Do ADMCOM's care a lot about your mathametical skills?

[Fakhter]

By mathametical skills I don't mean counting from one to ten, I mean courses such as Calculus. I don't know why i've always struggled with math and i'm struggling now. However I do really well in courses such as Chemistry, Bio, and Physics. For the school i'm aiming for, calculus is required pre requisite. Am I screwed?

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[plumhill]

By mathametical skills I don't mean counting from one to ten, I mean courses such as Calculus. I don't know why i've always struggled with math and i'm struggling now. However I do really well in courses such as Chemistry, Bio, and Physics. For the school i'm aiming for, calculus is required pre requisite. Am I screwed?

First of all, aiming for one school in particular is futile, since the admissions process is a crapshoot. Having multiple schools you're OK with is a better strategy.

Second, the math pre-reqs are different at every school. A few require two semesters of calculus, some require one semester of calc and one semester of stats, and some may not have a math requirement. For the vast majority of schools you're safest having taken at least a semester of calc and a semester of stats. Most schools are not expecting you to be a math genius but do expect you to have some more advanced math skills. From my experience, success in math is as much about attitude as it is about ability. When I took integral calc sophomore year I was absolutely terrified and that showed in my first exam grade. My professor encouraged me to just keep practicing but not approach the material with fear, but rather with a determination to do well. It sounds stupid but I did significantly better on the second two exams and ended up with a grade that I'm happy with. If you do choose to take calculus, take advantage of tutoring, TA office hours, and as many practice problems as you can get your hands on, and you'll be fine.

 

[postbacpremed87]

By mathametical skills I don't mean counting from one to ten, I mean courses such as Calculus. I don't know why i've always struggled with math and i'm struggling now. However I do really well in courses such as Chemistry, Bio, and Physics. For the school i'm aiming for, calculus is required pre requisite. Am I screwed?

They care about you being able to spell mathematical.

 

[Lil Mick]

They do care about algebra skills (which is indirectly tested on the MCAT physical science section). When we had our respiratory unit, there was a separate math section that needed to be passed as well as the module as a whole. We had quite a few students fail that module and have to remediate it over the summer. Not something for which to strive...

That being said, there are many excellent resources online, as well as the demystified series... that can help you better understand calculus/physics.

 

[jdfamily]

Great advice given so far. I would remember one reason why they list math as a requirement is because of its application in research. As much as I don't want to add statistics onto my last year of undergrad even if its not required at most of the schools I am applying to, I feel it is a valuable asset that will assist me for the years to come because I want to do research in med school and beyond.