Organic Chemistry and Medical School (article from the NY Times)

[DrWBD]

How to Get an A- in Organic Chemistry

http://www.nytimes.com/2013/11/03/e...t-an-a-in-organic-chemistry.html?pagewanted=1

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[GUH]

But what’s similar is that dreadful realization of your own limits, that terrible moment when you stop controlling the situation and start mitigating the damage. I expect that’s an all-too-common feeling in medicine. I often felt that way in orgo, but kept going back for more. That’s what orgo is testing, I think: resilience. And humility.

Agreed - you don't really need two semesters of orgo to understand med school stuff. It's really just a psychological hoop to jump through.

 

[preDoGuy24]

I would go as far to say that you don't need ochem period. With the exception of a few concepts used in pharmacology and biochem that makes up a miniscule part of the coursework, ochem is simply a weeder class for pre-meds. I say this as a student who received As in both semesters and actually enjoyed ochem.

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[heroes31]

Seeing that orgo diagram just gave me anxiety! That class almost kept me from being a doctor and now I'm in the top quater of my med school class doing well on rotations. On top of that I didn't remember a bit of orgo but got over a 90 on biochem in med school.

 

[NOsaintsfan]

Seeing that orgo diagram just gave me anxiety! That class almost kept me from being a doctor and now I'm in the top quater of my med school class doing well on rotations. On top of that I didn't remember a bit of orgo but got over a 90 on biochem in med school.

As a second year medical student I can say that I have had to lean on my organic chemistry background exactly zero (0) times so far. I would be shocked if more than 10% of my class could correctly diagram a nucleophilic substitution reaction from memory.
Bio-chem is way more useful.

 

[dismorfik]

Anything that resembles organic chemistry in a medical school lecture powerpoint is always accompanied with a "Don't worry you don't have to know this slide."

 

[metopic]

As a second year medical student I can say that I have had to lean on my organic chemistry background exactly zero (0) times so far. I would be shocked if more than 10% of my class could correctly diagram a nucleophilic substitution reaction from memory.
Bio-chem is way more useful.

I agree, zero need for ochem. I actually thought it was interesting class, but totally unnecessary as a prerequisite.

 

[DrMaximus]

I think I heard my professor talk about a nucleophile and an electrophile one time in pharmacology. That's the only thing organic anyone has ever said in medical school and it wasn't even going to be tested on. That class was definitely just a hoop to jump through.

 

[Postictal Raiden]

Nice reading. Thanks for sharing!