Best “premed” program to achieve med school goal

[brianman]

I am looking to choose a program between these offers. My end goal is med school, but i want a university where it’ll be easy to achieve that goal and gpa without becoming depressed and drained from studying 24/7. I would also like a good atmosphere and one that is welcoming to diverse students as i am a POC. Which program is best suited for me? 

[IloveMemes]

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[m_jacob_45]

Western grad here. Western health sci is more geared towards people interested in allied health care (I.e. it’s a lot about healthcare policy/systems) and has a lot less basic science than western medical sciences. That said, it may still be a good option for med school as long as you take appropriate prerequisites since it’s probably easier to get a higher GPA than medical science or biology.

[readytostresseat]

Western Health Studies Grad Here. If you want a very high GPA, this might not be the program for you. Generally everyone does relatively well (70s to low 80s) especially in upper years but in general it's harder to hit higher GPA cutoffs (3.9-4) than science programs. This is because a lot of the courses are more subjective, and the exams are worth 40 or even 50% a lot of the time with quite a few very obscure questions that are open to interpretation. While getting a high GPA is more difficult, I LOVE what we learn in this program. The courses have drastically changed my understanding of health in relation to social determinants and given me some unforgettable experiences. I think what I learned from the program really shone through during interviews and helped me show my understanding of healthcare from a broader societal sense instead of from a more scientific biomedical approach that people from science programs might have.

 

[Swon]

Queens Health Science would be my choice. It's a very new program (will be its second year on campus), but I think it has the potential to rival programs such as McMaster Health Science in the future.

Here's why I make that seemingly asinine claim:

- The program was designed by Queen's Faculty of Health Sciences to create graduates that fit with the CANMED roles (collaborator, leader, etc). This is achieved with its flipped classroom approach, whether the material is learned through online modules then discussed in class in small groups. Many of the staff in the program are practicing physicians or faculty from Queen's medical school.

- The program involves a small cohort (was supposed to be 170ish, might be a little bit more) of like minded individuals. Almost everyone in the program is planning on pursuing medicine, and there's a very collaborative culture.

- There is no curving in the program, and the average GPA of the first year cohort is supposedly 4.2 (Queens uses a 4.3 scale), which is absurdly high.

- This is a high priority program at Queens. While it is very new, the staff are very attentive and communicate with the students on adapting the program to better fit their needs. According to the director of the program in an online Zoom session, millions were spent in the development of Queen's Health Sciences.

- There were 4500+ applicants this year for less than 200 spots so it's a fairly competitive program. While only a 75% average is required to apply, the average of the incoming cohort is estimated to be in the mid 90s plus.

- The program involves the humanities side of science, which both makes it easier to get a higher GPA and will benefit your interviewing skills. For example, one of the core first year courses involves writing short, opinionated blog pieces (everyone does super well on this btw, 80% of the class has an A+ according to Queen's grade distribution graph).

While I'm not sure what the differences are for those attending the BISC (I think you guys come back in the second year?), I believe Queen's Health Science is a very promising pre-med program. I've spoken with many of the students in this year's cohort and they're all very nice and talented people who I think would be great to spend your time in undergrad with.

Other than it being very new, my personal hesitation for this program mainly comes from it previously being an online program (which is still running), and that much of the learning of the core courses is done through online modules which may not be for everyone. The upper year students I have talked to, however, have mostly said that they found this approach more enjoyable than their electives that follow a regular lecture style. It should also be noted that Queen's Health Sciences core courses are specific health related subjects such as Pharmacology and Anatomy, and you'll need to take med school prerequisites such as chem or bio as electives.

As for myself, I am a high school student who has considered premed and did extensive research on this program, but is probably going with Waterloo Computer Science instead. I don't think I'm extroverted enough for medicine.

This is my first time posting so I don't know if links are permitted, but there is a discord server where you can talk to Queen's Health Science students and get more information.

Best of luck with your decision!