How do you complete pre-reqs while working full-time?

[SaharaWolf]

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Hello,
I'm wondering how people complete their pre-reqs while working full-time. I checked a number of local colleges and their class schedules make it almost impossible for me to take classes while working full time. Thanks!


SaharaWolf

 

[Kateb4]

You have to be flexible, and chip away at them one at a time. If you can't rearrange your work schedule to fit the classes at a 4-year college, maybe look into some community colleges. They tend to cater beter to working adults and may have some of the prereqs available in the evening or online. At some point, you may have to figure something out with your work, because most of the lab classes meet durring the day, there's not much they can do about that. Good luck.

 

[Nasem]

For me, I work as a software developer (40-50 hrs per week)... Lucky for me my job is a "little" flexible, I attend work from 7am till 3:30 every day and sometimes I come on sundays or saturdays...

My General Chem I class starts at 4:10 till 5 4 days a week, and lab from 6:30 till 9 (PM)...

As for the community college advice, I would never go to Community college, alot of medical schools don't fully like applicants with community college pre-reqs.

One more thing, I realised that the route to dental school requires me to give up alot of things, so this coming september (last week of august), I am quitting my job and attending full time school so I can finish my pre-reqs asap and start applying to dental schools

 

[Scottish Chap]

Hello,
I'm wondering how people complete their pre-reqs while working full-time. I checked a number of local colleges and their class schedules make it almost impossible for me to take classes while working full time. Thanks!


SaharaWolf

One school near my town was offering the classes in the evening. It was my only option. I was working 60+ hours/week in my previous career at the time and it was tough, but quite possible since it was my only chance.

 

[cubbbie]

In my post-bacc program, all the classes started at 6:30 pm and all the labs were on weekends. I could usually swing two classes at a time while working full time. Hopefully you can find a program like that, or maybe move to a city that has such a program. Good luck.

 

[SaharaWolf]

which college is this? Thanks!

In my post-bacc program, all the classes started at 6:30 pm and all the labs were on weekends. I could usually swing two classes at a time while working full time. Hopefully you can find a program like that, or maybe move to a city that has such a program. Good luck.

 

[relentless11]

Hello,
I'm wondering how people complete their pre-reqs while working full-time. I checked a number of local colleges and their class schedules make it almost impossible for me to take classes while working full time. Thanks!


SaharaWolf

I found a job that was most flexible towards my goals. As an undergrad I actually worked two jobs. One was as a laboratory research assistant at the school I was going to. The pay sucked, but it was enough to survive.

One key factor that everyone must consider is that although having a life is a legitimate reason for taking 1-2 classes (part-time), or going to a CC for night classes. The question still remains if you can handle a full-time academic workload. This is why most schools recommend taking a few quarters/semesters of full-time coursework. Work is tough, and work + school is even more tough, but its not the same as going to school full-time and doing well in your classes either. Therefore this is something you have to consider. Remember, there are undergrads out there that don't have parents supporting them, yet they still have to get by somehow while going to school full-time. We all have lives to deal with, but the question is if you can convince the med schools that you can do well IN med school. Please don't get me wrong though, people do get in, but the most ideal path would be to go full-time, rather than part time. Your call! I would recommend talking to your med schools of interest too.

As for the community college advice, I would never go to Community college, alot of medical schools don't fully like applicants with community college pre-reqs.

Right advice, but for the wrong reasons. We live in a world of various shades of greys, not black and white. "A lot" is a very strong and incorrect assumption. There is a small handful of med schools (about 2-3) that do not accept courses taken at a CC. If you were a science major, most schools will look at how you did in your upper division science classes if you happen to take your pre-reqs at a CC. Other schools might not even care.

Med schools under the University of California, some of the hardest and highest ranking med schools in the nation are sympathetic to transfer students. Many of these students did their pre-reqs at a CC, and eventually transferred to a UC to earn a bachelors degree. Many of these transfer students make it into allopathic med schools, including those under the UC system. Many of these students now serve on pre-AMSA discussion panels to help other transfer students meet their goals on becoming a physician.

