Advanced science courses that help with the MCAT?

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Cookie143

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Hi All,
I am making my schedule for next semester and have the opportunity to take several different upper level biology courses and was wondering which would be the most beneficial in preparing for the MCAT?
My options include:

Microbiology
Immunology
Bacterial Physiology
Human Anatomy
Cell Signaling
Biotechnology
Neurobiology

I am planning to take 2 of the above courses. Thank you for your input :)

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Hi All,
I am making my schedule for next semester and have the opportunity to take several different upper level biology courses and was wondering which would be the most beneficial in preparing for the MCAT?
My options include:

Microbiology
Immunology
Bacterial Physiology
Human Anatomy
Cell Signaling
Biotechnology
Neurobiology

I am planning to take 2 of the above courses. Thank you for your input :)

i say micro and neuro
 
micro and immunology (with neuro a close third). your best bet would be to compare the syllabi of those courses against the mcat's biology list of topics to make your decision.
 
Hi All,
I am making my schedule for next semester and have the opportunity to take several different upper level biology courses and was wondering which would be the most beneficial in preparing for the MCAT?
My options include:

Microbiology
Immunology
Bacterial Physiology
Human Anatomy
Cell Signaling
Biotechnology
Neurobiology

I am planning to take 2 of the above courses. Thank you for your input :)


don't take any of those classes if you have taken intro biology and are simply taking those just for the mcats. your time will be better spent using mcat BS review notes in preparing for the mcats.
 
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don't take any of those classes if you have taken intro biology and are simply taking those just for the mcats. your time will be better spent using mcat BS review notes in preparing for the mcats.
true that, inside_edition...cookie, if you're choosing those two for completing your bio major, then yeah take them, but they might end up being overkill for what the MCAT wants out of you.
 
Never underestimate the usefulness of (1) anatomy, and (2) physiology. I took Human Phys the semester before the MCAT, and wouldn't you know it, a good portion of the bio section paralleled the course material. Molecular bio is useful, too.
 
Never underestimate the usefulness of (1) anatomy, and (2) physiology. I took Human Phys the semester before the MCAT, and wouldn't you know it, a good portion of the bio section paralleled the course material. Molecular bio is useful, too.

Sure, physiology has lots of content that will appear on the mcats. But many of the review books go over that material in a very concise manner.

The mcats(the science sections) test mastery of the basic premed sciences. You will perform much better if you completely know all the stuff in intro/AP level Biology.

If I had to do all of this stuff over again, I would have concentrated in mastering intro biology rather than taking upper level classes in order to prepare for the mcats.
 
don't take any of those classes if you have taken intro biology and are simply taking those just for the mcats. your time will be better spent using mcat BS review notes in preparing for the mcats.

The problem is that at some schools intro bio doesn't cover much. At my school we didn't even mention neurobiology/physiology, and we barely touched genetics; we all know the August MCAT was loaded with genetics. I mean, come on, it was necessary to be familiar with linked genes. That's definitely something that isn't covered in all intro bio classes. I know that I would have done at least 2 points worse if I didn't take genetics and neurobio/physio.

HOWEVER, if you DON'T take those advanced classes, you CAN still teach yourself the things you might need to know that aren't covered in intro bio.
 
I had my bio material down pretty cold and got worked on the MCAT for lack of biochemistry. I'd recommend that. Genetics would have helped as well...
 
Sure, physiology has lots of content that will appear on the mcats. But many of the review books go over that material in a very concise manner.

The mcats(the science sections) test mastery of the basic premed sciences. You will perform much better if you completely know all the stuff in intro/AP level Biology.


Gonna have to disagree with you on that one. My MCAT had nothing on plant morphology, ecology, or other non-human based bio. Further, I had the Wiggers diagram on mine, which is not covered in the basic bio courses (at least not at Pitt), nor was it covered in the 2004 Comprehensive review book from Kaplan (others might have included it). A significant portion of the course was also devoted to pathophysiology, which is above and beyond the anatomy covered in Bio I and II, but showed up repeatedly on my exam (e.g., in discussions of hypertrophies and renal function/dysfunction).

I think this is probably dependent upon what is covered at what institution - your bio classes may be different from mine (Univ. of Pittsburgh).
 
I had my bio material down pretty cold and got worked on the MCAT for lack of biochemistry. I'd recommend that. Genetics would have helped as well...

taking a genetics and biochem class will help. however, the material present in those two classes is often too advanced for the mcat (at least at my school). it would be better if you just go over that material on your own or through review books.
 
Sure, physiology has lots of content that will appear on the mcats. But many of the review books go over that material in a very concise manner.

The mcats(the science sections) test mastery of the basic premed sciences. You will perform much better if you completely know all the stuff in intro/AP level Biology.


Gonna have to disagree with you on that one. My MCAT had nothing on plant morphology, ecology, or other non-human based bio. Further, I had the Wiggers diagram on mine, which is not covered in the basic bio courses (at least not at Pitt), nor was it covered in the 2004 Comprehensive review book from Kaplan (others might have included it). A significant portion of the course was also devoted to pathophysiology, which is above and beyond the anatomy covered in Bio I and II, but showed up repeatedly on my exam (e.g., in discussions of hypertrophies and renal function/dysfunction).

I think this is probably dependent upon what is covered at what institution - your bio classes may be different from mine (Univ. of Pittsburgh).

definitely. what our classes cover is completely different (i go to UMich) and b/c it's different at every single school, it would be better to ask other people from your own school. or just ask your professors for a copy of the course syllabus.
 
thanks for the advice! and yes i do have to take these courses to fulfill my biology degree.
 
there will always be more than one side in this argument, however my point is that you should be aware that taking advanced biology classes won't necessarily help you for the mcats.
 
Here's the thing: when the MCAT does test the more advanced bio, it's usually pretty simple. For instance, I'd guess that the BS portion of my test was about 1/3 molecular bio. I had never taken the class, but I had a couple of decent review books and did just fine. I wouldn't recommend putting off the test to take more upper division bio courses. Most of the material comes from your basic bio, chem, ochem, and physics and the longer you wait between finishing those courses and taking the MCAT, the worse off you will be.
 
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