Help an indecisive person make a decision about Orgo II?

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voteknope

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Hi, everyone!

So I am getting weirdly bent out of shape over what to do and would love some advice (even if it is just to tell me I am being stupid and should suck it up).

I am currently enrolled in Orgo II at night while working full time, finishing up my interviews, and dealing with some family issues. I am falling super behind (even more so because it has been a few years since I took Orgo I) and I am overall quite stressed and underslept.

I am taking the class now because it is required at a couple of the medical schools I interviewed at/will interview at this cycle and I was unable to take it until this semester. Most of my schools accept biochem instead.

I was just waitlisted at one of my top choice schools (which requires Orgo II). So a decision to drop the class would effectively be a decision to withdraw from this school as well. However, I have been admitted to another top choice (which does not require Orgo II) with a fair amount of merit money and would be totally pumped to attend.

TLDR: Would you spend the last few months before medical school really stressed out for a minute chance at a particular school even though you are super happy with another acceptance already (and knowing you might stick with the first school anyway depending on the financial situation)? Or would you just be stressed for a few more months for a chance at another top choice?

Thanks!!

(PS. If you are considering not taking Orgo II and you are still in undergrad - just take it. Trust me, you want to spare yourself the stress of trying to remember mechanisms from three years ago.)

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Hi, everyone!

So I am getting weirdly bent out of shape over what to do and would love some advice (even if it is just to tell me I am being stupid and should suck it up).

I am currently enrolled in Orgo II at night while working full time, finishing up my interviews, and dealing with some family issues. I am falling super behind (even more so because it has been a few years since I took Orgo I) and I am overall quite stressed and underslept.

I am taking the class now because it is required at a couple of the medical schools I interviewed at/will interview at this cycle and I was unable to take it until this semester. Most of my schools accept biochem instead.

I was just waitlisted at one of my top choice schools (which requires Orgo II). So a decision to drop the class would effectively be a decision to withdraw from this school as well. However, I have been admitted to another top choice (which does not require Orgo II) with a fair amount of merit money and would be totally pumped to attend.

TLDR: Would you spend the last few months before medical school really stressed out for a minute chance at a particular school even though you are super happy with another acceptance already (and knowing you might stick with the first school anyway depending on the financial situation)? Or would you just be stressed for a few more months for a chance at another top choice?

Thanks!!

(PS. If you are considering not taking Orgo II and you are still in undergrad - just take it. Trust me, you want to spare yourself the stress of trying to remember mechanisms from three years ago.)

You need to be honest with yourself. If given a choice between the school that you have been accepted to with a merit scholarship and your other top choice, which would you choose?

If your answer isn't "I would choose the other top choice that requires orgo" then why bother? You're already accepted with a scholarship, you've made it. Why stress more than you have to?
 
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to me, it looks like you got accepted into a top choice with some nice $$$ and got waitlisted at another top choice. these two options seem comparable, unless there is something valuable about the waitlist school that you really would want to be there (and i'm not really seeing it).

personally, i'd ditch the school that waitlisted me (and thus not waste time and stress with ochem 2), and go with the school that accepted me
 
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You need to be honest with yourself. If given a choice between the school that you have been accepted to with a merit scholarship and your other top choice, which would you choose?

If your answer isn't "I would choose the other top choice that requires orgo" then why bother? You're already accepted with a scholarship, you've made it. Why stress more than you have to?

to me, it looks like you got accepted into a top choice with some nice $$$ and got waitlisted at another top choice. these two options seem comparable, unless there is something valuable about the waitlist school that you really would want to be there (and i'm not really seeing it).

personally, i'd ditch the school that waitlisted me (and thus not waste time and stress with ochem 2), and go with the school that accepted me

Thanks, guys!

I guess I wasn't even thinking of this as a specific School A vs. School B situation but I suppose it is.

I'm really just fighting against two different gut feelings: 1. that I should run as far from orgo as possible, and 2. that is it crazy to withdraw now because I truly loved that school

If the money situation wasn't a factor, I think I would choose the orgo-required school, but I don't think that's really a scenario that would be likely to occur and I would still need to think about it
 
Thanks, guys!

