3/10/2023
Hi everyone, I hope you’re doing well! In this week’s blog, I’m going to talk about my experiences as a student on the pre-medical track at Amherst. Being on a pre-med track is pretty new for me, so I hope this information helps any of you who are considering going to medical or PA school. Please email me at sgoldsmith24@amherst.edu with any questions!
Premed requirements
The specifics of pre-med requirements may vary a little from medical school to medical school, but for the most part they are very consistent: students are required to take a year of biology, a year of introductory chemistry, a year of organic chemistry, a year of physics, a semester of biochemistry, and a year of English.
I think some undergraduate programs offer a pre-medical major, but Amherst doesn’t have that. I’m a biology and French double major, so I had already met a lot of the requirements for pre-med just by taking classes for my biology major. One area that I am struggling in is the requirement of a year of English – despite my French major, which proves I can express myself well in writing, I still need to complete two semesters of English classes. One way I can do this is by taking “in translation” classes, which I’m planning on doing next semester. It will be a class about French literature, but conducted in English and include readings in English. Despite all the English, I can still count the course toward my French major, because it is listed under the French department. I don’t want to take two French in translation classes in a row, because I want to keep working on my French skills, so I imagine that my second semester of senior year I’ll take another class entirely in English, and a separate French class.
I feel very lucky that I am able to finish pre-med requirements despite having decided to pursue a career in health somewhat late in my college journey. Even if I weren’t able to finish the requirements, there are programs available at Amherst and other universities where you can stay an extra year to fit in those classes, or take single classes at other universities over the summer or after you graduate to meet every requirement. So it is okay if you decide what you want to do later than you would’ve liked! Everything will work out.
Premed advising
At the Loeb Career Center, there are two wonderful pre-health advisors: Dean Richard Aronson and Becca Tischler. They are very easy to meet with and offer wonderful advice. They highly recommend meeting with them as early as possible even if you aren’t sure about pursuing a career in health – they just want to meet you and learn about your past and how you feel about your future. I have felt incredibly supported by them, and am excited to continue working with them as I take the MCAT and apply to med school.
Pre-med experience
Lastly, there are a couple ways to gain clinical experience while being an undergraduate student at Amherst College. Amherst has an on-campus EMS team called Amherst College Emergency Medical Services (ACEMS), and pay for students to stay on campus during January of their freshman or sophomore year to become EMS certified and join ACEMS. Because I decided to be pre-med the summer after my sophomore year, I was too late to join ACEMS. However, the Cooley Dickinson Hospital in Northampton offers volunteering positions to college students in the area, and I feel very lucky to get to volunteer in the emergency department for the next year and a half. I’ve been there for about a month, and I love it; every day is different and so exciting. It is the most rewarding thing I’ve ever done.
Thank you for reading! Next week is spring break, so you’ll hear from me again two weeks from now!