About Concordia University from Eman Abdullahi, 2010 graduate... 

 

1. Why is your school good for pre-meds?


Concordia University in St. Paul is a good school for pre-meds primarily because of the student to teacher ratio, particularly in the science courses. This ratio allows for students to become extremely familiar with one another as well as faculty members and gain letters of recommendations that demonstrate a true relationship. This ratio is also beneficial in that each student receives all the help and one on one learning that they need - complete with extremely flexible office hours and a great peer tutoring staff. CSP is also a good school for pre-meds because a graduation of CSP can earn a Bachelor of Science while still benefiting from a well rounded liberal arts education - something that medical schools look favorably upon.

Also, every science faculty member has a Ph.D focused on the discipline they teach. In addition to these reasons, when the Bachelor of Science in Biology is earned then all the requirements for medical school are met and exceeded - this makes keeping on track with requirements simple.


2. What are some clubs pre-meds should be involved in?


Tetra Delta (Science Club), Tri-Pi (math club), and UMOJA (United Minds of Join Action - service and diversity promotion club) are just some of the groups at Concordia that allow leadership skills to be developed.


3. Who are some good advisers?


Dr. Kieke, Dr. Bakke, and Dr. Allen are three science faculty members that act as advisers and have good reputations at both responsibilities.


4. Who are some good professors?


Because of the small population of CSP (about 1,000 undergraduates) each discipline in the sciences is taught by one faculty member whose Ph.D is focused on that discipline.


5. What classes do you recommend taking, especially for MCAT prep?


All Bio Classes - Bio 120 and 130, Genetics, Anatomy and Physiology 1 & 2, Cell Biology, MicroBiology etc. Chem classes- Gen Chem 1 & 2, O Chem 1 & 2, Biochemistry, Special Topics in Biology is a great course at Concordia that focuses on one specific complex biological issue and dissects it by reading journal articles and papers, conducting experiments and discussing findings.


6. What majors do you recommend?


I highly recommend a Biology major at Concordia. If a five year route is intended than a liberal arts major can be attained as well.


7. What are some research and paid job opportunities?


Concordia requires a Research course be completely by any Biology major, this Research course is two semesters long- the first focusing on developing an experiment and drafting a proposal as though you were a scientist outlining research for funding. The second semester is intense lab research that is student driven - the trial and error process of experiments is experienced and full access to the lab is granted 24/7. The culmination of the research is then presented in the form of a formal research paper and then a poster and lecture given at a Science and Honors Symposium.


Being a Teacher's Assistant, a Lab Assistant, or a peer tutor are also great ways to take advantage of the resources offered at Concordia while building up your resumes and relationships essential to advancement.