Should I change majors?

[Integral7]

My problem, I think, is a bit complex so I will try to explain it as best as I can. Please bear with me as this will be quite a bit to read:

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I am a freshman that is heading to UCR this year in the fall, as a Biochemistry major. My main goal is to try to apply for medical school in four years time. My initial college plans were to apply to UCI, UCSD, and UCLA but was rejected from all three. At that point, I decided to just head to the only UC school that accepted me which was UCR (some of you might wonder if I know about community colleges, and yes I do know what they are but I just couldn't see myself going to one, so please don't chastise me for thinking this way).

In my mind, going to UCR seemed alright, but not "great" per se, as it is commonly acknowledged as one of the lower ranked UCs. So because of this, I did some looking around and found that transferring is an option for the UCs. I thought, "Great! This is a chance for me to try to get into one of the three schools I initially wanted to get into."

From here I read up on how the transferring process worked. For a student to transfer you had to have completed two years at the respective college that you attended, maintained a certain GPA (typically above 3.0), and completed a series of prerequisites for your intended major. My intended major, as stated above, is biochemistry, but as most of you know, biochemistry is a major that is often impacted at colleges.

So here is where my problem comes in: if I intend on transferring after staying for two years at UCR, then my process of transferring will be very difficult because I'm trying to move into an impacted major of a higher ranked college (compared to my current college). The only solution that I could think of was to switch majors now before I began my freshman year so I could have a shot at transferring into a major that wasn't so impacted but still get into a school that was better.

The only major I could think of, that I could have no trouble adjusting, was math. But for you guys to know, my initial intentions for selecting biochemistry as my major was so I could gain intuition on the biological and chemical sciences, perfect for the MCATs as well as prerequisites for medical school. But if I wish to transfer to a "better" UC school, then would it be wise to switch majors?

Thinking about this question and its consequences, I have come up with the following pros and cons:

Sticking with Biochemistry:
Pros: Gain intuition on biological and chemical sciences, leading to better MCATs and satisfying medical school prereqs.
Cons: Have a harder time transferring to other UCs

Changing Majors (Math):
Pros: Possibly have a better chance at transferring into another UC
Cons: I will need to do more, extensive studying to do well on MCAT since the major that I will switch to will have little to nothing to do with biological/chemical sciences.
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Well this is the end of the reading, hopefully it wasn't overly complicated. So what do you guys think? Should I change majors or stick to my current one given what my situation is?

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[jmo1012]

i'd be curious to see what others in the pre-med field think, but i say go with the major you want to be in. if you're in a major you're not thrilled with, you'll be taking classes you're not interested in and might lose motivation.

have you asked the admissions people at the schools you're potentially looking to transfer to about transfering into their biochem programs? your best bet and most accurate answer would be to ask someone at the school (preferably someone who deals with transfers and/or student advising in each department)

 

[410322]

1. A math major [most likely] isn't what you're expecting it to be. High school kids and early on math students have this idea that "Hey, I was good at calculus, this math major is going to be cake." It's a lot of extremely abstract topics (n-dimensional algebra, for example) and theoretical work and proofs. Calculations are only a small foundation, and not very relevant as you get further into theory.

2. Major in what you'll get an A in consistently. Adcoms only care that you got a 4.0 in underwater basket weaving AND your science prereqs. It's not correct, but a 3.8 in engineering is worse than a 4.0 in communications.

3. The science on the MCAT is rudimentary, overall. There may be one or two questions a year that require advanced knowledge, but that's to separate the 44's from the 45's. As long as you complete your prerequisite courses PRIOR to the MCAT, you'll be fine.

 

[Integral7]

I'm sorry, I should have been a bit more precise with what I typed. When I said "math" major, I meant "applied mathematics" not "pure mathematics". So with an applied mathematics major, I can take in duality by studying some math while also gaining intuition on a specific science discipline (either biology or chemistry, not sure which one would be better). I also think that with an applied mathematics major, it wouldn't be as difficult and impacted to get into for when I transfer, or is this incorrect?

Edit: I also would like to mention that in high school I was best in the math and science spectrum. The only AP courses I took were math and science courses, scoring 4's and 5's in all of them. So hopefully this will sort of clear up any uncertainty as to whether or not I will enjoy doing math and science or not.

Edit#2: Choosing applied mathematics as my other major can give me a chance to fall back, if things don't work out, as an actuary.

 

[deleted393595]

Go into something you like where you can get the highest GPA.

 

[Integral7]

Go into something you like where you can get the highest GPA.

Okay that's good to hear, but my only concern is whether or not changing my major will improve my chances of transferring.

 

[deleted393595]

Okay that's good to hear, but my only concern is whether or not changing my major will improve my chances of transferring.

Med schools will judge your application for many things, but school rank isn't one of them, so don't feel pressured to transfer from UCR if you think that the other UC's will give you a better shot at med school. But idk about transfer applications.

 

[torshi]

too long too read

 

[SeminoleVesicle]

too long too read

Agreed.

I would honestly major in biology. Do well in your classes, make a 4.0, get a social life, drink a beer, get laid, live fast, take chances, etc. etc. Getting into medical school is less about doing something that might seem overly impressive on a resume to you (because adcom's have seen it all), and more about pure strategy. You will have opportunities for fantastic EC's/research no matter where you attend school (as long as you don't graduate from a CC), so take advantage of them and make the highest GPA/MCAT you can. Most of all, have common sense and trust your intuition.

BTW, if you're already thinking about changing your major before you've started your first day of college, it's going to a be rough 4 years for you. Sit back, relax, and enjoy the wonders of college (you only get one shot at it in your lifetime)!