community college for prereqs?

[artsydoc]

I'm sorry for reposting a subject that's been broached before, but unlike other posters, I've actually already taken a number of pre-reqs at a community college and am trying to decide if I would need to retake them at a university. I needed gen chem, o-chem and physics for the graduate program that I completed for my current career and took them at the local community college after having received my bachelors degree in 01. I recieved A's in them, and they were transferable full credit courses with labs from an accredited school, so no obvious problems. I feel a lingering unease about their viability but am reluctant to re-take perfectly good classes and another couple years to do it. I still need bio and will take it at a university just to show I still can do the academics. My undergrad instituion was University of Chicago, so an academic powerhouse, and my GPA from there is competitive I think (3.74), but in English lit and visual art. Any thoughts or advice on the prereqs? Thank you.

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[crx7]

Unless you need to make up a D or F in order to graduate, retaking classes is a complete waste of time. You've already been through the material once, albeit at a CC, so people will view a retaken course A as an easy A. Thus, you need to take upper division science courses at the University which you haven't taken before, to show you can make the grades at this level. This is what I did, and got in.

 

[artsydoc]

Thanks, clear logic from sometime who doesn't have the paranoia and emotional investment in my situation that I do is very helpful.

 

[Stratego]

A good MCAT core will prove you "got it." There are some schools that are picky about CC courses, so figure out which they are and don't apply there. Others don't care if your GPA is high and the MCAT score is competitive. I've read other SDN posts where applicants called every school they were interested in applying to before they submitted so they could aim their application funds only at schools where they'd receive full consideration.

 

[slight365]

It is a common misconception at this time that across the board, CC's are for screw ups. There are several CC's that offer advanced sciences and honors programs and these particular schools are recognized by schools, along with reforming the curriculum to conform to the standards of the better state institutions to ensure transferrability. The medical schools also know that high-achieving students at CC's, in advanced classes have a higher probability of doing well in the last two years at a 4-year, and those who come out of those schools also have a high probability of going further in med schools as well.

What one has to verify is simply if a university accepts the courses direct. If so, then there isn't a problem. Several CC's in NYS and NYC have such transferrability, and even share faculty and resources with SUNY 4 years and have switched over to curricula to mirror that of the 4 years to certify transferrability of credits.

 

[Anthony Hartsoc]

I posted this in the pre-allopathic forum. It's an SDN mentor and ADCOM answering your question.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=621673

 

[EricH]

You're probably fine, as previously stated, the MCAT is the great equalizer. As a non-traditional they will likely not hold it against you.

 

[dragonfly99]

I think your plan is good.
I would take future courses @ a 4 year university, but with your degree from U of Chicago and your A's in the community college courses, I would not retake the classes. I would just stick with what you have. A few schools may not like the community college credits, but you've already done them so I'd just forge ahead...not worth wasting a year of retaking stuff you already took.