tom1030

So...
Anyone know if Miami's biology program is any good/decent?
At the moment I'm choosing between UMiami and GaTech for BIOLOGY.

Since I have really no idea how Biology is in both schools, I was hoping for your input on this.

Thanks in advance :]

BruinsJEW

Miami's biology program is actually pretty decent and most biology students are premed and the medical school at Miami is one of the best and most competitive in the nation.

Actually the funny thing is that only 1/10th of the premed/bio students actually graduate premed because of low GPAs due to distractions such as too much partying.

Other recommended schools for biology are the following: Vanderbilt, Washington University at St. Louis, Duke, UNC Chapel Hill, John Hopkins and Emory University.

tom1030

Thanks, and I'm actually thinking of taking pre-requisites for dental school while studying biology rather than pre-med, though I guess they're similar.

So do you think I should scratch GaTech off my list?
Problem is my parents want me to go to GaTech because of the name it carries, not the major I'm interested in (which is very ridiculous).

BruinsJEW

I'm not too sure if your parents know, but the medical school at UMiami is one of the more well recognized ones. Of course it's no Duke or John Hopkins. However, Miami is compared and preferred over many other top universities such as NYU, Tulane, Boston College, GW, American, Northeastern, University of Maryland, University of Virginia and many others. A diploma from Miami will definitely land you a great job in the medical field.

Also, your parents do not realize that Miami's reputation is building and building. By the time you graduate, Miami will be very similar to Emory, WashU, Rice and many other top schools. The average GPA is a 4.2W and 1350 SAT (2007 stats). This year, most of my friends who had 1350+ and 3.75UW were accepted.

In conclusion, if an applicant applies for a job and one carries a diploma from the University of Miami and the other has one from Florida State University. It is fair to say that the Miami applicant has about a 50% higher chance getting higher over the seminole.

nickburley63

i want to major in bio too....

hahaha good example about FSU

4KidsMom

My daughter is trying to make the same decision. She wants to pursue biology and is leaning toward Georgia Tech. I think she should go to Miami.
Georgia Tech impresses me as more of an Engineering School.

BruinsJEW

4kidsmom,

by curiousity, where are you from? are you from georgia?

bigreddawgie

miami med school is def on the rise. especially after hiring all those people from duke. dont be fooled by their rank 50 something on us news

tom1030

Hmm yea, A LOT of people have been telling me that when I asked them about this...I guess it's true, only time will tell (something which I dont have now)

Well apparently UMiami is also known for a big partying school and can greatly distract people from their studies, is this true or overly exaggerated?

I'm only worried about these things because I'm taking a stand against my parents on this, and if I back out of Biology once I get into UMiami, I might disappoint them greatly...

BruinsJEW

It's only a distraction if you let it distract you. I mean, I was never a huge partier/clubber in high school and I grew up not too far away from South Beach.

If your'e more of a person who is a leader and not a follower, then falling into the trap of jeopardizing your grades should not be a problem. Everyone just needs to find their balance between working hard and having a good time.

There is no disagreement, everyone who attends Miami has potential and displays an intense level of intelligence and hardwork. However, some of the more, "how do I put this", more financially well endowed students tend to get into the habit of skipping class and partying at the Grove and South Beach every night. However, it's nothing that I wouldn't expect. Some of these student's parents just cover up for their children. If they crash their brand new Mercedes Benz CLK. "Oh, don't worry about it, we'll get you another one." These parents have never really been tough on their kids and then they just continue their cycles and one day when it's too late, they realize that certain people and places won't put up with them and give them another chance and then they fail out. Not saying this happens to all, but it is common among many students.

tom1030

Well that's exactly what I thought. I mean, aren't there rich party animals in every single college? I'm pretty sure that's never gonna happen to me though, since I personally don't party much (I say this as a person living in Brazil, a freakin partying NATION if you ask me). To be honest, I do have confidence in myself in not letting me get overly distracted by these things, but hey, college life is completely different (at least I expect it to be), maybe I'll end up changing into someone else.

There's just so many things going on my head right now because of college that I'm starting to doubt my major...Not to mention my parents who simply won't stop pressuring me about this, it's ridiculous. I just hate the fact that UMiami is 52 in the USNews ranking, it has my family completely brainwashed and biased.

phoampiper

USNews is a business man don't forget that

don't be afraid to come in undeclared also, the majority of my friends have already (second semester freshman) changed their major, including myself...you'll learn what you want to do once you're here

4KidsMom

this is actually 4kidsmom's daughter on her account...
she got it wrong, i want to major in neuroscience
miami has the program, georgia tech doesn't (i was thinking maybe biomedical engineering at Georgia Tech)
Miami is definately a perfect fit for me, but I am concerned about the party-school reputation... I've been leaning towards Georgia Tech because I have been thinking that it will be taken more seriously when trying to get into grad schools
so ya i'm in the same boat

4KidsMom

ahh and sorry bruinsjew.. i'm out-of-state.. actually, i'm from mass (so go bruins!)

BruinsJEW

4 kids mom,

nice! I got into UMass Amherst and my sister is a proud alumni, but I turned it down and went to Maryland and now I'm at Miami, LOL.