decisions!...how would admissions view this...

[caramel08girl]

okay guys...so I am 17 and during high school I completed all of my inorganic and organic chemistry requirements as well as my math requirements (up to calc 2) @ a community college.
In the fall I will be going to a four-year university and my credits that I recieved from the community college while in high school will be transferring.

Because these courses were taken while still in high school should I retake these chemistry & math courses over?

My grades in organic chemistry were a B & B+ and by grades for general chemistry I was an A and for general chemistry II it was a B+

I know that those are not horrible but Should I retake these courses over at a four year university and hopefully be able to get an A in them & hopefully be more prepared for the MCAT?

Or should I forget about taking these courses all together and strive to get into 500 & 600 level science courses by my junior/senior year??

Sorry if this sounded slightly confusing...If you need more explanation let me know! but any input would be helpful!

thanks!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[TehDoc]

Troll.

 

[Kaydubz]

Troll.

Um, why?

I'd retake the classes at your undergrad institution if it were me. If you actually have already taken the classes, then it may very well mean it'd be easier for you to get A's the second time around where the A's and credits will be looked upon much more favorably by an admissions committee. And as you said, it couldn't hurt in helping you study for the MCAT.

 

[135892]

Troll.

How?

 

[honker]

If the units taken at the JC are transferring, you should check to see if you can repeat the courses for credit at your four year institution. You may not get credit if the school considers the classes eligible for transfer.

 

[neuro1617]

Um, why?

I'd retake the classes at your undergrad institution if it were me. If you actually have already taken the classes, then it may very well mean it'd be easier for you to get A's the second time around where the A's and credits will be looked upon much more favorably by an admissions committee. And as you said, it couldn't hurt in helping you study for the MCAT.

I second this. Take the gen & organic chems over. Some med schools don't look favorably on courses taken at a CC, and they'll probably be easier the second time around. No reason to retake the maths over unless a school requires them to be taken at a 4 yr, and I don't think this is common at all. And you usually only need 1 semester of Calc. Just try to get as many high level courses in as you can, no need to worry about that now.

 

[PediatricMedic]

Although your grades aren't bad, I would try to maximize your GPA. While I don't speak for med schools, I've seen anecdotal evidence of students being favored for having high grades over having taken uberdifficult classes. obviously having high grades in difficult classes is the key.

I think a fundamental part of doing well in the upper level classes is having a solid foundation. I was a biology major, switched into it soph year. I passed out of bio 101 from AP credits, but regretted that when i started taking labs and 2nd level classes and forgot which bases were in DNA!! i ended up with Bs in those classes. In the spring of that year i took intro bio at the college level because if i didn't i would always feel that i missed something that my peers had received.

Take the classes again, get As, go on to the upper level classes and get As there too

imho.

good luck.

 

[Caesar]

I second this. Take the gen & organic chems over. Some med schools don't look favorably on courses taken at a CC, and they'll probably be easier the second time around. No reason to retake the maths over unless a school requires them to be taken at a 4 yr, and I don't think this is common at all. And you usually only need 1 semester of Calc. Just try to get as many high level courses in as you can, no need to worry about that now.

OP, if you do well in advanced coursework where you took the pre-reqs is irrelevant unless you are applying to the ONE school that specifically states you can't take courses at a CC.

 

[TamarMD]

I don't know if you CAN take them over. Some schools don't allow you to retake classes that you received higher than a C in. Talk to your advisor and see what he/she says.

 

[Caesar]

Although your grades aren't bad, I would try to maximize your GPA. While I don't speak for med schools, I've seen anecdotal evidence of students being favored for having high grades over having taken uberdifficult classes. obviously having high grades in difficult classes is the key.

I think a fundamental part of doing well in the upper level classes is having a solid foundation. I was a biology major, switched into it soph year. I passed out of bio 101 from AP credits, but regretted that when i started taking labs and 2nd level classes and forgot which bases were in DNA!! i ended up with Bs in those classes. In the spring of that year i took intro bio at the college level because if i didn't i would always feel that i missed something that my peers had received.

Take the classes again, get As, go on to the upper level classes and get As there too

imho.

good luck.

