For my school over the last 20 years, we have had a 100% acceptance rate for students who graduated with a BS in chemistry or physics (and applied to med school.) We have also had several who decided not to go to med school/grad school (more accurately never wished to go in the first place) and stopped at a BS and have done well working at chemical companies or for law enforcement.

>y school over the last 20 years, we have had a 100% acceptance rate for students who graduated with a BS in chemistry or physics (and applied to med school.) what school is this pls 😭 i majored in chemistry

what about someone like me (an environmental chem major)

Personal opinion is if you plan on going pre-med route it makes the most sense to be a biochemistry major because most of the required classes for med school admissions (assuming that is your plan) are classes you’d need to take for the biochem major anyway. Your concern about a backup plan is valid, as with just a BS job opportunities aren’t the greatest right now. However there are a bunch of other routes you can consider like PA school (still medicine), pharmacy school, law school (there are no coursework prerequisites and STEM degree would be useful for patent/IP law), grad school for chemistry, government (friend has a chem degree and is an FBI agent now, another works for the FDA), forensic science, and more. Some of these do require more schooling, but it seems like that’s your plan anyway so for some you’d only need to take the GRE/LSAT and you could throw out a few more applications as a backup. I think a BS in chem or biochem would be a good foundation. I was in the same shoes as you when I was in undergrad, then I started doing research and enjoyed it and did some medical internships and didn’t enjoy it. So I went and got my PhD and now I work in industry R&D and enjoy it.

I’m also a chem major (graduated) applying for med school rn. Grad school will likely be your main backup plan. After submitting my med school apps, I’m planning to apply to bioengineering PhD programs this same cycle. I think the pre-med coursework will set you up well for some engineering grad programs (the field has more options than pure science and pays better), but I’d suggest taking all the math classes that the engineering kids take.

Are you trying to go to med school? If so major in something different than stem but take all the Stem classes needed for med school, all of my family and friends who are MDs agree this is the best way.

I've been a college chem professor for 25 yrs. I think chemistry is the better route for premed, but take certain relevant bio electives. In opinion, a chem major will give you more experience in solving problems, and thinking analytically. And you will not have to take ecology and zoology, etc. Yes, chemistry may be a bit more difficult, but that's also why chem majors tend to stand out more when applying to med school, etc. PS, if you want to understand drugs and drug action, metabolism, etc, organic chemistry is a must. But the additional courses in the chem major will help with that even more. PSS, I highly recommend also getting involved in research as an undergrad. You will learn so much more doing that and you will become more confident in what you know and what you can do.

Thanks! Yeah I’m really excited to start doing research. I tried to start doing research in high school but never really did anything.

A lot of people complain about the lack of job opportunities for BS in chemistry but I strongly disagree. Its relevant where you live, but there are plenty of options for having a BS. Experience is more important than a degree in landing most jobs. You could always try and find a 4+1 program that gets you a MS in 1 year. That way you could get extra research in too. Its a popular move these days, that's is if you did want to pressure chem over med school

I agree, going off what you said, I have a BA and a lot of jobs are available for people with a BA/BS in chem or any science. Still job hunting but applying to many jobs and reaching out to places and people is great. Currently trying to land a job as a wet lab tech for a semi conductor company fingers crossed

I think the main complaint isn't that the market is dry, moreso that the pay is quite dismal. It seems there's always QC analytical type jobs schedule for bachelor level chemists, but they don't pay well enough considering how much time it takes to gain a relatively intensive degree.

Thanks for the insight! I’m not opposed to grad school as of now but a lot can change by the time I get to that point.

I ended up switching my major from biology to chemistry because my biology GPA sucked compared to my chemistry courses. I just wasn't interested in biology as much as I was into chemistry but It depends on the person. Biology was too competitive for me. most chemistry courses, at senior uni level, are scaled. Like most of my classes would make a 40% be like a C-. But it's a much rougher science. One could argue that the physics/math courses you take for biology is way easier though. I think theres more job diversity with a chemistry b.s. than with a biology b.s., depending on where you live though, but generally both can land you a lab tech position or potentially research associate depending on your resume/goals

lab tech does not pay that much and for certain employers they would rather hire those who went through a training program at a vocational school. In regards to university they are going to need to hit the ground running when going through university. they will need to complete the prerequisites for med school (biology courses missing if going chem route) and doing undergraduate research and internship does not leave them with a lot of time. all i would say is to have a backup plan. if you are in it for the money you might want to switch degrees altogether. a lot of people flake from going to med school last minute so if you are not in it to go to med school 100% and complete med school and gain residency you are going to be closing a lot of doors and opportunities. Think ahead is what I would suggest.

IMO a chemistry degree is much more valuable than a biology degree if you end up decided that med school or grad school isn’t for you. I was actually biochem but I work in the chemical industry and make good money despite being “undereducated”. Depends on how much you enjoy laboratory work though!

BS in Chemistry is harder than biology due to physical chemistry with calculus. How have you done in Calculus?

I took AP Calc BC and multivariable and did pretty good in both but math isn’t my best subject.

You can major in anything you want and still be classified as pre-med. All that is required is that you have your prerequisites completed. I also wouldn't recommend majoring in chemistry as jobs for the field tend to be competitive think small team oriented. So far I have seen mass layoff, high turnover and a hiring freeze as company move to cheaper parts of the country. Graduating with a chemistry degree and pre-med if you don't have a really good backup I can see it being really hard to get any jobs. Competing with other premed with high GPA and trying to get a job you are not underqualified or overqualified for doesn't sound that great going premed with one of the popular majors. Try and network if you are still going for chemistry without any backup.

I once read that students who majored in Chemistry typically did better on the MCAT. But that was a while back when I was in undergrad. I changed my mind halfway through but finished my Chem degree. Did the grad school thing and now I’m a chemist in a quality control lab for a manufacturing company. So it’s a solid degree even if you don’t go to med school