Canadian students (ESP. U of T) please help out!

[MB111]

hey guys. i applied to aadsas this cycle and had no luck. so im gonna apply again. aadsas totally screwed up my credit calculations this term and i'm wondering if every other U of T student (or canadian student that also uses 0.5 and 1.0 credits) are having the same problem.

I asked my registrar. they said full year courses (our 1.0, Y) are 6 credit hours. those with labs, you add 3 credit hours. and half year courses (our 0.5, H) are 3 credit hours. so...

full year with lab: 9
full year without lab: 6
half year with lab: 6
half year without lab: 3

and then whenever I write a full year lab course on AADSAS, they "verify" it and change it from 9 to 6. i'm like WTH...they're not giving me credit for the lab courses (b/c on my transcript, we don't differentiate full year LAB courses with full year courses without lab. so aadsas just assumed them ALL to be either full year 6 cred hours or half year 3 cred hours....)

anyone? help? how did you write yours out?

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[KinKs]

ah - i never noticed anything - I just used 1 full credit as 6 semester hours - .5 as 3. I avoided breaking it down in terms of hours. had none of that varification thing - then again i did not even doube check - i just filled it in, checked the gpa and submitted

 

[tamkhan]

Don't worry about the credit hour system. When you fill out the application, use the american system (3,6,9 hours etc.). Let aadsas do everything else.
Universities receive applications from UofT every year, so they know which course has a lab component.

 

[Topgun]

I ran into the same problem when I was applying too - it is really dumb. However, U of T will stick with what they say and after lots of head banging, all I got was that they stick to 120 semester hours = 20 credits for degree requirements. Therefore if they gave you extra hours for lab courses you would be able to graduate earlier without meeting the requirements in the credit system. So no matter what full year course you take, you're getting 6 hours, not 9.

Example, you take BIO150 and BIO250, you would end up with more equivalent semester hours if they gave you 9 than I would if I took ANT100 and ANT 204 (without labs). And since you need 120 semester hours to graduate, you would be fast tracking without taking extra credits. Very strange but it kinda makes sense. Extremely dumb that they won't give you credit for several hours more work each semester in labs. (ARRRGH U of T )

The schools will understand though even if AADSAS screws you over. You could try talking to an AADSAS representative, one guy I spoke to said he would change my hours to what they should be. But for sure the schools should understand and you can try sending copies from the course calendar which shows that there is a lab component for the courses in question...you'll have to ask your Dean's office to mail it to AADSAS though - it has to be 'official'.

 

[MB111]

Don't worry about the credit hour system. When you fill out the application, use the american system (3,6,9 hours etc.). Let aadsas do everything else.
Universities receive applications from UofT every year, so they know which course has a lab component.

i did that! and then they changed all my 9's back to 6's..

but some half year with lab, they kept as 6..???

and another question, all my B-'s and A-'s...i thought it should be 2.7 and 3.7. then when they calculated it, they used 2.67 and 3.67. and since I have a lot of these B-'s and A-'s (basically the 'minus' end of letters), it makes a huge difference in my score...anyone know why they don't stick with the 3.3, 2.7, 3.7 and why they do it like 3.33, 2.67, 3.67??

 

[SMCohen]

I noticed the credit-hour requirement as well, but I think schools understand that there are problems with the conversion. Nova, for example, requires "Physics 8 semester-hours including laboratory" - I had only taken PHY138 (under the conversion, would have amounted only to 6 semester hrs), but they probably understood that not all schools go by semester hours.

MB111: It looks like UofT just rounds off our GPAs. I also found my GPA dropped a bit when AADSAS converted them.

 

[jazzyb]

UBC gives only 4 credits for a half yr course+lab and sometimes only 3 depending on the course. So how would that go into the conversion factor thing?

Also we have 1 semester (winter) which is split into 2 terms. So do we enter it as 2 separate section on the course work section of just 1 unit. Coz well in the FAQ section it says indicate the yr when the course starts, but that wouldnt make sense as the course starts in the year after the semester starts.... idk if that even made much sense?

My question is do we enter all 8 or 10 courses into one semester even if they start the year after?

 

[microserf123]

UBC gives only 4 credits for a half yr course+lab and sometimes only 3 depending on the course. So how would that go into the conversion factor thing?

