Community College

[medblue]

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hi newbie here. i have another dumb quesiton. i currently have a B.S. in sociology and in the process of researching med school requirements.

i know i need 2 years of sciences but my question is would it be frowned upon if i were to take them at a community college??? i know comm colleges are easier or thought to be easier. would i have any chance? would i have to get a very high score on the MCAT???

i personally don't want to go for a master's (post-bac). do i have any other options???

sorry if this is a dumb question but i need clarification 😳

 

[87138]

hi newbie here. i have another dumb quesiton. i currently have a B.S. in sociology and in the process of researching med school requirements.

i know i need 2 years of sciences but my question is would it be frowned upon if i were to take them at a community college??? i know comm colleges are easier or thought to be easier. would i have any chance? would i have to get a very high score on the MCAT???

i personally don't want to go for a master's (post-bac). do i have any other options???

sorry if this is a dumb question but i need clarification 😳

I believe it should be ok if that's your best option, but you may have to ensure some pretty solid MCAT scores to back you up. Otherwise, mediocre MCAT scores may lead to the schools looking at you as being not qualified, even if you did alright at the community college, since they can sometimes be a bit easier.

I'm taking a couple of my prereq's at CC just because of money and time issues, but am hoping to do well on the MCATs.

If you do get an interview, that may be something they ask you about, and you can explain why you chose to take the classes at a CC, and hopefully the rest of your application as well as MCAT scores can back you up enough to make you a desirable candidate.



Everyone else please feel free to correct me or elaborate on what I've said.

 

[2010MD]

I hate to say it but I think it also depends on where you received your undergrad degree. If it's a relatively well known and prestigious school, you are probably ok taking more classes at a CC. I say this because I graduated from an Ivy and went on to take about 1.5 years of science pre-reqs at a city college (because of $$$), and prior to enrolling in those classes my advisor told me it would be fine because I had already "proven" I could be successful in a more competitive environment.

I have been doing well in the application process so far so taking my sciences at a city college definitely didn't hurt, but I have had some interview questions about why I chose that school to complete my requirements. I just explained it was a financial decision and they seemed to understand completely.

In sum, if your undergrad degree is from a reasonably well-known school and your grades are good, taking your science classes at a CC should be fine as long as you do well on the MCAT.

 

[medblue]

thanks Roger and 2010MD. i have a degree from a regular Univ, not an Ivy league though. my gpa was just ok, if that. since then, i've taken anatomy I&II, intro to chemistry, microbiology and economics with all A's

i know i will have to do extra well on the MCAT. i just didn't want the additional financial burden of university credits. 😀

 

[2010MD]

hey,

you're welcome... that's just been my experience and i definitely didn't mean to imply my advice only applies if you graduated from an ivy... i'm sure it applies equally if you went to a well-established state university, small liberal arts college, or whatever. if your actual degree were from a community/city-type college, i might suggest you try to "prove" yourself in a more competitive environment, but even then i'm not sure.

personally, i think paying 2 additional years of private college tuition ($70K??!) to complete your requirements is insane. but some people feel like they need their credits to come from a "name" school. and have very rich parents. fortunately med schools seem to understand that we can't all be so lucky...

 

[medblue]

hey,

you're welcome... that's just been my experience and i definitely didn't mean to imply my advice only applies if you graduated from an ivy... i'm sure it applies equally if you went to a well-established state university, small liberal arts college, or whatever. if your actual degree were from a community/city-type college, i might suggest you try to "prove" yourself in a more competitive environment, but even then i'm not sure.

personally, i think paying 2 additional years of private college tuition ($70K??!) to complete your requirements is insane. but some people feel like they need their credits to come from a "name" school. and have very rich parents. fortunately med schools seem to understand that we can't all be so lucky...

lol! that is oh so true!

 

[Non-TradTulsa]

Your situation sounds very familiar to me. I got my baccalaureate and master's from my state university, which was well-respected within my field and I did well. When time came to do pre-requisites for medical school, leaving work was not a realistic option so I did all of my prereqs at community college (except for upper-division cell bio and biochem, which came along after my applications were in).

I think pre-reqs at a community college are fine - if you get a decent MCAT score. If you earn a solid MCAT score, you've demonstrated your mastery of the material and your capacity to think. A few of the very top-tier schools frown on CC credits, but with a good MCAT it will be a non-issue. This will be especially true if you apply at places where your CC is known - I was accepted at my state medical school and they were quite familiar with the first-class health professions science program my CC offers.

 

[jbrice1639]

wasn't there a thread on here a while ago that a handful of med schools don't accept cc credits for pre-reqs? i think that's kind of absurd...but it's something to think about too...make sure the credits will count wherever you're thinking of applying.

 

[Non-TradTulsa]

wasn't there a thread on here a while ago that a handful of med schools don't accept cc credits for pre-reqs? i think that's kind of absurd...but it's something to think about too...make sure the credits will count wherever you're thinking of applying.

Yes, there was a thread like that. If I recall correctly, B.U. does not accept CC credits. UCSD says on their website that they frown on CC credits. There are a few others (not many), but somebody better than me at searching would have to dig it up. I think if you get the solid MCAT score, it's indeed absurd.