What should I declare: Organismal Biology or Molecular&Cell Biology

[BerkeleyPremed]

I know both of these majors reek of the stereotypical "premed" route...but these are the only fields that I'm interested in and I can't see myself studying anything else. Organismal Biology is called "Integrative Biology" here and everyone on campus just refers to molecular&cell biology as "MCB." The lower division requirements for the major are the same (2 semesters of organic chem, 1 semester of general chem, 2 semesters of physics, 2 semesters of general biology, etc). But the upper division courses for these majors are pretty different (of course...otherwise they'd be lumped into one major) and I'm not sure whether I'd prefer courses in ecolology, evolution, anatomy, and physiology (integrative biology upper division courses)...or courses in immunology, genetics, biochemistry, cell biology, etc (courses in MCB). Which major do you guys think would open up more doors (outside of just the medical school path)? I think I might be interested in pursuing research and I'm guessing that the majority of grants/research in biology right now would probably be focused on molecular&cell bio? (Because of the emergence of genetics as a frontier science, increased biotechnology has caused bioinformatics to blow up, and the potential for biological/chemical warfare has increased the need for more immunology research as well as public health research.) Any thoughts on this guys? Any help would be much appreciated.

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[TTSD]

As for opening up more doors, probably going the MCB route.

I say take some classes from both different fields and see which one you like better. If you're more of a systems kind of person, you might want to stick with the organismal biology as you'll be concentrating on learning the systems of living beings which does wet ones appetitie to become a doctor and start digging into people. If you liked biology and physics, this is the course for you. I would also suggest shoring this up with neuroscience.

Neuroscience is perhaps the greatest field out there for premeds I think. Not only are you already living in the famous Netter books, but neuroscience incorporates EVERYTHING. Everything you've learned in your science courses comes back to haunt you and tests whether or not you really learned your stuff and know how to apply it.

The molecular route is interesting as well, but it's a different kind of studying that can sweep you off your feet if you're not used to it. Molecular, as you get into the real advanced crap, actually relies heavily on organic chemistry and biochemistry (with some pathology and physiology depending). After the intro courses, you'll be playing a lot with those bastardly concepts you learned in ochem and biochem as a lot gets related back to metabolic pathways. Bastards.

But as I said, if you choose not to do medicine, the MCB does probably come more in handy doing research in the outside world.

 

[nanosomic]

I am a MCB major(almost done) and I think if you like it you should go for it. It will help even if you do not get accepted into med school. Right now I could work in many places and make good money if I decide not to go to med school.

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

BUMP

 

[Street Philosopher]

Neuroscience is very interesting and is more conceptual than a lot of the other biology majors. MCB is a bitch and a half so I don't recommend doing that, personally. It will probably come in handy in med school though... but it's probably not worth killing yourself for 4 years to save a little hassle in med school.

 

[jlee9531]

i graduated berkeley may 2002 with a mcb degree...emphasis in the bmb route....

that route is pretty tough, but really interesting......

i think mcb opens up more doors than does ib because more opportunities are in mcb fields.

but from your post.....i think you can test out mcb Plan 1 and go to the advisors of each emphasis or the counselors in the mcb office in vlsb....they are always nice and informative.

alot my friends in bmb basically all have jobs in biotech companies or are going to grad school. a lot of the premeds actually take the cdb route in plan 2, but i dunno to what extent med schools know this.....and i prolly think they know next to nothing about that sort of breakdown.

you have any particular field you are interested more than the others? i would advise going into the field you want to learn more about.

 

[jlee9531]

i loved ochem at berkeley haha

took chem3a, 3b and 113. the greatest set of classes!

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

lol. I'm not a big fan of O-chem. But I really do love the new textbook I purchased for it...it's WAY better than the one assigned by the professor (Vollhardt&Schore's Organic Chemistry...I purchased Organic Chemistry by L.G. Wade). I think CDB would be my emphasis if I did choose MCB. I think Genetics would also be cool...but Integrative Biology also offers a slew of courses in genetics (upper division of course)...IB 141-Human Genetics, IB 164-Evolutionary Genetics, IB 161-Population Genetics, etc. I'm pretty undecided as as of this point...lol.

