Medical Education US

hi, im a sophomore in high school dreaming to go into medical field and i just have bunch of questions

what are classes that are required to take in high school in order to major in medical related field or even pre-med? do i need to take a year of physics or just chem and bio?

I heard there are medical programs in certain colleges? whats the advantages of going into medical program and what university has one?

I'd suggest you first check out this thread:

High school classes to become a psychiatrist

Psychiatry is a specialty after medical school, so the information on getting into medical school applies no matter what your chosen medical specialty may be.

As far as required classes in high school, it really doesn't matter a whole lot as you'll need to take college level biology, chemistry, organic chemistry, and physics. I think most high school students do take biology, chemistry and physics - and some even take AP level science classes.

When you say that you heard there are medical programs at certain colleges, do you mean that it is a university that has a college and a medical school? Or do you mean programs where you complete both your undergraduate and your medical school training at the same place in one program?

There is no specific advantages to going to a college that also has a medical school, but you may have a slightly increased chance of getting accepted into that medical school if you happen to impress your teachers and do research with someone who has clout in the medical school. Most likely that won't be the deciding factor for someone though it can't hurt (unless you make a very bad impression with someone with clout).

If you mean colleges that have pre-med programs, then there isn't really any advantage that I know of compared to going to a good undergraduate college that offers the required pre-med science classes.

Read the above thread and then feel free to ask any more questions you may have.

hey,

so it wouldn't matter if i don't take physics in highschool
is grade the most important thing in your highschool year than?

i think i meant the pre-med programs
I just heard few colleges like Northwestern has a program where people just take three years of undergrad and go to med school

While I don't think you'd HAVE to take physics in high school, I think most general high school programs will have you take one year of biology, one year of chemistry, and one year of physics. At least that was typical at my high school for kids planning on going to college (which is most). Kids who were in the honors track typically took an AP science class their senior year.

I think it probably would be a good idea to take those courses in high school so that you will be better prepared for the college / pre-med level science classes.

Are you asking because you are thinking of skipping physics? If you are thinking of skipping physics, what is your reason? If you think that it may lower your GPA, then be aware that the college level physics class will be even harder. Your college science GPA is much more important than your high school GPA.

While the specific classes you take in high school don't matter a huge amount in the long run, I would think you wouldn't want to stray much from the typical high school curriculum or you may not be properly prepared for college level classes.

When someone says "pre-med program" I typically think of a college that has a large number of students who go on to apply to medical school. As a result, there are standard pre-med level science classes that a large group of students take together. People can take these science classes without applying to medical school, but most people in those classes plan on applying to medical school. These science classes are typically challenging and often weed people out who are considering medical school. I know that some schools have reputations for being better than others for people who think they may ultimately go to medical school. I went to Emory knowing that medical school was something I was considering, but I was far from sure. Their program is set-up where you have general chemistry 1 your first semester freshman year. Second semester you have general chemistry 2 and biology 1. Sophomore year you start with biology 2 and organic chemistry 1. Because I had done well enough on my AP physics in high school, I didn't take physics in college so I'm not sure when other people took physics.

I'm guessing the classes were staggered as they were so that students are overwhelmed right when they start college as a freshman. This type of set-up I would consider a "pre-med program".

There are also 7 year programs that combined an undergraduate degree and a medical degree. These BA/MD programs are completely different. You are accepted into medical school right out of high school. There are pros and cons to this sort of program and there is debate as to whether it is a good path to follow or not. Some of the newer programs since I applied (20 years ago now) seem to have a lot more flexibility and are offered at very good undergraduate programs, so there are far fewer cons. There is a discussion of BA/MD programs in this thread.

Which universities have BA/MD program??

dbdnjstkd93 wrote:Which universities have BA/MD program??

Not sure how accurate this list of BA/MD programs is, but it'll at least give a head start. You'll want to check each universities website to see if the program is still offered. There may also be some new programs since this list was put together. If you have some additions or corrections you come across, please let us know.

Albany Medical College (AMC) and Union College (UC) (8 year program)
Baylor College of Medicine (BCM) and Rice University (RU) (8 year program)
Boston University School of Medicine (BUSM) (7 year program)
Brown Medical School (BMS) (8 year program)
Case Western Reserve University (CWRU) and Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine (CWRUSM) (8 year program)
Drexel University College of Medicine (DUCM) (7 year program)
Finch University Health Sciences/The Chicago Medical School (FUHS) and Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) (8 year program)
George Washington School of Medicine (GWSM) and George Washington University (GWU) (7-8 year program)
Howard University College of Medicine (HU) and Howard University (HU) (6 year program)
Indiana University School of Medicine (IU) and Indiana State University (ISU) Rural Health Program.
Jefferson Medical College of Thomas Jefferson University (JMC) and Penn State University (PSU) (6 or 7 year program)
Keck School of Medicine of the University of Southern California (KSM) (8 year program)
Meharry Medical College School of Medicine (MMC) with Tennessee State University (TSU) (7 years)
Meharry Medical College School of Medicine (MMC) with Fisk University (FU) (7 year program)
Michigan State University (MSU) and MSU College of Human Medicine (MSU) (8 year program)
Northeastern Ohio Universities College of Medicine (NOU) (6 year program)
Northwestern University- Feinberg School of Medicine (NUFS) (7 year program)
Rush Medical College (RMC) and Illinois Institute of Technology (IIT) (6 year program)
State University of New York Upstate Medical University (SUNY) and Wilkes University (WU)
Stony Brook University Health Sciences Center School of Medicine (SBU) (8 year program)
Temple University School of Medicine (TUSM) (8 year program)
Tufts University School of Medicine (TUSM)
University of California- Los Angeles School of Medicine (UCLA) and University of California, Riverside (UCR) (7 year program)
University of California, San Diego, School of Medicine (UCSD) and University of California, San Diego.
University of Cincinnati College of Medicine (UC) and University of Cincinnati (UC) (9 year program)
University of Connecticut School of Medicine (UCSM)
University of Florida College of Medicine (UFCOM) (7 year program - does not accept high school students)
University of Illinois at Chicago College of Medicine (UIC) (8 year program)
University of Miami School of Medicine (UM) (HPME program; 6 year program)
University of Miami School of Medicine (UM) (6-7 year program)
University of Missouri, Kansas City School of Medicine (UMKC) and University of Missouri, Kansas City (UMKC) (6 year program)
UMDNJ- New Jersey Medical School (UMDNJ) and Boston University (BU) (7 year program)
UMDNJ- New Jersey Medical School (UMDNJ) in conjunction with Drew University (DU) (7 year program)
UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (UMDNJ) in conjunction with Rutgers- New Brunswick (Rutgers) (8 year program)
UMDNJ-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School (UMDNJ) and Rutgers- Newark (Rutgers) (7 year program)
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry (URSM) (8 year program- Rochester Early Admission Scholar Program)
University of South Florida College of Medicine (USF) (7 year program)
University of Southern California Keck School of Medicine (USC) and University of Southern California (USC) (8 year program)
Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine (VDUSM) (8 year program)

thank you