If your going for pre-med does it matter which college you went to or does the grades u get in college only?

Question

If your going for pre-med does it matter which college you went to or does the grades u get in college only?

Answer 1

The undergraduate alma mater most certainly matters to admissions committees.

Answer 2

I would say that the grade point average would be first looked at then what classes you have taken, sure there is some hype about Harvard, Oxford, and a few other IVY LEAGE collages But.... if you are going for a certain field be sure to study hard and I hope all works out well for you!! Because if you are My Doctor I don't give a hoot as to what school you went to I just want you to know what the HeLo you are doing.....

Answer 3

Both make a difference but the real question is how much money do you have?  You can still get into a good med school if you go to a state school and get excellent grades.  You can make the most of any college experience if you are willing to work hard.  Going to Harvard or other Ivy League schools would look great on an application but unless you or your parents are independently wealthy, you are talking about ALOT of money.  If I were advising my own kid, I would say go to a decent state school and work your rear off.  Find a mentor at college.  There are really good professors at every college.  Find someone you can work with and help them with their research project.  They might even put your name on the paper when it is published.  Save the money you would have spent on an undergraduate degree and use it on med school which is going to cost a fortune.

Answer 4

Both matter. med schools want people who go to good schools and get good grades.  However, let's say you went to harvard and got a 2.7, but your friend went to UC Davis and got a 3.5, you can bet your davis friend gets into better med schools.  The advantage of a great pre-med school is excellent teachers, great connections, often stellar letters of recommendation, and a 3.4 at Harvard would be better than a 3.6 at Davis...  In other words, go to a great school if you can, but no matter where you go, you need a GPA around 3.3-4.0, and a better school does help

Answer 5

It's common knowledge that Harvard and other Ivy League schools inflate grades, so if you don't do well there, you're not med school material.

(Evidence of grade inflation at Ivy League schools:

    * In 1966, 22% of Harvard undergraduate students earned A's. By 1996, that figure rose to 46%. That same year, 82% of Harvard seniors graduated with honors.

    * In 1973, 31% of all grades at Princeton were A's. By 1997 that rose to 43%. In 1997, only 12% of all grades given at Princeton were below the B range.

Source: American Academy of Arts & Sciences)

I went to a state school, did well, kicked butt on the MCAT and had no trouble being accepted to several med schools.

I'm not on any admissions committees, but I think they really look at the big picture.  Low GPA will not get your application looked at, though.

Hint:  take the extra second to type "you" instead of "u" if you  have any intention of getting a professional degree.