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Difficult? If you love what you do and have a goal, the challenges will be worth it. With that said, biology majors are required to take the pre-med entry level biology courses vs the Liberal Arts majors who take an easier entry level biology. Those more advanced science classes weed out the non-committed very early in the program. Your course grades in this entry level need to be a “B” or better in your major area of focus. A grade of “C” is a weed out grade and retaking the class is a must to continue in the field of Biology. As you progress, a grade of “C” in more advanced 200, 300 and 400 level classes may be acceptable. Check with the different colleges where you plan on applying. Be weary of those colleges that require less as those implications will definitely follow you into your chosen profession.You are not home-free as the major continues into deeper more specific study of specimens, labs, field trips, etc. At Colorado Mesa University, a grade of “B” or better was absolutely required in all English classes. Three of those classes were entry level, non-major seeking, and the final course was a 200 level.Math is of minor concern. I was required to pass a single math course. Advanced Algebra. After that, the math requirement was met. You will definitely encounter math in your science courses but it’s all algebra related and delves into established formulas to prove results. A scientific calculator is a must. Each college can have a specific calculator they believe will help you become more successful. Back when I attended the preferred calculator (Literally displayed by the professor) was a TI 84 Plus Silver Addition. All students with that calculator could follow the key strokes and not deal with a different key pattern or entry sequence. Your chosen calculator will have continued importance in a few other science classes.Bear (not bare) in mind, some calculators are not allowed in classes or exams. It is your duty to learn which ones are go’ and no-go.’ My experience was calculators with formula and equation building technology can be banned from classes or exams.Also, a Biology course taken at a different college or community college with an acceptable grade of “B” may not be approved for transfer by a University or other four year college. You may be required to re-take that course to establish your proficiency. Otherwise saying, stick with the same institution throughout your degree and avoid the unpleasant reality of repeating courses. If you move often, it is your duty to learn the criteria from each college/university you attend and how your grades will be considered/interpreted. One of my friends, who moved often, was required to re-take his entry level “biology for majors” 3 times at different institutions. His grades did not transfer or the grade was too low.Lastly, be prepared for proficiency exams to prove your knowledge. These may be required from different areas the degree covers. Teaching in Colorado requires a passing grade on the PRAXIS or PLACE exam. Medical fields, in some areas, definitely require an exam and/or certification as well. Laboratories for many fields of study definitely require their own training course with an exam to follow.I’m 57 and each time I change into a different level of science work, I must establish my substantial prior experience. The good old Resume’ never goes away. Keep you exam results and proof of degree, etc. in a single, easy to locate portfolio. My own is a thick gray, very attractive notebook that holds hundreds of documents of proof. Never ever discard it. Even if you think you are through with that field forever and ever. Testing agencies only keep your grades on record for a few years. Never ever get caught having to retake certification courses that require you to have proof of completing. I still have HAZMAT and Public Applicator Licenses and Federal Export Certifications from the 1980’s. It’s all experience.

I cannot answer this from a personal perspective - meaning I've never unwittingly gotten anyone involved in a Ponzi Scheme.That doesn't make me a brilliant financier - though I know I'm pretty damn good. Some of the most sophisticated and wealthiest people in the world - including hedge fund managers, asset management firms…the EXPERTS - poured billions into Bernie Madoff's infamous Ponzi Scheme structured as an alternative investment fund. I can tell you that I know personally family members that still haven't spoken since that implosion rocked Wall Street. That'd obviously an outlier example - most Ponzi Schemes are geographically local in nature and prey on communities - minorities or ethnic neighborhoods in major cities….or tightly knit Southern cities in my example. And frankly outside of marketing materials and an office they lack sophisticated structuring. They're pretty straightforward…they prey on relationships, not a Ponzi Scheme salesman's ability to close sophisticated financial deals (indeed that often scares off the targets of these insidious Ponzi Schemes).Quick caveat: I'm not a regulator; I don't have any exact statistical information on Ponzi Scheme; I've never been intimately involved in or hurt by one in any manner. But I do have a unique answer I think addresses your question.When I was just out of college, I worked for a bit at my family's business concern at the time - Jensen