Are 3 Sciences in 1 semester too much?

[knarf135]

I am going to the University of Oklahoma and want to finish my pre-pharmacy classes in 3 years but will have to take the PCAT at the end of the second year. So would it be hard to take Organic Chemistry II and lab (5 hours), Fundamentals of Microbiology and lab (5 hours) and Human Physiology and lab (4 hours) my second semester of my sophomore year? Do those labs make it seem like more credit hours and work than they really are because they last 4 hours but only count for 2? Also is 6 weeks enough time to study for the PCAT?

Thanks.

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[Jbuprepharm]

I am going to the University of Oklahoma and want to finish my pre-pharmacy classes in 3 years but will have to take the PCAT at the end of the second year. So would it be hard to take Organic Chemistry II and lab (5 hours), Fundamentals of Microbiology and lab (5 hours) and Human Physiology and lab (4 hours) my second semester of my sophomore year? Do those labs make it seem like more credit hours and work than they really are because they last 4 hours but only count for 2? Also is 6 weeks enough time to study for the PCAT?

Thanks.

I studied about 2 months for the PCAT and got a 93 overall.
Also, I often took 3 sciences in the same semester, as long as you are only taking one gen ed along with it you should be fine. Good luck

 

[dgroulx]

I am going to the University of Oklahoma and want to finish my pre-pharmacy classes in 3 years but will have to take the PCAT at the end of the second year. So would it be hard to take Organic Chemistry II and lab (5 hours), Fundamentals of Microbiology and lab (5 hours) and Human Physiology and lab (4 hours) my second semester of my sophomore year? Do those labs make it seem like more credit hours and work than they really are because they last 4 hours but only count for 2? Also is 6 weeks enough time to study for the PCAT?

Thanks.

No, it's not too much. I took Organic II, Physics II, Micro, Biochem, and Anatomy/Physiology all with labs in the same semester. It's only 20 credit hours and the work load was about the same as pharmacy school. It was good practice, actually.

I did spend a lot of time in lab, especially biochem. I took the PCAT the semester before. I only took 4 sciences that semester because I also took Calculus then. The PCAT was an easier test when I took it, but I still think 6 weeks should be sufficient.

 

[bdl1411]

I am going to the University of Oklahoma and want to finish my pre-pharmacy classes in 3 years but will have to take the PCAT at the end of the second year. So would it be hard to take Organic Chemistry II and lab (5 hours), Fundamentals of Microbiology and lab (5 hours) and Human Physiology and lab (4 hours) my second semester of my sophomore year? Do those labs make it seem like more credit hours and work than they really are because they last 4 hours but only count for 2? Also is 6 weeks enough time to study for the PCAT?

Thanks.

I go to OU as well. I took Microbiology and Organic Chemistry 2 at the same time last semester. I had Dr. Elmendorf and Dr. Soloshonok. Dr. Solo is awesome. I didn't have to do hardly any work....or studying, until the day before the exam..the exam questions are hard but open notes. Dr. Elmendorf...don't like the man. His tests are pretty difficult. The lab for Organic Chemistry 2 is pretty easy and the lab for Microbiology is incredibly easy, but it is sooo annoying spending 12 hours in lab...eats up so much of your time. The 15 or so reports in O-Chem Lab take quite a bit of time to do a good job on. I took Human Physiology with Ketchum fall of last year...not incredibly difficult, but time consuming. The lab, once a week, is relatively easy, but again, time consuming, especially with all the things you have to have prepared ahead of time and the quiz each week.

I think you are fine with any combination of the two, but I think 3 is brutal. I would take some classes in the summer so you can avoid it. The labs do make it seem like you are taking more hours.

 

[BackeyWackey]

Hi, I am going to be taking 3 science classes and a math class this coming semester. This includes Organic Chemistry I (with lab/ 5 credit hours), Anatomay and Physiology II (w/ lab/ 4 credit hours) Physics I (w/ lab/4 credit hours) and then I am taking Trigonometry (3 hours).

 

[Falokis]

Alot of Pharmacy Schools will look at your course load. The harder your load and the more 'extras' you have at the same time looks good to them. They like to see you can handle alot at the same time because of the amount of work pharmacy school takes.

 

[Hosstheboss]

I agree. I took those classes at the same time and was swimming for my college's swim team.

