COmmunity COllege

[kmnfive]

Has anyone ever taken the community college route???

i mean like community college then tranfer to a 4 year, then to a med school.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[kmnfive]

I've been reading allot of journals about how people who have transferred from a community college to a four year institution have been receiving an unfavorable preference when applying to medical schools. As individuals from the medical professions have mentioned, this is mainly due to the likelihood that the coursework at a junior college doesn't compare to that of a regular 4 year school when it comes down pre-medial science classes; in terms of quality and its rigor. I was wondering if you could offer a professional opinion on whether or not this rumor might hold a truth.

 

[edkNARF]

Does the school you transfer to make a difference. I transfered from a CC to Cornell. Does that give any extra validity to the quality of those credits?

 

[agent]

I'm transferring from CC to Northwestern Night School.

The adcom for Feinberg told me last night that most of their students that go that route would get into Feinberg but a lot do have success at the other schools around Chicago.. well there's always Finch

 

[republicandr]

I took the community college route and was accepted to medical schools. My GPA actually increased from the community college to the university.

Medical school admissions staff informed me that if you go to a community college, then you need to make sure that you don't take all the science requirements at the community college. For example, you could take your biology and general chemistry requirements at the community college and then take your physics and organic chemistry at the university.

The bottom line, is your GPA, MCAT score, and your resume will determine your outcome.

Good luck,
Republicandr

 

[agent]

Well I havent taken any of my biology req at the cc so I guess I might have a chance if I get mostly A's

 

[thackl]

I got my engineering degree at RIT and now I'm taking almost all of my remaining basic science courses at CC to save $$. The undergrad and grad engineering courses I took were MUCH more difficult than what I have to deal with now. Hopefully the ADCOM's will realize that.

FWIW, my brother was a CS major and took most of his prereq's at SACC. No one seemed to care. He got in.

 

[Deuce 007 MD]

I went to city college (Long Beach City), and then transfered to a major Univ. I have recieved a few acceptances and during interviews it was never an issue.

 

[thackl]

They wouldn't say anything during the interviews because "technically" it's not supposed to matter.

 

[Sonya]

it think mainly your GPA at the university would matter. Unfortunaly, you will have a very short time at the univ from which they can base you gpa on.

My CC GPA is simlar to my Washu gpa. i'm applying now.

my brother went to a CA comm college and then berkely, and then worked in a lab and then medschool. so, he got in. but, he worked after graduation,a nd t hey saw all his undergrad record, not just upto junior year.

 

[kmnfive]

thanks for the quick reply.

well heres the deal..

i have called several medical schools.... and most of them (i live in california) didnt seem to care...... all but one.

UCI SOM... they said they prefre you to take ALL YOUR premed courses once you transfer.

they seemed to be really biased over CC classes.

 

[souljah1]

There have been a lot of other threads on SDN talking about this issue before, but I feel like I always want to post on these.

I went to a CC (CCSF) for two years and took ALL of my premed requirements there, along with two semesters of Calculus. I applied to Berkeley and Davis and was accepted to both. I chose to go to Berkeley and my GPA at Berkeley was just about the same as my CCSF GPA. I took Biochem, Quant. Analysis, Toxicology classes, Pharm, etc - so I had proven that I could do well in science courses at a 4 year institution. I applied for a one year MS at Columbia U's Institute of Human Nutrition and was accepted. I applied to med school while living in NYC and none of my interviewers made any comments about my going to a CC other then to say things like, 'atleast you saved a lot of money' or 'Dr. such and such had wonderful things to say about you in his LOR'. I actually think my path resulted in a decent amount of respect b/c I have worked from 'the bottom rung of the ladder' and have climbed up (so to speak) on my own. Everything worked out very well for me.

Bottom line: Do consistently well in your courses at both the CC and the 4-year school. Don't listen to generalizations about what to do and what not to do. Do well on the MCAT. Get involved in activities that you are passionate about. Don't let your other talents fall by the wayside. Remind yourself that you can hang with the best of them. And if arrogant folks like to make fun of your CC past, laugh at them and don't think twice as you continue on your way. Best of luck.

I wouldn't have done it any other way.



Oh, UCI didn't seem to discriminate against my CC background. I got an interview, was waitlisted, and ultimately accepted.

 

[kmnfive]

souljah1 :

if you dont mind me asking ... what were you GPA's for your schools? ( from the CC and berkeley)

and what did you score on the mcat?

 

[Sonya]

California community college are distinctly MUCH better then most community college across the nation. UCs know that, most schools don't. Convey it in your app if there is an appropriate place.

 

[kmnfive]

anyone else goto a CC in california then med school?

 

[jenni4476]

Sorry, don't know anything about CA but...

I talked to the director of admissions at U of Wi about this and she said they have a large percentage admitted that started at CC's (mostly U of WI branches), and it isn't looked down on at all. Just to be safe, though, I'm only taking chem and calc at the CC, and taking bio, physics, and orgo at the university.

I would think that if you intend to go to a state school, they would probably look more favorably on CC classes in their own system.

 

[kmnfive]

bump.

 

[kmnfive]

id like some more opinions on this.

so forgive me if i bump this.

 

[luckyzero]

I asked this question in another thread, in the general forums I think, wasn't aware it was here, but their were some good replies their as well.