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Is it fine to pursue a degree outside of medicine if you want to have a career in medicine?

My name is Anthony, and I am a senior in high school. I initially thought I wanted to study biomedical engineering because most of the courses fulfill medical school requirement, but now, I have found other majors that peak my interests, such as Biological Sciences, Anthropology and Africana and African-American Studies. I hear reports that say that your major is not that important and others that say it makes you more appealing due to not only focusing on medicine. #college #doctor #pre-med #surgeon

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Richard’s Answer

Pick a college major that interests you. You will need to get good grades in college in order to apply for medical school. At the medical school I attended, the average GPA is reported to be 3.85, so even one or two B's can hurt your chances of acceptance.

Aside from this, any major is acceptable as long as you complete the prerequisite courses.

Typical medical school prerequisites include:
Biology: Lecture – 4 semesters; Lab – 1 semester
General Chemistry: Lecture – 2 semesters; Lab – 1 semester
Organic Chemistry: Lecture – 2 semesters; Lab – 1 semester
Biochemistry: Lecture – 1 semester
General Physics: Lecture – 2 semesters; Lab – 1 semester
Math: Statistics – 1 semester
English: Rhetoric (Composition) and Literature – 2 semesters
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Justina’s Answer

You need a passing score on the MCAT to get into medical school. The point of pre-med degrees is to prepare you for this test. Will the other degrees prepare you to take the MCAT - if you are serious about medical school, then this is the only question you need to ask. I was pre-med and my majors were Biochemistry and Microbiology. It was my experience that biological sciences are also part of a pre-med program.
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Estelle’s Answer

Yes! Explore your interests in college. When you go into a medical field, you will need to focus then. In the mean time, this is a great time to take a wide variety of classes.
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Rachel’s Answer

Absolutely. Major in whatever field interests you and will allow you to maintain an excellent GPA. I majored in Spanish literature and had no trouble with my med school applications. You do need to complete the pre-med requirements that vary from school to school. As stated above, these include at least a year of biology, 1 year inorganic chemistry, 1 year organic chemistry + labs, physics, calculus, and biochemistry. Your junior year, you will need to take an MCAT study course prior to taking the MCAT. With a solid GPA and MCAT score, you should be a competitive applicant.
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