February 24, 1980
Dear Dr. Brown:
I am currently a freshman at a university
in New York City. I am interested in entering the field of
dentistry, although my only reasons are for financial
security and less pressures than a medical career.
My reason for writing to you concerns my
major. I know that you wrote in your book that a student
should major in whatever he enjoys (not necessarily
science), but I guess I need some reassurance. I imagine I
should discuss this with my premed advisor, but a fellow
freshman told me about a talk he had with the advisor which
totally turned me off. The student went to the premed
advisor for curriculum guidance. The advisor told him,
"You'll take this course this year and you'll take that
course next year and you'll major in biology or chemistry."
The advisor treated the situation like an assembly
line.
Getting to the point, I'd like to
concentrate my undergraduate studies in French (I took it
from 5th grade through 11th grade and enjoyed it) and
perhaps also study economics (the field fascinates me). But
I'd also like to study something that will enable me to
enter a financially secure career if I don't get accepted to
dental school. In short, I'd like to play it safe.
Please write to me when you have time and
give me your feelings on my problem with a major as well as
being safe career-wise.
Richard Heiss
November 17, 1981
Dear Dr. Brown:
In your book you suggested that a
non-science major would be better than a science major
because too many science courses would create boredom when
taken again in medical school. This raised a question in my
mind. I enjoy Spanish and I speak it well. Next year, when
I'm a junior in high school, I will be in a college level
class. My question is, should I major in Spanish instead of
a science in college? Will that look good on my medical
school application?
Stan Smith (future
M.D.)
September 27, 1982
Dear Dr. Brown:
I was half-way through your book when I
thought I'd drop you a line. I am a premed in my second year
of college and taking a great number of science courses. I
have been employed as an operating room technician and I
have also worked as an assistant to an embalmer, so I have
been able to learn from viewing human anatomy, making my
interest in medicine even greater. My medical interest is
forensics. I'd like to work as a medical examiner or
coroner. What type of route would you recommend I'd take? I
am a bit confused about what to major in: biology,
chemistry, or zoology. I really am in a spot. What would you
say, Dr. Brown?
Steve Mendez
As far as medical schools are
concerned it really does not matter what you major in so
long as you do well in your premedical science courses.
Usually this means two years of chemistry, one year each of
biology and physics, all with lab, and perhaps a year of
mathematics. That's it. The entire premedical requirement
can be taken in one year (two semesters and summer session)
unless there are more specific courses required by
individual medical schools. You do not have to major in a
science. In fact, I argue in my book that since science is
generally a harder major than the humanities majoring in a
science will tend to lower your overall GPA. A premed who
would like a career as a research scientist would do well to
major in biology or chemistry. A premed interested in family
medicine would do better with an English or psychology
major.
Messieurs Heiss and Smith would do
well with a foreign language major. Being bilingual is an
asset when applying to medical school, particularly fluency
in Spanish. In fact, I can hardly think of a more useful
major considering the many Hispanic-Americans who do not
speak English. My advice to Mr. Mendez is the same I would
give to any aspiring premed; major in whatever you would
like and do well in the premedical science courses. Use your
college years for personal growth and don't burden yourself
with a major that's not intellectually satisfying. Not only
will college become a more pleasurable experience but you're
bound to do well in courses you enjoy, and boost your grade
point besides. But don't just take my word for it. Here's a
letter from a premed English major at Harvard
University:
February 1, 1984
Dear Dr. Brown,
Since I last wrote to you I've had a
diverse and interesting under-graduate experience. Due to
various requirements, being an English major and a premed at
Harvard has been very challenging because, unlike biology
majors whose premed courses count toward their major, I've
had few electives. However, I do not at all regret pursuing
a liberal arts education before going to medical school. I
had the chance to go straight into a six-year medical
program but felt my life would be poorer for passing up a
four-year undergraduate education and I now know the
decision to be an English major was a very good one.
I thank you for not being pragmatic and
advising premeds to major in the sciences but instead to try
to have the best and most fulfilling undergraduate
experience possible. Many of my friends have regretted
majoring in the sciences. I don't see how undergraduates can
be happy with constantly sacrificing the present for some
vague future situation. Medical school should be a priority
but not the only one. Undergraduates should keep the "big
picture" in clear view and study what they find truly
interesting. They'll probably end up with a more successful
college career gradewise to boot!
