Question about the weight of a Masters degree

Hello all. I am new to the forums!


First off, i wish i knew about this site about four years ago when I first started college. Really a outsanding idea.


Anyway, a little about myself. I am definatley a non-traditional medical school applicant. I am an anthropology major, with an emphasis in the physical realm, persuing the honors track. I have taken most pre-med reqs (Chem, Bio, Physics, O-Chem etc…) and have one year left of school. I have, however, not always been a strong student. The first few years of school, I didnt really apply myself and had a about a 2.3 GPA. I transfered after that and now have a 3.6 GPA at my new school. So now I have the burden to prove medical schools that I am, infact, a diligent student who simply screwed up early on in school.


So here is my question…


How do medical schools weight a masters degree when looking at applications? I am considering a Masters in biological anthropology or another undergraduate degree perhaps in BioChem or another science major. Would a medical school like to see more emphasis in a science degree or a post-graduate specialty in a topic that I am very much interested in, Human Evolution?


Thanks!



Hi there… after agonizing over the very same issue myself, I discovered that the answer was pretty simple. Do what you enjoy and love and ultimately that will shine through to the admissions folks. When we do what are interested and passionate about we do well and feel like we are moveing in the right direction both personally and professionally. Get a masters in whatever sparks your interest, retain your individualality and that will set you apart from the masses quite favorably!

I would generally concur micp95 on this. You should consider what you would like to do if you don’t get into medical school (ie Plan B, which schools often ask about)and pursue it. If you do so, you should plan to complete it prior to or at the time you are applying to medical school. They like to see you finish what you started.


That said, there are some post-bacc programs that are masters and designed as hard-core sciences routes (Adelphi, Georgetown, Drexel are a few off the top of my head ( http://www.services.aamc.org/postbac/ and check the graduate programs to get the listings of about 20 or so). I have no information of the advantages, disadvantages, success of students, etc from these programs when applying to medical schools. I am fairly sure we have had members who have gone thru some of these pogrms. Also, some of the schools with Master’s Levels post-baccs will be at our conference either via speakers (Georgetown) or as exhibitors (Philadelphia COM) if you happen to attend you can inquire (hint, hint nudge, nudge)

You might want to do some searching through some past threads. There have been several questions on this recently.


In general, Master’s degrees are NOT given the same weight as undergrad degrees. Master’s degrees grades are widely considered to be inflated. There are always exceptions, of course, but you may be better off taking some more upper level science courses. A strong upward trend in grades may be enough for you without doing an entirely new degree.