Also we have 1 semester (winter) which is split into 2 terms. So do we enter it as 2 separate section on the course work section of just 1 unit. Coz well in the FAQ section it says indicate the yr when the course starts, but that wouldnt make sense as the course starts in the year after the semester starts.... idk if that even made much sense?

My question is do we enter all 8 or 10 courses into one semester even if they start the year after?

Yup, Just roll it all into one! That's what I did and it was ok.

 

[jazzyb]

Yup, Just roll it all into one! That's what I did and it was ok.

Thanx! Also could u recommond any courses that i could next yr as an unclassified? im plannin on takin Anat 390+391 and also phys 301 but besides these?

Also would u recommend that i take a full load(24 credits) as i wont be entering those grades till after feb so i really dont know if it would be worth taking them.

 

[sloken]

ahh nice to see some ubc'ers on here. jazzy, if you haven't taken clst301 (med and bio terms and roots), i HIGHLY recommend it. Not only is it a ridiculous GPA booster, but the info you learn is very handy as well.

On another note, when applying to AADSAS (like I'll be doing in may), did you run into any problems with the organic chem requirements? I'm an animal bio major at UBC, and the org chem course they make us take (chem233) is 2 terms worth rolled into one, plus a 1 credit lab course....most UBC upperlevel programs require those courses (233 +235) as well as chem205 (Physical Chemistry: Chemical kinetics and thermodynamics and spectroscopy useful in biological, medical, agricultural, earth, and related sciences.). This combo of 3 courses only adds up to 7 credits, and 205 isnt even an official orgo course!

I know a lot of schools want 8 credits of ochem, but when your school forces you to only take 4...well frankly it kind of makes me worried about being highly limited in schools that I can apply to. sorry for the thread hijack too btw

 

[jazzyb]

Haha i did take Clst 301 and lets jus say it was a nightmare for me. Never shall i take a course that is based solely on memory. I did take Path 375 and that was one amazing course which i highly recommend everyone to take coz the prof is hands down the best ive had so far at UBC. And he books appointments with VGH so you can go watch and autopsy with the Med students.

N e ways, im completing a biochem major so i had to take chem 203+204 so that added up to 8 credtis and also chem 313 which was another 3 credit even thou it had a lab(but weird UBC wat can you do rite?).To add to the misery,4th yr biochem courses have some pretty miserable profs (microserf may or may not agree.. Microserf did uve Sadwoski?).With chem 233+235, i really dont know how it would work. Could u take chem 313 and make that count towards some ochem requirements. But i do understand ure dilemma.

Well i know some US schools want physics and i took phys 100+101 which only adds up to 8 credits but they want 9 so im guessing they just realise its a whole year course and overlook the credits.

 

[MB111]

I noticed the credit-hour requirement as well, but I think schools understand that there are problems with the conversion. Nova, for example, requires "Physics 8 semester-hours including laboratory" - I had only taken PHY138 (under the conversion, would have amounted only to 6 semester hrs), but they probably understood that not all schools go by semester hours.

MB111: It looks like UofT just rounds off our GPAs. I also found my GPA dropped a bit when AADSAS converted them.

hey, but even AADSAS says it should be 3.7 and 2.7. i just don't know why they do that .67 thing. it benefits if you have a lot of B+'s or A+'s but i have a lot of 'minuses' end of the letter and all these .67's put together makes my GPA down quite a chunk! =( does AADSAS somehow relate us to "quarter hours" in which they multiply by .667? well actually, UT is not quarter nor semestered.... it's technically not "semestered" but i just put that cuz there's nothing else to put. lol

http://www.adea.org/WebDocs/AADSAS/AppAADSASInstructions.pdf
check out page 44.

 

[bent on dent]

For you fellow UBC'ers... as told by the chem department advisor, Chem123+Chem233+Chem235 should suffice for the ochem requirements at most US med/dent schools. Chem123 is actually considered part ochem in our UBC calendar. This would mean that Chem121+Chem205 would count for your inorganic requirements. As an animal biology major, I'm speaking on experience as it has worked out well for me. But it is probably best that you contact the schools that you are looking to apply to, to see if the credits actually do carry over. Your only other option would be to take another ochem course at a local community college... I know of many friends that have been forced to take this tedious and expensive route. Hope this helps, good luck!

