What is a typical courseload like in the first year of medical school?

[Alricson]

I am currently switching my major from Bio-Chemistry, to History. This isn't due to rigor, but rather the fact that I don't care about the BC degree; I'd rather be studying History; if Medical Schools don't care about my undergraduate degree in the first place; and that I'd have to spend an extra year in college to get the BC degree.

I told my brother this, who is currently a DO, and he told just about everyone who dropped out of his school had a non-science undergrad.

He said that the extra year in UG wouldn't matter in the long run, and I will most-likely need those upper-level science courses to prepare me for medical school?

This has me wondering, what is the typical first year courseload like?

I've had people tell me, "What you learn in a quarter, we have to learn in a day."

Is that an accurate assessment?

Do you think I should listen to my brother?

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[CyrusHabs7695]

The extra science classes you take as a bio major might also help with the mcat

 

[IntheClouds4ever]

Spending an extra year in undergrad to take courses that are completely unrelated to medical school for a degree you won't use while your doctor sibling strongly hints that its a bad idea.... Why is this even a question?

 

[Alricson]

Spending an extra year in undergrad to take courses that are completely unrelated to medical school for a degree you won't use while your doctor sibling strongly hints that its a bad idea.... Why is this even a question?

It's a question, because as I said in my post - the extra year would be for the Bio-Medical Degree.

 

[IntheClouds4ever]

forget history.. stick with Biomed. If you want to study history do it in the evening as a leisure activity. The non-science majors I know hated life in the beginning of med school. Med school is the equivalent of earning three undergrad degrees in the same time frame just to give context..

 

[Alricson]

forget history.. stick with Biomed. If you want to study history do it in the evening as a leisure activity. The non-science majors I know hated life in the beginning of med school. Med school is the equivalent of earning three undergrad degrees in the same time frame just to give context..

I have a hard time grasping this. How often were you tested? And how much reading would you have to do? How much time to prepare? How many courses?

Trying to get a sense of metrics.

 

[Ray Med]

I disagree with the advice you are getting here. If history is what you are interested in, I would tell you to pursue it. Any advantage you would achieve with a science bachelors will be surpassed within the first month of medical school.
The more important weight for biochem in my mind is in case medical school doesn’t work out and you need a back-up.
Asking about the specifics of curriculum is a less useful question as first year curriculums are significantly different between schools.

 

[IntheClouds4ever]

Every week or two depending on the semester. If you are able to study for an exam in two days in undergrad (weekend before test) expect three times as many days studying. There’s a reason you hear people to say treat it as a job. If you don’t have mandatory classes it’s easy to presume studying 8-5 daily plus weekends before exam.

 

[Ray Med]

For context, I am finishing up my first year of medical school at a highly ranked MD school.

 

[Lannister]

Do the history degree if that's what you want to do. I was a humanities major, took no science classes except for the pre-reqs, and I don't regret it at all. Sure, biochem was rough, but that was just a few weeks of my life. Most people at my school who were humanities majors are doing just fine.

 

[Oso]

If you are interested in history then major in history. My only recommendation would be to take 1-2 upper level bio classes (biochem, immunology, physiology, genetics, etc.) in addition to the pre-requisites. As mentioned above, any slight advantage you may have from a particular science degree won't matter after a few weeks/months.

I was a social science major and only took a few upper level bio classes in addition to the pre-reqs.

I honestly believe that the pre-reqs are the most important because they lay down the basic foundation and teach you how to think -- these are the most important things to have when you're getting bombarded with a **** ton of new material every week.

 

[wanderingorion]

The courses you have to take and material you learn for the MCAT is enough to suffice. Now, taking advanced chem/bio courses makes things a little easier, but pursue what you're interested in. I regret a little being too focused in my UG studies. Follow your passion/interests. You'll have the rest of your life to learn the art of medicine. A couple semesters won't change that.

 

[sharkbyte]

I am currently switching my major from Bio-Chemistry, to History. This isn't due to rigor, but rather the fact that I don't care about the BC degree; I'd rather be studying History; if Medical Schools don't care about my undergraduate degree in the first place; and that I'd have to spend an extra year in college to get the BC degree.

I told my brother this, who is currently a DO, and he told just about everyone who dropped out of his school had a non-science undergrad.

He said that the extra year in UG wouldn't matter in the long run, and I will most-likely need those upper-level science courses to prepare me for medical school?

This has me wondering, what is the typical first year courseload like?

I've had people tell me, "What you learn in a quarter, we have to learn in a day."

