Help! Academic Year assigned by AMCAS

[starx3]

Hi everyone!

I am looking for some advices here.

I just finished my first year in college but I've completed 44 credits in total (U2 status).

When I read the AMCAS guidelines, it says "Each undergraduate status should consist of approximately 27-35 semester hours". I had more than 35 credits this year and I planned on exceeding that for the next 3 years as well because I have two majors. The AMCAS handbook also says "If the Year in School selected greatly exceeds the
ranges specified below, AMCAS may reassign statuses". (The range: FR- 0-32 credits, SO- 31-64 credits, JR- 61-96 credits). If I plan on taking 44 credits each year (including summer and winter sessions), will some of my credits not counted or counted in the wrong year because AMCAS will reassign statuses?

I plan on applying to med school right after junior year so I will have about 130 credits (Do they still all count in my GPA using the AMCAS calculator??)

Help please!

On a side note, I did mediocre in Intro Bio and Intro Chem because of my laziness. Will doing very well from now on with my upper-level biology and chemistry classes make it up? How about upper-level math classes? How good do they look compared to upper level biology and chemistry classes?

I am doing a lot better in math than in biology and chemistry.

Thanks for your time!!! 🙂

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[phltz]

Hi everyone!

I am looking for some advices here.

I just finished my first year in college but I've completed 44 credits in total (U2 status).

When I read the AMCAS guidelines, it says "Each undergraduate status should consist of approximately 27-35 semester hours". I had more than 35 credits this year and I planned on exceeding that for the next 3 years as well because I have two majors. The AMCAS handbook also says "If the Year in School selected greatly exceeds the
ranges specified below, AMCAS may reassign statuses". (The range: FR- 0-32 credits, SO- 31-64 credits, JR- 61-96 credits). If I plan on taking 44 credits each year (including summer and winter sessions), will some of my credits not counted or counted in the wrong year because AMCAS will reassign statuses?

I plan on applying to med school right after junior year so I will have about 130 credits (Do they still all count in my GPA using the AMCAS calculator??)

Help please!

On a side note, I did mediocre in Intro Bio and Intro Chem because of my laziness. Will doing very well from now on with my upper-level biology and chemistry classes make it up? How about upper-level math classes? How good do they look compared to upper level biology and chemistry classes?

I am doing a lot better in math than in biology and chemistry.

Thanks for your time!!! 🙂

They may consider the spring semester of your sophomore year to actually be junior year, or something along those lines. But they will still use all of your classes to calculate your GPA, and it shouldn't really make a difference.

Plenty of students have a few mediocre (or even outright bad) grades and still get into med school. Just don't make a habit of it. Do as well as you can in your future classes.

 

[starx3]

They may consider the spring semester of your sophomore year to actually be junior year, or something along those lines. But they will still use all of your classes to calculate your GPA, and it shouldn't really make a difference.

Plenty of students have a few mediocre (or even outright bad) grades and still get into med school. Just don't make a habit of it. Do as well as you can in your future classes.

Hey,

Thank you for the reply. I thought that medical schools don't look at senior year grades? So even if they assign my sophomore year grades as junior year, my "actual junior year" (third year in college is still considered in the GPA calculation right? How about my "actual" fourth year?

And thanks for the encourgement 🙂 I will definitely work hard to get good grades.

 

[hiyaman]

Hey,

Thank you for the reply. I thought that medical schools don't look at senior year grades? So even if they assign my sophomore year grades as junior year, my "actual junior year" (third year in college is still considered in the GPA calculation right? How about my "actual" fourth year?

And thanks for the encourgement 🙂 I will definitely work hard to get good grades.

It depends when you apply. You can have your senior grades factored in but you'll be taking a gap year. Currently you are planning for ugrad then med school and are applying the summer before senior year. If you apply the summer after your senior year then you get your grades in but you need to find something to do for a year.

 

[weezynation]

Hi everyone!

I am looking for some advices here.

I just finished my first year in college but I've completed 44 credits in total (U2 status).

When I read the AMCAS guidelines, it says "Each undergraduate status should consist of approximately 27-35 semester hours". I had more than 35 credits this year and I planned on exceeding that for the next 3 years as well because I have two majors. The AMCAS handbook also says "If the Year in School selected greatly exceeds the
ranges specified below, AMCAS may reassign statuses". (The range: FR- 0-32 credits, SO- 31-64 credits, JR- 61-96 credits). If I plan on taking 44 credits each year (including summer and winter sessions), will some of my credits not counted or counted in the wrong year because AMCAS will reassign statuses?

I plan on applying to med school right after junior year so I will have about 130 credits (Do they still all count in my GPA using the AMCAS calculator??)

Help please!

On a side note, I did mediocre in Intro Bio and Intro Chem because of my laziness. Will doing very well from now on with my upper-level biology and chemistry classes make it up? How about upper-level math classes? How good do they look compared to upper level biology and chemistry classes?

I am doing a lot better in math than in biology and chemistry.

Thanks for your time!!! 🙂

That's great that u r doing so well in math, but make sure you pull up those science grades because med school is science so adcoms are going to want to see that you can handle tough science courses.

 

[Beekachu]

I doubt that amcas will reassign the years as 44 is not greatly different than 35, and your credits are higher due to summer courses.

Also, they have a way to designate college courses taken in high school which is how you should list your classes taken before your first year. I doubt that med schools care if you consider yourself a "sophomore by credits" your freshman year.

The idea that med schools don't look at your senior grades is only because you apply before taking senior classes typically, so the grades don't exist yet. You will need to send a final transcript to wherever you attend so don't totally neglect your senior classes

Hi everyone!

I am looking for some advices here.

I just finished my first year in college but I've completed 44 credits in total (U2 status).

When I read the AMCAS guidelines, it says "Each undergraduate status should consist of approximately 27-35 semester hours". I had more than 35 credits this year and I planned on exceeding that for the next 3 years as well because I have two majors. The AMCAS handbook also says "If the Year in School selected greatly exceeds the
ranges specified below, AMCAS may reassign statuses". (The range: FR- 0-32 credits, SO- 31-64 credits, JR- 61-96 credits). If I plan on taking 44 credits each year (including summer and winter sessions), will some of my credits not counted or counted in the wrong year because AMCAS will reassign statuses?

I plan on applying to med school right after junior year so I will have about 130 credits (Do they still all count in my GPA using the AMCAS calculator??)

Help please!

On a side note, I did mediocre in Intro Bio and Intro Chem because of my laziness. Will doing very well from now on with my upper-level biology and chemistry classes make it up? How about upper-level math classes? How good do they look compared to upper level biology and chemistry classes?

I am doing a lot better in math than in biology and chemistry.

Thanks for your time!!! 🙂

 

[phltz]

Hey,

Thank you for the reply. I thought that medical schools don't look at senior year grades? So even if they assign my sophomore year grades as junior year, my "actual junior year" (third year in college is still considered in the GPA calculation right? How about my "actual" fourth year?

And thanks for the encourgement 🙂 I will definitely work hard to get good grades.

If you've already gotten a grade by the time you apply, they will look at it. What year it's classified as is irrelevant.

 

[starx3]

Thanks everyone for the replies. I think i understand it better now; so it doesnt matter what class standing i am in, as long as the grades are in before the application, they will include it in my gpa. Haha hopefully its the case. 🙂