I heave read numerous books about gaining acceptance into medical school. I however have not seen one that answers the question that I have that pertains to my unique situation. My question is, will taking lower level classes affect my acceptance into medical school? Say for instance taking lower level math and into to biology and chemistry so that an gain a basic understanding. I am terrified I won't stand a chance getting into med school because of the amount of years it has been since my last attending school as well as being in the process of a divorce, which means having to work full time to pay my child support. This means only being able to go to school part time. This also severly affects where I can attend medical school. Mainly IU is my only shot. Any one know the answer?
Question about lower level classes
- Thread starter Rustin
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So what you're asking is if it will be ok if you take the baby-version of the course before you take the real thing?
Yeah that is what I mean. I am afraid though that this will drag out my education which I would rather be done in 5 years than say 8 which I know will be a definite damper on my chances. I just don't want to dive in head first and be foolish is all.
Amy B
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While it may take more time, the upper level classes can enhance your chances of getting in. People are accepted with the bare bones minimum but I wouldn't recommend it if your science credits are old and you have no upper level credits.
Start taking them one at a time and see how you do. Remember med school material isn't hard, but it is the volume of material that makes it hard. Adcoms want to make sure you can handle the huge volume of material being thrown at you all at once.
Do your self a favor and take some of the upper level courses. How about Physiology, cellular biology, genetics, micro, biochem, etc.... Physiology and cell bio are a huge help on the MCAT.
Have you taken the MCAT yet? You will need the correct classes to give you the correct amount of depth of knowledge. While intro to bio may have enough info, intro to chem won't because you have to go through organic and most schools make you take general chem I and II as prerequists to organic. I would be worried about taking the MCAT with having only taken the very easiest lowest level science courses my school offered.
Start slow. It is a marathon and not a sprint. Do your self a favor and do it right from the begining or you may regret it and it is harder to fix things once you screw up.
Good luck.
Start taking them one at a time and see how you do. Remember med school material isn't hard, but it is the volume of material that makes it hard. Adcoms want to make sure you can handle the huge volume of material being thrown at you all at once.
Do your self a favor and take some of the upper level courses. How about Physiology, cellular biology, genetics, micro, biochem, etc.... Physiology and cell bio are a huge help on the MCAT.
Have you taken the MCAT yet? You will need the correct classes to give you the correct amount of depth of knowledge. While intro to bio may have enough info, intro to chem won't because you have to go through organic and most schools make you take general chem I and II as prerequists to organic. I would be worried about taking the MCAT with having only taken the very easiest lowest level science courses my school offered.
Start slow. It is a marathon and not a sprint. Do your self a favor and do it right from the begining or you may regret it and it is harder to fix things once you screw up.
Good luck.
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I agree with Amy..although everyone always says oh you do not have to take upper level to get in..let me tell you it *will* help in medical school because they are hauling a$$ and if it IS familiar it will help...just my honest opinion.
Amy B
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jlee9531 said:
I wish it was recent. It was actually taken 5 years ago. It is the Yaquina Lighthouse on the Oregon coast. One of my favorite places!!!!
To tell the truth i was debating about taking the lowest level math course and working my way up. As well as taking intro chem and biology in order to get an understanding. I didn't want to sound like a ***** and just come out and say it. Won't using these classes as stepping stones lessen my chances of getting in? The premed at IU seems to think so. She says the school will look at how long it has taken me to finish my degree and weigh that heavily against me saying that since I haven't been able to go full time, then there is no way i could handle going full time at med school. Right now it just isn't possible for me to go full time.
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Take the intro classes if you feel like you need them. It won't look bad on your app.
However, I do feel like Bio1, bio2, and both of the gchem courses are easily done without an intro course. Math on the other hand is another story, my advice is to take an algebra course followed by trig. Without a solid math background chemistry will be a bit of a pain since you will be so distracted by the math you might not be able to see some of the concepts.
However, I do feel like Bio1, bio2, and both of the gchem courses are easily done without an intro course. Math on the other hand is another story, my advice is to take an algebra course followed by trig. Without a solid math background chemistry will be a bit of a pain since you will be so distracted by the math you might not be able to see some of the concepts.
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I'm going to move this to the non-trad forum. You should continue to get good input there. 
Well I started off with a few classes that didn't even count toward my degree because I had been out of school for 12 years and felt I needed dome high school level refreshers for instance I started with a high school level algebra class and worked my way up. I also started bio and chem with survey courses then I took the intro courses. I worked my way up into graduate level courses before my four years of undergrad were up and I am starting medical school on Aug 30th. In all the interviews I had not one person asked why I started with such low level classes.
So my advice is to start where you feel comfortable and do well as you climb the ladder to upper level courses and don't worry you will be fine!!!
So my advice is to start where you feel comfortable and do well as you climb the ladder to upper level courses and don't worry you will be fine!!!
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Hey, Rustin,
I am in the process of taking the prerequisites (also at IU), and I had a lot of the same concerns about what I should do as a refresher before jumping in.
I had already taken the first general chem class (albeit 7 years ago), so I knew I would have to take it again if I wanted to survive the second general chem. But, it had been so long for me that I decided that I would probably need a refresher to general chem I, so I took the intro class and audited it (not for credit, also much cheaper), while I worked full-time. While I felt kind of silly going back before a class I already had, I think it helped me a lot, especially since I didn't remember a THING from chemistry going into the intro class. (I heard the worst at IU is chemistry; as for biology and physics, I'm just jumping right in!)
In my opinion (disclaimer: I have not applied to med school yet), I think it's fine to take the introductory courses if it will help you to do well in the prereqs and the MCAT, since that's what really counts. It's just a means to an end, the end being good grades in your prereq classes, high overall GPA and a great MCAT score.
Good luck!
I am in the process of taking the prerequisites (also at IU), and I had a lot of the same concerns about what I should do as a refresher before jumping in.
I had already taken the first general chem class (albeit 7 years ago), so I knew I would have to take it again if I wanted to survive the second general chem. But, it had been so long for me that I decided that I would probably need a refresher to general chem I, so I took the intro class and audited it (not for credit, also much cheaper), while I worked full-time. While I felt kind of silly going back before a class I already had, I think it helped me a lot, especially since I didn't remember a THING from chemistry going into the intro class. (I heard the worst at IU is chemistry; as for biology and physics, I'm just jumping right in!)
In my opinion (disclaimer: I have not applied to med school yet), I think it's fine to take the introductory courses if it will help you to do well in the prereqs and the MCAT, since that's what really counts. It's just a means to an end, the end being good grades in your prereq classes, high overall GPA and a great MCAT score.
Good luck!
