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I know a few doctors who went to my university: James Madison University in VA. Not a very well-known school out of the south.
I also know some who went to: Old Dominion University, University of Virginia, University of North Carolina - Chapel Hill, Virginia Wesleyan College, Duke University, Columbia University.
Going to a more prestigious school won't hurt, but with the right grades, work ethic, standardized test scores, volunteer work.... you can make it to medical school.
When I see evidence to the contrary, I'll gladly change my mind.
Then pick up that 3" book AMA book (forget the name) as it spells out all of the stats. It's purpose is to help students avoid wasting their time and money from applying to schools who are heavily biased towards their home team. For my DD's case (and dentistry), the ADA book showed all but one student in Iowa's dental program was outside of Iowa. Private colleges didn't show any state allegiances. This happened all across the country.
Quote:
Originally Posted by jobaba
BTW, my point wasn't that you can't get in 'somewhere' if you go to a non-prestigious school, but more that going to a prestigious school helps your cause a lot to get into a school in general.
I agree so long as that student is talented. But it may work against them with a 28 MCAT because they may have lost their home town advantage. Most of the "prestigious" medical schools are private (see Best Medical Schools | Research Rankings | Top Medical Schools for Research | US News Best Graduate Schools ) and they certainly don't care where you lived while in high school. My point was that the state schools don't care about the "prestigious" UG programs, they care about where you plan on living. Those State schools churn out a lot of Doc's. Your ceiling isn't capped if you happen to graduate from the UofMN med school for instance. Your MCAT score and how you do in your standardized exams while in med school will dictate your future. What programs you enter and therefore how much you make and what your hours will be like for the years to come.
Repeating any science course puts you down to the bottom of the list (this OP, I presume, by his name, is a white male). The business about a masters degree in a medical science (for example, physiology or biochem [if that's your ilk] are one very productive way of dealing with a GPA that is not competitive (which these days is about 3.5). There is a preference for applicants with such degrees. It is also a good way to "network" your way into the MD program. Make sure you 4 point in grad school though.
PS> Never EVER take a MCAT without taking a Kaplan course first. You'd be amazed at: 1) how many applicants do and never tell anybody; and 2) what a boost to those scores that course will provide!
I am not in any way associated with review courses like Kaplan nor do I receive any financial benefits for making such statements.
I've sat on an admissions committee for several years. I know these things.
In your experience, what is the best major for someone who wants to go to medical school? I know someone who attended medical school in the 1970s. He was a math major, and he did an analysis of the performance of the students in his class and determined that the best predictor of success in medical school was the verbal portion of the MCAT. In essence, he said, if you had the verbal skills, you could learn the science. In addition, the class had a number of people with non-traditional majors, including, if I remember correctly, someone whose field was music.
Would not declaring yourself as interested in medical school and just making sure you took the prerequisites avoid some of the minefields schools set for "pre-med"?
I had a doctor admit to me he failed his first year chemistry class in undergrad. But he passed it the second time around.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Supine
Repeating any science course puts you down to the bottom of the list (this OP, I presume, by his name, is a white male). The business about a masters degree in a medical science (for example, physiology or biochem [if that's your ilk] are one very productive way of dealing with a GPA that is not competitive (which these days is about 3.5). There is a preference for applicants with such degrees. It is also a good way to "network" your way into the MD program. Make sure you 4 point in grad school though.
PS> Never EVER take a MCAT without taking a Kaplan course first. You'd be amazed at: 1) how many applicants do and never tell anybody; and 2) what a boost to those scores that course will provide!
I am not in any way associated with review courses like Kaplan nor do I receive any financial benefits for making such statements.
I've sat on an admissions committee for several years. I know these things.
I took the MCAT without taking a course and I did just fine.
I'm not fully decided. I mostly chose Pre-Med because a lot of suggestions from friends and family (aside from Bio and Calc reasons). The other suggestions were Pre-Law (which sounds even worse after reading these posts), Finance, Chemistry (didn't choose it as my major for obvious reasons), and Biology. I also considered Politics but my parents wouldn't let me.
My favorite subjects (Biology, Politics, History, Art) unfortunately are not going to provide a profitable future. I lived in NYC, so I saw my share of Medieval History, Contemporary Arts, and Politics majors protesting at Zucotti Park or/and selling whoppers at McDonalds
To carry on this biology narrative, a couple of points:
1. You will have to take chemistry to be a bio major. The number of courses depends on the specific program.
2. There are many things one can do with a bio degree. Most involve grad school, but since you were considering med school, that shouldn't be a problem. One of my daughters got her bio degree at St. Olaf and went from there to physical therapy school (a doctoral program) at the U of CO. The other got a bio degree from the U of CO and went on to get a master's in public health there. There are many other options as well, including getting a teaching certificate.
Quote:
Originally Posted by MN-Born-n-Raised
To be clear, there is no such thing as "Pre-Med" or "Pre-Law".
Agreed. You can search this forum for prior discussions. My personal physician has a degree in art history.
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