Community College? Help Please

[Miko1127]

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Hello Everyone,

I'm new to this so sorry if I posted this in the wrong area or something.

My school counselors aren't much help on answering my problems.

I'm currently a Senior at my high school, and I don't really have the gpa I want to go to a university that I want. Most people say that you need tons of extracurricular activities. I don't really have that. I've been basically working and saving up money. I joined one or two clubs at school. I was wondering if it is possible for me to attend my local community college and then transfer out to a 4 year university and then head to medical school? I was also planning on volunteering at my local hospital/ doctor's office while attending community college. I am somewhat lost on this though because I don't know what to do. Will going to community college hurt my chances immensely? What will going to a community college do? If I attend community college, what do I take? Will it hurt my chances that I didn't do that many extra curricular activities? Many of my friends keep telling me that if I attend community college, i probably wont get in to medical school .

I'm just really lost on what to do and somewhat tight on time. Any help would be really appreciated. Thank you for your time.

 

[TangoDown]

No, community college will not ruin your chances of getting into med school. Though there are a select number of schools that do not accept community college credits, most do. What you need to do is do well in your courses and then do equally well when you transfer to university. This will show adcoms that your community college prepared you for upper division at a university as well as your university would have.

As for if you should take med school prereqs at a CC, that depends on you. There's a lot of 18 year old SDN pre-meds that go to X. top 20 university and have never stepped foot on a CC, and they'll tell you that CC's science courses are way easier than what you would find at university. This isn't necessarily true. A good CC will have science prereqs that will prepare you for the MCAT. What can make classes easier is that you're not in a lecture hall with 200 of your peers being taught by a TA for most of the course. Professors generally teach at CCs because they want to teach, and in my experience, there can be some really learned, accomplished people from all walks of life who teach at them.

A lot of people also make the argument the CCs are easier because the teaching is dumbed down to the social group that attends CC (nice stereotyping bro). Though there are some dumb and unmotivated people at community colleges, once you hit classes like General Physics or O-Chem, you won't see a lot of these people present because you needed to pass classes like trig/calc and General Chemistry to take them. A lot of the idiots that drop "U.S. History after 1900" after getting a D on the midterm (because they were high when they took the test) temper their career goals and you will not be finding them in O-Chem or General Bio II.

Does that mean you should take your prereqs at a CC? If money wasn't a concern, I'd take them at a university with strong science departments. But if you want to take them at a CC and use ratemyprofessor who choose professors who teach well (as one should at any regular university), then I think you should be fine as long as you put in the work.

 

[1TB4RKSB4CK]

I took my Gchems at a CC and my Bio I. I would however, take Orgos and Physics at a Uni.

 

[edgerock24]

I took my Gchems at a CC and my Bio I. I would however, take Orgos and Physics at a Uni.

I don't think it matters much if Physics is taken at a Uni. Frankly, I've heard that adcoms believe Physics to be the least important of the required science courses. Orgo should definitely be taken at a 4 year uni, though -- especially if applying solely to allopathic schools.

 

[TangoDown]

I don't think it matters much if Physics is taken at a Uni. Frankly, I've heard that adcoms believe Physics to be the least important of the required science courses. Orgo should definitely be taken at a 4 year uni, though -- especially if applying solely to allopathic schools.

I don't know man. If taking it at a uni is not an option for him (financial, or otherwise), I think O-chem is fine at a CC as long as the right professor is chosen.

My CC's O-Chem sequence is notoriously hard, but maybe that's because I go to a CC in California , and in California, CC curriculum are mostly on par with what you'll find at CSUs.

I do agree that if the OP isn't burdened by taking O-Chem at a university, he should, but if OP goes and knocks the MCAT out of the park, I doubt most allopathic schools would care. It's only if he, for example, pulls a 4.0 in his prereqs and then gets a 24 on the MCAT that there would be an issue.

 

[edgerock24]

I don't know man. If taking it at a uni is not an option for him (financial, or otherwise), I think O-chem is fine at a CC as long as the right professor is chosen.

My CC's O-Chem sequence is notoriously hard, but maybe that's because I go to a CC in California , and in California, CC curriculum are mostly on par with what you'll find at CSUs.

I do agree that if the OP isn't burdened by taking O-Chem at a university, he should, but if OP goes and knocks the MCAT out of the park, I doubt most allopathic schools would care. It's only if he, for example, pulls a 4.0 in his prereqs and then gets a 24 on the MCAT that there would be an issue.

