I am currently a freshman college student, and because of the amount of credits I have, I can graduate in 2.5-3 years with a double/triple major in chemistry, biology, and biochemistry. Should I do this and spend the next year getting a masters degree in chem/bio? I do not see the point of staying an extra year and taking classes that will not really help me (assuming my final GPA is good).
Should I graduate undergrad early and do a masters?
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I was/am in the same dilemma actually. I've decided not to do a masters because I've often been told, multiple degrees do not get you into medical school. Try to keep your GPA above 3.7/3.8 and then take the gap year to fill up on volunteering and clinical exposure. You'd save time with your age, etc. Pursue a masters only if you are interested in something and are passionate about it. Pursuing a masters to increase chances of acceptance, is silly.
Interesting. What about graduating early and applying straight to med school instead assuming I have my GPA and experience in check? I have been told that applying young to medical school is bad because of maturity, but I am not quite sure what to believe.
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Well yeah they may call into question your maturity. I mean people have done it, so if you CAN do it with a good application then go ahead if you're interested. But do NOT sacrifice a good application, to apply early and go to medical school. This is a marathon not a sprint. Also, your goal should be to get in not to get in QUICKLY.
If you still think you have a compelling application with a good GPA, research, service to those less fortunate than yourself and of course a strong MCAT score, then by all means go ahead. Be ready to explain though.
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Applying right now during my third year of undergrad, graduating this spring. My age/maturity/whatever has never been questioned on any of the interviews I've been on. As long as you accomplish what you want to in those 3 years, you can apply to med school directly. If you don't feel ready, use your gap year to build up more clinical experiences or something more useful than a masters degree.
I am in my 1st semester, so other than lab research experience in chemistry, I have not done much yet. I have heard that shadowing is good, but clinical volunteering is better. What about going into a research lab that deals with medicine related stuff (like pathogens) or researching in a clinical lab that deals directly with medicine?
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Do both shadowing and clinical volunteering
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. . . and gain leadership experience and take responsibility. Consider getting in a teaching (mentoring, TA, tutor, coaching) experience.
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I was in the same boat last year until I ended my Freshman year GPA with a 3.3 due to taking upper level coursework as a freshman while balancing leadership, research and volunteering.
I ended up opting to graduate in 4 years instead of 3 so I could be competitive in the med school applicant pool by raising my GPA.
As long as you can get a stellar GPA and have letters of recommendation done by the end of your 2nd year (the LOR is the most difficult with early grads), while having volunteer experience clinically, shadowing, research, a good MCAT and something that makes you stand out, go right ahead!
Realistically this is not possible for most students.
Edit: Like @DO2015CA said, why Masters when you don't have to if you're pre med?
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I didn't see you mention community service, so don't forget that. Despite a decent GPA, a decent MCAT, >10,000 hours of clinical experience, shadowing, and >100 hours clinical volunteering, I got specifically called out in an MD interview asking where my community service was, and was told that I needed more "for next year."
I didn't see you mention community service, so don't forget that. Despite a decent GPA, a decent MCAT, >10,000 hours of clinical experience, shadowing, and >100 hours clinical volunteering, I got specifically called out in an MD interview asking where my community service was, and was told that I needed more "for next year."
Thanks for the heads up, I thought I only needed acaddemic/clinical experience and not just general community service.
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