Foods, Inc., a North Carolina based franchisee operating ten Hardee's quick service restaurants in the Outer Banks area of North Carolina (based in New Bern, NC).I was overseeing multiple units and I operate on one speed - full throttle. I plunged in, and part of the job was talking to your customers. This was the South - so talking to customers is a much more involved process than say, Manhattan or Los Angeles. Incredibly nice people that LOVE to talk. And they tend to trust those they have known for a long time.I watched a well-known popular local man, about 50-years old, begin to have meetings in my restaurants with many area locals he knew. I could see he was feverntly espousing an investment opportunity of some type - I didn't honestly have any interest in whatever it was at first. That may sound odd coming from a newly graduated finance major with an MBA who has been trading stocks since his 13th birthday - I put myself through college Day Trading before that was a term. It's not that I'm some Brilliant Mind type genius - it's a passion and trust me, it's hard damn work.I didn't have a bit of interest because In my arrogance I assumed that whatever the hell this local southern guy who had recently quit his position as the manager of a Pizza Inn in New Bern to become an investment salesman was selling was rubbish. Not illegal rubbish…just rubbish.But I got friendly with the guy over about nine months. We never had dinner or a drink together. But he was a constant presence in my four units, and I noticed he had quickly traded an old Chevrolet Cavalier in for a brand new Cadillac. He began dressing better - sports coats aren't common in New Bern. He told me in passing about six months after he started whatever the hell he was doing he was building a rather expensive home in one of New Bern's nicest golf communities.I finally bit after 8–9 months of watching this all develop. I sat down with him and explained my background, my family's businesses over the years, my MBA degree and my master's thesis that focused on Financial Engineering, the fact through a family connection I had passed several FINRA exams including the Series 7. I didn't wait long for a reaction- he immediately was extremely excited.He couldn't WAIT to show me an investment opportunity that, with my knowledge, he was positive that I would see immediately it was something extraordinarily special. And I sat with him in a Hardee's for two hours as he went through his pitch - which after 5 minutes I knew was off, and by 15–20 minutes could clearly see that he was feverntly espousing and selling to all his friends and family what was clearly a Ponzi Scheme.After we finished up he asked me if we could perhaps meet at the clubhouse at the country club we both belonged to. He was very much anxious to hear my thoughts, and I could see he was angling to get me onboard.It was an odd moment. I will be very honest - I didn't want to hear anymore about this shady investment scheme that was clearly illegal. I knew damn well he and his family were respected around New Bern. He was trusted - a churchgoing family man. And nine months ago he was making $45,000 a year running a Pizza Inn. Now, he was making $350,000 plus (my estimate) selling what was a slickly marketed but pretty straightforward Ponzi Scheme structured around local real estate development loans (New Bern was growing fairly rapidly as a retirement community).It was a common variation of the "short term construction loans with GUARENTEED 18% returns over a 24-month period" type deal. Of course there was no project financing going on; the head man was an investment advisor gone rogue I would later read with the rest of the city who lived in Raleigh, NC.While obvious to me, I don't want to give the impression that the people of New Bern are not intelligent or poorly educated. Indeed, the simple tobacco farm families and friends he pitched from inland didn't put money in - but New Bern's two prominent independent stock brokers both invested.This was a pitch based on trust - not financials and details. That's the culture there. And I will tell you this man was as high as he had ever been in his life. He felt so blessed this opportunity had come to him. He believed that this was something kind of devine intervention.After all…he was not only ripping big commissions….he himself was reinvesting his cash commissions into the bloody scheme. This wasn't a man bent on hurting a soul. He too was a believer!So what the hell do I want to get involved in this for? Yes, I understand that legally I was somewhat required to report this to the SEC and state authorities. Ethically…I did feel bad for these extraordinarily nice folks being taken in by this fraud. But I also knew it was going to be ano enormous scandal in this town of 40,000. Honestly I didn't want to do anything…but I did.I decided to meet him later at the clubhouse for cocktails, and I decided to just get to the point fast. "You're actually selling a fraudulent non-existent investment - and based on the amount of money you say you have solicited, you're in some deep s**t legally."Of course at first he was extremely offended and angry. He made a scene, and I'm not exactly a guy that avoids conflict. I told him in language that wasn't usually shouted around the clubhouse why he needed to either listen or walk away…that I was doing him a damn favor here. I did finally