One of the toughest decisions in life is choosing a major. Not only does it determine what you'll be studying for four years in college but it also determines your future path. Thus, one question any pre-med student should ask themselves is "will my major help me into getting into a medical school". This question is often conflicted but I believe that AAMC provides clear data to make claims. You should also consider that masters programs are not considered into this equation. I wanted to look at what the statistics pointed to for this question.
Above is the specific breakdown of total applicants, people who are accepted, and acceptance rates for last year. As you can see, you actually have the best chance to get in with a degree in physical sciences! However, it is important to see the total number of applicants as that can dramatically change the acceptance rate. Majors that are not the typical "pre-med" pathway are often not taken due to additional classes that must be taken to meet requirements so if a medical school sees someone applying with one of these unique majors (especially those that value diversity), they might be more interested. But do remember that these pathways are much harder and take a lot more time so you have to weight the benefits and drawbacks of such an approach. Across the board, it appears that biological sciences majors and specialized health sciences appear to have a slightly lower acceptance rates than most other majors, why is that? It did not make sense to me until I looked at other data.
The major difference can be seen in the total MCAT score for each major. Interestingly, specialized health sciences and biological sciences score on average less than other majors. Math and statistics, physical sciences, and humanities clearly all score above the typical pre-med pathways. Although there is no clear conclusion, these other majors favor skills such as critical reading and critical analysis rather than pure memorization which helps them on the mcat. Furthermore, it can be assumed that only the best of the best students in these non-typical pre-med pathways pursue such a path so that might also play a factor. But remember, this should not discourage you from a specific major because at the end, only the amount of hard work you put in determines your MCAT score (majors finely tune specific skills).
Another major factor that medical schools look at is GPA. Across the board, almost every single major has very similar GPA's (science, non-science, and total). Thus, none of these majors provide a significant edge. Many might believe that the classes needed for a humanities major might be easier than the classes needed for a biological science. This might be true but that is why medical schools also look at science GPA for their requirements so that everyone is on an equal playing field. It can also be assumed that only students who are extremely interested in medicine will pursue a different major while following the pre-med track. With all of these facts, it is fair to assume that the difference of acceptance rates does not come from differences in GPAs.
One factor that is hard to get statistics on is extracurriculars. One can assume that each had the same amount of shadowing hours, clinical hours, clubs, and etc. Obviously different majors will go through different experiences which might intrigue medical schools but you have to weigh the drawbacks and benefits of each. To be considered a strong applicant, it is important to do something unique that makes you stand out (I will talk about this in a later post). Your major will not define this unique factor in terms of extracurriculars but it might provide opportunities. A biology major will get emails from their advisors about special opportunities that other majors might not. This is one important factor to consider.
At the end, major does not matter. You can choose any major and get into the medical school of your dreams if you have a good GPA and MCAT score. Note I am not discouraging anyone from choosing a major, you should do something that you enjoy and have fun with.
Comments