Many Err in Med Schools' Requirements

Prospective medical students are being misled by their advisors and by their own persistent preconceived ideas about qualifications necessary for admission into medical schools, a member of the Committee on Admissions of the Harvard Medical School said last night.

Dr. Daniel H. Funkenstein, clinical associate in Psychiatry, told the CRIMSON that notions that pre-medical students "should make A's in all of his subjects, major in science, and make a 99 percent score on the Medical College Admission Test," are only "myths."

Other things are more intangible, more important than grades," the physician added. "Many students are missing the golden opportunity of acquiring a broad education and of taking advantage of the intangibles of college life which contribute so much to personality growth and maturity."

"Creative Imagination"

"The committee looks for the man's suitability as a future physician. It is interested in the breadth of his mind, the broadness of his vision, his creative imagination, his character, his integrity, his capacity for growth, his ability to relate to people and his emotional maturity," he continued.

Funkenstein said that he believed that difficulty arises because the students and their advisors will not believe the stated policy of medical school admissions committees. Many boys are "grinds," he said, not realizing that grades are not the only consideration.

"In the eyes of admissions committees, diversity of preparation is important," he said, since both types, the science major and the non-science major are needed. He attributed the larger percentage of science majors admitted to medical schools to the greater number of premeds majoring in science.

"There is always room for the unusual talent or exceptionally able scholar, Funkenstein concluded, "but in the main, it is the broadly educated man who stands the best chance of admission."