Ed Spillane, '85
Next in frequency to questions
concerning college majors I receive letters from students
who have done poorly in one or more of the premedical
science courses or had a poor overall GPA. The following
letter from a Colgate University undergraduate highlights
this common problem of many premeds:
January 25, 1979
Dear Dr. Brown:
I am a sophomore premed at Colgate
University in Hamilton, New York I know that I want medicine
as a career because service to others is most important to
me. During January 1978, I worked in a hospital at home and
last summer I worked as an orderly in an infirmary for
geriatric patients. Next week, I will observe surgery in the
local hospital in Hamilton. I thrive on the atmosphere of a
medical institution.
My freshmen year at Colgate was not good
academically. Not having read your book before I came here,
I took a terribly competitive year-long course in inorganic
chemistry and received a year average of a C. Also, I jumped
into a y ear-long course in calculus with other students who
had already had advanced math courses in high school. My
year average was a C. My semester averages for freshmen year
were 2.5 (fall) and 2.93 (spring).
Last fall, I did quite well in
introductory biology (animal) and physics, receiving an
overall cumulative term average of 3.5. Next semester, I
will take introductory biology (plant) and the remainder of
physics. Next year, I was planning to retake the year of
inorganic chemistry with organic chemistry so that I will
have good science grades before I apply to medical school.
Do you think that this is a wise decision? I don't know what
to do about the calculus grades. I don't have time to take
that many courses over again. What do you suggest?
Another problem I have is that of
deciding a major. I do fairly well in biology, but I don't
know if I like it well enough to major in it. Music is what
I do best, but would I be considered as seriously as a
science major when applying to medical school? Are there any
advanced biology courses (comparative anatomy, histology,
etc.) that are necessary preparation for the MCAT?
Where would I write for a listing of
specific undergraduate courses that medical schools require
for admission?
Thomas Palm
Dear Thomas:
If a better grade in inorganic
chemistry will expunge the C, then take it over. If not,
don't waste your time. Take other sciences courses, do well
in them and boost your overall science GPA. Medical schools
recognize that some students have trouble during their
freshman year, and they look to see if their grades improved
over time. Better to do poorly your freshman year than your
junior one.
Major in whatever turns you on, and
take your premedical courses on the side. Necessary
preparation for the MCAT is basic physics, chemistry and
biology. Medical schools vary somewhat in the undergraduate
courses they require. I would suggest you begin writing now
to those schools you would like to apply to later, and ask
them for the specifics. Procure Medical School Admission
Requirements, easily the most useful source of information
for the uninitiated.
Good luck in your quest.
Sandy Brown, M.D.
At many schools, unfortunately, old grades are not expunged
for new ones, they are averaged in with them. This is the
case at the university my next correspondent
attends:
March 5, 1983
Dear Doctor Brown:
I am a premed sophomore at the University
of Washington in Seattle. My major is psychology.
First off, I'm terrified of chemistry
classes after having been conditioned to hate it from 9th
grade physical science class. I made the mistake of entering
college and taking inorganic chemistry along with everyone
else. Needless to say, I did badly. Now, I know a lot of my
friends' standard of bad is a 3.0, but what I mean by bad is
a D. I worked myself hard that year of inorganic (constantly
carrying that chemistry book) and thinking everything was
fine until the test. I had to compete with people the class
for the second or third time. I pride myself on not failing.
At our school, if you take a class again you have to average
your old grade with your new one. I've heard medical schools
don't like you retaking classes and I feel I know that
material anyway. Enough ranting! So, here I am at the 2nd
quarter of my sophomore year with a blown GPA of 2.4 because
of those chemistry classes. Organic will be taken at a
community college!
I volunteer at a hospital weekly and know
I have always wanted to be a doctor. I was an honor student
in high school but find myself unable to compete with some
of these grade hungry pre-meds. I recently saw some guy cry
over two points to a professor.
My premed advisor is absolutely no
help.
Dr. Brown, I know I could be a competent
doctor if given the chance, but how do I keep my marbles and
raise my GPA at the same time?
Tina Lears
I truly sympathize with Ms. Lears. I
can imagine her predicament when, as an entering freshman
just out of high school, she was shuttled into inorganic
chemistry on the advice of her premedical advisor. There she
found herself competing not only with students who had taken
the course before but probably with biology, chemistry and
engineering majors as well. She did poorly and now must
consider re-entering the same milieu to re-take the course.
What a bummer! How much easier it would have been for her,
admittedly "terrified of chemistry classes, "to have taken
inorganic at a local community college, where she would have
earned an A or B, not blown her GPA and still been a
contender for medical school.
