Best pre-med university in MS?
- Thread starter AlSwearengen
- Start date
This wasn't what you asked but this is a little surprising for me. I knew Baylor was good but I didn't know it was in the top 10. Of course it is just one opinion listing here.
https://www.google.com/search?clien...AAAAAAAAAA==&htivrt=splinter&fpstate=tldetail
This made more sense.
https://www.google.com/search?sxsrf...HengBGkQBSgAegUIARDXAQ&biw=1148&bih=592&dpr=2
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I’m not sure on the answer to your questions, but it would be hard for me to pass on a Biomedical Engineering bachelors degree and push forward to med school. If for some reason med school didn’t work out, there is still a great career to be had. Generally students from a Math/Statistics background score the highest followed by physical science then a little behind is biological science. Biomedical Engineering puts a heavy focus on all three of those areas.
MCAT scores are probably going to be more related to the students retention and effort in rather than which school they took undergrad A&P. It’s not straight memorization per se but it is all about recognition and association.
I can tell you that the son of the Dean of Admissions at UMCC (at the time) was a student at State 50 years ago. We weren't worth a **** at football at the time but we were damn strong in science, biology and math.
The school really does not matter that much.
A great student from OM, MSU, USM or other schools can be very successful. When I taught at MSU, microbiology majors from the Dept of Biological Sciences at MSU were the most commonly accepted students at UMC for like 4 or 5 years in a row. However, I can say from my time on a med school admissions review that all things being equal (GPA, MCAT) that students with engineering undergraduate degrees seemed to do better than comparable degrees. The best student I ever encountered in medical school got an undergrad in psychology with a minor in literature or philosophy.
All that to say, a degree from any major university in Mississippi will prepare almost evenly for med school, assuming you do well in the core courses.
And overall MCAT scores can be misleading. Anyone, even crappy students, can take it. So that can skew the school scores. Plus, you typically see people raise their score a few points if they take a good MCAT prep class.
I taught at a given university that claims 97% acceptance into med school. It’s misleading though, the pre-med advisor was there 40 years. If you didn’t have his recommendation, med schools in the state questioned your application. He would give you a letter unless you took his elective class and he thought your grade/MCAT were good. So he essentially kept marginal students from applying, which kept their “success” numbers up.
A great student from OM, MSU, USM or other schools can be very successful. When I taught at MSU, microbiology majors from the Dept of Biological Sciences at MSU were the most commonly accepted students at UMC for like 4 or 5 years in a row. However, I can say from my time on a med school admissions review that all things being equal (GPA, MCAT) that students with engineering undergraduate degrees seemed to do better than comparable degrees. The best student I ever encountered in medical school got an undergrad in psychology with a minor in literature or philosophy.
All that to say, a degree from any major university in Mississippi will prepare almost evenly for med school, assuming you do well in the core courses.
And overall MCAT scores can be misleading. Anyone, even crappy students, can take it. So that can skew the school scores. Plus, you typically see people raise their score a few points if they take a good MCAT prep class.
I taught at a given university that claims 97% acceptance into med school. It’s misleading though, the pre-med advisor was there 40 years. If you didn’t have his recommendation, med schools in the state questioned your application. He would give you a letter unless you took his elective class and he thought your grade/MCAT were good. So he essentially kept marginal students from applying, which kept their “success” numbers up.
Historically, MC has had the only true pre med curriculum. And I think millsaps is pretty close. No particular advantage to state vs ole miss. U can have an art degree from tougaloo, but as long as u take care of your math/biology/chemistry/physics, u can do fine. Your actual major really doesn’t matter. The mcat has changed some from my day, so I don’t know as much on that now.
And some engineering grads tended to struggle some the first two years of med school because that part is so much more memorization based than analytical. But they still thrived after that.
And some engineering grads tended to struggle some the first two years of med school because that part is so much more memorization based than analytical. But they still thrived after that.
It doesn’t matter which school. Make good grades in your major, have a high GPA, do your community service , show some form of leadership, have good letters of recommendation, shadow as many Docs as possible, apply early, score well on the MCAT, and most importantly, be sure to meet the right people. It also really helps if you are a minority or a woman.
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State currently sends more student to UMMC than any other.
According to a commencement speaker two or three years ago.
