Question about Calculus and Physics

[kittensmeow]

Hello,

I have a few questions about calculus and physics as prereqs:

1. Somewhere on OVC's website it states that applicants must take statistics with a calculus preprequisite. (I assume others schools that require statistics as a prereq don’t insist on it being calculus-based?) I have never done calculus and am wondering if I would be able to handle (and excel in) a calculus-based statistics course without having done grade 12 Calculus? Are there any OVC applicants/students out there who can weigh in on this?

2. If schools require physics with a lab, does it have to be a calculus-based physics course or can it be any introductory physics course with a lab?

3. How important are calculus and physics in a DVM curriculum? Would I be at a disadvantage in vet school not having taken either of these subjects? Is either one important in the practice of veterinary medicine?

Thanks for the advice! I’m a bit stressed about this because I don’t want to waste time and energy doing unnecessary courses, but I also don’t want to put myself in a disadvantageous position by neglecting to take certain courses that are important either for my applications or for the vet school curriculum.

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[LetItSnow]

1. Not an OVC grad, but I did take undergrad stats (non-calf-based) if calc is a prerequisite I'd not ignore that. I found stats useful in vet school.

2. If they require physics to be calc-based they should say that. My physics was algebra-based. UMN seemed fine with that.

3. Not very. Stats is nice. Calc is unnecessary. Physics is useful in several places but probably not absolutely necessary. You may struggle slightly more in some areas of physiology but probably not to a meaningful degree.

 

[SocialStigma]

1. I'm an OVC grad and you'll have to take at least a 1st year calculus course in order to get into a stats course with a calc prereq if you never took it in grade 12. I did take grade 12 calc and found that you do need some knowledge of calc to take a calc-based stats course.

2. Can't comment on this since OVC didn't require physics.

3. Not very, at least in the OVC curriculum. Calc was never touched on at all and there was some physics in radiology (radiation safety, how x-rays work, etc) but it's all super simple. I took grade 11 physics and 1st year intro physics in undergrad (only because of the MCAT) and was totally fine.

 

[kittensmeow]

Thanks for the replies! Knowing there is some use of physics in physiology and radiology - slight though it may be - might help give me a little extra motivation if the going gets tough in first year physics!

 

[LetItSnow]

I do recommend taking stats. I know other people disagree with me, and their (completely correct) point is that you don't really NEED it, but I found at least a basic stats course to be super useful when it comes time to start reading journal articles.

 

[sorasea]

1. Also not an OVC applicant/student, but what everyone has said is true. Calc-based statistics (at least at my school) relied on differentiation, integration, limits, and enough series to make you wanna vomit. To be honest, I HATED math until I took calculus for the first time. Math suddenly became a tool I could use to solve real-world problems, rather than stupid busy work and just applying the same set of equations over and over again to word problems. You might find you enjoy it!

2. Physics pre-req for vet school is almost always pre-calc-based, not calc-based. I've taken both, and if you have to take calculus anyway for statistics, I'd recommend taking calc-based physics if you're feeling up to it. The vast majority of equations you use in an intro physics class require calculus to derive and understand them. In pre-calc-based physics, your prof will just hand you these equations to use for certain problems. But in calc-based physics, you'll actually understand where these equations come from, why and when you have to use xyz for a pendulum problem, etc. So much more useful for a conceptual understanding. My grades were worse in pre-calc-based physics than in calc-based physics because the latter actually helped me understand what I was doing on homework/exams.

3. Haven't started vet school yet, but I do have two cents to share. I realize calc, stats, and physics may not be immediately useful in vet school or as a veterinarian, unless you're a radiologist/radiation oncologist/etc/. But some of the residents and younger veterinarians I've worked with often talked about "old school" vets and the outdated techniques they continue to use. I personally want to be the kind of vet who stays up-to-date on the best medicine available throughout my career. I know calc-based statistics and physics will come in handy when I'm reading about new studies, new diagnostic imaging techniques, etc. and I'll be better equipped to add new practices to my own style of medicine. As much as I whined about pre-reqs in undergrad, I do appreciate having this background now.

Also: epidemiology/public health research definitely uses calculus and statistics, but that's an even rarer veterinary niche.

 

[that redhead]

To be honest, I HATED math until I took calculus for the first time. Math suddenly became a tool I could use to solve real-world problems, rather than stupid busy work and just applying the same set of equations over and over again to word problems. You might find you enjoy it!

Tangent, but I've always heard that people are either calc-minded people or algebra minded-people. I, too, hated math with a passion but algebra at least made me feel like something made sense and was being used for something, whereas calculus was just like, "Oh yes, imagine you're at the grocery store and have to find out the area under the curve of you shopping cart wheel..." Algebra is so much more real-life, to me, so I find it funny to see people say the exact opposite