Does it look bad to have AP credits in place of actual college classes

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Civvi

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I came into college with 58 credits from AP classes, and a lot of these are science credits. I don't have to take any math or physics courses, psych, skipped first year bio classes.
I also don't have to take any english classes aside from one professional writing class.

I'm a science major (bio but might switch to chem) so I'll be taking plenty of bio and chem classes, so I'm not worried about that. But should I retake physics since it's usually a requirement and I only have AP credit for it? And should I take extra english classes to make sure I have a full year of english completed in college courses instead of credits?

Basically, what classes do med schools want students to actually take in college as opposed to just using AP credits for them?

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It depends on the school. There are med schools that will not accept AP credits as replacement for pre-reqs. Some schools will accept upper level science courses as replacement pre-reqs for those courses where you got AP credit. Check individual med school websites to see their preferences.
 
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Oh cool. I didn't know where to find an updated pdf from Rice.

I would just do upper level coursework because it shows that you understand the material.

Does anyone know if the classes have to be taken under the same department? Under the AMCAS, I had some engineering classes, like thermo and bioreactions reclassified to chemistry. Would those count as upper level chemistry classes?
 
Oh cool. I didn't know where to find an updated pdf from Rice.

I would just do upper level coursework because it shows that you understand the material.

Does anyone know if the classes have to be taken under the same department? Under the AMCAS, I had some engineering classes, like thermo and bioreactions reclassified to chemistry. Would those count as upper level chemistry classes?

I imagine this is something that would have to be discussed with schools individually. My gut feeling is no, but it likely depends on the particular person you ask.
 
Oh cool. I didn't know where to find an updated pdf from Rice.

I would just do upper level coursework because it shows that you understand the material.

Does anyone know if the classes have to be taken under the same department? Under the AMCAS, I had some engineering classes, like thermo and bioreactions reclassified to chemistry. Would those count as upper level chemistry classes?

Engineering classes are not considered BPCM for AMCAS purposes.
 
Are there even enough AP classes to give someone 58 credits?
 
I came into college with 58 credits from AP classes, and a lot of these are science credits. I don't have to take any math or physics courses, psych, skipped first year bio classes.
I also don't have to take any english classes aside from one professional writing class.

I'm a science major (bio but might switch to chem) so I'll be taking plenty of bio and chem classes, so I'm not worried about that. But should I retake physics since it's usually a requirement and I only have AP credit for it? And should I take extra english classes to make sure I have a full year of english completed in college courses instead of credits?

Basically, what classes do med schools want students to actually take in college as opposed to just using AP credits for them?

This is what I learned from my health professions advisor:

You can not reverse a credit that is already given. Therefore, if you intend to apply to a school that rejects AP credit or asks you to supplement it, you may have to take an upper division course for everything.

English > Upper division English ( can be covered for capstone requirements)
Biology > Upper division biology (covered in your major if you choose biology)
Chemistry > Ochem (which you will have to take anyway if you decide on biology or chemistry)
Calculus > Calculus III + Statistics
Physics > Upper division physics


*This all depends on your school choice. If you apply for schools that ask you to supplement it, you will have to choose 1 upper division course for every ap credit. If you apply ONLY to schools that want AP credit, you may be able to waive some of the above.
 
Do the English classes have to actually be through that department? At my college, we have a "first year" and "upper-level" writing requirement; I satisfied the former through the classical studies department, and latter through the middle eastern studies department. Can I designate this on the app?
 
Are there even enough AP classes to give someone 58 credits?

Yes, but it depends on how many credits your university assigns to the class. Calculus at my school is 5 credits, and getting a 5 on AP Calc BC gets you out of Calc 1 and Calc 2, so that's 10 credits.. Getting a 5 on AP Chem can get you credit for both Chem 1 and Chem 2, so excluding labs that's usually 6 credits total. Same for AP Bio and AP Physics. A 5 on AP Spanish can give you credit for Spanish 1-3, etc. It adds up quickly. I had a friend who started freshman year with enough credits to be halfway done with junior year, between all his AP classes and dual enrollment.
 
Yes, but it depends on how many credits your university assigns to the class. Calculus at my school is 5 credits, and getting a 5 on AP Calc BC gets you out of Calc 1 and Calc 2, so that's 10 credits.. Getting a 5 on AP Chem can get you credit for both Chem 1 and Chem 2, so excluding labs that's usually 6 credits total. Same for AP Bio and AP Physics. A 5 on AP Spanish can give you credit for Spanish 1-3, etc. It adds up quickly. I had a friend who started freshman year with enough credits to be halfway done with junior year, between all his AP classes and dual enrollment.

It's interesting that those people then don't know when they should be applying to medical school. I know a girl who had about 45 credits from IB but she's really bad with chemistry so she can't find easy classes to take now while she's progressing towards Biochemistry and other classes that it's a prerequisite for.
 
Engineering classes are not considered BPCM for AMCAS purposes.
No I've already been verified. They were factored into my BCPM GPA. I called AMCAS and they said that if >50% of the class was biology,chem,physics, math, then it's BCPM even if it's engineering.
 
I imagine this is something that would have to be discussed with schools individually. My gut feeling is no, but it likely depends on the particular person you ask.

Yeah I probably will. My premed advisor told me that for Texas schools, they accept some of my bioengineering classes as biology and one as biochemistry. Would a school contact me if I don't fulfill their prerequirements or do I need to contact them? It's because I could always just take the pre-requirements over the summer before matriculation.
 
No I've already been verified. They were factored into my BCPM GPA. I called AMCAS and they said that if >50% of the class was biology,chem,physics, math, then it's BCPM even if it's engineering.

Ah sorry, thought you were the OP. Nevermind!
 
It's interesting that those people then don't know when they should be applying to medical school. I know a girl who had about 45 credits from IB but she's really bad with chemistry so she can't find easy classes to take now while she's progressing towards Biochemistry and other classes that it's a prerequisite for.

When I was in high school, I didn't even know what the MCAT was, let alone what was needed to get into medical school or the implications of using all AP credits. I was one of those pre-meds who came in fairly clueless about the process but quickly learned what had to be done. Thankfully I didn't use any AP's because I had a full scholarship and figured I would just take the college-level courses since they would be free. But I've seen people struggle who had to start freshman year with upper level science courses because they had so many AP science credits. I don't think AP courses compare with the actual college course, but I guess that's a different discussion all together.
 
I'm still premed (applying this cycle), but was in a similar situation as @Ismet when I first started college. The only difference is I used my AP credits not knowing that it meant a lot more work later down the line. All my high school career everyone said take all the AP's because they would count for college credit and that was a good thing. Two years later became a tutor for those courses I placed out of and I definitely agree with the sentiment that AP courses don't compare with the actual college courses. I ended up having to make up a lot of upper-div english, bio, chem, and math to make sure I covered all my bases. Even still I was on track to graduate in 3 years. Once I caught up with the "how to med school" train (at the beginning of sophomore year), I realized there was no way to stuff all my ECs into 9 months to be competitve. Plus I'm so glad I used the SN2ed method that following summer instead of trying to apply and do it all at the same time. Regardless, I knew I was going to stay for all 4 years at that point, so I decided to pick up a second major which overlaped a bit with my first major (biology and chemistry; biochem isn't offered as a major at my university). It helped me cover all my upper-div's and fit into 4 years pretty comparable to most people's single major (~17credits/term).
 
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