CamaroLover

I don't think if this is the right forum or not but could I do this?

Undergraduate major in Business/Economics minor in Finance while taking pre-requisites for medical school.

I take MCAT's and if I get into medical school, I go for being a doctor.

If it doesn't work, I do 5-8 years of work and go back to get my MBA. Is this possible?

Also, what type of test is the MCAT's? Is it like SAT's where the material like Bio and stuff isn't what to study but the MCAT format itself. So only MCAT prep books would help?

bluedevilmike

Yes it's possible, although vocational majors ("business" instead of economics) are generally frowned upon for graduate and professional school. The MCAT requires both basic knowledge and format practice.

CamaroLover

But I read that major doesn't matter for medical school. Wouldn't it be easier for a biochem major for the MCAT's than a finance major?

bluedevilmike

Within academic majors, major doesn't matter. (English is academic; Communication is vocational. Economics is academic; business is vocational. Biology is academic; Exercise Science is vocational.) We can't make any promises except that health science majors do much worse and academic majors all do fine.

Again, within academic majors, everybody does fine on the MCAT and about equally, although there's some minor variation. (English majors beat biology majors by about two points, for example.) No promises with vocationals.

CamaroLover

Ok I understand now I guess, lol...

I'm just so confused about what I want to do. Inside I really want iBanking but I'm getting pressured from everyone I know to go premed instead. And I'm only 16, I hate this, lol.

bluedevilmike

So just stay quiet for a few more years. If you go to a strong college, major in whatever you like. Promise your parents (and it'll be true) that you can major in anything and still get hired for investment banks and admitted to medical schools. And then when the time comes, it'll be six years later and you'll be 22 years old, far away from home, and you'll make your own decisions.

norcalguy

You can major in anything and still go into ibanking or med school. I think ibanks would even prefer (all other things being equal) an econ major to a business major since econ is generally tougher and more academic.

bluedevilmike

For investment banking, the school matters much more than the major. My friends in ibanking now were largely economics, but also sociology, history, psychology, political science, computer science, math. Most of the big investment banking recruitment schools don't even offer business majors. Even Wharton is afraid to label their major "business."

CamaroLover

Yeah, that's the thing. I won't be going to a prestige school because of money and I know undergrad is more important for iBanking than the medical path. So I guess it's easier and more stable to get a job if I want to go the medicine route.

But yeah, bluedevilmike, I still have a lot of years ahead to think about it. Thanks for the help

bluedevilmike

Well, don't forget financial aid during the process.

And -- if you want to save money, just do undergrad-only and then get a job (iBanking). Undergrad and then medical school is always going to be more expensive.

pacman1

Bluedevilmike,

why does the English majors beat the Biology majors?

bluedevilmike

Probably because the MCAT is entirely -- front to back -- a reading comprehension exam.

But even if we don't really know why, the data says what it says.

CamaroLover

What exactly is MCAT? What material does it cover? And I know it's not conceptual stuff because bluedevilmike just said it's reading comprehension

Also, I think that English majors beat Bio majors because more applicants are Bio majors so there's LOTS of people taking the tests with a Bio major?

bluedevilmike

A standardized exam. It DOES cover lots of material and then makes you read passages ABOUT that material and answer questions about the reading comprehension. So it requires you to know organic chemistry, biology, general chemistry, and physics.

Your hypothesis doesn't make any sense -- just because there's fewer English majors doesn't imply that they're going to get higher scores. You have to add another logical premise to that before you have a good explanation.

CamaroLover

Yeah, it doesn't make sense. I read something about other majors like English and Music having higher acceptance rates and scores than Bio/Chem but I don't really remember the reason. I kinda butchered it. But it made a lot of sense