The next letter raises a similar
point:
July 7, 1982
Doctor Brown:
I have a question which I would like you
to address. How would medical school admission boards view a
student who retook premed courses in order to raise their
grades in those courses? And what if the course was taken at
a school other than the one from which the student had
graduated? I guess I am in this situation right now. I feel
I have to strengthen my GPA to have a good chance of getting
into a medical school. Right now my overall GPA and science
GPA are both below a 3.0.
Doug Lauter
Medical schools do not look
disfavorably on students who retake science courses if they
improve the grades significantly the second time around and
have a good reason for doing poorly in the first place.
Since grades may be averaged at many colleges raising a C to
a B would be insignificant and not worth your time. Raising
a D to an A, however, would be worth the effort. And, if
your original poor grade was earned while you were working
30 hours a week to put yourself through school or during a
period when you were caring for a sick parent, by all means,
try it again.
Concerning taking courses at other
schools all I can say is that an A in organic chemistry from
Podunk State does you more good than a D from Yale.
Furthermore, it will help you "keep your marbles and raise
your GPA at the same time. "
One letter I received was exciting
because the student, although doing poorly the first
semester of her freshman year, improved her performance
second semester and this feat gave her morale a badly needed
boost. Here's that student's letter:
June 14, 1980
Dear Dr. Brown:
I am a sophomore, about to enter the
College of Notre Dame in the fall. I spent my freshman year
at Waynesburg College as a biology major. I had a rough
first semester all around, and my GPA ended up being a
depressing 1.5. But, last semester, having "gotten my act
together," my GPA improved to a 3.0. This tremendous
improvement in my grades gave me the confidence to face a
goal that has always been in the back of my mind-medical
school. I feel it is within my reach, and I have the
confidence to improve even more, to measure up to medical
school standards. And now, I can even share my goal with
others for the first time! I am very excited about this new
direction my life is going to take. I have even signed up
for volunteer hospital work, which I am finding extremely
rewarding.
Ann Kelly
I honestly don't know if Ms. Kelly has
blown it with a first semester 1.5 GPA, but consider her
attitude: it's positive. She's feeling good enough about
herself to share her secret ambition with her friends (you'd
be amazed how many "closet" pre-meds there are out
there-students who feel that they're just not good enough to
make it into medical school). I'd be willing to wager that
she ultimately gains admission to a medical school because
she has already experienced success and believes in
herself.
Contrast her positive attitude with my
next writer who seems somewhat frazzled in
comparison:
August 7, 1979
Dear Dr. Brown:
Please excuse the horrible stationery. I
am sitting in a lab right now and have nothing else to use.
I have debated with myself at length over writing you for
advice and have come to the conclusion that I must, and
quickly. Where to begin...
I was browsing through a bookstore two
months ago and picked up Getting into Medical School and I
read, much to my shock, that one need not be a science major
to get into medical school. I am an ornamental horticulture
major at a small, private college on the east coast.
However, I have many problems and that is why I am
writing.
First, I should tell you that, to the
best of my knowledge, there is no premed advisor at my
college although several graduates who majored in biology
have gone on to med school.
I am currently 24 years old. I began
undergraduate college in 1973. After spending three
miserable semesters and achieving a fabulous cumulative
average of 1.858 I withdrew and entered the U.S. Marine
Corps. I did extraordinarily well, advancing from private to
sergeant in well under two years. After being honorably
discharged, I returned to my former college. Since returning
this past fall, I received a 3.67 and 3.52 for two
semesters, but that still leaves my c cum at a paltry 2.676,
and even if I get a 4.0 for my senior year semesters I will
only graduate with a 3.0. Needless to say, this will not get
me into medical school.
Mistakes are made. Big mistakes. But
can't they be at least partially corrected? What should I
do? Am I out of the game altogether?
I have always wanted to be a physician
but was continually discouraged throughout high school,
being told that my grades were too low and that premed was
terribly difficult. Still, I persisted, belonging to the
health careers club in high school and traveling on
Saturdays to Jefferson Medical College in Philadelphia to
listen to health career seminars. I spent an entire
summer
at Hahnemann Medical College in a
bio-science program. However, the guidance counselor's
lectures about my poor grades won out and I entered a
college for ornamental horticulture.
So, where am I now? I do not want to be
all osteopath dentist, physician's assistant, nurse, or
chiropractor, nor will I consider a foreign medical school.
I suppose it boils down to four questions:
1. Realistically, do I have a fighting
chance to get into medical school in the future or has my
past performance blackened me permanently?