According to a commencement speaker two or three years ago.
well as an original Roadrunner, the pitch I made for pre med majors was MSU... major in Bio Engineering it does two things....prepares you better for the MCAT (40 years ago at least) and it is a better fall back should you not get accepted into Med School.
Biological Sciences
Take difficult subjects like Organic Chemistry and Physics during the summer, possibly at other schools. Mississippi College has a great Organic Chemisty class that can be taken during the summer. Can take OC I and II in one summer and get it over with. Don’t overload with hard classes in one semester, Physics at State is a B****, especially if math isn’t a strong point.
Take difficult subjects like Organic Chemistry and Physics during the summer, possibly at other schools. Mississippi College has a great Organic Chemisty class that can be taken during the summer. Can take OC I and II in one summer and get it over with. Don’t overload with hard classes in one semester, Physics at State is a B****, especially if math isn’t a strong point.
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My class had several more from Ole Miss than State, but it varies year to year. If a HS senior asked which in-state school to go to, I'd tell them to go wherever they wanted, major in whatever they wanted, and make sure they did well on all the math/science prerecs and study for the MCAT. It's college. It should be fun.
Just make sure your kid is aware that there's a new MCAT. Biggest change is a new section on psychological, biological, social foundations of behavior. Because of that change, it is just about impossible anymore to get everything you need in a 4 year degree, at least if you don't bring in some AP or other college credit along with you as a freshman. I've noticed my most successful students, as measured by successful applications, in the last 3-4 years have been neuroscience majors with a premed emphasis. They're getting several upper-division courses in perception cognition and neuroscience, along with a chem sequence, organic sequence, biochem, physics, microbio, and calc. That's a hell of a load, but it hits most of the high points on the new test. And my sense is it has become even more competitive at southern med schools. Lot of the competition are post-bac students who have spent the last year or so continuing to take classes and work in the field, so the competition is fierce. 20 years ago, I could tell incoming students that every one of our undergrads who made it through our pre-med program had been accepted into medical school within two years. That isn't the case anymore, anywhere.
I know several folks who have gone through MC’s Masters of Medical Sciences program in the past few years.
I took the MCAT without taking most of the classes - long story - but honestly study guides should be sufficient for most of it. Organic chemistry questions were tough without the class, but the rest were well covered in the Kaplan book I used. I can’t speak for the new section, but I would expect it to translate well to a review book
In addition to providing a better fallback option than something like microbiology, an engineering degree will tell you pretty early if you are cut out for medical school. If you can get through your first two years of calculus, physics, and chemistry without posting grades that are going to make you non-competitive, you are going to be plenty capable of medical school. The only question then is are you going to continue to buckle down and do the work.
The flip side is that if you are weak at math, that might weed you out early when you would ultimately be ok, even if some of the courses would just be a ***** for you.
At one time, MSU Bio Engineering grads had a higher acceptance rate into UMMC than Ole Miss pre-med.
I just went through this entire process. Best bet is a Bio-Engineering degree from MSU or pre-med at Mississippi College. MC is the only school in the state w/ a cadaver lab outside of UMC. I'm told their students are by far the best suited for UMMC med school and they transition very well especially in Gross Anatomy which is the toughest part of M1. And Bio-med engineering students from MSU are a near 100% acceptance rate at UMMC.
If you go the Biology route at MSU, you better have a great GPA, a good MCAT and a helluva resume (things outside of school work) and be prepared to be wait listed or flat rejected the first time around.
If you go the Biology route at MSU, you better have a great GPA, a good MCAT and a helluva resume (things outside of school work) and be prepared to be wait listed or flat rejected the first time around.
My daughter graduated in Bi0-Medical Engineering from MSU and is now getting her Master's in biological sciences at UMMC. All this in hopes of getting into Med School. She's been studying for the MCAT this summer and is planning to take the test in the next few weeks.
I have also heard that MC really well prepares their Pre-Med students for Med School -- per my son's girlfriend who is a M3 at UMMC. Mainly because their curriculum very closely aligns with M1 requirements - per someone comment above.
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I have also heard that MC really well prepares their Pre-Med students for Med School -- per my son's girlfriend who is a M3 at UMMC. Mainly because their curriculum very closely aligns with M1 requirements - per someone comment above.
BB
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