Biochem Before Medical School?

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ATrim7

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I was recently accepted to medical school after earning a BA in Justice and completing a post-bac program in the basic sciences. I did not take Biochem in my post-bac program and am wondering if it would be a great help to take it at a community college in preparation for medical school.

Can any of you who did not take Biochem in undergrad give me your opinion as to what I should do? I currently work two jobs to pay down debts, but would be willing to spend money and time if it meant being significantly more prepared to be an M-1.

Thank you for you responses in advance.
 
Taking biochem will help you a whole hell of a lot in med school. It's really nice to have the fundamentals in place already before you get hit with the absurd deluge of information med school will chuck at you. Those in my class who hadn't taken biochem struggled to get their bearings at the beginning of the year. I'd suggest taking the class if you can fit it into your schedule and can afford it. You'll be really glad you've seen glycolysis/gluconeogenesis and the TCA cycle before, believe me.
 
ATrim7 said:
I was recently accepted to medical school after earning a BA in Justice and completing a post-bac program in the basic sciences. I did not take Biochem in my post-bac program and am wondering if it would be a great help to take it at a community college in preparation for medical school.

Can any of you who did not take Biochem in undergrad give me your opinion as to what I should do? I currently work two jobs to pay down debts, but would be willing to spend money and time if it meant being significantly more prepared to be an M-1.

Thank you for you responses in advance.
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You are far better off paying off your debts than attempting to take classes to "prepare" for medical school. There isn't much that a community college course is going to do to help with medical school biochem. Get your expenses undercontrol and save as much money as you can. If you have been accepted into medical school, you can more than tackle the coursework. All four of the folks who failed biochem in my class had taken it as an undergrad.
 
njbmd said:
You are far better off paying off your debts than attempting to take classes to "prepare" for medical school. There isn't much that a community college course is going to do to help with medical school biochem. Get your expenses undercontrol and save as much money as you can. If you have been accepted into medical school, you can more than tackle the coursework. All four of the folks who failed biochem in my class had taken it as an undergrad.
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They probably failed b/c they didn't study, thinking they already knew it all. I took biochem during undergrad, and it's been a big help. Not that I don't need to study now, but it's nice to have had prior exposure to the material. Then again, it was a 500-level course taught by the same professors who taught the med students there biochemistry.

I doubt a community college course is gonna do that much for you (maybe I'm wrong?), my advice would be to spend that money on beer and forget about school for the next ten months.
 
Half the people around here say taking biochem in college is a good idea, half the people say its a waste. WHAT DO YOU DO!?!?!
 
ATrim7 said:
I was recently accepted to medical school after earning a BA in Justice and completing a post-bac program in the basic sciences. I did not take Biochem in my post-bac program and am wondering if it would be a great help to take it at a community college in preparation for medical school.

Can any of you who did not take Biochem in undergrad give me your opinion as to what I should do? I currently work two jobs to pay down debts, but would be willing to spend money and time if it meant being significantly more prepared to be an M-1.

Thank you for you responses in advance.
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You essentially need to weigh money vs. being a little more prepared for biochem in medical school. I didn't take biochem in undergrad and I feel perfectly comfortable getting ready for our second test. I know a biochem class around here costs about $3k, so if spending that much is ok with you and you feel you need the extra leg up, then go ahead. Otherwise I would say no, save the money, work to pay off past debts and just be ready to work really hard in med school when it rolls around.
 
engineeredout said:
Half the people around here say taking biochem in college is a good idea, half the people say its a waste. WHAT DO YOU DO!?!?!
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You will note that the half the people who say it's a good idea are usually the ones who took it, and the ones who think it's a waste often are the ones who didn't. I think people like to think what they did was the right move. But honestly, unless your school requires it, you can do fine without it.

In my experience there wasn't a strong correlation between who took it and who did well. There were members of each group (took it and didn't) in each half of the class. I'm pretty sure some of the top students in the course never had it before and some of the folks scraping the bottom of the curve did, but thought they remembered more than they actually did and coasted a bit too much.