Agreed.

 

[karayaa]

Some schools that don't accept CC pre-med classes per the MSAR do accept them as long as you take further upper-div bio classes after transferring.
I'm not sure which, if any, completely exclude applicants with CC credits.

 

[Scottpilot]

California is unique (at least to my knowledge. Other states may have something similar) in that CC's have the intersegmental general education transfer curriculum. Essentially, any course listed on a CC's IGETC curriculum MUST be equivalent to a UC's course, and is thus guaranteed to be transferable. IGETC courses can also be used to satisfy UC equivalent prerequisites for upper-division classes.

I went to CC after high school. I assume my HS GPA was low compared to most here on SDN (I ranked maybe in the 50th percentile). Never took the SAT, PSAT, or any AP exams. In-fact, the only AP class I was ever in was AP Chemistry.

Ended up transferring to UC Berkeley; however, I did all of my pre-med classes at CC, with the exception of o-chem. I scored a 36 on the MCAT during my first and only sitting in April 2013 and was recently accepted to UC Davis School of Medicine. I also interviewed at relatively competitive programs such as University of Pittsburgh.

 

[khrisskhoras]

Some schools that don't accept CC pre-med classes per the MSAR do accept them as long as you take further upper-div bio classes after transferring.
I'm not sure which, if any, completely exclude applicants with CC credits.

What about the other way around? Like I, for instance, have AP Bio credit for Ugrad and end up having to take gen bio after graduating. I took a bunc of upper div bio sci courses and did well in them. Does anyone know what the case is for me? $$ is an issue so I can't take it at a 4-year.

 

[karayaa]

What about the other way around? Like I, for instance, have AP Bio credit for Ugrad and end up having to take gen bio after graduating. I took a bunc of upper div bio sci courses and did well in them. Does anyone know what the case is for me? $$ is an issue so I can't take it at a 4-year.

What's your question, if you already took gen bio and upper div bio?
Are you asking if schools exclude post-grad credits? the answer would be no.

 

[khrisskhoras]

What's your question, if you already took gen bio and upper div bio?
Are you asking if schools exclude post-grad credits? the answer would be no.

No, my question is what happens if I have already taken upper div bio courses and then have to take gen bio at a CC post graduation?

 

[James401]

Hello Everyone,

I'm new to this so sorry if I posted this in the wrong area or something.

My school counselors aren't much help on answering my problems.

I'm currently a Senior at my high school, and I don't really have the gpa I want to go to a university that I want. Most people say that you need tons of extracurricular activities. I don't really have that. I've been basically working and saving up money. I joined one or two clubs at school. I was wondering if it is possible for me to attend my local community college and then transfer out to a 4 year university and then head to medical school? I was also planning on volunteering at my local hospital/ doctor's office while attending community college. I am somewhat lost on this though because I don't know what to do. Will going to community college hurt my chances immensely? What will going to a community college do? If I attend community college, what do I take? Will it hurt my chances that I didn't do that many extra curricular activities? Many of my friends keep telling me that if I attend community college, i probably wont get in to medical school .

I'm just really lost on what to do and somewhat tight on time. Any help would be really appreciated. Thank you for your time.

Op read this. I'm in the same boat, this helped alot

http://studentdoctor.net/2009/04/community-college-and-professional-school-admissions/

 

[karayaa]

No, my question is what happens if I have already taken upper div bio courses and then have to take gen bio at a CC post graduation?

I would assume that it's better than the reverse. Expectations would be higher. I don't think it's much different than someone doing pre-reqs at the CC and upper div at the 4-yr.

 

[487806]

No, my question is what happens if I have already taken upper div bio courses and then have to take gen bio at a CC post graduation?

You don't have to take gen bio at all. Upper bio courses suffice.

 

[CognitiveCheese]

I'm currently in the UC system and came from a CC. I have to say that motivation at the 4 year level is way more consistent, and you don't tend to run into as many people who are just going to fail out by midterms. To me, it matters, because I am always the guy people approach in lab asking questions when they are unprepared. I also get really annoyed when people ask questions in lecture that could have been figured out in the reading. Lecture shouldn't be about asking basic questions. Ugh. Anyway, there's more of that stuff at the CC level. Like it or not, it brings down the class. Sometimes there are really bright people at CC, but it's like finding a diamond in the rough, so it is lonely and aggravating to fight against a culture of failure and C students.