All schools want to see that you took the most rigorous route "WHENEVER POSSIBLE" as stated by UCSD School of Medicine's website. If you go the CC route, then you want to prove yourself that you can still do well at a 4-year institution. This is why transfer students are rarely frowned upon. Conversely, if you did poorly at a 4-year institution, and then take your pre-reqs at a CC, then that looks bad. What I'm getting at is that its a case-by-case basis, rather than some hard set policy that med school's "don't fully like applicants with community college pre-reqs."

 

[cubbbie]

One key factor that everyone must consider is that although having a life is a legitimate reason for taking 1-2 classes (part-time), or going to a CC for night classes. The question still remains if you can handle a full-time academic workload. This is why most schools recommend taking a few quarters/semesters of full-time coursework. Work is tough, and work + school is even more tough, but its not the same as going to school full-time and doing well in your classes either. Therefore this is something you have to consider. Remember, there are undergrads out there that don't have parents supporting them, yet they still have to get by somehow while going to school full-time. We all have lives to deal with, but the question is if you can convince the med schools that you can do well IN med school. Please don't get me wrong though, people do get in, but the most ideal path would be to go full-time, rather than part time. Your call! I would recommend talking to your med schools of interest too.

I'm not sure what you mean by this. I was assuming that we were talking about taking classes AFTER finishing ugrad (i.e. 4 years of full-time coursework). Maybe that's not what you were talking about, but if it is, I do not think there is any value in taking extra years as a full-time student, nor do I think there is any detriment in taking classes part-time while working full-time in a meaningful job. In fact, I would say the latter is preferable, as post-baccs can gain great clinical or research experience while taking the core classes.

Anyway, for Saharawolf, I PMed you the program I did.

 

[relentless11]

I'm not sure what you mean by this. I was assuming that we were talking about taking classes AFTER finishing ugrad (i.e. 4 years of full-time coursework). Maybe that's not what you were talking about, but if it is, I do not think there is any value in taking extra years as a full-time student, nor do I think there is any detriment in taking classes part-time while working full-time in a meaningful job. In fact, I would say the latter is preferable, as post-baccs can gain great clinical or research experience while taking the core classes.

Lets put it this way. Who looks better (numberswise): A person who works and maintains a 4.0 as a full-time student vs someone who works and maintains a 4.0 when taking 1-2 classes per quarter/semester? Both people have exceptional extracurriculars, MCAT scores etc.

Certainly impossible to go to school full-time if you work all day. There has to be concessions somewhere, and it really depends on what you want to do and how much you want to get out of it. Family for one thing comes first, you only have one family. But ultimately, you are only as good as the next guy/gal. Its how you sell yourself that gets you in. You are assuming that full-time students, whether they be undergrads or post-bacc will lack research or clinical experiences because they take a full-time courseload. This is highly incorrect.

UC Davis (along with our sister UC med schools) have structured post-baccs that require you to take a full-time courseload (including pre-med courses) where you have to maintain at least a 3.5 GPA. You also have time to do research, and volunteer at our medical center if not in the community. These students all have these extra experiences, and many do work to pay for the ungodly tuition fees for this program. Others take out more loans. Simple as that. One has to ask themselves...how will you compare to someone who is as busy as you are (e.g., full-time job) but still manage do extracurriculars and do just as well in more classes compared to you?

Additionally, there are plenty of "optional" classes that one should take to prepare for med school. Many have said that you ONLY need the bare minimum for the MCAT, but many on SDN have also pointed out how helpful they are. Biochemistry, genetics, molecular biology, immunology, microbiology, etc etc. So there are plenty of classes to fill up the time. In fact some schools actually require biochemistry and/or genetics.

Therefore in summary, many post-bacc students out there, whether through pressure from their post-bacc program, or self-motivation still take lots of classes and gain lots of extracurricular experience despite working a full-time job. Our med school's post-bacc program forces this to ensure that it maintains its 85% applicant success rate.

I agree though, you want to stand out and your implication that having ADDITIONAL attributes DOES help is certainly correct. But these attributes should be both positive and relatively unique too.🙂

 

[NonTradMed]

From my experience as a nontrad, I find that the hardest part is making time for classes. If you have a flexible job, you may get away with taking classes in the middle of the day, but if not, the only option may be to take evening classes wherever they may be, or finding a more flexible job. As nontrads, we have the difficult job of competing in an academic environment agains applicants who are fulltime students (ideal candidate in adcoms' eyes).

