Can you take Gen Chem, Gen Bio, OChem, and Physics in different years?

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etherealsolvent

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I really do not want to double up on sciences during undergrad because I feel like that'll hurt my GPA. So I was wondering if I could take Gen Chem my freshman year, OChem sophomore year, Gen Bio my junior, and Physics my senior year? I know that you need physics for the MCAT, but I feel like I can self-study the physics material for the MCAT as I already have a little background in physics.

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I really do not want to double up on sciences during undergrad because I feel like that'll hurt my GPA. So I was wondering if I could take Gen Chem my freshman year, OChem sophomore year, Gen Bio my junior, and Physics my senior year? I know that you need physics for the MCAT, but I feel like I can self-study the physics material for the MCAT as I already have a little background in physics.
Don't do that. It would be stupid. Finish your prereqs before you take the MCAT.

You need to finish gen chem and bio early--freshman year. They're prereqs for other courses so best to get them done ASAP. You could take ochem sophomore year and physics junior year.
 
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Well you can't take them all the same year as G chem is usually a pre-requisite for O chem. I'm not sure what your major is. If you are not a science major this would be possible if you preferred to do it this way but I don't see why you wouldn't take physics before taking the MCAT since you're going to take the class anyway. If you are a science major then Gen Bio and Gen Chem are likely prereqs for science courses sophomore year+.

Every semester I had 2 or 3 science classes (with labs), as I was a science major. It's totally doable.
 
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Not only CAN, but SHOULD.

Gen chem and gen bio can usually be taken at the same time. OChem requires you to complete gen chem first. Physics can be plugged into any year when you're ready, although it'll likely be easier if you finish gen chem first because there is some overlap in things like thermodynamics.
 
What do you think med school is?

This.

I can see not wanting to do all of them at once for GPA preservation, but you should be able to reasonably do two science classes at a time. Med school is 20+ upper level science credits at a time; not ever having had more than 3 credits worth will mean you're in for a nasty shock if accepted.
 
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You should be able to do Gen Chem and Bio in one year at the minimum

I am gonna sound like my father but these kids today. My first year of college was Gen Chem, Gen Bio, and Calc plus freshman English and another course. As a biochem major it was at least 15 credits a term, at least one chem a term, one bio a term, one math or physics a term and 2 labs a term. Of course I am so old I use dto watch TV by candlelight

I don't think there was a semester where I didn't take more than one STEM course. As a senior I made the mistake of taking 5 and one being organic, oops. My undergrad schedule was similar, as were for most science majors.
 
Take all of them in one year, it will put some hair on your chest.
 
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Don't forget you'll also need to find time to take biochemistry.
 
It's unrealistic to plan so far in advance. Things don't always go as planned. Learning how to balance what you have planned versus the current situation's demands is an art. And if you want to be a doctor, you have to learn it.

That being said: if you plan to take the MCAT 2 years after finishing Gchem/Ochem and without taking physics.... good luck on the chem/physics section
 
I don't think there was a semester where I didn't take more than one STEM course. As a senior I made the mistake of taking 5 and one being organic, oops. My undergrad schedule was similar, as were for most science majors.

Me reading your first sentence:

o_O then :shrug: then :bang: and finally :idea:
 
Me reading your first sentence:

o_O then :shrug: then :bang: and finally :idea:

I was way in over my head with that lol
I don't think i was clear, though lol. I meant more along the lines of taking two sciences classes or so at a time, not that ridiculous schedule I had. My anatomy teacher told me I was insane and that if he saw it before the semester started he wouldn't have allowed it as an advisor.
 
is it bad if you don't take bio and chem freshman year? My college has prereqs for everything. In order to take general chem you have to take such and such math course and introductory chem.
 
is it bad if you don't take bio and chem freshman year? My college has prereqs for everything. In order to take general chem you have to take such and such math course and introductory chem.

I didn't take either until junior year. As an aside, you're following school policy and their program progession and you can't really do a whole lot about it. Don't worry about it.
 
is it bad if you don't take bio and chem freshman year? My college has prereqs for everything. In order to take general chem you have to take such and such math course and introductory chem.

The thing about being a pre-med is that you have to do the homework yourself and coordinate everything. Almost every university will be structured so that you can do all the pre-reqs (except maybe biochem) in the first two years, if you want (in some majors, you won't have a choice). If a school won't let you take gchem because of a math requirement, it's most likely because you performed unsatisfactory in math during high school, or at least that is the case for my university.
 
How are you gonna survive medical school if you can't double up on pre-reqs? Time to man up
 
The thing about being a pre-med is that you have to do the homework yourself and coordinate everything. Almost every university will be structured so that you can do all the pre-reqs (except maybe biochem) in the first two years, if you want (in some majors, you won't have a choice). If a school won't let you take gchem because of a math requirement, it's most likely because you performed unsatisfactory in math during high school, or at least that is the case for my university.
I didn't graduate HS I dropped out got my GED and joined the military. Nearly every class at my school requires some kind of prereq. They make you follow in order starting with intro bio, intro chem as well as some required math then you move on to gen chem and bio.
 
Perhaps a better idea would be to slowly increase your credit load, instead of taking the easier way. You could take 1 or 2 BCPM courses first year and then increase the amount each year. That way you could slowly increase your ability for science courses and avoid really hurting your GPA.
 
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