For PREMED Reqs, is it CALCULUS-based PHYSICS or NON-CALC Physics?

[FightingIrish01]

Hey, guys, I was wondering, as far as the 1 year course you take in college for Physics, is it CALC based or non-Calc based. Calculus based, I assume, would be like doing the Halliday-Resnick text....correct? Which do medicals school see or prefer on your transcript? Does it matter?

2.) If Calc or NON-CALC based, I was wondering if you can list some Textbook authors your class uses..? Thanks

3.) As far as MCAT is concerned, would your CALC based physics help you better ace the problems or is NON-CALC sufficient..??

I was always worried that Physics, not Organic Chem, might be the harder subject for be especially if it involves really tough calculus.

Thanks.

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[thegymbum]

Non-calculus physics is sufficient. Hmm... textbooks... we used "Giancoli"...

 

[Zuerst]

Most of the advanced physics concepts requires calculus???

We used the purple text with a "big boat" on the cover...

Our college distinguish between regular physics and engineering physics, but I'm pretty sure both involve calculus...

 

[WayChanger]

1) It doesn't make a difference. Calc-based physics is a lot harder. Berkeley, for example, has both calc and non-calc based physics. Most premeds at Cal are bio majors, and bio majors only need to take the non-calc based physics, so most people just get by with that...

2) Giancoli - pretty good, overall.

3) There is no calculus on the MCAT. I took non-calc based physics, and had more or less forgotten all of my calculus by the time I took the MCAT. I got a 15 on the PS section, so I would say you can do just fine taking normal, algebra-based physics.

 

[FightingIrish01]

bump

 

[lynn623la]

Yeah definitely non-calc based will do. Unless you love calculus and love physics. Don't kill yourself and go for the non-calc based.

 

[qev]

I took the non-engineering based physics but turned out to be pretty difficult just because it was still calc-based. I didn't really need any of the calc based stuff on the MCAT I would say.

 

[_ian]

If you care nothing about physics, are only taking it because you are required to, and wish to know only up to what the MCAT covers, then take the algebra based course.

If you intend to take physics for the sake of learning about physics, take calculus-based. You will completely avoid important concepts in your algebra-based course... but again, they're not considered important by those who write the MCAT, so you're only shortchanging your own education. If you couldn't care less about physics, then that shouldn't matter to you.

Calculus-based mechanics and E&M (all you need to take as a pre-med) rarely ever require "tough calculus." Your worry should not be the math, your worry should be that even the problems with no calculus whatsoever are more difficult than their counterparts in the other class.

 

[Skaterbabe74]

I actually found calc based easier than alg based (and not just because I'd already seen the material thanks to alg based). I took both cuz I decided after alg based that I wanted to minor in physics. We used Giancoli for alg based, and Serway for calc based (and our school uses Tipler for calc based now). Will calc based help on the mcat? Probably not, but some of the concepts from physics 1 and 2 sure make a lot more sense when you have the calc behind them so it might. There wasn't any difficult calc in physics 1 and 2 (no trig subs or crap like that, and the E&M stuff usually reduces to a very simple integral) so if you have a decent understanding of calc I'd go for the calc based - just make sure you get a good teacher.

 

[OSUdoc08]

Hey, guys, I was wondering, as far as the 1 year course you take in college for Physics, is it CALC based or non-Calc based. Calculus based, I assume, would be like doing the Halliday-Resnick text....correct? Which do medicals school see or prefer on your transcript? Does it matter?

2.) If Calc or NON-CALC based, I was wondering if you can list some Textbook authors your class uses..? Thanks

3.) As far as MCAT is concerned, would your CALC based physics help you better ace the problems or is NON-CALC sufficient..??

I was always worried that Physics, not Organic Chem, might be the harder subject for be especially if it involves really tough calculus.

Thanks.

Non-calc based physics.

Calculus is not useful for medical school.

 

[ND2005]

I'm going to give you some advice:

1) Notre Dame has pretty good premedical advisors. They will tell you which courses are best to take. You want to take the "standard" pre-med courses for all 4 of the pre-reqs. Anything other than that is either excessive or insufficient.

2) At Notre Dame, you will start your first year in the FYS program. You will be required to take a "well-rounded" course schedule, and will likely only have time for one hardcore lab science your freshman year. This should be general chemistry, not physics.

3) If you follow the normal track, you will not take physics until your junior year. In other words, who gives a flying f*** about physics right now

4) the "calculus based" physics course is not that hard. The calculus you will need is limited to how to take a simple derivative. This is the standard pre-med course, and it uses Halliday-Resnick (which is a s***ty book, by the way). TAKE THIS COURSE. Any non-calc based course will be seen as a gpa padder or a "science for liberal arts" type course.

5) In general, do not come to SDN for any course advice about Notre Dame. People here can only talk in generalities. Ask upperclassmen in your dorm, ask advisors, ask professors. Find out specifically about NOTRE DAME'S COURSE OFFERINGS. (edit: this is pretty much true for every school. You're going to find better information about course selection from people at your own institution. I am just trying to emphasize this point)

 

[lilmissfickle]

Halliday-Resnick (which is a s***ty book, by the way).

We used Halliday-Resnick in HS and I freaking loved that book! My dad used the same book in uni (like, 30 years ago ), and he loved it too...he was so excited when I told him.

 

[ND2005]

We used Halliday-Resnick in HS and I freaking loved that book! My dad used the same book in uni (like, 30 years ago ), and he loved it too...he was so excited when I told him.

The only thing I liked was the penguin that pops up in all the end of chapter problems.

 

[lilmissfickle]

The only thing I liked was the penguin that pops up in all the end of chapter problems.

Actually, my favourite part was probably the solutions manual.

Seriously though, I loved the range of problems (pathetically easy to iwannashootmyself), I loved that it was concise and wasn't interrupted every other paragraph by a random stupid photograph that's supposed to illustrate some facet of physics, I loved the straight forward derivations, and I loved how many (decently difficult) examples there were.

 

[lynn623la]

Non-calc based physics.

Calculus is not useful for medical school.

Oh boy, and do we know that. Especially not with the PDR. Especially not.

 

[FightingIrish01]

Hey ND2005, sorry man, I feel like I am getting on your nerve, but I don't mean to be all tense or anything but rather just fully prepared. Anyways, if you're a good calc student, would it be preferable to do Calc-based physics of Halliday resnick or non-calc Physics... I mean you can go both way and I feel like either course has its share of difficulty.

 

[ND2005]

Hey ND2005, sorry man, I feel like I am getting on your nerve, but I don't mean to be all tense or anything but rather just fully prepared. Anyways, if you're a good calc student, would it be preferable to do Calc-based physics of Halliday resnick or non-calc Physics... I mean you can go both way and I feel like either course has its share of difficulty.

I'm not pissed at you. You're just worrying about stuff you really don't need to worry about.

This is the physics course you should take:

221-222. Physics I and II
(3-2-4) (3-2-4)
Prerequisites for PHYS 221: MATH 119 and 120, or MATH 125 and 126.
Prerequisites for PHYS 222: PHYS 221 or equivalent.
The basic principles of mechanics, fluid mechanics, thermal physics, wave motion, sound, electricity, magnetism, optics and modern physics. Primarily for students in the life sciences.

They should really re-title it "MCAT Physics I and II", because that's what it is. We learned 98% material that will be on the MCAT, and 2% material that won't be on the MCAT (just some quantum/relativity stuff).


I just hope you go have fun at ND. You should be asking questions right now like "I wonder what dorm I'll be in?" or "Will Brady win the Heisman"; not asking what physics course to take two years in the future.