Some people believe that as long as you have good stats, then that's all that matters, and that as nontrads, we have better ECs/clinicals/etc. From my experience, no amount of shadowning/clinical experience/ECs will ever compensate for medicore stats.

Priority for nontrads should be:
1. Good GPA/MCAT. 'Nuff said.

2. Fulltime load is the ideal since it's what adcoms try to measure people by. As others have said, if you can't do a fulltime program, you should try to show that had to take a half load b/c of fulltime work. Don't try to pull a half load as a fulltime student. You'll be at a disadvantage as compared to students who are fulltime students and/or who worked.

3. Ideal is four year university. As one of the above poster said, the worst that you can do is do a four year stint then go back to CC. Adcoms understand that nontrads don't have all the choices available to them and will make concessions for CC, but try to avoid it if you can and/or take upper level classes at four year university later. For good or ill, CCs are not considered, by itself, comparable to science classes in four year university. This is advice I have heard from quite a few sources. People get all jumpy about the anti-CC advice, because most med schools will "accept" CC pre-reqs, but as anyone who've been through the admissions process can tell you, adcoms will "accept" many applications, but few applicants.

The bottom line is to stimulate a fulltime, four year college grad's experience as much as possible doing the pre-reqs. Concessions will have to be made of course. If the four year school's coursework conflicts with work, try the local CC. If your work schedule only permits you to take one class at a time, make sure to point that out to the adcoms. If you have lousy stats, make it better. There's nothing magical about getting in. It's a lot of hardwork and sacrifices.

 

[Doctor Bagel]

I took most of my prereqs one class at a time while working fulltime, and it appeared to be a non-issue when I applied. I think adcoms are smart enough to get that when you work fulltime and volunteer, you can't take that many classes at once. It's always better to do well in fewer classes than to overextend yourself and not do as well (common, common, common premed error). I guess my situation was a little different, though, because I had a successful ugrad experience when I was a normal fulltime student. My stats were also fairly good.

 

[Krisss17]

All schools want to see that you took the most rigorous route "WHENEVER POSSIBLE" as stated by UCSD School of Medicine's website. If you go the CC route, then you want to prove yourself that you can still do well at a 4-year institution. This is why transfer students are rarely frowned upon. Conversely, if you did poorly at a 4-year institution, and then take your pre-reqs at a CC, then that looks bad. What I'm getting at is that its a case-by-case basis, rather than some hard set policy that med school's "don't fully like applicants with community college pre-reqs."

I, too, agree with this statement. While you will definitely need to transfer to a four-year, many states have CC's that have the same exact classes as the 4-yr schools. I definitely agree with the case-by-case situation versus a blanket statement. I'm electing to take my prereqs at CC because I am working full-time, and commuting to a school 2 hours away is just not feasible if I can take the same exact classes at my CC. On the other hand, though, I will be taking advanced science classes when I do transfer.

To the OP, if you have access to a 4-yr...go for it, but if a CC is available and works with your schedule...check it out. To me, the MCAT is the great equalizer...if you have a good science background, regardless of whether it is a CC or a 4-yr, and you do well on the MCAT...that is what the adcoms are going concentrate.

 

[deleted128562]

I wholeheartedly agree with everything stated above. Especially if you eventually transfer into a 4 year institution.

In case it helps, I had a full time job during the day to support my family and did classes around it, but eventually realized that I was so serious about going into medicine that I needed to change my priorities (mostly for my own sanity, frankly). I ended up doing EMT class and networked/applied for months to get a full time night job, which I eventually did. (Not on an ambulace by the way, there are other options for EMT's). This allowed me to then start attending my nearby university full time (12-13 credit hours/semester). I don't get alot of sleep or see my family as much as I'd like to, but we get by and I'm happier now because I know I'm doing everything I can to get where I want to be.