That said, the textbooks are the same. Labs are probably the same, but with less resources. You basically learn what you need to learn, but have less of a chance to go beyond the basics since CC professors can be overburdened with struggling students. It's honestly way easier to do good work with other motivated people than in a class where people are visibly struggling.

 

[TangoDown]

I'm currently in the UC system and came from a CC. I have to say that motivation at the 4 year level is way more consistent, and you don't tend to run into as many people who are just going to fail out by midterms. To me, it matters, because I am always the guy people approach in lab asking questions when they are unprepared. I also get really annoyed when people ask questions in lecture that could have been figured out in the reading. Lecture shouldn't be about asking basic questions. Ugh. Anyway, there's more of that stuff at the CC level. Like it or not, it brings down the class. Sometimes there are really bright people at CC, but it's like finding a diamond in the rough, so it is lonely and aggravating to fight against a culture of failure and C students.

That said, the textbooks are the same. Labs are probably the same, but with less resources. You basically learn what you need to learn, but have less of a chance to go beyond the basics since CC professors can be overburdened with struggling students. It's honestly way easier to do good work with other motivated people than in a class where people are visibly struggling.

I will be in your shoes (at a UC) soon enough and definitely see what you mean. Curriculum is basically on par with CSUs here in Cali, but classmates (especially in GEs) can be depressing. I find it less so in non-intro courses (a lot of smart people in my honors Biopsych class, for example), but I can definitely sympathize with you when you're sitting in an English class or Gen Psych class filled with unmotivated potheads who you can't rely on if you're ever the one that needs help. I've noticed a lot of people at my school feel entitled to pass classes and get mad at the instructor when they fail the midterm with a 5%. That frame of mind is really exemplified in a statement I overheard while I was eating lunch in the school cafe: "I show up to class so I should at least have a C."

Now that doesn't mean CC classes can't prepare you for the MCAT. But the social situation is horrid and I definitely agree with you when you say that it's hard to keep motivated when everyone around you is an idiot.

Basically, academics at a CC are what you put in. But if you put in the work you can do fine for yourself. Socially, it's garbage and I can't wait to get out of mine

 

[kyamh]

There's a lot of 18 year old SDN pre-meds that go to X. top 20 university and have never stepped foot on a CC, and they'll tell you that CC's science courses are way easier than what you would find at university. This isn't necessarily true. A good CC will have science prereqs that will prepare you for the MCAT.

I agree with you in principle. That said, the math and science courses I took at my local CC were a total joke. Sure, this means that my CC wasn't a good one. Unfortunately, students who go to CCs typically don't have the luxury of shopping around for a good one - you go to the one that's close that you can continue to live at home to save money.

I don't know how to give OP advice that would apply in any case. The best I can do is say that he or she ought to try and evaluate the quality of their local CC and then try to work out going to a 4-year institution. If you do your research right, you can find plenty of schools, especially private schools, that have very generous financial aid. My alma mater did not expect any family contribution from families that made less than $60k a year and only expected a $2k per semester work-study student contribution - a totally doable situation.

 

[Sesom]

The class sizes at my community college were smaller so it's easier to get to know your teacher and I felt like it created a better learning experience. I would say this may have made my first chemistry class easier. After that I switched to the university and I would say that the difficulty may have increased. Although the classes were harder classes as they were the next step. All in all I say if you have the choice between CC and University, just go to university so you don't have to worry about it.
.

 

[Miko1127]

I'm really sorry for getting back to you all this late, school and work have my hands tied up.

Thank you all for your input! I really appreciate it!

I want to attend the community college near me because I am not in the financial position to go to a 4 year university after I graduate high school and also because my grades are not where I want them to be. I want to become a pediatrician. I just found out that my credits will in fact transfer if I do attend my local community college to the university i want to attend 🙂. I am still confused on what courses i should take and where I should take them at. Can someone please clarify what courses I will need to take?

Apparently, I need to take the following:
- Freshman biology with laboratory
- Freshman chemistry with laboratory (Would this be considered AP Chemistry? Because I am currently taking AP Chemistry)
- Organic chemistry with laboratory
- Physics with laboratory
- Freshman math (Does this mean Calculus? Because I am currently taking AP Calculus)
- Freshman English
- Biochemistry may be required

What confuses me is that, don't Pediatricians have to take courses in child care or something? What about courses like Anatomy and genetics? So when would I take those? What classes should I take at the community college? What classes should I take at the University?


Thank you all so much for your help once again!

 

[487806]

I'm really sorry for getting back to you all this late, school and work have my hands tied up.