 

[ashkan33]

no contest. go MCB. IB is pretty much a bs major unless you're into the whole ecology/organismal thing. as a MCB grad (neuro), i can tell you that it has helped me tremendously. mcb gives you such a strong foundation in bio. i dont think IB could even compare. also, don't do the step I plan unless you plan to pursue a career in research. you can attain a much better gpa in step II while still getting a solid education. personally, i went the neuro route and i don't regret it one bit. in summary, screw the IB and do the MCB.

just my two pennies

 

[BananaSplit]

Whether you pick IB or MCB, be sure to take the following classes:

MCB 165 aka Molecular Neurobiology aka Neurochemistry: Presti's class on mind-altering drugs. Relatively low stress and informative! ^_^

IB 131 aka Anatomy: Diamond's class is fairly easy (really easy for a Berkeley class) assuming your class doesn't piss her off by not studying AT ALL.

BananaSplit

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

Ashkan33: How is Integrative Biology a bull**** major if ALL of the prereqs for IB also overlap with the pre-reqs for MCB? Also, the upper division courses in IB actually satisfy lots of the electives in the Cell/Developmental Emphasis of MCB. To name a few...Human Functional Anatomy, Exercise Physiology, and Mammalian Physiology...

 

[NRAI2001]

I m an IB major and I think it is better than MCB, so there 😛 😛 😛 😛

 

[NRAI2001]

Seriously though, I think that if ur not sure if u want to do research or not then u should do MCB because a lot of people have told me that finding a research position with IB is next to impossible. But if ur 100% sure u want to go to med school I think IB is the better major. U don't have to take any ecology or plant bio classes if u don't want to (I m not going to). There are different emphasis' in the major including "Human Bio and Health Sciences" which happens to be my emphasis. In this emphasis u take a lot of anatomy (including neuroanatomy), physiology, genetics, and there are actually a lot of neuro classes offered. Personally I think the more physio classes u take now, the easier med school will be.

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

To NRA12001: Thanks for the advice man. I think I'll just stick with MCB so I can keep my research options open. I heard taking Bio1A and Chem3B in the same semester is a really bad idea. Since this thread is basically full of current/former Berkeley students...lol...I thought I'd just ask you guys for help. I'm in Chem3A and Bio1B now and I was thinking about completing the sequence with Chem3B and Bio1A in spring. Would this be suicide? I'm planning on adding easier courses to lighten the load (aka...any courses offered in the humanities). Is this doable or am I heading off to academic suicide?

 

[NRAI2001]

was thinking about completing the sequence with Chem3B and Bio1A in spring. Would this be suicide? I'm planning on adding easier courses to lighten the load (aka...any courses offered in the humanities). Is this doable or am I heading off to academic suicide?

I think this is doable. Chem 3B I thought was easier than 3A and bio 1A was tough, but I don't think that it would have been that bad had I kept up with the class.

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

Did you have Ellman for Chem3B? I'll have Pederson and I have him now for Chem3A and he's a great professor. I heard Bio1A is intense because the labs give separate lab exams...so it feels like you're taking 2 courses.

 

[Destroy364]

i actually liked both bio 1a and chem 3b... definitely doable together. bio 1a will be a good indicator for upper div MCB in terms of how much you like the material. chem 3b is a lot less taxing than 3a. i had pederson, and he was a great professor..very big into the applications of ochem and how it fits into your everyday life, which made it a lot more interesting. personally i think once you get electron pushing, the rest is cake. just try to keep up in both classes and you'll be fine.

 

[Spacekat]

What should I declare: Organismal Biology or Molecular&Cell Biology


At first glimpse I read "orgasmal biology."

I was thinking 'Holy s*** did I pick the wrong major! Do they have graduate studies in that?'

 

[NRAI2001]

Yea, thats what I thought at first also

 

[DAPI]

I think molecular or cell biology will be better as it study the biology from the grass root level.



http://in.docsity.com/en-docs/Cell_Culturing-Cell_Biology-Lecture_Slides_

How do people find these threads? It's from 2003!