The pace of med school courses tends to mean that any college version is going to be surpassed within the first couple of weeks, so any advantage is very short lived. Not to mention that many college courses aren't all that good, and many people forget everything they learned in the long gap between when you take the course in college and when you actually get to it in med school.

Med school teaches you all you need to know, and then some. If it's not a mandatory prereq, they are going to assume folks haven't taken it and choose a starting point accordingly. You may have to spend a few extra hours getting up to speed, but not enough to have any impact, and the way med school studying works, it just means you are going to have to go through the material 6 times instead of 5 for the first test or so. no big deal. you will live inside a book before the exam either way.
 
If your basic science prereqs were rigorous, and you feel like you didn't have to spend every night studying to get an A in o-chem/bio, it's a waste of time/money.
 
Okay well, I DID take biochem before med school, and I would say that it is not worth it. The reasons have been pretty much covered by njbmd and law2doc. Undergrad biochem will NOT cover the same materials in the same depth that med school does. In med school, although in the first month or so you may think you've heard it all before, soon after, it will take off and leave you in the dust if you keep thinking that way. So, bottom line is - save your money, and enjoy your free time while you have it.
 
Here in the Netherlands about 5 to 10 per cent take biochemistry before Medical School, usually when they're not accepted to MS. When accepted the difference between biochem students and regular MS is usually in favour of non-biochem students, since they're usually better students all in all.
 
Orthodoc40 said:
Okay well, I DID take biochem before med school, and I would say that it is not worth it. The reasons have been pretty much covered by njbmd and law2doc. Undergrad biochem will NOT cover the same materials in the same depth that med school does. In med school, although in the first month or so you may think you've heard it all before, soon after, it will take off and leave you in the dust if you keep thinking that way. So, bottom line is - save your money, and enjoy your free time while you have it.
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I appreciate everyone's responses - all have been very helpful.
 
Hey~
If you have had zero biochem, I would suggest taking it. Yes, and undergrad course is not going to be the same as taking biochem in medical school, but at least you will get an orientation to the science, review the basic concepts, and an opportunity to evaluate your study skills in that particular subject. The other option is to get your biochem book early (lipponcotts is good), if you feel like you can self-teach the topics.

Really it all depends on your strength in the subject. Continuing work may make you more money now, but if you fail biochem in medical school then you- your wasting your money in the long run.


my 2 cents
 
There will ALWAYS be a certain students who take a good amount of medical basic science courses before med school (some keep this secret!) To be competitive with them Id say take it!!

Otherwise if you want to chill , or "kick back" (as said in California) before med school dont take it....

Perhaps you have a photographic memory...😴

Addendum--A community college Biochem course may not have enough "meat" in it
 
ATrim7 said:
I was recently accepted to medical school after earning a BA in Justice and completing a post-bac program in the basic sciences. I did not take Biochem in my post-bac program and am wondering if it would be a great help to take it at a community college in preparation for medical school.

Can any of you who did not take Biochem in undergrad give me your opinion as to what I should do? I currently work two jobs to pay down debts, but would be willing to spend money and time if it meant being significantly more prepared to be an M-1.

Thank you for you responses in advance.
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Enter medical school with absolutely the least amount of debt possible. If you're holding down two jobs now, you'll be time conscious enough to put in the work for med school biochem. Looking back on M1, I don't think having biochem in college made much of a difference.
 
You have to decide money vs. biochem. But you'll be in so much debt anyways a few thousand won't make too big of a difference.

I don't know what biochems everyone else took as an undergrad but mine was very tough. It made med school's biochem look like a joke. Biochem's science doesn't change from undergrad to grad school. Only the depth of which some profs choose to cover it.

My suggestion is to take biochem. It will make life easier even if it is a brief overview and who cares about money.
 
PeaceKeeper said:
You have to decide money vs. biochem. But you'll be in so much debt anyways a few thousand won't make too big of a difference.

I don't know what biochems everyone else took as an undergrad but mine was very tough. It made med school's biochem look like a joke. Biochem's science doesn't change from undergrad to grad school. Only the depth of which some profs choose to cover it.