 

[sloken]

yo bent, what year are you in? im wondering if we're any of the same classes

 

[microserf123]

Haha i did take Clst 301 and lets jus say it was a nightmare for me. Never shall i take a course that is based solely on memory. I did take Path 375 and that was one amazing course which i highly recommend everyone to take coz the prof is hands down the best ive had so far at UBC. And he books appointments with VGH so you can go watch and autopsy with the Med students.

N e ways, im completing a biochem major so i had to take chem 203+204 so that added up to 8 credtis and also chem 313 which was another 3 credit even thou it had a lab(but weird UBC wat can you do rite?).To add to the misery,4th yr biochem courses have some pretty miserable profs (microserf may or may not agree.. Microserf did uve Sadwoski?).With chem 233+235, i really dont know how it would work. Could u take chem 313 and make that count towards some ochem requirements. But i do understand ure dilemma.

Well i know some US schools want physics and i took phys 100+101 which only adds up to 8 credits but they want 9 so im guessing they just realise its a whole year course and overlook the credits.

Nope, didn't get Sadowski, he was on sabbatical the year I took the course he was supposed to teach. I do agree that most UBC biochem profs are pretty bad
If the coursed that you took for your biochem degree are still the same as when I graduated 3 years ago, it should be fine for most US schools
I took English 301 - Technical writing, that was not bad quite interesting actually
As for taking a full load during the Victory lap year, I'm not so sure about since I went straight to grad school. But I would do so anyways just to keep yourself in the "study" mode

 

[sloken]

oh ya, i concur on Engl 301. I normally hate arts classes, but this one was great; i took it in the summer and it gave a great base on doing short and long reports, business letters, memos, language and formatting. We also had to do a short presentation which was simple enough. No essays or exams either; just assignments.

 

[jazzyb]

Well i think i figured out my 24 credits for "victory lap" year:
Anat 390+391, Phyl 301, Socio 100, Micb 202 and eng 301. Wat do you guys think?? If you've any more suggestions, please do let me know. Also i was wondering if anyone of you took PCTH 325 (rational for drug use).

Also for schools that ask specifically for Bio prof letters, can we ask a biochem prof or does it have to be a bio prof as i tried to get something from Berzowski (bio 334), but not being a girl, he shut me down completely!!

Could you recommend a dentist with whom i could volunteer in Vancity? Im volunteerin at one place right now but it seems that for US schools, its a gud idea to atlesat have 2.

 

[sloken]

i took soci100 2 years ago and hated it; finished w/a 76. I'm not an essay type person, and the course material was SOO dry and lectures made catching extra z's easy. Maybe I just enjoy hating on courses that are very subjective, but i seriously found everything about that course so...blase? It seemed like topics were dragged out way longer than needed...Two weeks into second term i had wondered why I decided to take a fullyear course that I knew I probably wouldnt like.

If i were you, I'd take some intro level languages. Those courses are a little more structured and less abstract. But hey, this is just my opinion.

 

[sloken]

oh and to the OP, did you already get the AADSAS form for next cycle? or are you just referring to last years?

 

[jazzyb]

Well im already takin spanish 101+102 so i dont know if i shud taken another language.

N e ways Sloken can u recommend any dentist that i can volunteer with? I know theres a clinic at Commercial but ive heard some real harsh words bout that one.

 

[bent on dent]

yo bent, what year are you in? im wondering if we're any of the same classes

4th year, graduating at the end of this term.

 

[sloken]

jazzy - i heard french wasnt too bad. If the course doesnt have to be an arts class, then take eosc114 online. you have 5 openbook online tests worth 12% each, then a closed book final worth 40%. It's an easy A, and you don't have to waste time in a useless lecture - study for a couple hours before each test then write it.

as for dentists, I've only shadowed 2: One was at 10th and alma and wasnt that friendly or talkative...and ..well, honestly, I felt a little overwhelmed by the number of women that worked there lol. I'm in the midst of searching for someone new to shadow.


bent: ha im in 4th yr too, wouldnt happen to be in biol 413 or 425 right now wouldya

 

[bent on dent]

in 413, not the most interesting of courses I must say.