do psych classes count toward science GPA?

[sarah_viola]

what about neuroscience classes that are in the psych dept?

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[lola]

it depends. if it's really a neurobiology class it might. nothing is for sure, though. it all depends on what the person at amcas reading your application thinks. if you have numerous psych classes classfied as bio, they will probably get suspicious. if you have just one, they might let it slip by. my stats class was under the psych department, and it counted as math.

 

[sarah_viola]

do math classes count toward science GPA? like calc 1&2? hmmm...

 

[DAL]

I'm pretty sure your calculus classes will count towards your science GPA since they fall into the Math category of BCPM.

Does anyone know if my chemical engineering courses will get factored into my BCPM GPA? They're technically not BCPM, but they were scientific in nature. Thanks.

 

[uclachris]

Amcas has the designation Psych/Social. Finally they have wised up to the blatent manipulation of the GPA-- well if they actually practice what they preach that is.

However, IF the class was grounded in a "Science" aspect and not a "Psych" aspect, then I would guess putting it down in science would be ok-- even though it would still be a gray area.

I'm sorry to be like that; but this is one of my pet peeves...

C

 

[DAL]

I'll be applying next cycle and wondered if we put the courses in that are factored in the Science GPA and then AMCAS checked to make sure it was right?

Or does AMCAS do it all for you after you submit your transcript?

I was an engineering major so the large majority of my classes were scientific in nature even though they were not labeled as a BCPM course.

 

[lola]

DAL,
You classify your courses, but AMCAS checks them and will change them if they feel like it after you get your transcript.
There are detailed instructions about how to classify your courses. You should be able to find them on the aamc.org website. I'm not sure whether or not engineering classes are BCMP.

 

[katem]

okay, here's the scoop from my pre-med advisor:

putting psych as science is occasionally okay. for instance, a heavily physio based psych class with a rigorous lab could be labelled as bio w/o a likely problem. my neuroscience thesis in the psych dept. also counted for bcpm.

here's the catch: if amcas doesn't like your designation, it could hold up your application while they sort it out, which isn't ideal.

i'd ensure with your pre-med advisor that they will write a letter supporting your designations if amcas were to question them. for instance, they said they would not support me marking psych stats as bcpm, but would for the above classes.

and that's what i know about it.

 

[Adcadet]

I know some places cross-list neuroscience classes (bio and psych)...perhaps you could list it as BioXXXX rather than PsychXXXX...as long as it can be matched up with your transcript, you're fine.

 

[Jadeite]

But be careful about what you designated! I designated "Sensation and Perception" (A psych class) as a medical or biology or some other catagory (it had a lot to do with physiology!) and I got an angry AMCAS X on it. They disagreed!

(But that was last year, this year I had everything properly marked) W/no Xs.

Jade~

 

[nuggie]

I was a neuroscience major and most of my courses were crosslisted as either psych, neuro, or bio. I characterized all of the classes in my major (about 7) as Bio and AMCAS didn't change any if them - even those that had "psychology" in the title.

 

[sarah_viola]

I asked the director of my schools pre-med committee whether to count classes like Physiology of Behavior, Psychopharmacology, or Intro to Research Methods (math?) as bio or psych, and she said, "whatever you feel is best", which didn't help a lot. They are listed as psych classes, but my school has different concentrations for the psych major, and these fall in the biological psych program. They definitly cover more bio/neuroscience than other psych classes like abnormal or personality. So I'm not sure whether to count them or not-- I don't want my app held up. Any neuroscience majors had any expereince with designating these classes?

 

[bujji13]

Hey Sarah,

I'm a Neuroscience major, and I also had a tough time deciding what designation fit some of my classes. On the AMCAS help page, its says that Psych or Behav Sci classes are non-science while Neuroscience classes are BCPM. So if your school has a Neuroscience dept. and you took classes in it, then those count as Biology for BCPM. If you took classes in the Psych dept., they count as non-science.

When I called the AMCAS "specialists," they said that the content of the class (ie bio or neuro based psych classes) didn't matter when making designations. In other words, unless these classes were taken in the Neuroscience or Bio depts. (or have codes on your transcript showing they can be cross-listed in these depts.), they are non-science. I took psychopharmacology, and it was definitely a biology/neuro class, but it was in the psych dept., and I had to list it as non-science.

Hope this helps.

 

[Lascivious]

Ask your advisor.

 

[UCLA2000]

alot of psychs do... I actually had my amcas application come back with a class change note on it because I had listed a general psych as a non science, and they wanted it to be part of my science gpa..go figure.