 

[rxlynn]

... but it is sooo annoying spending 12 hours in lab...eats up so much of your time. The 15 or so reports in O-Chem Lab take quite a bit of time to do a good job on. I took Human Physiology with Ketchum fall of last year...not incredibly difficult, but time consuming. The lab, once a week, is relatively easy, but again, time consuming, especially with all the things you have to have prepared ahead of time and the quiz each week.

This was my comment as well - I took 3 sciences that each had 3 hour labs one semester. The workload was definitely doable, but I ended up scheduling 2 of the 3 hours labs on the same day back to back. The third one was 8-11 am on Friday morning You just have to never get behind - if you do, you are screwed.

 

[DuocSi2010]

I did my undergrad at OU also and I think it all depends on WHO is your professor. My advice is DO NOT TAKE DONNA NELSON for Ochem!!! You will never learn anything and you will hate that semester! Personally, I didn't like ochem because I struggled with that class so make sure you get a good professor for ochem. For human phys, if you get R. Knapp she's very easy and super nice. Like bdl1411 said, I strongly disliked Elmendorf! He's too unorganized, idealistic, and mean. I mean 6 tests a semester?! That man was more concern about brainwashing college students with his political beliefs than teaching Micro. During our finals week he put on his office door something like I'm busy, don't ask me for help. If you fail it's because God didn't intend for you to be in the health field. He claimed he was joking but that was not funny at all. Beside he is very hard to catch for office hours during regular semester. His tests are worded very bad; lots of errors and they were unclear. There were too many questions for the alotted time. He's a new professor too. Maybe that explains why he doesn't know how OU operate. Arrghh I can go on forever about that guy. I heard Conway, I think that's his name, is good for Micro though.

For labs, generally labs are easier than lectures, especially if you get awesome TAs. Ochem lab was relatively easy for me because my TA was one of the best (he was an easy grader so I didn't have to spend that much time on my reports and still get As) but I heard horror stories from other people. I was late twice and he didn't take off any points off, but I got 10 points taken off in General Chem lab 2. He was really funny too. You get quizzes occasionally in Ochem lab also (and his quizzes were very easy). This was the most boring lab to me though. We did most of the same thing day in and day out.

I liked human phys lab a lot. I also was lucky to get a cool TA for human phys so I didn't have to put in a lot of work for it. Our daily quizzes were easy and she was really good at explaining concepts and she always went over the procedure before lab. Don't take the guy TA (I think he generally do the 6pm lab) because I heard his quizzes are tough.

Micro lab generally takes very long if you have a TA that likes to lecture, otherwise, you'll get out an hour early like me. I agree with bdl1411 that this was the easiest lab I've had.

Taking all those 3 classes at once is doable. I took 3 science classes before and it was pretty tough but it's not impossible. Just be prepared to spend a lot of time studying and try not to fall behind. Yes the adcom like to see you have a heavy load but if you didn't do well in them, it doesn't help you so do your best! I would suggest not having a side job though. If you do decide to take some in the summer, I'd suggest taking Ochem because it was the hardest class in my opinion. Don't take human phys in the summer and shortchange yourself. Besides there are a lot of human phys on the PCAT anyways. I would, however, take at least 2 science classes with lab per semester.

Sorry for the long post

 

[kiko]

I took three lab sciences in each the fall and the spring semesters this year (organic I, biology II, and physics I in the fall and organic II, microbiology, and physics II in the spring) plus one humanities class per term. In the fall, my biology class was a distance learning class so most of my labs were on my own, and as a result, I did them early in the semester. It wasn't so bad.

The spring semester was harder but doable as well. Our organic labs had a lot of preparation, but physics and microbiology didn't. All of the labs really ate into my studying time.

 

[meg]

Microbio is easy. It won't feel like a science class so you should be ok. But you'll be spending double time on OChem.

~Meg

 

[freshbeatschris]

Alot of Pharmacy Schools will look at your course load. The harder your load and the more 'extras' you have at the same time looks good to them. They like to see you can handle alot at the same time because of the amount of work pharmacy school takes.

I wonder if this is true. I spread out my pre-pharmacy coursework over 3 years, mostly for financial reasons, but it ended up that I took my science classes one or two at at time. I also went year round, including summers. That would look like a pretty light courseload to most pharmacy schools, but I got into every one that I applied to. My courseload was never mentioned at any of the interviews, either.

