AP Credit - retake classes?

[DrHouse579]

I already searched this topic and found that the general consensus is that med schools generally want courses taken in college to fulfill reqs; however, I just wanted a few more opinions since my premed advisors said the opposite. He said that med schools do take AP credit and that I will only have to finish the series for the prereq to be fulfilled. I have AP credit that lets me skip the first course in 3-part series for chem, physics, and biology, so I am in a pretty weird position. Any input would be appreciated. Thanks!

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[Catalystik]

Many med schools accepty AP credit. Just avoid the ones that don't.

Schools not accepting AP credit: http://www.colorado.edu/aac/noapib.htmNational

 

[DrHouse579]

Thanks for the link. I am a Cali resident so a good number of those schools on that DOES NOT ACCEPT AP list are schools I will definitely be applying to. So does this mean that I essentially should disregard my AP credit (for the 3 prereq sciences) and take all the series from the beginning? Calculus is really the only series I would not want to start over.

 

[Catalystik]

Before taking drastic action, confirm that each school's policy has not changed. That resource cited has been around for awhile. But if confirmed, then yes, you'll need to start from scratch.

 

[Econ2MD]

Most schools I researched (all Midwest) stated specifically to NOT retake courses you received AP credit in. Instead, you should take additional upper level science courses in the subject to meet the prerequisite.

 

[DrHouse579]

OK, so I just spoke to a premed ASSISTANT advisor(I will talk to my premed advisor on monday) and she told me that retaking courses you have AP credit for can be seen as a negative since it can be inferred that you simply wanted an easy A. I'm really confused at this point since I'm getting conflicting opinions from all directions. For Math, I decided I would start the 2nd course in the series and then finish the year with some kind of stats; same for biology as well. However, physics is the class that I'm really unsure about since I don't think I have a good enough grasp of the material but if I take the series from the start med schools might think I'm weaseling out of some upper-division physics course. Also, Cat, can you tell me if I have to take biochem? The assistant said something about it but I forgot. Thanks for the responses guys!

 

[chrisoc13]

OK, so I just spoke to a premed ASSISTANT advisor(I will talk to my premed advisor on monday) and she told me that retaking courses you have AP credit for can be seen as a negative since it can be inferred that you simply wanted an easy A. I'm really confused at this point since I'm getting conflicting opinions from all directions. For Math, I decided I would start the 2nd course in the series and then finish the year with some kind of stats; same for biology as well. However, physics is the class that I'm really unsure about since I don't think I have a good enough grasp of the material but if I take the series from the start med schools might think I'm weaseling out of some upper-division physics course. Also, Cat, can you tell me if I have to take biochem? The assistant said something about it but I forgot. Thanks for the responses guys!

If you feel like you don't grasp the topics retake it. If a med school asks about it (which I highly doubt they will) simply say you had AP credit but felt that did not prepare you enough for medical school so you took the class to understand the material. Honestly I think your assistant adviser is overplaying it. I highly doubt most schools will think much of it. But many schools I applied to would not take AP credits.

Biochem- some schools require, some don't. Depends on the school. For instance I know Ohio State requires it. A couple of others I applied to also require it. But not all. Check with individual schools for what they require.

 

[Catalystik]

It looks like only two schools in California don't require or recommend Biochem (UCLA and UCSF). Required at Irvine and USC.