Advice on pre-reqs

[PolicytoDDS]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

As someone who graduated with a degree in poli sci and has been working as a policy analyst for the past three years-what is the best pre-req to take at an accelerated pace (i.e. Summer class-one year in 3 months)? Physics, chemistry or biology?

Going back to school was a hard decision and while I haven't excelled in the sciences due to lack of focus. I have committed myself to this process but am looking for guidance on how to dive in.

 

[PolicytoDDS]

Thank you.

The pre reqs I need are a year of each of the following: bio, chem, physics, ochem, and biochem. Given that these are all challenging classes, will an admissions office look down on me for only taking 2 of the classes at a time? Given that i need chem before the latter two, I don't see how I could make it work to take them all in the same year regardless.

 

[GreenDuck12]

Just out of curiosity, why are you looking to start with an accelerated pre-req class? Will this be the first class you are taking as a post-bac or will you have had a year to adjust to being in school? If you are just starting out, I would encourage you NOT to jump right into an accelerated year long science course if you are just getting back into the swing of things. The pace of the material is incredibly quick and you will be expected to master new concepts, equations, etc in a very short amount of time. If you are looking to get a jump on things, I would start with math: college algebra, pre-calc, calc 1. A lot of general chemistry and physics (obviously) is algebra based and having strong math skills will help. As Goro likes to say, this process is a marathon, not a sprint. Many non-trad applicants sabotage their chances of getting into medical school by biting off more than they can chew. The goal is to get A's.

As someone who graduated with a degree in poli sci and has been working as a policy analyst for the past three years-what is the best pre-req to take at an accelerated pace (i.e. Summer class-one year in 3 months)? Physics, chemistry or biology?

Going back to school was a hard decision and while I haven't excelled in the sciences due to lack of focus. I have committed myself to this process but am looking for guidance on how to dive in.

 

[Gurby]

Suggest not diving into an accelerated course if you have historically not excelled in the sciences. If you must, I think Gen Chem is by far the best course to take this way.

 

[Ad2b]

What @Gurby said. There is no class for which I would suggest a non-science person take at an accelerated pace first. None.

Take a full semester of gen chem, get an A. Then take a couple more science classes and get A's. IF that works, then take an accelerated class next summer, if you want.

 

[Gurby]

What @Gurby said. There is no class for which I would suggest a non-science person take at an accelerated pace first. None.

Take a full semester of gen chem, get an A. Then take a couple more science classes and get A's. IF that works, then take an accelerated class next summer, if you want.

I tried to word my post carefully on this - I don't think it's necessarily bad for a non-science person to jump into an accelerated course. I do think it's a bad idea for someone who has a history of doing poorly in science classes but now thinks they've turned it around for whatever reason.

If you are a strong student, have enough time to dump into it (ie aren't working a lot of hours), will be willing/able to get help if you need it (hire a tutor, etc), and recognize the risks involved, I don't really see an issue. I know many people who jumped in and excelled. Then again I also know people who jumped in and did not succeed, who either withdrew or got 8 credits of C on their transcript...

 

[OGLoc23]

As someone who graduated with a degree in poli sci and has been working as a policy analyst for the past three years-what is the best pre-req to take at an accelerated pace (i.e. Summer class-one year in 3 months)? Physics, chemistry or biology?

Going back to school was a hard decision and while I haven't excelled in the sciences due to lack of focus. I have committed myself to this process but am looking for guidance on how to dive in.

More crucial than completing pre-reqs quickly is acing them. Jumping in and not doing well only puts you in a deeper hole.