Why premeds don't major in the hard sciences.(most of them)

[Last chance U]

Neil Degrasse Tyson talks trash at premed students and doctors


Just out of curiosity, are premeds really like that? How smart is the average premed compared to let's say a physics student or engineering student. Any thoughts?

EDIT:I think someone posted this video before

SORRY if this was discussed before and I posted this thread in the wrong section =(

 

[atyy]

Does he have hard evidence that the diagnoses and statistical estimates were wrong?

 

[Last chance U]

Does he have hard evidence that the diagnoses and statistical estimates were wrong?

I don't think so, I think Neil is just trolling lol. I guess being arrogant is a big part of being a physicist

 

[atyy]

I don't think so, I think Neil is just trolling lol. I guess being arrogant is a big part of being a physicist

OK, I'll excuse his behaviour then:) http://xkcd.com/793/

 

[Axiomer]

I recall my old roommate telling me of a question from an old mcat, which involved a simple application of Bayes' theorem, that something like 90% of test takers got wrong. I can't find the exact statistic for this now, though.

My impression is that, since a high gpa is crucial for getting into med school (it's worse in Canada), challenging yourself as an undergrad may very well sabotage your chances of getting accepted into a med school. I know a few really smart people that took full course loads with all the most difficult courses in their undergrad and weren't able to get into med school due to a low (~3.8) gpa (one went to med school in Europe), whereas I think a lot of people just do a bare minimum biology major with a 4.0 and they get accepted. That being said, my family doctor did math as an undergrad.

 

[Choppy]

I don't doubt there are a lot of pre-meds who attempt to play the game of getting a high undergrad GPA by taking the preceived easiest route. I don't doubt that a similar phenomenon exists for students trying to get into graduate school. But I'd be really curious to see what the courses look like of those who actually get in.

I strongly suspect that, much like with graduate school, the ones who get in aren't so much those who tried to take easy courses. Rather, they are the ones who took what they were really interested in, and who had the right combination of smarts, self-disciplne, effort, and to some extent the luck of not having any major life crisis happen over that time period.

Also, you have to remember that the reason that most pre-meds are "bio-chem-psych" majors is not necessarily because they are somehow afraid of physics. Rather, they are interested in medicine and how the body works and they see those majors as the closest avenues to what they are interested in.

 

[Delong]

I look down on most premed students, they're far from real scientists

 

[lisab]

OK, I'll excuse his behaviour then:) http://xkcd.com/793/

I forgot about that one!

 

[Choppy]

It may also be worth pointing out that the point Tyson was making was in the context of patients believing in supernatural intervention in their health - that when people find themselves cured after being told that they only have 6 months to live that they are more likely to believe attribute their survival to a god rather than the doctors having got it wrong. In support of this he claims, rather comically, that having taught pre-medical students, he knows that some of the one ones that made it into medical school just aren't that smart.