premed concentration

Colleges and Universities University of Chicago
#1

<p>i'm an incoming freshman looking into going to med school; i know there isn't a premed concentration, but how hard would the curriculum be at chicago? what kind of major (if any) would be most appropriate?</p>

<p>i have a 5 in ap chemistry and a 5 in ap calc bc, hopefully a 5 on ap bio and likely a 5 on ap physics c coming in. should i place out of the intro courses, or retake them to pad my gpa? if i place out, wouldn't this lessen dramatically the med school requirements?</p>

<p>do med schools care about chicago's supposedly renowned grade deflation? </p>

<p>word is that the best way to get into a top med school is go to a state university and get a 4.0. </p>

<p>somehow, chicago sounds infinitely more appealing. </p>

<p>thanks for any help.</p>

#2

<p>Well, GPA is important - and you should do your best. However, the recommendations from your professors - and any research you have done at the undergrad level will also count very, very heavily in admissions. People go a little stat's happy on cc - but its not all numbers. If you can work with profs on interesting and meaningful projects, you will likely be happier, and your prospects better as well.</p>

#3

<p>You will need to plan your schedule with the help of the pre-med advisor. Some med schools will not accept AP credits for prereq sciences, for example. </p>

<p>With your AP scores, you will qualify for a special 2 quarter bio sequence (informally called AP5, of course.) My D is in it now, as it runs winter and spring. Winter was an intense mol bio review. Spring is a choice of a few different course. check the cat for details.</p>

<p>Regarding math, your AP score may or may not matter, depending on how you do on the placement exam etc. Again, read the material in the cat carefully.</p>

<p>Chicago claims med schools do take the grading policy into consideration. True? Don't know.</p>

<p>Finally, don't forget the option to appy as a soph to Chicago's med school.</p>

#4

<p>sabre:</p>

<p>med schools will definitely consider grade deflation at any top U vs a state college. Also, med schools typically prefer a university degree vs. a state college degree. However, a 3.0 of UofC (or anywhere else, for that matter) will not compare very favorably to a 3.9 in an honors program at a state college.</p>

<p>A much more difficult question to answer is how does UofC (and other grade-deflators such as Hopkins) compare relative the (in)famous grade inflation schools, i.e, H and Stanford, where a 3+ is 'average' and everyone graduates with honors. Med schools do give some gpa leeway, but not a whole lot. Just as in undergrad admissions, an adcom has to REALLY want to admit a candidate who will bring down their average gpa...but that's where MCAT and references count.</p>

#5

<p>does anyone know chicago's actual medical school placement rate?</p>

#6

<p>the "rate" doesn't matter as a comparison to other schools bcos many kids never make it to the app stage. Moreover, some colleges adjust their rates based on what they perceive are bona fide med school candidates. For marginal candidates, they might recommend a gap year doing research in a hospital (take time to do a better essay, study for MCAT, blah blah blah)....but, since they have graduated, the app does not show up in their stats.</p>

#7

<p>ps -- check out the Shady Practices thread on the Hopkins cc site</p>

#8

<p>while i understand your logic, bluebayou, i personally think a rate would be helpful in my own decision. i'm not looking for the percentage of pre-meds who make it to the application stage or whatnot. i just want a simple percentage of kids who end up obtaining a MD, whether it be right away, after taking a gap year, or after working for a few years. </p>

<p>the other college i am considering has a 98% placement rate within 5 years of graduation. believe it or not, but most colleges do keep statistics on that sort of thing. and while it is not the deciding factor for me, my parents are very much interested in U of C's placement rate. </p>

<p>i hope i'm not coming off as rude; i certainly don't mean to be. but i would definitely appreciate a simple answer. thanks!</p>

<p>edit: also, the other college (amherst's) premed advisor even told me they don't engage in hopkins-esque tactics. he said unless the applicant has bad personal qualities/ethical issues, the school fully supports him/her as a med school candidate, regardless of grades, etc. they're not trying to unfair boost their percentage rates; all the data is clearly laid out on the premed site.</p>

#9

<p>twinkle:</p>

<p>you raise an excellent question (and not rude at all). Unfortunately, I can't answer your query about UoC, suggest you e-mail one of the students on their info website.</p>

<p>Since I've taken numerous stats courses in my life, and have spent many years putting a 'spin' on numbers, I'm just cautioning you on comparisons. I just can't beleive that any college has a 90% acceptance rate to med school (other than its own under a special program), UNLESS they steer borderline kids away from applying. When you think about it, it just doesn't make sense....otherwise, that school would be receiving more apps than Harvard. </p>

<p>I suggest you inquire from the 98% college: Of those Frosh who marked premed on the application, how many were accepted into to med school 4-6 years later?</p>