Thank you all for your input! I really appreciate it!

I want to attend the community college near me because I am not in the financial position to go to a 4 year university after I graduate high school and also because my grades are not where I want them to be. I want to become a pediatrician. I just found out that my credits will in fact transfer if I do attend my local community college to the university i want to attend 🙂. I am still confused on what courses i should take and where I should take them at. Can someone please clarify what courses I will need to take?

Apparently, I need to take the following:
- Freshman biology with laboratory
- Freshman chemistry with laboratory (Would this be considered AP Chemistry? Because I am currently taking AP Chemistry)
- Organic chemistry with laboratory
- Physics with laboratory
- Freshman math (Does this mean Calculus? Because I am currently taking AP Calculus)
- Freshman English
- Biochemistry may be required

What confuses me is that, don't Pediatricians have to take courses in child care or something? What about courses like Anatomy and genetics? So when would I take those? What classes should I take at the community college? What classes should I take at the University?


Thank you all so much for your help once again!

@bolded... you have a long way to go... I'd explore SDN thoroughly before actively posting because it seems you're a bit uninformed.

In regards to that, I'd recommend taking prereqs at a 4-year college as a safest route. There isn't anything wrong at taking them in a CC, but some med schools don't accept CC credits. Anatomy and genetics are not required. And some med schools don't accept AP credit so you'll need to retake them or take upper-level courses.

 

[CognitiveCheese]

I'm really sorry for getting back to you all this late, school and work have my hands tied up.

Thank you all for your input! I really appreciate it!

I want to attend the community college near me because I am not in the financial position to go to a 4 year university after I graduate high school and also because my grades are not where I want them to be. I want to become a pediatrician. I just found out that my credits will in fact transfer if I do attend my local community college to the university i want to attend 🙂. I am still confused on what courses i should take and where I should take them at. Can someone please clarify what courses I will need to take?

Apparently, I need to take the following:
- Freshman biology with laboratory
- Freshman chemistry with laboratory (Would this be considered AP Chemistry? Because I am currently taking AP Chemistry)
- Organic chemistry with laboratory
- Physics with laboratory
- Freshman math (Does this mean Calculus? Because I am currently taking AP Calculus)
- Freshman English
- Biochemistry may be required

What confuses me is that, don't Pediatricians have to take courses in child care or something? What about courses like Anatomy and genetics? So when would I take those? What classes should I take at the community college? What classes should I take at the University?


Thank you all so much for your help once again!

You know, I completely missed that you said you were in high school in your OP. I really would seriously suggest looking into private schools before worrying about money. I don't know what your GPA is, but there are some very good scholarships available to first time freshman. I can't emphasize enough how important it is to navigate the school website-- many schools sites seem like there is not a lot of information available, but you can really dig deep if you spend some time there. Trust, it will give you an edge if you do so. Ask your school counselors, teachers, google, US world news report, etc. for possible schools. Think about your major and find a school that has a notable program if you need help narrowing schools down. It won't be cheaper than CC if you are low income, BUT the price and education can be considerable. Private schools will also offer you more research opportunities and will have premed advisors, so you don't have to get all your information from the streets [aka, SDN 👎].

Take your core premed courses, finish your major, shadow doctors, do interesting research, volunteer your time, build relationships with professors who want to write you recommendation letters, don't take on more work than you can handle, and then think about extra courses you think a pediatrician would need to have handy. The basics are already a lot to do. You definitely need a combination of good planning, follow through and determination to succeed.

Yes, CC is an option and good on you for knowing credits will transfer to your choice school, but if money is an issue research private schools. Keep money on your mind when researching the schools--no shame in that. You might be surprised how many $10,000 scholarships and financial aid packages are available for first-time freshmen.

 

[streampaw]

Hello Everyone,

I'm new to this so sorry if I posted this in the wrong area or something.

My school counselors aren't much help on answering my problems.

I'm currently a Senior at my high school, and I don't really have the gpa I want to go to a university that I want. Most people say that you need tons of extracurricular activities. I don't really have that. I've been basically working and saving up money. I joined one or two clubs at school. I was wondering if it is possible for me to attend my local community college and then transfer out to a 4 year university and then head to medical school? I was also planning on volunteering at my local hospital/ doctor's office while attending community college. I am somewhat lost on this though because I don't know what to do. Will going to community college hurt my chances immensely? What will going to a community college do? If I attend community college, what do I take? Will it hurt my chances that I didn't do that many extra curricular activities? Many of my friends keep telling me that if I attend community college, i probably wont get in to medical school .