Is that an accurate assessment?

Do you think I should listen to my brother?

The pace is a huge step up. I was actually thinking about this the other day. At my school during the preclinical years we have 16-20 hours of lecture a week. Second semester of M2 year has been 20 hours/week, so let's go with that. Just as a comparison, at my undergrad (we were on the semester system), if I took two science classes, I had like 2.5 hours of class a week for each subject (class 3 times a week, 50 minutes for each lecture). So make that 5 hours a week for 2 science classes. We're basically covering in one week of med school what I covered in one month of undergrad. I don't know how the quarter system works, it's unlikely you cover an entire quarter in a day but it's not far off.

 

[OrthoTraumaMD]

I am currently switching my major from Bio-Chemistry, to History. This isn't due to rigor, but rather the fact that I don't care about the BC degree; I'd rather be studying History; if Medical Schools don't care about my undergraduate degree in the first place; and that I'd have to spend an extra year in college to get the BC degree.

I told my brother this, who is currently a DO, and he told just about everyone who dropped out of his school had a non-science undergrad.

He said that the extra year in UG wouldn't matter in the long run, and I will most-likely need those upper-level science courses to prepare me for medical school?

This has me wondering, what is the typical first year courseload like?

I've had people tell me, "What you learn in a quarter, we have to learn in a day."

Is that an accurate assessment?

Do you think I should listen to my brother?

Do the major you want/like. I also had a non-bio major, did not take biochem and had no issues. Graduated AOA, and was the only one of my classmates to match Ortho. As long as you fulfill the pre-reqs, you’re fine. Better enjoy your studies while you can in college— it will also make you a more well rounded person and better physician, and an overall more interesting human. You will have all of medical school to suffer through classes you hate.


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[longhaul3]

All you really need to know when you start med school is what DNA is, how to read a scientific paper, and how to use Wikipedia.

More advanced preparation would include knowing that mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell and knowing how to use your favorite social media platform to post a picture of yourself in a white coat.

Seriously, don't sweat it.

 

[Kr#36]

All you really need to know when you start med school is what DNA is, how to read a scientific paper, and how to use Wikipedia.

More advanced preparation would include knowing that mitochondria are the powerhouse of the cell and knowing how to use your favorite social media platform to post a picture of yourself in a white coat.

Seriously, don't sweat it.

This is actually something I was thinking about yesterday. What are the minimum major underlying concepts that MS1's should be really solid on entering school?

 

[FutureOncologist]

I knew a lot of former classmates that were non-science majors. Some history, some music, and others in humanities (sociology, anthropology, etc.) They did just as well as the science majors did.

Nothing in undergrad will come close to what you'll go through in medical school. My undergrad degree is in biochemistry, which required 2 semesters of biochemistry. A week after orientation to medical school, we started biochemistry and normal human physiology. 1st semester of undergrad BC was covered in two weeks; normal physiology covered in 1 month. At my undergrad, we focused on metabolism, normal human health, and a little into the biochemistry of various diseases (T2D, Atherosclerosis.) That information was covered in about 3 weeks.

The only way I can see you getting any leg up is if you go to an SMP and take the actual medical school courses along with M1's and M2's. Other than that, there is a very wide gap of knowledge that you just have to get through when you get in.

 

[Alricson]

Thank you for all the wonderful responses!

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

FYI, humanities majors have the second highest median mcat (second only to math majors—wut wut), and MCAT score correlates with step 1 performance. Somehow I doubt all the humanities majors are failing out of med school.

 

[workaholic181]

I majored in something similar and wouldn't change it for anything going back. Learned so much I otherwise would not have about the world and I don't think it damaged my med school app in the slightest. Made CARS a heck of a lot easier.

 

[longhaul3]

This is actually something I was thinking about yesterday. What are the minimum major underlying concepts that MS1's should be really solid on entering school?

Off the top of my head:
-DNA synthesis, transcription, translation, etc.
-Basic genetics concepts like patterns of inheritance, tumor suppressor vs. oncogene, etc.
-Rudimentary understanding of acid/base chemistry (most incoming students know way more about this they need to anyway from pre-reqs)
-Knowledge of the different divisions of the nervous system and how synaptic transmission works
-Familiarity with renal physiology, especially how the nephron works
-Some understanding of what evidence-based medicine is and what constitutes good "evidence"
-Realization that people make bad decisions all the time
-Being comfortable smiling and doing what you're told
-Determining in a professional social context when to keep your mouth shut
-Coming to grips with the fact that you will not be the smartest or most important person in the room for at least the next 7 years
-Talking about any number of body parts and bodily functions without giggling like a child
-Spanish

 

[Detective SnowBucket]

OP, Im a double major bio/humanities and it was the best decision I've made in a while; 3 years strong now. Think it did in fact halp with the MCAT. If you're concerned with preparedness and want more than the bare minimum pre-recs or are concerned that it will look bad to be only a liberal studies major or think ADCOMS want to see science stuff or don't want to throw away the work you've done so far for Biochem, why can't you be a biochem minor/history major or biochem major/history minor?

