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[deleted1123341]

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[Goro]

Only you can answer this question.

 

[deleted1136042]

Difficulty depends on the school and the professor teaching generally. BA vs. BS does not matter imo as my UG (a T20) only offers a Biology BA, and we feed to top medical schools every year.

 

[karaya]

MCAT study is roughly equivalent to 6 semester units. From personal experience--it's more work than a single class. I wouldn't recommend doing that to yourself at the same time as 20 credits. Just my opinion.

 

[EdgeTrimmer]

BA vs BS and major doesn’t matter at all, only GPA & MCAT. My kid got BA in biochem from T20 with multiple T5 As and with no gap year.

 

[chilly_md]

20 credits is pushing it, especially with 3 lab components. I can't see you working or studying optimally for the MCAT at that time (there are exceptions, but it is not ideal).

 

[GoSpursGo]

I will be more blunt--this plan is foolish and should not be attempted. You're going to crash and burn on both your GPA and your MCAT. There is frankly never a good reason, IMO, to take more than 17-18 credits, and to try and do the MCAT at the same time is more likely to be self-destructive.

Take the BA, get rid of classes that you don't need, protect your GPA, and make sure you're ready for the MCAT. Everything else is just noise and a distraction from what you need to be focused on.

 

[chssoccer7]

I agree with @GoSpursGo. I took 17 credits almost every semester and got a 4.0. I took 13 credits my MCAT semester and still struggled, lost my 4.0. Outside of that, my relationship with my fiancee struggled as I was operating at high stress for the entire semester as there was always something that needed to be done. Trying to do 17+ credits, EC's, and the MCAT all in one semester is a recipe for doing poorly on at least one if not all of them, even if you're the best student of all time. Just take a regular semester.

 

[sjLando]

3 sciences with lab is generally the rule (12 credits) + maybe a fluff easy class.

People who pull off semesters like that or work full time + taking full classes and do well are the exception. You see a higher rate of it in these communities because some of the best students in the world are pursuing medicine.

God forbid you get sick a week, or have to visit someone in the hospital, or literally any one of a thousand life conditions come up. There's no small amount of luck also involved in this type of thing, even for super students.

You are planning to mcat on top of it? What are you thinking? If you have to ask us if it's too much, then it's too much.

You are already planning to take a gap year, would advise you to take your gap year prior and use it to spread out your classes and master the MCAT.

To answer your initial question, I would rate 10/10 for both, because I won't entertain putting numbers higher than 10, because once you reach insanity the increasing scale of it doesn't matter

 

[GoSpursGo]

Thanks for the insight. Do you think a BS in Bio holds any more merit than a BA when it comes to admission committees at medical school. I always hear your major doesn't matter, but I feel there has to be some validity to the idea that a BS is viewed more favorably in a prospective medical student. Maybe there is some validity, but is it essentially a non-issue?

No validity. Non issue

 

[GoSpursGo]

I'm sorry, what in the world are you guys talking about? @oldbearprofessor @MilkManAI

Who are you referring to?

It’s my signature. Not related to your post. The only part related to you is that the BS vs BA doesn’t matter

 

[gyngyn]

Do you have any thoughts on how a BS vs BA in Biology is perceived by medical schools?

Nobody cares.

 

[eigen]

No one cares about the BS/BA distinction, but I can't convince many of my students. So then they push themselves into a BS and end up a worse applicant overall with significantly more stress.

The thing to remember is that everything you do has a cost. Doing a BS and taking more intensive electives comes at the cost of other things you could be taking / other things you could be doing with that time.

A heavier course schedule means less time for clinical experience and volunteer work and MCAT prep.

No decision is zero sum, and you always have to look at what you're saying "no" to doing as well as what you'll be gaining from the experience.

The temptation is to think you can power through and do it all. But that comes at the cost of health, sanity, and performance in all of those areas. The number of students I see doing too much, phoning in their work and slowly destroying relationships with people that they need to write letters of recommendation is significant as well.

 

[When the Moon Forgot]

I got a BA in biology as my college only offers BA. Nobody cares about BA vs BS.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

You get no bonus points or sympathy for overloading your course schedule. There is no special bonus for getting a BSc over a BS or a AB or a BA or a BSN. Heck you could get a PBK or an OBE, and it won't matter.

 

[LizzyM]

IMHO the best time to take the MCAT is when you are as ready as you'll ever be.

In terms of a "first in line" application cycle, the latest one should take the MCAT is April, about 6 -8 weeks before the application goes in. Some very successful applicants prepare intensely over winter break and take in January then spend the next 4-5 month on the AMCAS application prompts and the secondaries, anticipating that the prompts won't change much from the previous year.

 

[chilly_md]

Why do you think this is? I'm curious, because I feel like more upper-level courses must hold some merit, but apparently at least in terms of medical school admissions, it really doesn't.

You just need to do well in the pre-reqs. If you did not, then taking more upper-division science courses is needed. And is there really a standard for the difference between a BA, AB, BS or BSc where you can even say one has more upper-level courses? The individual colleges make their own decisions for that and there are too many to keep track of.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Why do you think this is? I'm curious, because I feel like more upper-level courses must hold some merit, but apparently at least in terms of medical school admissions, it really doesn't.

My comments focus on the overloading. I would always encourage taking upper-level biomedical science courses. Just don't put yourself under so much stress that you can't manage your time and courses properly.