Many UMBC Biological Sciences graduates continue for a professional training at Dental, Medical or Veterinary schools as well as other types of biomedical professional schools. These schools can be extremely competitive. For example, the average GPA of matriculants (those who enrolled) into medical schools in the United States in 2009 was 3.66 and the average score on the Medical College Admissions Test (MCAT) was 30.8 out of 45. Other professoional schools require similarly high GPAs. Dental schools matriculants had average GPAs of 3.54 in 2009 and veterinary school matriculants had average GPAs of 3.57 in 2008. It is important that you do as well as possible in your undergraduate years to make it possible for you to be admitted into a professional school.

The answer to that question may vary among types of professional training. Most students, though, assume that earning admission to professional school requires a B.S. degree in the Biological Sciences. Data from the American Association of Medical Schools shows that this is not true. About half of all medical school applicants have a degree in Biological Sciences (21,000 of 42,000 in 2009) but their success rate (42%) is actually poorer than graduates with degrees in the humanities (50%), physical sciences (50%), math and statistics (46%) and social sciences (45%). This is true despite the fact that the average GPA of successful applicants is a consistent 3.63-3.67 across disciplines. So, your major may a smaller effect than your GPA on your acceptance into professional school!

That is not true, either. The fact that humanities and social science applicants are admitted at similar, or even slightly higher rates shows that their B.A. degrees do not disqualify them for admission. Many of the most highly competitive universities in the US offer only B.A. degrees in Biology or any other Arts & Sciences degree program (Princeton University, for example) yet their graduates are not at a disadvantage in admission to medical school. The B.S. degree is an excellent preparation for more research-intensive career paths, such as a career as a research scientist or technician and many students who are unsure of whether they would like to pursue a professional or scientific career may want to complete that degree. However, the B.A. degree provides training in precisely the areas that professional schools are looking for in applicants and allows the increased flexibility required to satisfy specialized requirements of some post-graduate degrees.

The higher rate of success at admission to medical school among graduates with B.A. degrees in the humanities suggests that these schools value a broader undergraduate training. A humanist education may provide training in areas that would be beneficial to you in your professional career, which involves intensive person-to-person interactions with a wide variety of patients. A wider training may also be helpful because professionals commonly also play the role of a business person or entrepreneur.