> I am a high school student and an aspiring immunologist or virologist,
> however I am in the process of selecing colleges and I have yet to find
> one with and emphasis on thses subjects. If any one has any suggestions
> please e-mail me at BHannah at mail.del.net> thank you in advance for all of your support.
> Brian Hannah
Brian:
These subjects are rarely emphasized at the undergraduate level except
as upper division courses. There will be plenty of time for you to
focus on a specialties like immunology or virology -- but for now you
should concentrate on getting a good sound basis in biology as well as
chemistry, physics, and math. In your junior and senior years you can
learn a lot by trying to do an honors research project in a professor's
lab that is concentrating in the areas in which you are interested. In
general, subjects like immunology and virology are well-represented at
Medical schools, so it may be of help to choose an undergraduate
University that has an affiliated Med School. Often the faculty there
are happy to accept undergraduate student interns as part-time lab
assistants -- especially if they are good students. I certainly had them
when I was a Medical School Professor.
There was a posting in October in this group from a Dr. Mark Doherty
that had some really good advice for prospective immunologists and young
scientists. Here is the URL:
http://www.bio.net/hypermail/IMMUNOLOGY/9710/0137.html
Its probably a little too soon to be of much use to you, but maybe you
should read it and file it away for future reference when it comes time
to choose a graduate or medical school. Good luck in your college
career!
-- Dom Spinella, Ph.D.