My point is not to say that you should do what I'm doing. Heck, you may well get into medical school and I may well not. Who knows. I don't know your situation and I certainly can't judge you, so please don't take it this way - but - I will say that if you really really really want to be a doctor, it might be wise to be willing to make sacrifices to give yourself the best shot to get there, even if that means giving up your current job (if you're at all able to). It might mean you're poor for awhile, but so be it. And I do believe taking as many classes at a 4-year institution will give you the best app possible. Again, this is all just my opinion - but I think that if nothing else it might give you some peace of mind that you're doing all that you can to get where you want to be.

Whatever you end up doing, best of luck, and I'm sure you'll be very successful.

 

[njbmd]

Working full-time and attending school full-time are very difficult. What usually happens is the student winds up "burning-out" on one thing or the other and work usually is not the entity that suffers.

In order to be successful in gaining admission into medical school, you need to have high grades and a solid knowledge base in your pre-med coursework. If you have a full-time job that enables you to achieve high grades and a solid knowledge base in your coursework (for MCAT), then you have the best of both worlds and a good shot at making it.

If not, you have to cut back on either school or work. Since most people need the job, it is far better to cut back on your courseload and do well. Courseload is pretty much a non-issue if your GPA/MCAT are high in addition to the rest of your application being competitive.

Take your time, do very high quality work, and get in. You don't get any points for a mediocre GPA/MCAT because you have to work to keep food on your table and a roof over your head.

Try to find a job that is flexible enough for you to do your classwork at the same time but if you are not able to do this, cut back on your coursework and do well. In the end, you will achieve what you want, perhaps taking a little longer but you achieve your goal.

 

[megaluna]

if you live close to a big school, find out if they have an extension school program. i took gen chem at night, and worked a regular 9-5 job. it wasnt easy, but its totally manageable, and there were lots of other people doing the same thing.

good luck to you!

 

[aspirationMD]

It's a tough thing to do, or even try to do. I cut my hours back to 25-32 hours per week, hoping it will go back to 32 permanently though. I've always worked and gone to college which it tougher even still, because I am a single mom to two kids. Life is not easy, there is no luxury here, but I do what I must. Not working isn't an option for me, it might be the same for you. Finding a new part time job or cutting back on hours is ideal if you need to work, but definitely try to make it work, never assume it's "too hard".

 

[Quix]

Part of it depends on what kind of work you are doing. When I took my pre-reqs, I did work full time, but I worked clinically at a psych hospital. I would do my 40+ hours over three days (8 hours Friday, 16 hours Saturday & Sunday), and then taught / took classes during the week (taught 3 per semester, took 3+ per semester), on top of researching/writing my doctoral dissertation (from Jan. 2004 to May 2006; took all of the required courses and picked up a post-bacc Psych degree in the process). It was very stressful, but doable.

 

[146233]

Hello,
I'm wondering how people complete their pre-reqs while working full-time. I checked a number of local colleges and their class schedules make it almost impossible for me to take classes while working full time. Thanks!

I worked full-time (48 hours/week) at night on the ambulance and took four classes (two lectures/two labs) per semester. It was tiring, but nice to get them out of the way. ...and it got me through my post-bac program in a year. Would I recommend working full time at night to someone else? No. But it can be done.

-z

 

[hilseb]

Working odd hours, taking classes at odd hours, and studying all the time.

I did not take a full class load, however, and it took me several years of post-bacc.

 

[Tired Pigeon]

Hello,
I'm wondering how people complete their pre-reqs while working full-time. I checked a number of local colleges and their class schedules make it almost impossible for me to take classes while working full time. Thanks!


SaharaWolf

Plenty of good advice above ... I'll just add that when you feel discouraged by how overwhelming it seems, remember that a major benefit of doing it this way is that by the time you're in med school you will be an excellent time manager and able to prioritize & study efficiently. 🙂

 

[LexiLuthor]

I worked a 8-5 job in a rural area and went to community college nights and weekends. I maintained a 4.0 taking 2 classes/semester. It was tough but worth it. Although going to CC came up at some of my interviews, it was the way that made the most sense for me at the time. In the end I still ended up getting into school 🙂 My undergrad was solid with a good GPA (3.6 or 3.7) and I did pretty well on the Mcat (29), considering I was working, taking class, and studied on my own.