Take it from me, every day that I get to go into a class for my humanities major its worth the extra work because that is something I love. If you love history, it will help take your mind off the rigor of that science stuff.

Good luck!

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

Your major won’t really matter. My observations in my class: most of the people struggling are non-science majors, but the majority of non-science majors are not struggling.

As to what medical school is like, we did a years worth of Biochem in a month. Our first semester was like 21 credits or something. If you treat it like a job then you will do fine.

 

[ekmf27050]

Off the top of my head:
-DNA synthesis, transcription, translation, etc.
-Basic genetics concepts like patterns of inheritance, tumor suppressor vs. oncogene, etc.
-Rudimentary understanding of acid/base chemistry (most incoming students know way more about this they need to anyway from pre-reqs)
-Knowledge of the different divisions of the nervous system and how synaptic transmission works
-Familiarity with renal physiology, especially how the nephron works
-Some understanding of what evidence-based medicine is and what constitutes good "evidence"
-Realization that people make bad decisions all the time
-Being comfortable smiling and doing what you're told
-Determining in a professional social context when to keep your mouth shut
-Coming to grips with the fact that you will not be the smartest or most important person in the room for at least the next 7 years
-Talking about any number of body parts and bodily functions without giggling like a child
-Spanish

First of all, love how this list took a great sneaky turn 1/3 of the way through

Second, this thread is reassuring for another humanities major. I honestly loved my major, and I took a couple post-bac upper level bios and self-studied for the MCAT and still did well on the science sections. I've heard med school is a firehose regardless of major, and thanks to my psych major I'll be able to identify things like "learned helplessness" and "Stockholm syndrome" in myself and my classmates.

 

[AnatomyGrey12]

I like that, "21 Credits".

Helps me visualize it.

Yeah just think of it as anywhere from 20-28 (depending on the school, curriculum, etc) credits a semester of upper level hard science courses.

 

[libahli]

So I’m finishing up M1 year as a nontrad with a non-science major. I’m doing just fine but I think that when others say that it doesn’t matter at all, they’re oversimplifying things. True, we cover way more in a week than you can imagine (basically equal to a full semester’s worth of an undergrad class) but even having a week’s advantage in familiarity with the info can be enormously helpful. Not just in knowing the actual info but also just having a general framework and also the extra leeway time to figure out how to study for each new class.

I really don’t think not being a science major hurt me but I do think that it would have really alleviated some stress if I had taken a few extra upper-division science classes. I literally only took the prereqs plus one semester of biochem - and felt like I had a slight advantage that first week of Med school biochem because of it, which then translated into a slight advantage for the rest of the course.

Science majors who say, oh but that anatomy class I took wasn’t all that helpful - don’t believe them. The fact that they even know the names of some bones is helpful compared to someone starting from absolute scratch. You CAN start from absolute scratch (the lecturers will tell you everything you need to know) but there’s a clear advantage that those who don’t have - problem is, they generally won’t admit it because they’re still feeling overwhelmed - because no matter what they came in knowing, the sheer quantity of material will mostly likely still be overwhelming to most people (unless you’re a bonafide genius).

I’m still glad of the route I took as I believe I have a much better life/school balance because of it - along with other skills. But don’t let people convince you that everyone’s starting Med school on equal footing because that’s simply not true.


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[On_The_Way_Up]

Death. And more death. Before chronic crying of course.

 

[PreMedMissteps]

I disagree with the advice you are getting here. If history is what you are interested in, I would tell you to pursue it. Any advantage you would achieve with a science bachelors will be surpassed within the first month of medical school.
The more important weight for biochem in my mind is in case medical school doesn’t work out and you need a back-up.
Asking about the specifics of curriculum is a less useful question as first year curriculums are significantly different between schools.

Agree

And who knows the details of your bro’s DO experience. It could be a DO school that accepts students who’d never be considered at a MD school. It sounds like his school has a lot of drop outs!