One of the more controversial topics for undergrads considering medical school is what program to go into out of high school. A common refrain is that you should take something that interests you. The other school of thought is to go into programs known for easy courses and/or high averages, nevermind personal interests.
For optimal chances of a medical school admissions, the latter approach is probably better. I'll even tell you the best programs to go to - McMaster Health Sciences and Western Medical Sciences. They have good success rates for getting into medical school, well beyond that of most programs. I have two degrees and the number of people from these programs with GPAs higher than the top person in either of my programs is astounding. If your only desire in the world is to get into medical school, go to one of these programs.
However, I fall decidedly into the "follow your interests" camp. Here's the thing, most people who come out of high school wanting to get into medical school won't end up as physicians. Some will get turned off of medicine entirely, some will discover more compelling career paths, and some just won't get in despite their best efforts. This is true even for people who take the "optimal" route to medicine.
The danger in going into a program you don't have a ton of interest in, besides spending four years of your life studying something you don't like, is that the consequences for not successfully matriculating to medical school are significantly higher and failure remains a distinct possibility. Some people say to do what you like because you'll be better at it and there's some truth to that, but you can be good at fields that aren't your first choice to study. No, the big problem is that if you don't like your field and you don't get into medical school (and don't enter another professional school), your options are very limited outside your field of study. That means sticking with something you're not super passionate about by finding employment or graduate work, or trying to make a big shift in your career trajectory.
The benefit of going into something you enjoy, even if you don't achieve your ultimate goal of medical school (or if you choose a different goal in life), is that you've got a good base to build off of and lots of palatable career options available. The obvious other advantage is that hopefully you'll enjoy your studies, making it easier to put in the extra effort needed to get the necessary GPA for medicine and leaving more time for things like MCAT studies and ECs. There's also the more nebulous benefit of prioritizing happiness, even early in your career. While it's admirable to sacrifice for future gains, people can get stuck in the habit of sacrifice, always putting off rewards for a
happy future that never quite comes. Working hard and forgoing easy pleasures isn't the same as being miserable. 4 years of undergrad is a long time, about 5% of a typical life, you should enjoy that time!
There's nothing wrong with a bit of compromise when choosing an undergrad. Some programs are brutal when it comes to marks - even a highly intelligent, motivated person is unlikely to get the grades needed for medical school, especially since most medical schools don't consider program difficulty. It may be worth avoiding those programs if you have an interest in medicine, instead choosing a program that still holds your interest, but has a higher likelihood of getting competitive marks. Likewise, if there's a program that is known to put lots of people into med school that seems like it would be a good fit even if you didn't go into medicine, that could be a good option, even if another program seems like it might be a marginally better fit.
Still, undergrad students should like what they study, with ease of marks being a secondary consideration.
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