Hello from Mary Velasco: She Graduated from Bethel in 2010, Applying to Med School in 2010

Why Bethel for Pre Meds?

Bethel University has a great program for pre-med students because it is small
enough where you can get to know many, if not most, people in your department
of study and the people and professors truly care about your success. The
program is challenging, but has a very strong reputation and prepares students
very well for any graduate programs.

Clubs for Pre Meds

Different clubs and organizations that might be beneficial to join would be
Pre-Med Club (which is for students in pre-professional programs, like dental,
medical, physical therapy, physician’s assistant, etc. and this is where I
heard about Minnesota’s Future Doctors!!), Beta Beta Beta (biology honor
society), Sigma Zeta (math and science honor society), and Chemistry Club.
Beyond these examples, there are many other possibilities to get involved in
outreach, athletics, and other student-run organizations that would offer
valuable experiences.

Great Profs

There are MANY great advisors for pre-medical students. To name a few that
would be very helpful: Wade Neiwert (Chemistry), Bynthia Anose (Chemistry),
Teresa DeGolier (Biology), Tim Shaw (Biology), and many more.

Research

As for research, if a student is a biology major he or she is required to do
research with one of the biology faculty for their senior year. If a student is
a chemistry major, he or she is required to do research for their junior and
senior year with one of the chemistry faculty. There is also a new grant for
chemistry research in the summer, which would be a great opportunity to work
ahead on your chemistry research project. There are also some grants available
for biology research. Besides research, there are a multitude of opportunities
to tutor in the Science Help Sessions (every night there are tutors available
in a certain room for students in all kinds of chemistry and biology classes to
come a receive assistance) or to T.A. for biology and chemistry labs and
classes.

Where to get Pre Med Advice

Pre Med Majors

Many students pursuing pre-professional programs are either Biology or
Biochemistry majors, but I would personally encourage students to think about
what they truly enjoy and are passionate to learn about. I had the opportunity
to create an individualized major, which I called Eukaryotic Cell Biology,
where I began with a Biochemistry/Molecular Biology major and made it my own by
omitting Physical Chemistry and Molecular Biology and adding the separate
classes of Anatomy and Physiology. I believed the classes I added would be
more beneficial to me in the long run and that I would really enjoy them both.
Creating this individualized major also allowed me to fit in a Spanish minor
and spend a semester abroad in Segovia, Spain. I would just encourage pre-med
students to not just follow the beaten path that everyone else seems to follow,
but that if there is something that they are passionate about or think they
would really enjoy then they should look into creating their own path and
making their Bethel experience exactly what they would like it to be.

What I love about Bethel

Having attended Bethel University is an experience that I wouldn’t trade for
the world. It is an encouraging, loving, and scholarly institution that has an
outstanding reputation around the world, especially in the sciences, and that
prepares students extremely well for any graduate program that they are looking
to go into. I have had professors and made friends that I will keep in touch
with for the rest of my life and that have made huge impacts in my life. If
you would like to hear more about why exactly Bethel is so great, I would be
excited to talk to you and answer any and every question that you have. :)

I can say that nearly all of the biology and chemistry professors are
magnificent and I have really appreciated their encouragement and the fact that
they loved what they taught. A few professors that I really enjoyed having were
Wade Neiwert (Chemistry), Bynthia Anose (Chemistry), Megan Nagel (Chemistry),
Trey Maddox (Chemistry), and Teresa DeGolier (Biology).