2. If I do have a chance, what,
specifically, must I do?
3. Would any of the medical schools in
Philadelphia (my hometown) be likely to agree to counsel an
undergraduate, or are they too busy to bother?
4. When, in my case, would it be wise to
take the MCAT and apply?
I must register for school in three weeks
and am totally confused about what to do. Sometimes I get so
disgusted I could scream. Would you be kind enough to advise
me and be totally objective and honest? As I stated, I truly
want to become a physician. However, if I am swimming
upstream with little or no chance of survival I'd better
find out now so I might (disappointedly) direct my energies
elsewhere.
William Niman
August 30,1979
Dear William,
You have a chance but it is,
literally, a fighting chance. You cannot expect to get into
medical school by traditional means, i.e. grade point
average. You have to make medical schools aware about how
you are different than other applicants in ways that would
work to your advantage as a physician. For example, with a
major in horticulture I suspect that you might be interested
in medical toxicology or pharmacology. If you are, mention
it. Your background is out of the ordinary and should be
stressed.
You should visit all the Philadelphia
medical schools and insist on counsel (since your school has
no premed advisor and you are a resident of PA). If you're
lucky you
might find someone who's sympathetic
and will be your advocate on the admissions
committee
Several of your questions (MCAT more
undergraduate courses) are are adequately covered in my
book.
In short, you should not hesitate to
be aggressive and creative in your quest for medical school
admittance. High MCAT scores are essential in your case to
offset a mediocre college performance. Do not leave yourself
without alternatives in the event you are
unsuccessful.
Sandy Brown,
M.D.
On rare occasions I have the
unpleasant task of advising a premed to cease and desist
from their premedical endeavors. These are students who have
usually done poorly in more than one premedical science,
like my next correspondent:
May 17, 1985
Dear Dr. Brown,
I am a sophomore biology major at the
University of California-Irvine. Before I started college I
really did not know where my interests and strengths lay. I
majored in biology because I believed it would give me an
advantage over others who were applying to medical school.
Well, I was wrong. My grades in biology were poor. From
there I became despondent and unwilling to try. This
resulted in my failing first-quarter inorganic and
third-quarter organic chemistry.
I have found my highest grades to be in
economics. If what you say about majors and grades is true
wouldn't I be better off changing my major to economics? My
only problem is that the classes I've failed are on my
record. I'm willing to take them over again at another
college and work towards getting As. Do you believe I still
have a good chance of acceptance into medical school if I
take this action?
Desperately seeking
guidance,
Mary Assante
Dear Mary,
I usually try to be encouraging to my
premedical readers but I don't feel I can be optimistic in
your case. A bad grade in one premedical course may be
remedied by retaking it and getting an A (still, it must be
explained).
However, failing grades in two
chemistry classes and poor grades in biology are, I think,
irremediable, especially in California where competition for
medical school places is so fierce.
You must remember that grades in the
required premedical science courses are the ones most
closely scrutinized by admissions committees. If you had
failed in economics the effects would have been only on your
overall G.P.A. and not nearly as disastrous.
Don't set yourself up for future
disappointment; start planning for an alternative career
now.
Regretfully,
Sandy Brown,
M.D.
A more winning strategy to medical
school is highlighted by this undergraduate's
letter:
July 7, 1984
Dear Dr. Brown,
I am currently entering my sophomore year
at a fine liberal arts college with a double major in
Spanish and psychology. My reason for attending a liberal
arts school is to enable me to pursue my interest in foreign
languages (I am proficient in six of them). I do not have
time to take the necessary premedical science courses
without sacrificing those areas of the humanities which, I
feel, add dimension to life as a doctor. Therefore, I
attended two summer sessions at another college and plan to
attend the evening session at a nearby community college
during the school year. Are science courses taken this way
acceptable to medical schools?
Jill Brooks
Summer and evening sessions offer
golden opportunities for premeds to take those biology,
chemistry and physics courses required by medical schools.
Usually these sessions are attended by people seeking
self-enrichment or filling requirements for other allied
health professions. They are not predominantly premed and
science majors, as is the case in day-session. I expect Ms.
Brooks to someday receive an acceptance letter to medical
school and support my contention that grades are, in
themselves, more important than where they are
earned.
There isn't much more that I can say
on the subject of grades except to stress that they are
extremely important and that premeds must maximize them by
choosing a major in which they can do well, and by taking
ridiculously hard premed science courses at less competitive
schools. The only thing that may offset poor grades is a set
of outstanding MCAT scores, my next topic for
discussion.