My suggestion is to take biochem. It will make life easier even if it is a brief overview and who cares about money.
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I realize this guy/gal's been banned, but I disagree with this statement. Because you'll be working less and paying to take a class, this could be a decision with a few thousand dollars riding on it. If someone came up to you and offered you $3,000 cash, would you turn it down? Of course not. So why add $3,000 to your debt if you don't have to? This is an out of sight, out of mind mentality that creates bigger debts than people can afford. As well, $3,000 bucks in debt at the start of school is $6,000-9,000 by the time it's paid off.
 
If you really want to learn Biochemistry, I would suggest buying Lippencott's Illustrated Reviews: Biochemistry (or a comparable book) and going through it. It would teach you what you need to know for $10-$50 (depending on edition) rather than $3000+.
 
People need to learn how to use the search function. There's at least 2 dozen threads on this topic in allo alone, let alone pre-allo
 
mjl1717 said:
There will ALWAYS be a certain students who take a good amount of medical basic science courses before med school (some keep this secret!) To be competitive with them Id say take it!!
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True! We have about 20% of students in our class that did M.S. in Medical or Clinical Science or did SMP at Drexel or whatever. They hardly study and do better than 80% of students that study like crazy.
I suggest taking biochem or anatomy at one of the reputable institutions like John's Hopkins! Yes, John's Hopkins, haha
 
And Im in a good mood..
Actually some take the basic sciences before med school, often some of THESE basic sciences are taken more then once.. (this is a secret too. )

And these could be the people who are easy going, de-stressed, tell you its a piece of cake and dont sweat as much..😴
 
mjl1717 said:
And Im in a good mood..
Actually some take the basic sciences before med school, often some of THESE basic sciences are taken more then once.. (this is a secret too. )

And these could be the people who are easy going, de-stressed, tell you its a piece of cake and dont sweat as much..😴
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Forget about other people. Some people are stressed, some people are laid back, but you can't guess anyone's grades based on their attitude. Don't get sucked in to the drama. Especially forget about people who are taking biochem for the 3rd time in med school. I don't know if they really exist, and I certainly don't want to interact with them if they do.

You're going to have many courses. Why spend so much effort on this one? It's no better or worse than other courses. Take off the kiddie wheels and just enjoy the ride.
 
is there any advantage over buying Lipincott's Biochem book 4th Edition (2007) versus the 2nd Edition (1994). Has much been changed between these editions? The reason I ask is bc the 2nd Edition is dirt cheap and I'd rather get that than the 4th if they aren't all that different.
 
I used the 2nd edition, and it went just fine. The 4th edition is definitely a bit more refined, though, and has some nice color images. Either one will work, but I'd go for the 4th edition if you can find a reasonably cheap used one.
 
MilkmanAl said:
I used the 2nd edition, and it went just fine. The 4th edition is definitely a bit more refined, though, and has some nice color images. Either one will work, but I'd go for the 4th edition if you can find a reasonably cheap used one.
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thanks =)
 
I imagine there's a lot of overlap between biochemistry and other pre-req coursework, and that's where the disagreements between whether to take it or not revolve around. Those who familiarized themselves with the principles of biochem more intimately during their general bio courses (largely dependent on how close one was paying attention, and the disposition of the professor) may feel biochemistry is more elective. From what I've gathered, medical school biochemistry will take one places one's never been in all liklihood, so it's best to approach it with a large dose of humility in any event.
 
ATrim7 said:
I was recently accepted to medical school after earning a BA in Justice and completing a post-bac program in the basic sciences. I did not take Biochem in my post-bac program and am wondering if it would be a great help to take it at a community college in preparation for medical school.

Can any of you who did not take Biochem in undergrad give me your opinion as to what I should do? I currently work two jobs to pay down debts, but would be willing to spend money and time if it meant being significantly more prepared to be an M-1.

