Undergrade Degree ?'s

[SurpriseMD]

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I am trying to decide on an undergrad major, could everybody please post their major and what school they attended? My employer will pay for an undergrad degree but only certain programs that's why I am asking. I have read that you don't need to major in science or pre-med to medical school is this true? I am in Arizona and does anybody have any info about U of A? I haven't noticed anybody talking about this school. I am curious about the environment and is it not a good med school? Thanks!

I am new to this board and I have no idea what URM and EC's mean, can somebody please tell me I would appreciate it.

 

[LoneCoyote]

Originally posted by SurpriseMD
I am trying to decide on an undergrad major, could everybody please post their major and what school they attended? My employer will pay for an undergrad degree but only certain programs that's why I am asking. I have read that you don't need to major in science or pre-med to medical school is this true? I am in Arizona and does anybody have any info about U of A? I haven't noticed anybody talking about this school. I am curious about the environment and is it not a good med school? Thanks!

I am new to this board and I have no idea what URM and EC's mean, can somebody please tell me I would appreciate it.

There is an Arizona med school thread with some opinions on the med school... you can do a search to find it. I think it isn't talked about as much because they only accept Arizona residents.

URM = underrepresented minority
EC = activities, volunteering, etc.

You should major in anything you find interesting because you can take the courses required for med school with any major. If you major in Biology, Biochemistry, etc. these courses will probably be part of your major so many people take that path, especially if they are interested in bio. If you have questions about Bio at U of A feel free to send me a pm (private message) since I'm doing that right now. I also have a history degree from another school. Good luck.

 

[Lebesgue]

If you don't really care what you study, just knock out the prerequisites (do well in them), choose a degree that will interest you, and that might give you an advantage on the MCAT.

Here's a link to the combined April/August 2002 MCAT results broken down by major at the bottom:

http://www.aamc.org/students/mcat/examineedata/sum2002.pdf

Check out humanities, physics, math, or statistics. Notice for some reason biology was somewhat lower overall, even in the biology section.

Also, schools might find you more interesting coming from a non-standard premed background.

Good luck choosing!

🙂

 

[wolferman]

EC = Extracurricular

I chose Management Science at MIT because business interested me. Also, I asked a ton of docs prior to college what they would major in if they could do it over again knowing that med schools don't require you to be a biology major and most of them said "Business." They felt that knowledge of business really would've helped them when setting up their practices and in dealing with all the administrative aspects of medicine. Also, I got the sense that a lot of them resented how dependent they were on their office managers for running their practices, as if they wish they understood that aspect a little more. But, if you don't like business, don't major in it. You'd get bored really fast.

 

[SurpriseMD]

I would like to thank everybody for their input, I was actually going towards probably majoring in business this is really going to help me out! Thanks again!

 

[cocoNUT]

I majored in Medical Technology/Clinical Lab Science in undergrad. It provides a great premed foundation and more! MTs are the licensed professionals that do the complete blood counts, urinalysis, blood bank testing, cultures, antibiotic sensitivities, liver profiles etc. in the hospital labs, reference labs, etc. I learned a lot with regards to the diagnostic aspect of medicine which will be extremely valuable when I become a physician.

Its also a great backup career in case you decide somewhere along the line that medical school is not for you. There are so many opportunities in the field of clinical lab medicine and work environments are so varied that anyone can find a niche where they can be happy. The field is currently experiencing a shortage of professionals similar to that of the nursing profession, but it is not getting as much public attention.

Most schools offer a four year degree and a few (like mine) are a four plus one. I received a Bachelor's after four years, but had to do a one year internship before I could take the board examination. I know a lot of Biology and Chemistry majors who had difficulty finding jobs after graduation and had to settle for $10-$11/hour jobs doing scutwork for research companies. Medical Technologists at my hospital start at $17+/hr w/ generous evening/weekend differentials.

It felt great the other day when a doc came in to look at a wet mount taken from a vag and thought he saw nonmotile trichomonas (parasite,STD, veerrryyy itchy)... I had to correct him and tell him that it was just a red blood cell. Poor doc was embarrassed, but very humble.

 

[Freakingzooming]

I think personally you should stick to your guns on terms of what you already like. lots of good input especially wolferman. I like philosophy or always imagined doing it, even with the premed thing totally clogging up my schedule. I think it's something invaluable in that you totally approach so many things with the expectation of not knowing. It's exciting.

 

[DoctorWannaBe]

If you want to do medical technology, you might not want to go to the U of A. They are considering getting rid of the program.

 

[SurpriseMD]

Thank's for the input I appreciate it!

 

[cracker69]

i'm a business major, finance to be exact. i think it makes me unique among the many science majors. and it means i'll know what to do w/ all my money once i start raking it in. (and please dont start the debate in this thread about why people go into medicine). i've been accepted by the way, so i think it worked. 🙂

69

 

[PMED99]

Simple as it sounds, just wait and see what you like the most. You have two years of the same prereq's anyway. Take that time and look into what UofA offers, what looks the best, and most importantly what offers the classes you will enjoy taking. Unless you enjoy the class, good grades will be hard to get.

 

[Sarah Kerr]

I am a double biology/history major, and I am minoring in theatre. It's a gazillion classes to take, but I really wanted to enjoy college and learn as much as I could, and I am. I was hesitant to major in biology, since so many premeds do, but I really have a love for it, and didn't simply choose it b/c so many other premeds did. And I think the history/theatre combo will give me a nice, broad education that will serve me well -- even if I dont get into med school.