How many "In Progress" prereqs?

[futuredoc331]

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Is there a consensus out on how many prereqs can safely be labeld planned/in progress? I've got all my prereqs to take and I should be able to knock out most by next year, but probably won't have them all done. I don't want to rush anything, but I'd like to apply so that I can matriculate in Fall 2015. If all goes as planned they will all be done, but if not I will have at least 3 as planned. So long as I am able to do well on the MCAT without them would it be safe to apply?

 

[backsideattack1]

Is there a consensus out on how many prereqs can safely be labeld planned/in progress? I've got all my prereqs to take and I should be able to knock out most by next year, but probably won't have them all done. I don't want to rush anything, but I'd like to apply so that I can matriculate in Fall 2015. If all goes as planned they will all be done, but if not I will have at least 3 as planned. So long as I am able to do well on the MCAT without them would it be safe to apply?

From my experience this cycle, some of the better schools like DMU and MSU wanted all of the upper level courses BEFORE receiving the application. DMU especially wanted them. I have pretty competitive statistics for osteopathic schools, but because I did not have biochem and genetics complete until the fall after I had submitted, I was rejected. At least this is the reasoning they gave me. MSU is the same, they look at upper level biology courses, but what is bad about MSU is that they do not accept updates even if you were to complete them within that summer. They even suggested to me that I should maybe even wait til the courses are done to submit, but obviously, by then it would have been December

 

[futuredoc331]

From my experience this cycle, some of the better schools like DMU and MSU wanted all of the upper level courses BEFORE receiving the application. DMU especially wanted them. I have pretty competitive statistics for osteopathic schools, but because I did not have biochem and genetics complete until the fall after I had submitted, I was rejected. At least this is the reasoning they gave me. MSU is the same, they look at upper level biology courses, but what is bad about MSU is that they do not accept updates even if you were to complete them within that summer. They even suggested to me that I should maybe even wait til the courses are done to submit, but obviously, by then it would have been December

Thanks for the info. I may have to find a way to get them all in very quickly OR wait a year. I guess waiting won't hurt, but I'm already 25 at the beginning of this journey. I don't want to be 28/29 before even getting into school.

Are biochem and genetics actually stated as prereqs for those schools? That's pretty crappy that they aren't required, but were means for rejecting you.

 

[backsideattack1]

Not 100% sure if they are required at DMU, but I can assume so since that is what I got from them. I know it is required at MSU and KCUMB. I think the more competitive schools require genetics and biochem. Those are helpful courses for the MCAT, especially as they transition to the new MCAT in 2015. While I was preparing for it, I was reading into how they are adding more genetics and biochem, even before the new MCAT in 2015. I had a few passages in genetics and biochem so taking the course before is a big help, but obviously not as important as the intro level courses like bio, chem, physics, physiology.