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KeeblerElf
Upperclassman
12 Posts |
 Posted - 04/11/2004 : 10:59:25
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Hello
I was wondering about a comment in another discussion about the type of majors that are prefered according to the AdComs.
Do AdComs give more preference to math majors versus biology majors? And if so, how come?
Thanks
Keebs |
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twu
Admissions Expert
USA
570 Posts |
Posted - 04/11/2004 : 16:48:50
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quote:
Originally posted by KeeblerElf
I was wondering about a comment in another discussion about the type of majors that are prefered according to the AdComs.
Do AdComs give more preference to math majors versus biology majors? And if so, how come?
I guess I would be responsible for making that comment.
Allow me to clarify.
There's no documented statement available from the AAMC or any medical school AdCom attesting to their preference of one major over another. In fact, the AAMC's stated position is that any major is fine so long as the applicant does well in his major and he does well in the premedical curriculum.
My comment had more to do with interpretation of the data. According to the available statistics, approximately 34-35% of biology majors are accepted and then matriculate to medical school compared with approximately 67% of mathematics majors. A simple glance at these numbers would lead us to believe that mathematics majors are preferred over biology majors. This may be the case, but we have to look more closely at the numbers. The number of biology majors applying to medical school number in the thousands while I believe there were only a few hundred mathematics majors applying (fewer than 500). The sample sizes aren't really comparable, so any interpretation would be difficult but not impossible.
What I know from being an admissions officer is that biology majors are abundant in the med school applicant pool. If you picked up a rock and threw it into a premedical crowd, chances are you'd hit a White biology major who went to a private college and grew up in a family where at least one parent has a college education. Mathematics majors are rare and the mathematics major is typically viewed as having gone through a more rigorous program than a biology major. So if you've got a mathematics major and a biology major, both of whom have similar GPAs and all other things being equal, the mathematics major might just come out on top because of the known rigor of the mathematics curriculum.
Take the example of psychology majors. 30-33% of psychology applicants are accepted to and matriculate in a US LCME-accredited medical school. Their numbers are somewhere between the number of applicants in biology and in mathematics. Psychology as a major is viewed as relatively easy and not rigorous, hence the relatively poor showing in medical schools.
Bottomline, again, is to major in something you enjoy because that's the only way you'll do well. If you choose mathematics just because the numbers for mathematics majors are more impressive than most other types of programs, and you don't have a particular interest in mathematics, you'll be hard-pressed to do well.
Good luck.
Timothy Wu, MD
AdmissionsConsultants
703.242.5885 |
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Altema
Upperclassman
13 Posts |
Posted - 04/12/2004 : 23:11:03
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In this post you mention that any major is fine as long as you do well in your pre-med courses, but in this thread http://www.admissionsboards.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=381 you state that the major you choose plays a role in the admissions process.
I just want to clarify this because i wish make art my major and continue on to medicine. The two are different, but like you said "major in something you enjoy." |
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twu
Admissions Expert
USA
570 Posts |
Posted - 04/13/2004 : 01:19:18
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quote:
Originally posted by Altema
In this post you mention that any major is fine as long as you do well in your pre-med courses, but in this thread http://www.admissionsboards.com/topic.asp?TOPIC_ID=381 you state that the major you choose plays a role in the admissions process.
I just want to clarify this because i wish make art my major and continue on to medicine. The two are different, but like you said "major in something you enjoy."
You seem to imply that the statements I've made regarding majors are mutually exclusive. I can assure you that they are not.
Med school AdComs do pay attention to the major you select, as I've posted in the past, yet this should NOT and canNOT be the reason for majoring in a particular discipline. If this were the case, taking into account the available data on med school admissions, then every premed applicant should be a mathematics, engineering, or physics major. This simply is unrealistic and silly.
The bottomline continues to be: major in something you like and do well in it. If you play the numbers game all the time at some point you'll run out of steam because it'll cease to be fun.
Will the med school AdComs give more weight to a 3.7 GPA in an engineering discipline as opposed to be a 3.7 in music? My experience as an admissions officer tells me that they would in general. Does that mean the engineering guy will get in and the music guy will be out on the street? Of course not. That's only one datum of an entire application filled with data.
You're giving this more thought than it requires. Go ahead and major in art but be sure to do well in your art courses and your premed courses.
Hope that clarifies whatever confusion I may have inadvertently caused.
Good luck.
Timothy Wu, MD
AdmissionsConsultants
703.242.5885 |
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Altema
Upperclassman
13 Posts |
Posted - 04/15/2004 : 16:25:17
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| Ah my mistake. Thank you for clarifying my concern. I guess i am thinking too much about this. Thank you again. |
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bajoka
Underclassman
2 Posts |
Posted - 07/13/2005 : 12:52:23
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| I am wondering if the school you attend is as important as other factors. I am a freshman, have a scholarship for Honors College at a small/medium State University- some people have advised me to transfer to a larger school - I was of the understanding that grades, MCAT and service were of most importance for Medical School Admission. Also, I do volunteer research with a doctor who is Department Head of Infectious Disease at a large local hospital - am I on the right track? |
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Preferred Majors?
