Dental Pre-Requisites - Summer school - appropriate number of courses to take?

[laska05]

I'm a civil engineering graduate considering dental school. I have taken a general chemistry I course a long time ago when I was a freshmen in 2001, and a few other physics pre-requisites. I am hoping to start my pre-requisites this summer.

I recently talked to an advisor at a school I plan to take my pre-requisites and she advised/warned about taking many science courses over the summer at the same time due to course intensity, amount of material covered, soaking in the material, etc. (since it was so long ago that I had my chemistry, for instance). The amount of summer courses I take (post-bac) affects my dental school timeline.

1) Is taking 1 biology OR chemistry with a lab appropriate?
2) Is taking 1 biology AND 1 chemistry at the same time (with both labs) a seriously heavy workload? Should I do both, or is focusing on one class better?
3) Would taking General Chem II in summer school be very difficult for someone who took General Chem I in 2001 (9 years ago)? Would it be better to wait until the school semester and stretch my pre-requisites over 2 years? Or perhaps is General Biology I better as a starting point in the summer instead of General Chemistry II?

Thanks in advance!

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[HollyJolly]

If your summer is 10 weeks, I say you Probably can handle Bio + Chem as long as they are not Organic Chemistry, I would not suggest you double up with Organic Chems.

I would seriously advise you to look at the Ratemyprofessor.com for the professor though. The same General Chemistry course can be a breeze for one professor and a nightmare with another. Obviously, we all do not have the luxury of choosing and in dental school, you cannot choose. But as of right now, use this to your advantage. Getting back in the school game after a long time can be hard and you want to make the transition as easy as possible at first.

Gen Chem II deals greatly with reaction rates. It's not a whole lot of Gen Chem I. But I do remember going over resonance (which sometimes is learned in Gen Chem I). So you might want to cover that ahead of time.

To me, Gen Chem II was far easier than Gen Chem I. I got A's in both, but the work was just easier. I think that this depends on where you take it and with whom you take it.

Also, when you take these courses..plan on staying inside and studying. Don't make plans to work if you can do so. These beginning classes will jump start your college career, set you up for harder classes, and boost your confidence as a science major. Buckle down and take it seriously and you will be rewarded greatly.

Best of luck to you!

 

[HollyJolly]

Another quick note, Biology I is pretty hard overall. It covers a lot of chapters and if you have time now, you could read ahead. Maybe read the first 5 chapters in your free time so that you are not crunched over the summer. it's not REALLY hard...but it can be difficult if you do not read periodically.

 

[NonTradHopeful]

I'm a civil engineering graduate considering dental school. I have taken a general chemistry I course a long time ago when I was a freshmen in 2001, and a few other physics pre-requisites. I am hoping to start my pre-requisites this summer.

I recently talked to an advisor at a school I plan to take my pre-requisites and she advised/warned about taking many science courses over the summer at the same time due to course intensity, amount of material covered, soaking in the material, etc. (since it was so long ago that I had my chemistry, for instance). The amount of summer courses I take (post-bac) affects my dental school timeline.

1) Is taking 1 biology OR chemistry with a lab appropriate?
2) Is taking 1 biology AND 1 chemistry at the same time (with both labs) a seriously heavy workload? Should I do both, or is focusing on one class better?
3) Would taking General Chem II in summer school be very difficult for someone who took General Chem I in 2001 (9 years ago)? Would it be better to wait until the school semester and stretch my pre-requisites over 2 years? Or perhaps is General Biology I better as a starting point in the summer instead of General Chemistry II?

Thanks in advance!

Hey,

First of all, congratulations on your decision to go back to school to pursue dentistry. Believe it or not, there are a lot of non-traditional students out there who are very similar to you.

I'm in the same boat as you (MBA, working in corporate world...will be leaving job to go back to school this summer).

Personally, I think if you take two sciences in the same semester, you will be ok. This is what I plan to do (Chem I + Physics I), and the university that I'll be taking them at is only 7 weeks for summer semester. Since you were an engineering student, there is no doubt that you will do fine in these intro-level courses (since engineering coursework is challenging as well).

However, I will not be working full time while I take my two classes, so if you are working full-time, then it may be a bit difficult, and taking one class would be advisable...it just really depends on you. If you are willing to put forth the proper amount of effort required to ace these courses, then go for it. If you are not working full time, then definitely take two classes per semester, even if it is in the summer.

Also, if you plan to take Chem II without having Chem I for many years, I would strongly advise you to read the following book (which you can read in a week, and easily learn all you needed from Chem I...it's a great primer for Chem II) before you take Chem II:

http://www.amazon.com/Chemistry-Con...=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1268911245&sr=8-1

All the best of luck, and feel free to PM me if you have any more questions.

 

[laska05]

Thanks for your advice and quick response! It was very helpful. I'm even more motivated

Thanks!

 

[Lethstang]

GRATS on coming back to school to pursue dentistry. A few of us around here are untrads and are happy to be here with you in your process.

im taking four classes this summer.

we have two summer sessions, each are one month long. so im taking two classes in each month session. BUT im not taking the associated lab. For instance, second session im taking orgo 2 and bio 2 concurrently.

if the school lets you take it, take it. You can pull As if you invest in some ass glue and take it seriously.

Ive heard (take with a grain of salt) that adcoms put weight on your courseload. so a heavy courseload looks better.

u may want to consider retaking chem 1. I did and i dont regret it at all. at my school, for your final exam in chem2 you take a nationalized acs exam, so taking chem1 allowed me to study for this as well as the DAT at once. Chem 1 really has alot of the basic chem skills you utilize in all of your chem classes, plus its interesting.

also ill second what an above poster said about bio 1. Take this class seriously its not a joke. lots of information, very detailed tests...its the weedout class of pre health.