Chris

 

[ChemistI]

I am going to the University of Oklahoma and want to finish my pre-pharmacy classes in 3 years but will have to take the PCAT at the end of the second year. So would it be hard to take Organic Chemistry II and lab (5 hours), Fundamentals of Microbiology and lab (5 hours) and Human Physiology and lab (4 hours) my second semester of my sophomore year? Do those labs make it seem like more credit hours and work than they really are because they last 4 hours but only count for 2? Also is 6 weeks enough time to study for the PCAT?

Thanks.

if you think its too much, then it is too much no matter what anybody else tells you. take your time and get good grades. i wanted to finish quick also and took a heavy workload and got mostly b's, a few a's and c's. hindsight is always 20/20!

 

[Requiem]

I wish I could foward this to my pharmacy school where i'm taking 7 courses this semester (~22 credit hours), 5 of which are science (pharmacology, med chem, pathophys, metabolism, pharmaceutics) + a research course and something else.

If you can't take 3 science courses in a semester without certain extrenous circumstances (work full time + family or something) then there's something wrong, or you don't belong in a science field.

 

[bdl1411]

I wish I could foward this to my pharmacy school where i'm taking 7 courses this semester (~22 credit hours), 5 of which are science (pharmacology, med chem, pathophys, metabolism, pharmaceutics) + a research course and something else.

If you can't take 3 science courses in a semester without certain extrenous circumstances (work full time + family or something) then there's something wrong, or you don't belong in a science field.

You CAN do it, but whats the point? You have 3 years to finish everything up, risking a C or worse just so you can prove you can juggle a bunch of classes is not worth it. The most important thing is GPA, not workload. Once you get into pharmacy school it's totally different. You don't have to get mostly A's, so a greater course load is not as difficult.

I'm not saying it can't be done, I'm just saying why do it? Pointless stress...microbiology is barely on the pcat.

 

[Requiem]

You CAN do it, but whats the point? You have 3 years to finish everything up, risking a C or worse just so you can prove you can juggle a bunch of classes is not worth it. The most important thing is GPA, not workload. Once you get into pharmacy school it's totally different. You don't have to get mostly A's, so a greater course load is not as difficult.

I'm not saying it can't be done, I'm just saying why do it? Pointless stress...microbiology is barely on the pcat.

How do I know if the OP "CAN" do it? Isn't this thread to discuss whether or not they actually can?

You seem vehement in your attitude which suggests that you indeed took 3-4 years to finish 2 years of pre-reqs. I just disagree with this method, it seems very lackadaisical. On a personal level if I felt I wouldn't be able to attain an A average by taking more than 2-3 science courses per semester I'd question my ability, not just the short term of getting into school but rather succeeding in pharmacy school itself.

And let me tell you, as someone who is actually going through a pharmacy program: Getting an A-B average over 3 courses does NOT equal getting C's over 7 courses. If you can't get an A with 3, getting a C with 7 by simple extrapolation is very, very difficult.

Nonetheless, best of luck.

 

[PolarBear21]

3 science classes.. sure thats nothing... 3 science classes with labratory?? Thats one tough quarter. I've taken all three of your classes (minus the lab component of physio) and I just have to say its a LOT of information.. microbiology and physiology and then on top of that orgo.. is there any way you can drop one of them and take an easier science prereq?

Last spring quarter I took Plant bio /w lab (5 units), Microbiology lecture (4 units), Microbiology lab (3 units), and Interpersonal Communications (4 units)

It was only 2 labs, but I also rushed for a frat for 3/4 of the quarter and it was crazy.. good thing I learned how to manage my time from the previous quarter.

The crazy thing is next quarter for fall I am taking a upper-div Immunology class for my major, another upper div microbiology class for my major, Physiology Lab, and Geology... and its only 12 units!! .. I'm wondering if I should maybe take another class because one of the schools I'm applying to makes you explain any quarter you take under 14 units and I really don't want to look like I'm slacking.

 

[bdl1411]

How do I know if the OP "CAN" do it? Isn't this thread to discuss whether or not they actually can?

You seem vehement in your attitude which suggests that you indeed took 3-4 years to finish 2 years of pre-reqs. I just disagree with this method, it seems very lackadaisical. On a personal level if I felt I wouldn't be able to attain an A average by taking more than 2-3 science courses per semester I'd question my ability, not just the short term of getting into school but rather succeeding in pharmacy school itself.

