5 Honest Reasons Why You Should Consider Dropping Out Of Biomedical Science

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There are a lot of reasons why people choose to study biomedical science – and a lot of reasons why they eventually drop out.

The subject isn’t for everyone.

It suffers one of the highest dropout rates for any health science subjects.

Here are 5 honest reasons why you should consider dropping out of biomedical science

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5 Honest Reasons Why You Should Consider Dropping Out Of Biomedical Science

1. The Job Market Is Saturated

The job market is saturated.

It’s a phrase you hear a lot these days, and it’s one that’s been used to describe the current state of employment in the health sciences industry.

The job market is oversaturated with people who are qualified after university, and there are simply not enough jobs to go around.

This can be a frustrating situation for job seekers, especially when there are guarantees being made about finding employment during your studies.

Nothing is guaranteed, and while there are numerous roles available after graduating from biomedical science, a minority of students actually become biomedical scientists.

But it’s important to remember that there are still ways to find employment.

It might take a little bit longer to find a job, however postgraduate study, or a change to a different field may expedite this process.

2. The pay isn’t great.

It’s Incredibly low.

A trainee biomedical scientist can expect to begin making £23,000-£25,000 after leaving university.

while this isn’t necessarily bad, when compared to other degrees of equal duration and price, graduates seem to be making much more.

For example, pharmacy graduates can expect to make £30,000+ newly qualified, and nurses can make similar amounts after some experience is accrued.

Graduating from a three year degree and fighting tooth and nail for a salary comparable to that of a healthcare assistant (Lacking a degree) is simply not right.

Your financial aspirations should be higher.

It may be the case that you simply need te cash to fund postgraduate studies in which case having a steady job is always a good thing.

Remeber that after graduating, if you really need cash, you needn’t only focus on biomedical science jobs.

There are lab assistant and infrastructure technician roles to apply for in private labs or more popularly university facilities.

3. The Coursework Is Incredibly Difficult

The coursework is incredibly difficult. I have never had to work so hard in my life.

However, don’t let this scare you.

Most degrees are very challenging, and therefore if genuine interest is missing, it can be very hard to complete coursework, review lecture notes, and even pass exams.

biomedical science is not a replacement for medical studies, however there can be an argument that the course content in a biomedical science degree exceeds that of a medical degree.

The breadth of content in a medical degree is expansive, however the depth of knowledge required about specific topics in biomedical science is far greater than doctors need in their junior years.

4. You’re In For A Lot Of Competition

We have already covered that there are a lot of people out there vying for the same job as you.

There are also people vying for the same placements, lab time, and leadership roles as you, while at university.

The good news is, that means there are a lot of people with the same skills as you, and potentially you may be able to stand out from the rest.

The bad news is, it’s going to be a lot harder to stand out from the crowd if the crowd is hyper competitive, which it usually is.

Biomedical science students often want to study medicine (postgraduate) which makes them incredibly competitive during their undergraduate years.

Do your research, practice your interviewing skills, and be ready to show the supervisor why you’re the best person for the placement, or laboratory internship.

Getting such experiences on your CV will help you stand out from the rest when it comes to applying for jobs in the already competitive market.

5. You May Not Be Interested In The Work

You may not be interested in the work either during or after university.

One could argue that this is the case for most degrees which is also true.

The biggest thing that makes students drop out of studying biomedical science is how exciting they find it.

Most students drop who will drop out, will do so after the first year and either change programs, or rethink university as a whole.

It’s always one of the following that pushes the decision over the edge:

  • Lecture content is too boring
  • Lecture material is too difficult/overwhelming i.e cant keep up
  • Feeling like the cohort is very different to you i.e not making enough friends
  • Failing too many exams
  • bad relationship with supervisors/lecturers/program leads

Summary

While biomedical science is a great subject to learn, there may be simple signs you won’t like it.

It is best to think about these signs now, instead of doing so during the degree when you are already accruing student dept for a degree you may end up hating and not using.

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