get him to sit down and let me tell him about this fraudulent investment scheme - and that perhaps I could recommend some options he had from a legal perspective that could save him jail time - cut a deal and squeal.It was tough going…he was simmering, then furious with me again…then loudly crying…then angrily questioning me about my knowledge or perhaps my motivations. Was I blowing him out and taking his place? He was very unsophisticated financially speaking and perhaps had some emotional control issues I thought at the time. Who knows…when your life collapses around you, mania is likely common one would think.I told him to contact a lawyer. I actually knew the lawyer he said he would use locally, he was extremely sharp. I pattern him on the back, threw back my last martini and thought that's that. I'm out.Bottom line - his investors were family and lifetime friends and other close relationships and they were as far as I know all decimated. It was the small town's BIG NEWS. And many - including his wife - were convinced he knew he was selling something that was fraudulent.I have two friends in New Bern I still see and chat with once in a while. This man, who sold over $2.8 million in what was of course this worthless investment fraud, sought redemption for about two years - and then he ended his own life.Life savings were wiped out…homes and businesses lost. It was a Madoff size scandal in New Bern - but worse in many ways. This was a friend…I believe over a dozen sales were to his family. They were hurt, angry, broke and furious that their friend - who was indeed "trained-up" and sounded confident, smooth, and would proclaim his expertise in these loan investments that he didn't really have (I personally think he truly thought he did - the head of the Ponzi Scheme held a fake education training deal and even gave out fake certifications to his sales team leaders so they could be assured that they were in compliance with the law and were selling something absolutely legal….and SPECIAL. Obviously I don't know for certain).I did not report the man, and was only asked some perfunctory questions by a stare regulator about what I knew. I didn't know much at all for nine months - and then when I did I told him to retain counsel and cut an immunity deal and turn in the head man in Raleigh ASAP. The regulator took a couple notes, left, and I never officially was contacted about that whole odd deal ever again. I think I did the right thing…maybe I should have sniffed sooner but I'm not a securities regulator…I was running Hardee's restaurants. Wasn't my business, I told myself.So in my rather odd unique experience, I sadly gotta say it was a scar that still hasn't healed I'm told. He took his own life - alone and living in shame. And the anger - in many cases the hatred - was VISCERAL. You could feel it when they spoke about it (which is ALL they did in my Hardee's for the final three months I was there…UGLY times UGLY).In my mind the most tragic part and paradoxically the most infuriating part was that he believed himself fervently and without question. It's sad he bought that crap…but in my mind it's egregious he didn't look into it further than he did - which is to say he didn't look into it at all. While the guy wasn't a member of Mesa, he also wasn't an unintelligent man either. That in my mind makes him culpable….who just sells these investments with outlandish guaranteed returns without thinking, hmm…maybe I should ask a few people that might know more about these things. His 401k at Pizza Inn was getting 8% annually - you'd think he'd look into guaranteed 18% returns before selling them to everyone he knew? I don't know…I didn't look into much about the top man. I know he raked in $39 million in 16 months in 1996 in North Carolina and I believe a small amount from several other nearby states via family and friend referrals.I do know that the he had slick sales materials and a gift for training people to sell that fraudulent investment product. That's all it really took.In my opinion, the guy deserved the anger and social outcasting and much more. Did he deserve to die? Of course not - but that was his decision. He could have done what most white collar criminals do - head down to Florida or out to Orange County, and start over again. Humor aside, he could have left that state and started a new life. So no one killed him. His guilt and I think his shock at just how much animosity he endured led him to hang himself.I'm not sure if this directly answers your question, but I believe so - in my admittedly unique experience here, there was zero redemption to be found. And if you briefly look into some smaller local Ponzi Schemes that blow up you'll find its that personal trust used so egregiously is the unforgivable part. That because of that implicit guarantee of trust led the victim to lose their hard-earned savings was simply too much to allow for forgiveness.Feel free to ask me any questions if you have any. I have used New Bern, NC as the city - it was a city nearby and even extremely similar. I don't want to reveal names or that exact city - it's I understand still an ugly scar that is painful 22 years later.Note: I apologize for any odd grammatical errors here, I tapped this out utilizing a new keyboard application and it's learning my typing. I will be site to review later this evening and correct any that may have occurred.