., i just don't know if this is a smart idea. any suggestions?

I'm curious as to what everyone else in the board is majoring in as well..

Erin

 

[sejin8642]

This kind of topic keeps appearing at the rate of one per day. Do some research.

P.S: It is wrong to think that majoring in bio or chem would increase chances of getting accepted to med schools. It's not about major, it's about GPA.

 

[erin26]

lol, ok. i was just wondering.

 

[Tired Pigeon]

Major in whatever interests you. It will make for a better undergrad experience, and you're probably more likely to do well if the subject matter is something you really like. As you said, you'll take all the pre-med requirements anyway, so those grades will demonstrate that you're academically qualified for med school. There is a popular misconception that being a biology major (or some other closely related field) will make you a more attractive applicant for med school. In point of fact, you might stand out more to the adcoms if you don't have a 'traditional' pre-med major. At my school, FWIW, the administration loves to brag about the 'diverse academic background' of our class.

My med school classmates include music majors, business majors, history majors ... and they all seem to be doing as well as anyone else academically.

 

[braluk]

Majors dont really make much of a differnece in anything (although apparently non-bio majors also do well in admissions). Just make sure you do well in the prereqs

 

[BNSN]

I'm BME, and I regret it so much.

Do bio, get a 3.8+ GPA, and don't look back. Don't be a sucker like me.

 

[baylormed]

Just major in whatever you like and are good at, join the clubs you are interested in (not necessarily pre-med clubs), get some meaningful volunteering and shadowing, and do well in your classes.

3.7+ and 30+ MCAT is recommended.

 

[Mayday]

I have to admit - I'm majoring in Biochem not because I like it, but rather because by the time I get all of the med pre-reqs out of the way, I might as well do Biochem anyways. It's all about taking the least amount of classes to get the most amount of result. As an added bonus, if for some reason I don't get into med school (Oh, god, PLEASE don't let that happen!) I can still get a job in the healthcare industry, although I will be creating drugs to help people rather than administering them.

 

[tredici]

a friend of mine is a philosophy major and she didnt have any trouble getting into med school.

 

[avacado]

Mine was Anthropology

 

[Anastasis]

I agree with what everyone else has said here. Just major in what you love (best part is that hopefully your GPA will reflect your interest and that's more important than major).

If you're interested about others on the forum try these two polls/threads:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=359860
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=348683

Edit: And I'm English/Psychology and I did just fine this cycle. I'll be starting med school in the fall

 

[Jonesie]

I majored in music, minored in psych, and still got in. Just choose something that you really enjoy and feel you can master. It'll also give you something interesting to talk about during interviews. At all of my visits, I was pleasantly surprised by how eager my interviewers were to talk about my non-science-related interests.

 

[Auron]

You can major in whatever you like. You just have to take the required pre-req courses. Most people take bio as the pre-reqs are part of the major, and as a result they're not taking classes "on top of anything else".

Major in what you think you'll be most succesful in

 

[apricotattack]

Better to have a non-science major, I'd say (except for the MCAT), cause you can keep your GPA up easier and balance hard science classes w/ some lighter stuff like "Understanding other cultures" (yeeeeeah anthropology!)

 

[Trepp]

Psych major here... I think it helped me as my core psych classes were way easier then the core classes for engineering (for example). This --> higher GPA with less work.