How much does improvement help on app?

[Toadesque]

i go to a CC in california right now, just finished one year. i didn't do so well 1st semester, only took 3 classes (gen chem, bio, math), i got an A in bio but a C+ in chem. 2nd semester I did a little better, got A's in gen chem II, genetics, psych, but got a C+ in intro to physics lol. i plan to transfer to a 4 year after one more year. i'll be taking o-chem, physics (i need o-chem to transfer but is it frowned upon to take it at a cc?, it's not an easy CC though it has about 14k students) . Also, do med schools really care about the labs for chem? i did really badly in both semesters but they were a total joke and one of the worst grading systems i've ever experienced.

Even though these aren't upper division courses (hey i found gen chem II pretty difficult lol), will the poor gpa from 1st semester freshman year (2.8) be excused if i keep getting A's? unfortunately my GPA won't ever be like 3.8 or 3.9 bc of that one semester of chem/labs and some lower division classes but i think i can get it up to about 3.5-3.6 by the time i transfer.

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[Mattabet]

i'll be taking o-chem, physics (i need o-chem to transfer but is it frowned upon to take it at a cc?

If you need it to transfer, then you don't really have the option not to take it, right? Ideally, you'd take all your sciences at a 4-year institution, but the consensus seems to be that if you take the basics at your community college and follow it up with advanced science after you transfer, as well as a strong MCAT, then you'll be fine.

Also, do med schools really care about the labs for chem?

Yes. That's why they're required.

Even though these aren't upper division courses (hey i found gen chem II pretty difficult lol), will the poor gpa from 1st semester freshman year (2.8) be excused if i keep getting A's?

I don't think it will ever be 'excused'. Adcoms are going to notice those grades, and they will affect your application. That said, if you show a strong trend of improvement, that will help. Those grades are what they are - in the realm of allopathic schools, they are there to stay. All you can do now is strive to do better.

 

[Zoom-Zoom]

The biggest problem is the CC. Doing poorly at a big University is one thing, but at a CC it's a little different. You're going to have to work really hard to prove that you can hack it. This comes from a Cali resident who is friends with many CC students and knows how completely and utterly non-competitive they are...your classes at the Big 4-Year will be exponentially more difficult.

I don't think it will ever be 'excused'. Adcoms are going to notice those grades, and they will affect your application. That said, if you show a strong trend of improvement, that will help. Those grades are what they are - in the realm of allopathic schools, they are there to stay. All you can do now is strive to do better.

Agreed It is what it is. My freshman grades were dismal (<2.0), but I made up for it and it worked out. I would have done much, much better if I could have scrapped them completely, though.

 

[CluelessAsian]

i'll be taking o-chem, physics (i need o-chem to transfer but is it frowned upon to take it at a cc?, it's not an easy CC though it has about 14k students) . Also, do med schools really care about the labs for chem?

I don't think you need ochem and physics to transfer.. in CA, you just need to take 60 semester units from CC to transfer.. It doesn't matter where that 60 comes from as long as they're transferrable..

The biggest problem is the CC. Doing poorly at a big University is one thing, but at a CC it's a little different. You're going to have to work really hard to prove that you can hack it. This comes from a Cali resident who is friends with many CC students and knows how completely and utterly non-competitive they are...your classes at the Big 4-Year will be exponentially more difficult.

I think it depends on the CC. I went to two different CC's.. one is significantly smaller than the other.. But the smaller one was harder than the bigger one.. I got a 3.5 on the small CC and 4.0 on the other.. then I transferred to a CSU and got 4.0 there.. THe CC I went to NEVER curved grades.. an A is atleast 90% and if you get 88%, that's a B not A-.. Unlike in CSU where in gen chem or other heavily curved science classes, an A is 88%...

 

[drareg]

The biggest problem is the CC. Doing poorly at a big University is one thing, but at a CC it's a little different. You're going to have to work really hard to prove that you can hack it. This comes from a Cali resident who is friends with many CC students and knows how completely and utterly non-competitive they are...your classes at the Big 4-Year will be exponentially more difficult.



Agreed It is what it is. My freshman grades were dismal (<2.0), but I made up for it and it worked out. I would have done much, much better if I could have scrapped them completely, though.

Not true, I had nearly a 4.0 at my cc and transferred to a UC and maintained a GPA similar to my cc GPA. It is definitely tougher to get an A at the university level but only because there is a lot of extra stuff they make you do but my cc was pretty competitive as well, I still had to study to do well. I still feel I received a better education at my CC and learned how to politic at my bigger UC.
To the OP, I think you will be fine if you transfer to a nice 4-year and do well. Just realize that becoming a successful pre-med is extremely time consuming and you WILL make sacrifices (like your social life haha) but if this is what you love and have passion for than it doesnt matter. Now that I am almost done, I am so glad I put in all that hard work and you will too. Good luck bud!

 

[Zoom-Zoom]

Sorry fellas, CC's aren't competitive, and neither are CSU's. If they were, you'de find one or two students admitted to med school from CC's every year...but you dont. Have you ever seen the type of students who attend these schools? Sorry, but you both are completely biased.

Getting a certain grade is a different story..I agree that it can be hard to get a good grade sometimes in non-competitive classes, and that there isn't always a correlation between grades and competitiveness (ex: Ivy League grade inflation)....but in general, my attitude toward CC's mirrors that of the ad comms, and that's all that really matters, anyway.

 

[CluelessAsian]

Sorry fellas, CC's aren't competitive, and neither are CSU's. If they were, you'de find one or two students admitted to med school from CC's every year...

LOL.. you know why CC students don't get accepted at med school? Because CCs don't award bachelor's degree which most med school look for (even if it's not a requirement)..

But you're too smart to know that...

 

[CoolWhipp]

Sorry fellas, CC's aren't competitive, and neither are CSU's. If they were, you'de find one or two students admitted to med school from CC's every year...but you dont. Have you ever seen the type of students who attend these schools? Sorry, but you both are completely biased.

I'm sure you know that students from CC's transfer to four year universities. Many of which then go on to graduate school. Many students at CC's are not competitive, I agree. I won't speak for CSU's, but I will say they have to climb up hill a bit compared to the UC/private students.

I know many transfer students who are as competitive (and many times more competitive) than their continuing student counterparts.

Zoom-Zoom is right in that adcoms don't look favorably at CC's. You have to justify your CC grades with immaculate grades at a university. It will look really bad on your part if you do not continue to maintain or improve your grades once you transfer.

Good luck.