If you want to go to medical school, do you have to major in pre-med before attending?

Question

Can you major in, say, biology and psychology in college and still apply for med school?

Answer 1

I am a biochem major, so I have a lot of friends that are going to med school. A lot of them have decided to NOT have a pre-med or science degree going in to med school. They have gone with a humanitarian type degree. They have told me that it shows you are working on good bedside manner. However, that being said...they still have to take math and science classes as they are pre-reqs for med school. But, just because you have to take them, doesn't mean you have to major in them. It's best to look at the med schools you want to go to, find out what their pre-reqs are and do those. Then, if you don't want to major in the sciences...don't. You may be a little behind from a science standpoint, but as long as you are confident in your ability to quickly catch on and get caught up to the science undergrads...go for it!

Answer 2

Very few colleges offer a Pre-Med major. Most offer a series of classes that are required for admission to medical school. Most med students major in biology or chemistry -- but any major will do as long as you take the required courses.

Answer 3

As others have indicated, you may major in any subject as long as you complete the requisite courses for medical school.

A bachelor's in psychology is considered the easiest degree to obtain out of all, so if you choose that pursuit, you had better obtain a 4.0 GPA with a lot of extracurricular activity. You should also indicate in your essay that you are interested in psychiatry, otherwise, an admission committee is going to perceive you as taking the easiest path.

A bachelor degree in one of the life sciences used to be the standard for acceptance at a medical school. That changed in the 80's following research that indicated that patients sued 'scientists' more. Now, admission committees prefer people with a broader range of interest and we're slowly seeing the pendulum swing toward more people being accepted with other majors than a life science. You can see the majors of matriculants for 2006 at this link: http://www.aamc.org/data/facts/2006/mcatgpabymaj1.htm

The bottom line is that you should study what interests you. Good luck!

Answer 4

You can major in anything you want, from anthropology to zoology, or music and African culture. The important thing is your basic science classes. Most medical schools want 1 year of college physics, 1 year of calculus, 1 year of biology, 1 year of inorganic chemistry, and 1 year of organic chemistry. Some medical schools may or may not need more classes (ie. Statistics).

Answer 5

Many med schools want students with a broader ecucation than just the sciences. it is a really good idea to contact 2 or 3 med schools you are interested in and ask what they look for in their applicants.