I got a C and B in Gen Bio and have a 4.0 in all of my advanced bio coursework. I also got B's in Gen Chem and A's in advanced chem classes. Some schools use intro classes as weed-outs. Your scores in intro don't necessarily reflect how you will do in future work (though there is usually some correlation). Keep in mind: OP is an incoming Freshman. An A in advanced chem will affect his/her gpa the same as retaking gen chem and getting an A. IMO if you feel comfortable with what you learned in the intro classes, take advanced, if you don't then consider retaking.

 

[gopher22]

I wouldn't retake them. I think you should build your knowledge upwards by taking more advanced courses and eventually some grad-level courses. It will help you retain the basic science better (because you'll have more context) and you'll get to know professors better in the smaller classes. You may think retaking the elementary courses will solidify your foundation but you could get bored and stop going to class. As far as the grades, I'm certain admissions committees will be more impressed by depth of study than to see retakes for first-year classes. Good luck!

 

[bcat85]

I wouldn't retake them. I think you should build your knowledge upwards by taking more advanced courses and eventually some grad-level courses. It will help you retain the basic science better (because you'll have more context) and you'll get to know professors better in the smaller classes. You may think retaking the elementary courses will solidify your foundation but you could get bored and stop going to class. As far as the grades, I'm certain admissions committees will be more impressed by depth of study than to see retakes for first-year classes. Good luck!

I agree with this. Don't retake classes you've already taken. Maybe take a more advanced orgo class if your interested, but I'd probably take biochem instead. These classes weren't AP, they were co-credit right?

 

[BluePhoenix]

I wouldn't retake them. I think you should build your knowledge upwards by taking more advanced courses and eventually some grad-level courses. It will help you retain the basic science better (because you'll have more context) and you'll get to know professors better in the smaller classes. You may think retaking the elementary courses will solidify your foundation but you could get bored and stop going to class. As far as the grades, I'm certain admissions committees will be more impressed by depth of study than to see retakes for first-year classes. Good luck!

I agree with this. If you did well in the courses (B+ and up) there's really no point in retaking it unless you feel that the course lacked a lot of material. You'd be better off taking some more advanced coursework and doing well in that instead. Retaking when you've already done well is pointless and boring. Assuming you continue getting pretty good grades in the advanced courses, you'll be fine. Just make sure you've got an advanced course in each area just to be sure.

 

[chessknt]

Most universities wont let you retake them and if you do, you get an unauthorized repeat (UA) instead of a grade. You have to get cleared by the dean to retake a class you didnt fail for credit, which makes sense since they need room in them for people who HAVENT taken them yet.

 

[Gobblox]

Retake Organic...by the time you get to the MCAT...you wont remember any of it.

 

[beachblonde]

Retake Organic...by the time you get to the MCAT...you wont remember any of it.

By the time she gets to the MCAT, there won't be any organic on it anyways.
OP, first double check with your institution on their policy for re-takes. If you can re-take them, well then it's up to you. If you feel prepared to take the next level up, then do that. But if you show up the first day and feel woefully unprepared, then re-take the classes you got lower than an A in (if you're allowed).

You can take upper level courses (I'm assuming by 500 & 600 level you mean junior and senior level, it differs at every school) before you are an upperclassmen so long as you fulfill your prereqs. If you feel comfortable taking them earlier, go ahead a do so. You don't mention what you want to major in, but if it's anything other than science it'll help to spread out the workload.

 

[bodonid]

OP, if you do well in advanced coursework where you took the pre-reqs is irrelevant unless you are applying to the ONE school that specifically states you can't take courses at a CC.

+1. Plus you learn more that way! I don't know if it matters that much, but I am 100% happy with my education, even though it did eliminate me from consideration at a handful of schools.

 

[caramel08girl]

thanks guys!
I am thinking in majoring in biophysics or neuroscience. biophysics requires up to diff. equ. Since my CC is really close in distance to the four year college I am just going to finish up calc 3 and diff. equ's at the CC if my four year university will allow me to do so. Im guessing that med schools wouldnt see that in a negative way???

I talked to admission people at top med schools to see what they thought and the man at yale who considers apps told me that retaking the courses would be a complete waste of my time. He said that if I did retake the courses and received As in them that then I would just be changing my GPA after the decimal point ex 3.42 to a 3.47...
He said my time would be better spent in upper-level science courses because most of the basic stuff will be repeated anyhow...

Im just still slightly skeptical! I appreciate all the input!

And it might be true that my four year university may not let me retake those courses! I never thought about it!

thanks guys!