Should I major in this program or will it hinder my goal of attending medical school?

[biosphere]

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Hi!

I'm in first year science and I'm thinking of what to specialize in.
I'm very interested in synthetic biology & genomics and there are these two BSc programs that my university offers that reflects my academic interest:

Microbiology & Immunology and Computer Science

and/or

(Cell) Biology & Computer Science

I've heard and read from multiple sources that genomics will "control" the future of medicine & the biomedical sciences. With the emergence of synthetic biology that will enable us to digitise and program life, it seems hard to overstate the influence that genomics will have in medicine - especially with the prospect of personalised medicine.
This is why I'm excited about genomic science, but please feel free to comment on this as this is literally all I know about the field atm.
Because I'm a naive first year, I don't know what to expect from going into these types of programs..
Should I concentrate on one aspect of the life sciences or should I incorporate CS?

(Just so you know, the 2 programs above are combined majors (not double majors) so I'll have sufficient exposure to both fields in terms of lecture material & wet and dry labs. Just less room for electives.)

Thanks in advance! I look forward to reading your replies!

 

[deleted781806]

If you feel like you will enjoy adding computer science into your undergraduate coursework, and you find it to be an interesting field, you should definitely pursue it! As long as your academic program is able to adequately cover the prerequisite courses for entrance into medical school and preparing yourself for the MCAT, then it will work out well in the long-run. The two options that you've proposed definitely seem like they will both do a good job with those two points, so I don't see any reason to not pursue them. Your actual major doesn't matter too much throughout the application process to medical schools, but rather your preparedness for academic rigor (in a general sense) and your commitment/experiences relating to healthcare/volunteerism.

If you think you will enjoy the program, go for it!

 

[stickgirl390]

As long as you can manage the workload, you should major in whatever interests you. My bachelors is in documentary film!

 

[libertyyne]

Can you maintain a gpa above 3.7 ? If yes then major in whatever you want.no one will care as long as the pre reqs are met and the gpa is above 3.7

 

[Goro]

We don't care what your major, majors or minor(s) are, only that you do well.

Hi!

I'm in first year science and I'm thinking of what to specialize in.
I'm very interested in synthetic biology & genomics and there are these two BSc programs that my university offers that reflects my academic interest:

Microbiology & Immunology and Computer Science

and/or

(Cell) Biology & Computer Science

I've heard and read from multiple sources that genomics will "control" the future of medicine & the biomedical sciences. With the emergence of synthetic biology that will enable us to digitise and program life, it seems hard to overstate the influence that genomics will have in medicine - especially with the prospect of personalised medicine.
This is why I'm excited about genomic science, but please feel free to comment on this as this is literally all I know about the field atm.
Because I'm a naive first year, I don't know what to expect from going into these types of programs..
Should I concentrate on one aspect of the life sciences or should I incorporate CS?

(Just so you know, the 2 programs above are combined majors (not double majors) so I'll have sufficient exposure to both fields in terms of lecture material & wet and dry labs. Just less room for electives.)

Thanks in advance! I look forward to reading your replies!

 

[Jalby]

Take the easiest classes you can find and get the highest GPA possible. No med school will care how how the major is.

 

[Lucca]

Concur with others. For the narrow purpose of getting into medical school, nobody cares what you major in only that you do well.

As far as the science comment goes, there's definitely a lot of promise in synthetic bio and "forward" engineering of biology. What you major in is a little more important for science but the best way to learn how to contribute to research in a field is by doing it not by taking classes. Personally, I think that computer science is a great major for people who want to be research scientists because it teaches you a very useful skill set, math, and logic. My personal view (biased since I am in the physical sciences and plan to stay) is that people who want to *do* science should major in something as broad as possible in the sciences (physics, mathematics, chemistry). Understanding the basic principles that govern biology at the molecular level is key to formulating new questions about how biology fundamentally works and how to change it (IMO, the kind of research you are describing). Also, you can learn biology by reading a text book but mathematics is something you have to work hard to gain a good understanding in.

Tl;Dr: major in whatever you want. If you want to be a research scientist, try to get the broadest skill set possible because the nitty gritty stuff can be picked up whenever and is constantly changing. The latter will probably make your life a lot harder than it has to be if you just want to get into med school