I guess I wasn't even thinking of this as a specific School A vs. School B situation but I suppose it is.

I'm really just fighting against two different gut feelings: 1. that I should run as far from orgo as possible, and 2. that is it crazy to withdraw now because I truly loved that school

If the money situation wasn't a factor, I think I would choose the orgo-required school, but I don't think that's really a scenario that would be likely to occur and I would still need to think about it

i'd imagine the scenario being difficult had you been accepted to the ochem-required school since other factors matter. but here it's basically between accept vs waitlist where the decision of when you'll be accepted from the waitlist may not happen for at least a few weeks. does the school you're waitlisted have something that you really like which is lacking in the school you're accepted at? if it doesn't, there really isn't much of a reason to suffer under the evils of ochem.
 
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i'd imagine the scenario being difficult had you been accepted to the ochem-required school since other factors matter. but here it's basically between accept vs waitlist where the decision of when you'll be accepted from the waitlist may not happen for at least a few weeks. does the school you're waitlisted have something that you really like which is lacking in the school you're accepted at? if it doesn't, there really isn't much of a reason to suffer under the evils of ochem.

That's true. Haha it's just so weirdly hard to let go? There is nothing in particular (maybe some slight preferences in curriculum style, etc). I honestly think the vibe on interview day builds these impressions of schools that may or may not be accurate which then affect decision-making in strange ways.
 
That's true. Haha it's just so weirdly hard to let go? There is nothing in particular (maybe some slight preferences in curriculum style, etc). I honestly think the vibe on interview day builds these impressions of schools that may or may not be accurate which then affect decision-making in strange ways.

yep but interview day impressions can be misleading, limited, incomplete etc. so attending second look is useful (although apparently a lot of schools are hosting second look on the same days/week...).

of course i don't know about your situation besides what you outlined so far. and maybe i'm selfish, but it's personally hard to justify taking (and suffering under) a course to satisfy the requirements of a school that only waitlisted me. i would need to find a compelling incentive in the waitlist school that could help me get through the course without losing my sanity.

but that's just me and i could be the rare oddball so who knows!
 
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yep but interview day impressions can be misleading, limited, incomplete etc. so attending second look is useful (although apparently a lot of schools are hosting second look on the same days/week...).

of course i don't know about your situation besides what you outlined so far. and maybe i'm selfish, but it's personally hard to justify taking (and suffering under) a course to satisfy the requirements of a school that only waitlisted me. i would need to find a compelling incentive in the waitlist school that could help me get through the course without losing my sanity.

but that's just me and i could be the rare oddball so who knows!

Thanks! I feel very similarly. I think my brain is totally fried by everything and is having a hard time seeing the big picture.
 
Unless anyone has any other insights, I think I will be dropping the class! Thanks! :)
 
Sorry one last question -

If I drop the class, do I need to notify the other schools I am waiting to hear back from post-interview? It's not listed on my AMCAS, but I had included that I started Orgo II as a one-liner in an update that I sent out along with other things (publications, work updates, etc). If schools don't require it, will they still care if I take a W (it's the only class I'm taking currently)? Is this something I should worry about letting them know pre-decision?

Sorry if I am overthinking this! Would love to hear from any adcom who wants to weight in: @Goro @gyngyn @gonnif @LizzyM

Thank you so much!!
 
I wouldn't care, and my Admissions dean wouldn't even let us know.

Sorry one last question -

If I drop the class, do I need to notify the other schools I am waiting to hear back from post-interview? It's not listed on my AMCAS, but I had included that I started Orgo II as a one-liner in an update that I sent out along with other things (publications, work updates, etc). If schools don't require it, will they still care if I take a W (it's the only class I'm taking currently)? Is this something I should worry about letting them know pre-decision?

Sorry if I am overthinking this! Would love to hear from any adcom who wants to weight in: @Goro @gyngyn @gonnif @LizzyM

Thank you so much!!
 
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