Bioengineers: What courses are you listing as Science for AMCAS?

[Engin]

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I'm curious for all the bioengineers applying or especially who have already applied, what are you listing as science (biology, etc.) and what are you listing as engineering? Some are close calls, and I need the boost of my engineering courses in my science gpa. How much can we do so we dont get our application flagged? Give a list if you can.

 

[Hoberto]

I put the courses I got an A or A- in as my science and courses I got B+ or B as engineering. My application was not changed or flagged. If you put them in a classification and they don't agree with your assessment they will just change the designations. It really shouldn't hold your app up, since it's not like they will ask for more paperwork or something from you. I would just be sure that you can justify your choice should it come up in an interview. Since most eng courses are just more math, I wouldn't think this would be a problem.

 

[donks06]

Hoberto,

You even put down courses that were titled as engineering courses and got away with it?

 

[GAdoc]

Hoberto,

You even put down courses that were titled as engineering courses and got away with it?

I debated over this. My advanced Biomedical Engineering Courses (i.e. Bioinstrumentation, Advanced Bio-fluid Dynamics, Transport Phenomena) could all easily have been math or science designation. But as was mentioned, it doesn't really matter. The whole point of the varification process is that they compare your actual transcript with the courses you've listed and make changes. But one word of advice...when your AMCAS is varified and they send it back, GO THROUGH IT CAREFULLY!!! They listed an F for a course I had an A in! I had to resubmit it and everything. So check closely.

 

[Robizzle]

all my classes that were offered through Arts & Sciences i listed as science. and all my classes that were offered through the college of Engineering i listed as engineering.. i might change this soon after reading what you guys are doin tho!

 

[veenut]

I put the courses I got an A or A- in as my science and courses I got B+ or B as engineering. My application was not changed or flagged. If you put them in a classification and they don't agree with your assessment they will just change the designations. It really shouldn't hold your app up, since it's not like they will ask for more paperwork or something from you. I would just be sure that you can justify your choice should it come up in an interview. Since most eng courses are just more math, I wouldn't think this would be a problem.

I did this too, I tried to put my "A" BME classes as BCPM and my other BME classes as non-science. My AMCAS came back corrected, but I was able to appeal and get most of my BME classes counted towards the BCPM. It really didn't hold up my application too much to have to argue those course designations, I still had AMCAS finished in June sometime. So go ahead and try to inflate your BCPM gpa, just be ready to have to possibly argue some of those course designations.

 

[uvapremed]

I was wondering the same thing. I have a higher BCPM gpa when i just use pure science courses (bio, orgo, math, astronomy ). However, I have some courses that I think obviously fit into BCPM (i.e. Physiology etc.). Wondering what I should do.

 

[Hoberto]

Hoberto,

You even put down courses that were titled as engineering courses and got away with it?

Yes and I wouldn't call it "getting away" as several are mainly math/science in content.

Like Mustard said, they are going to be comparing all your classes to your official transcripts and changing your designations as they see fit, anyway. I bet it's just a quick choice in a drop-down list or something to change stuff. I can't imagine how it would hold up your app more than a minute or two.

I just wouldn't put stuff that was way outside math/science in the BPCM category since schools do see which classes were changed. If they ask about it you want to be able to justify your choices.

 

[ClosetNerd]

All the courses that said "engineering" I put down as engineering. It would be a far stretch to call them anything else. But the other engineering coures with out the engineering name in the course title that I did well in, (Tissue and biomaterial interaction, sensors and intruments, ect) I put down as science. The other courses like that I did poorly in went down as engineering.

 

[Robizzle]

Hey guys- what do you think of these changes that I just made?

Signals & Systems - MATH
Control Systems in Biomedical Engineering - BIOLOGY
Probability and Statistics - MATH (this is a BME course though!)
Eng. Physio Lab - BIOLOGY
Solid Biomechanics - BIOLOGY
Thermodynamics - BIOLOGY

I feel like these are all ENG courses but the courses definitely focus on the classifications I changed them to.

Math counts as part of the BCPM thing right? (I'm new to this, I assume M stands for Math?)

 

[ClosetNerd]

Hey guys- what do you think of these changes that I just made?

Signals & Systems - MATH
Control Systems in Biomedical Engineering - BIOLOGY
Probability and Statistics - MATH (this is a BME course though!)
Eng. Physio Lab - BIOLOGY
Solid Biomechanics - BIOLOGY
Thermodynamics - BIOLOGY

I think that calling thermo bio will be hard to sell. I like the idea about Signals and Systems though, I orginally listed mine as engineering but I think I'll change mine.

 

[Robizzle]

perhaps Thermo as chemistry? The thermo at my school was all about cell electrochemistry and chemical potentials n crap like that so i figured bio would be a good description. only a little about heat transfer, carnot engines, etc.

 

[CptCrunch]

I put Thermo down as Chemistry. I think Signals as Math might be a hard sell though.

 

[isobel]

I put Thermo down as Chemistry. I think Signals as Math might be a hard sell though.

if you guys check the course classifications in the AMCAS app help section, it puts thermo as a chem course. some other ones in there might help you too.

when i applied last year, my premed advisor heavily discouraged putting any engin courses as BCPM unless they were prereqs (like my 2 intro engin courses = intro physics). so i did that. but i know many applicants also try to shuffle them into BCPM classifications and have no problems. as long as you aren't too outlandish, it should be fine.

 

[PBandJ]

my thermo course classifies as chemistry, although it was offered in the BME department.

i'm going to put things where they make sense in terms of course material, and if AMCAS has a problem, i'll deal with it later.

 

[veenut]

i put thermo down as physics and had no problems with that

 

[Robizzle]

i'm gonna take a wild guess that Electronics doesn't count as physics? lol

 

[Zuerst]

i'm gonna take a wild guess that Electronics doesn't count as physics? lol

I think that again depends on content? When I took solid state electronics, the majority of class time was spend going over the physics behind how and why transistors work the way they do. That to me is physics albit, a more specialize area of physics. I think most of my eletrical engineering classes are a mixture of physics, math, and general science. In the end, most engineering degree are B of Science...

 

[SpinEcho13]

I took a Fundamentals of Electromagnetism and Photonics which was basically E&M physics with a ton of nasty double integrals so I'm definetly listing it as physics...

Has anyone heard of schools getting pissed if for example you have a BME thermo class but list it as engineering?

 

[shoal]

I listed all explicitly stated engineering courses as engineering.

I'd consider thermodynamics, fluid mechanics, statics, fluid dynamics, biomechanics as all engineering. These types of courses are required under degrees such as Mechanical engineering and certainly are not science or math.

However, cell physiology, human physiology, and neuroscience are obviously all biology.

Can you call circuits as math? I think not, and same with signals and systems. You are mostly dealing with electronics (I would hope anyhow).

Thats just my opinion I guess -- and nothing was changed on my app. However, as classifying as I did, hurt my BCMP significantly. If I would have classified my engineering courses into my BCMP it would have been significantly higher.

I guess its a matter of ethics.