Advice on how to DO IT..

[MexicanDr]

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Basically I will be adding a second bachelors [Bio] to my almost complete Public Health degree to raise my GPA and repair some academic mess..

I will be taking 3-4 Classes per semester, which 2 of them will most likely include lab.

I also need to work, so I will be working anywhere from 24-32 hrs a week.

My question to you guys is how have you done it?

How many classes were you taking?
Hrs working per week?
Other ECs/thigns?

My job will not allow me to study while at work, so I need advice on how you guys have done it to balance it out, do well in school and still have some time for yourself.

Thanks in advance.

 

[Dianyla]

Oh, damn. The title got me all excited, but disappointed again.

3-4 classes + labs sounds like a lot to me. 😱

What I've been doing the last 5 years:
Full-time+ work (usually 45-50 hrs/week, mentally demanding)
2 classes, can sometimes bump up to 3 or add a lab if one class is fluffy
6-8 hrs per week between two volunteer gigs


There's not much time left for myself after that. 😴

 

[TriagePreMed]

Nobody can tell you because there are too many variables. Go back to your experiences as an undergrad and try to measure from there how hard classes were for you. If all you can handle because of work is one class, do that much.

 

[phltz]

I just finished a one year postbacc, with 3 science classes with lab per semester. I was working about 10 hours a week with extremely flexible scheduling and hours. I probably could have doubled the work hours if I had cut out almost all leisure activities - reading the news, looking at web forums like this one, etc, or sacrificed sleep. I could get by with little/no sleep back in my younger days, but no more.

Your proposal sounds pretty ambitious to me, honestly. You're trying to bring up your GPA, so you need to make sure you nail all your classes. I'd recommend starting a little bit lighter than what you outline here. If it goes well, you can ramp it up. But at this point you really don't want to risk more mediocre grades.

 

[ArkansasRanger]

Oh, damn. The title got me all excited, but disappointed again.

3-4 classes + labs sounds like a lot to me. 😱

What I've been doing the last 5 years:
Full-time+ work (usually 45-50 hrs/week, mentally demanding)
2 classes, can sometimes bump up to 3 or add a lab if one class is fluffy
6-8 hrs per week between two volunteer gigs


There's not much time left for myself after that. 😴

Glad I wasn't the only one. 😉

 

[MexicanDr]

The plan for fall includes this:

Bio 1 w/lab

Chem 1 w/lab

Biology of Cancer

Trigonometry

Working like I said 24-30 hrs per week

If I find time for volunteer, then I will..

Research [3-5 hrs] per week

What do you all suggest/think?

 

[TriagePreMed]

Depends on where you take the classes and how easy/hard the reputation of the professors. If this is your first time back, maybe you should consider revising. Biology of Cancer is not a pre-med requirement. If you are taking it to pump your grade, a science class is not the way. Take a Spanish or some other foreign language since it doesn't seem inconsistent with wanting to be a doctor. I'm taking American Sign Language.

 

[gman33]

Unless you have already taken some of these classes or the school is very easy, it sounds like too much to me.

If you are trying to fix a poor gpa, you need all A's. Science classes with labs take a lot of time for most people. I'd start with 1 or 2 classes at a time and make sure you get A's. If you can do that comfortably for a semester, think about adding more courses. Too many people start with too much, do poorly, and then make it just that much more difficult to ever get into med school.

 

[wrigley09]

I've been back doing my post-bacc classes for a year now. I've taken no more than 12 hours at a time (a bio, chem and physics with all 3 labs). Even though 12 hours isn't that much, when you're taking all three of those big sciences, it's a LOT of work.

I also quit my "real" corporate job and work part time (20ish hours/week) as a server at a restaurant. Humbling? Hell yes. But smart for me. There's no way I could've handled the stress of my job on top of school. I also took a break from the restaurant job and have been living on savings for the last 3 months while I've been studying for the mcat. I also don't have a family or anything right now, so it's relatively easy to support myself. If you can afford to do something like that, where you just show up for work and then leave, and not take any work home with you, I'd recommend you do that. Otherwise I second what others said and take a lighter load at first to see how you handle it. Good luck!

 

[COMedic2Doc]

Oh, damn. The title got me all excited, but disappointed again.

3-4 classes + labs sounds like a lot to me. 😱

What I've been doing the last 5 years:
Full-time+ work (usually 45-50 hrs/week, mentally demanding)
2 classes, can sometimes bump up to 3 or add a lab if one class is fluffy
6-8 hrs per week between two volunteer gigs


There's not much time left for myself after that. 😴

Totally agree! People must be Superman or just haven't learned the hard way. I have been working 84 hours a week while serving in Iraq, and trust me school on top of it has been challenging at times. Now, I'm totally bored a lot (no more online classes through my University that I can get into) so I'll be studying for the MCAT.

I tried full-time/over-time work plus attending classes full-time (12-15 semester hours) and found myself tired, irritable and not performing like I needed to earlier in my academic career. Plan for when I get home (hopefully) is to work part-time and attend school full-time, keep my grades up, and get ready to apply. We'll see how this goes.... 🙂