And let me tell you, as someone who is actually going through a pharmacy program: Getting an A-B average over 3 courses does NOT equal getting C's over 7 courses. If you can't get an A with 3, getting a C with 7 by simple extrapolation is very, very difficult.

Nonetheless, best of luck.

Remove the stick that is jammed up your butt...it'll feel better.

 

[PharmMnM]

Its doable. Just tell your friends and family you wont be around.

I took G Chem, Microbio, and gen bio the first semster and made a, b,c. all with labs.

Then I took Psych, Ochem 2, Bio 2, and Physics 1 ( all with labs) and got all As and Bs.

If you think its too hard, then think about what you will be putting yourself thru in Pharm school. If you want to take it slow and make As, then by all means, don't take more than 2 science.

 

[PolarBear21]

3 science classes.. sure thats nothing... 3 science classes with labratory?? Thats one tough quarter. I've taken all three of your classes (minus the lab component of physio) and I just have to say its a LOT of information.. microbiology and physiology and then on top of that orgo.. is there any way you can drop one of them and take an easier science prereq?

Last spring quarter I took Plant bio /w lab (5 units), Microbiology lecture (4 units), Microbiology lab (3 units), and Interpersonal Communications (4 units)

It was only 2 labs, but I also rushed for a frat for 3/4 of the quarter and it was crazy.. good thing I learned how to manage my time from the previous quarter.

The crazy thing is next quarter for fall I am taking a upper-div Immunology class for my major, another upper div microbiology class for my major, Physiology Lab, and Geology... and its only 12 units!! .. I'm wondering if I should maybe take another class because one of the schools I'm applying to makes you explain any quarter you take under 14 units and I really don't want to look like I'm slacking.

Oh sorry I didn't read you were on the semester system... maybe my advice isn't that useful because I'm on the quarter system... and I would def not take Physiology with lab, Microbiology with lab, and Organic Chemistry with lab in one quarter

 

[WVUPharm2007]

I am going to the University of Oklahoma and want to finish my pre-pharmacy classes in 3 years but will have to take the PCAT at the end of the second year. So would it be hard to take Organic Chemistry II and lab (5 hours), Fundamentals of Microbiology and lab (5 hours) and Human Physiology and lab (4 hours) my second semester of my sophomore year?

It would be easier than what you get in the real thing later on at the pharmacy school you theoretically get admitted to, so I would say it's doable. I'm a complete idiot and I took Physics, Microbiology, and Organic II at the same time with three other stupid classes and I was fine. Heck, I had to work 3 or 4 days a week, too. Just organize you life really well and be efficient with your time and you'll be ok.

Do those labs make it seem like more credit hours and work than they really are because they last 4 hours but only count for 2?

Labs are easy. It mostly hands on crap and no studying. You just go there to do work and there is nothing outside of the lab to do. Of course I went to West Virginia University at Parkersburg...not exactly Harvard.

Also is 6 weeks enough time to study for the PCAT?

I didn't study at all for the thing, but the test was easier back when I took it, so don't listen to me.

 

[Chuckwalla]

I went from no science classes to taking Chem, Physics, and Bio in one semester (changed my major). It was a little overwhelming at the beginning but it turned out ok and actually I found out it was no worse than most course loads.

 

[FlippinChink]

I am going to the University of Oklahoma and want to finish my pre-pharmacy classes in 3 years but will have to take the PCAT at the end of the second year. So would it be hard to take Organic Chemistry II and lab (5 hours), Fundamentals of Microbiology and lab (5 hours) and Human Physiology and lab (4 hours) my second semester of my sophomore year? Do those labs make it seem like more credit hours and work than they really are because they last 4 hours but only count for 2? Also is 6 weeks enough time to study for the PCAT?

Thanks.

I think it really depends on the school you go to and how the professors teach. If the science classes at your school have been notoriously difficult, I recommend to take your time and not rush the science classes. For instance at my school, the physics 1 and 2 curriculum were notoriously difficult in which most students have taken it at a community college instead to get a better grade, rather than take the chance to get a C/D/F. And as some people have already said, there's no need to cram in your classes to risk getting the lower grades, because I took that risk one semester and paid the price. Don't make the same mistake.