I'm just really lost on what to do and somewhat tight on time. Any help would be really appreciated. Thank you for your time.

You should still try to apply to that university you want to go to. Hey, I had pretty much ONE extracurricular activity, and that is one year of part-time work. And let's just say, I had a less than a 3.5 GPA at the time I applied (it really depends on how low your gpa is, and how selective the university is). I say, give it a shot and apply. Also apply to your community college, and maybe go there for a year if you don't get into University, make sure to keep up good grades, and then transfer out. Good luck!

 

[amazing tekkers]

I'm really sorry for getting back to you all this late, school and work have my hands tied up.

Thank you all for your input! I really appreciate it!

I want to attend the community college near me because I am not in the financial position to go to a 4 year university after I graduate high school and also because my grades are not where I want them to be. I want to become a pediatrician. I just found out that my credits will in fact transfer if I do attend my local community college to the university i want to attend 🙂. I am still confused on what courses i should take and where I should take them at. Can someone please clarify what courses I will need to take?

Apparently, I need to take the following:
- Freshman biology with laboratory
- Freshman chemistry with laboratory (Would this be considered AP Chemistry? Because I am currently taking AP Chemistry)
- Organic chemistry with laboratory
- Physics with laboratory
- Freshman math (Does this mean Calculus? Because I am currently taking AP Calculus)
- Freshman English
- Biochemistry may be required

What confuses me is that, don't Pediatricians have to take courses in child care or something? What about courses like Anatomy and genetics? So when would I take those? What classes should I take at the community college? What classes should I take at the University?


Thank you all so much for your help once again!

I was in your situation once, I went to a CC but now transferred to a well-ranked public university and this is largely thanks to SDN and it's members

CC don't typically accept AP/IB credits unfortunately, this was annoying even though I took and did well in my AP/IB examinations.

What I'd recommend is that you make a list of what the colleges/universities you'd like to transfer to and review their transfer requirements--this can be found on their websites.

From the list you gave, some of those courses like ochem, biochem you can take after you transfer to a university.

Freshman math isn't necessarily calculus, you'll take a placement test to determine which math class you take. cc math usually ranges from int. algebra to calc II.

For your first year, I would recommend the general classes like General Biology with lab, General Chemistry with lab, freshman english, intro to psych, anthropology etc.

Courses like anatomy and genetics, you can worry about later. . No, you don't need courses in child care if you are interested in pediatrics although you can take courses like Child Psychology if you want. Meet with your advisor at your cc to discuss whether you'd like to transfer after a year or two.

 

[Scottpilot]

I agree with previous posters. Even though I went the CC route, I would not necessarily recommend it because it does make the road to medical school more difficult. Going straight to a 4 year university would be ideal.

However...if for whatever reason you are unable to attend a private or even public university for an entire 4 years, going to CC is a more than acceptable route. Okay, some of the Ivy leagues or top 10 schools might look down on CC, but if your sole goal is to become a doctor, going to CC won't stop you. However, it is essential that you take upper division science classes. Also, forget relying on AP classes. Just re-take them at CC or University.

As others have said, the social environment sucks...especially in intro level GE classes. However, I met a lot of cool people while I was at CC who became good friends. Mostly these were in my "higher level" classes.

Now for your class list. Of the ones listed, I would recommend that you take O-chem and Biochem at a 4 year university. The other ones are okay to take at a CC. Anatomy is becoming required by some schools (Ohio State for example). I would recommend taking at least Cell Biology and Genetics. Also, your major doesn't matter. I was a Psychology major.

Since you are just starting out, I would say volunteer and clinical experiences are the most important ECs to get at this stage. This accomplishes three things: 1). You find out if medicine is really for you; 2.) More experience in the medical field will allow you to participate in more meaningful clinical activities and higher-level discussions, thus giving you a deeper understanding of medicine; and 3). Simply the more hours you have of both, the more competitive you will be. Also, do something you enjoy that is unique. For example, I fly airplanes and I taught English in Korea for a year after graduating college. Simply, I love to fly, and I love to learn about cultures. In other words, do something that makes you...you.
Lastly, unless you really, really, really want to do research, or go to a research heavy school, having minimal research experience (i.e. approximately 1 year) is really all you need. No reason the slave away over Zebra fish or petri dishes for multiple years unless research is a part of your end-game.