Thank you for you responses in advance.
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Nothing prepares you for medschool. In fact, if you finish medschool and decide to do it over again, you will still have a rough time. So just relax and prepare yourself mentally. It will take you exactly 2 days to forget the details in that nice biochem chart you memorized, and you will still have to do it over again. Not to mention you might actually get too confident that you already know the stuff only to get smacked on the exam. I have seen biochem majors barely pass biochem in medschool, and I have seen music majors ace biochem in medschool. Key to success is hardwork and organization. Read njbmd's advise above.
 
ATrim7 said:
I was recently accepted to medical school after earning a BA in Justice and completing a post-bac program in the basic sciences. I did not take Biochem in my post-bac program and am wondering if it would be a great help to take it at a community college in preparation for medical school.

Can any of you who did not take Biochem in undergrad give me your opinion as to what I should do? I currently work two jobs to pay down debts, but would be willing to spend money and time if it meant being significantly more prepared to be an M-1.

Thank you for you responses in advance.
Click to expand...

taking biochem makes a difference in the ease of taking medical biochemistry. My test that covered biochem was a full letter grade higher than the one that covered mostly genetics and molecular biology. I took biochem in undergrad but not genetics or molecular bio. It just helps. Still, you can pass the class if you just study the way you did for all the other exams, but you should expect to see peers that have taken biochem in undergrad to perform better on the exams and on those questions of the USMLE Step 1 exam.

I did take biochem, so you weren't addressing me, but I advise you to take it anyways. You're going to be in a lot of debt, so what is a couple of extra $$ if it means performing better on USMLE step 1?
 
i heard they might get rid of Step 1 from 2011 on? Can anyone verify this rumor?
 
Gabujabu said:
If you really want to learn Biochemistry, I would suggest buying Lippencott's Illustrated Reviews: Biochemistry (or a comparable book) and going through it. It would teach you what you need to know for $10-$50 (depending on edition) rather than $3000+.
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I was just about to post this. 👍 I got this helpful hint from a brilliant surgeon. 😉
 
GoLakers310 said:
i heard they might get rid of Step 1 from 2011 on? Can anyone verify this rumor?
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That only means they probably have the "sledge hammer" waiting for you..

[I would only cross that bridge if I came to it..And not in anyway expect a rose garden or home made cake and ice cream..

Also, its mature to anticipate, but as L2D has stated--be concerned what is on your own plate! 😴
 
i heard they might get rid of Step 1 from 2011 on? Can anyone verify this rumor?
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Way I heard it was that they were combining Step 1 and 2. Is this one of those routine rumors to have fun with pre-meds?
 
To be honest, my undergrad biochem was more rigorous than my med school biochem. I think it would be overkill. Instead focus more on the practical things before starting med school: reducing debt, enjoying yourself, tying up loose ends.
 
I was genuinely impressed by Undergrad biochem's ability to both be much harder than the medical school variety while simultanously being completely useless in terms of helping me pass the medical school biochem. Other than having memorized the amino acids and the Krebbs cycle there just wasn't a lot of overlap.

OP, you should be spending your time now hording money and sanity. Which one is the priority is up to you, but either work or relax. The only possible exception to this rule is if your medical school lets you take one of your first semester courses the summer before schools starts, or if you're planning on doing a dual MD/MPH and want to take some of the classes now to get it out of the way. If the class doesn't actually lighten your cirriculum, rather than just 'preparing you', don't bother.
 
To the OP: I was a humanities major, and I don't think that prepared my well for courses as far as content, but I was used to reading lots and lots, and that has helped. Agree w/ above -students who walked in w/ a masters, post-bacc, etc seem to get away w/ much less study time (but seem and do are different).

If you are not planning on working during med school, and you don't mind studying lots in med school, I see NO reason for taking any coursework other than the basic pre-reqs, unless it is for your own peace of mind. Doing what you need to do to feel comfortable is what you need to do. If you'll worry more about $$, take care of that, if it's your personal life, do that, if it's academics, do that. You can't feed every fire : )
 
I also took biochem in college, as well as a capstone course devoted entirely to protein folding. Back then I thought that it was a tough course, until I got here and we literally covered ALL of the material between those two courses in about 6 lectures. That being said, I think there is an advantage of getting used to the terminology and basic principles before medical school. It allows you to spend time on the details, which make up most of the tests here anyways.
 
Thank you for all of these insightful responses. This thread has helped me plan to be the most prepared, 28 year old, poor, medical student I can be. Thanks to all future respodents as well.
 
I'll also chime in to say that med school biochem was pretty different than undergrad biochem. Undergrad was just out-and-out "memorize these five cycles and draw them on these pieces of paper as your final exam." Med school was like "ok you don't really need to memorize the steps so much as understand what's going on. Oh and what does this enzyme do?"

I guess it's easy to say that you don't need undergrad biochem really, but it definitely wouldn't hurt. But it's not really necessary. Just realize that if you don't take it, probably everyone else in your class will have taken it.
 
I know everyone says not to 'study' before medical school, but I saw Lippincott's Biochem review 3rd edition and bought it on half.com for just 6 dollars! So I just cracked it open, not trying to really learn anything, but I haven't really taken a full course load since last spring and only have 3 cred to graduate in spring (art history), so I at least am using it just to get back in the groove of studying science again. If I come away knowing the structures of the 20 essential amino acids I'll feel like I knew something I didn't know so oh well.
 
ATrim7 said:
I was recently accepted to medical school after earning a BA in Justice and completing a post-bac program in the basic sciences. I did not take Biochem in my post-bac program and am wondering if it would be a great help to take it at a community college in preparation for medical school.

Can any of you who did not take Biochem in undergrad give me your opinion as to what I should do? I currently work two jobs to pay down debts, but would be willing to spend money and time if it meant being significantly more prepared to be an M-1.

Thank you for you responses in advance.
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I'll be the guy who took biochem in undergrad and thought it was a complete waste of time for medical school. It could have been that the focus of the class was a lot different the undergrad version. For instance we did a lot of memorizing structures and pathways and a lot less of looking at the whole-body nutrition/energy state was to determine which pathways would be used/unused in each case as we did in medical school. All-in-all it probably depends on how good of a class your undergrad biochem class is... I personallly think I would have gotten a much bigger benefit had I taken something like physiology prior to medical school, but that wasn't part of my school's requirements and I didn't have the time/money to take too many extra classes. I'd probably stray away from taking biochem in your case since its probably not going to add a lot your situation
 
ATrim7 said:
I was recently accepted to medical school after earning a BA in Justice and completing a post-bac program in the basic sciences. I did not take Biochem in my post-bac program and am wondering if it would be a great help to take it at a community college in preparation for medical school.

Can any of you who did not take Biochem in undergrad give me your opinion as to what I should do? I currently work two jobs to pay down debts, but would be willing to spend money and time if it meant being significantly more prepared to be an M-1.

Thank you for you responses in advance.
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I thought it was helpful for the MCAT, and yep - if I hadn't had it prior to medicine I would have had to study Lippincott's a hell of a lot harder during first year of medical school.
 
If you had a choice, one semester of biochem vs. one semester of microbiology before med school, which would be better to take?
 
I was in a similar situation and took biochem during undergrad for fun. Looking back I would not do the same. For starters biochem is 1 block of ~20. A stronger foundation in biochem will most likely only help you in 1 class...biochem. If you are going to take a class pre-med school I would suggest anatomy. Biochemistry is relatively conceptual and it doesn't take a lot of time to understand principles. Anatomy is brute force memorization that is time consuming...
 
I took biochem before starting and I still think it's a waste of time. The reason people do well in med school are because they study for those grades as in put in the time. In reality you can substitute any other upper level science subject for biochem and the response will most likely be the same.

Most med students will agree that the concepts in medicine are not really that challenging - the volume is. Now is it helpful to be familiar with the subject - sure. Will it give you a massive advantage, probably not. That 3-6 hour class you'll take messing up your entire summer, will not give you as high of a yield as you're expecting had you just relaxed and started med school with a fresh mind ready to drink from a fire hose.
 
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