I wish they told me this...

[Wackie]

Regarding the biology department at my school.

Biology is okay. I'm not incredibly interested in it (plants bore me to death). But what irks me is we have recitation classes we have to go to. They're one hour long and for no credit. But, if you don't attend you get points off your grade. So much that even if you made perfect scores on all of your tests, the highest you could make is a B if you didn't attend recitation.
These one hour classes are a waste of time for me. Especially when you consider that they also take out a block of time I could use for a class.

I dunno if I'm interested enough in biology to put up with that. I live 20 min off campus and with several recitations back to back, it can really zap a lot of time from my schedule and make scheduling classes a PITA. I could be working or studying...or relaxing.

Maybe I'll switch to psychology, which is sorta interesting.
Any wisdom from you guys is appreciated.

Edit: One reason for going the biology route is that I need science courses to bump that GPA.

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[babycapybara]

i wouldn't change my plans for a major based on this one class. do you have to do much in the recitation? can you do other homework or reading? i had a physics recitation like this. you had to go even if you understood everything perfectly. i would go, maybe ask a question or 2 and then spend the rest of the time doing other stuff.

 

[Kateb4]

Yeah, recitations are really decided on how good your TA is, since they usually teach them. I have had great ones and horrible ones. Bring some studying to do and sit in the back. Better to go and use the time wisely, thus killing two birds with one stone. But you can't change your major to avoid them. I've had recitations in every science discipline, and you'll still have to take those classes since they are pre-med reqs anyways.

Best of luck that you aren't bored to death, that would really defeat the purpose.

 

[Meatwad]

Agreed with above poster, the quality of the recitation is dependent on the TA.

 

[oldpro]

Doing well is most important so change your major if you are more interested in the other subject!

 

[Wackie]

Doing well is most important so change your major if you are more interested in the other subject!

The major I'm most interested in is cytotechnology. Unfortunately, I'd have to move for one year to do clinical work that is competitive to get accepted into. If you don't have those 12 months then you don't graduate.


I might change to psychology. I do enjoy animal biology. Plant biology makes me want to gag. Really...it initiates a physical response. And it is known that an ecology professor, the only one who teaches this ecology class that all bio majors must have, makes it impossible to pass (not "do well in" but pass) unless you are able to get ahold of his old tests.

I'm just worried about the plan B thing if med school adcoms show me the door. A bachelors in psychology isn't worth much.

 

[Krisss17]

The major I'm most interested in is cytotechnology. Unfortunately, I'd have to move for one year to do clinical work that is competitive to get accepted into. If you don't have those 12 months then you don't graduate.


I might change to psychology. I do enjoy animal biology. Plant biology makes me want to gag. Really...it initiates a physical response. And it is known that an ecology professor, the only one who teaches this ecology class that all bio majors must have, makes it impossible to pass (not "do well in" but pass) unless you are able to get ahold of his old tests.

I'm just worried about the plan B thing if med school adcoms show me the door. A bachelors in psychology isn't worth much.

I personally feel that if you have a real interest in studying biology and all it entails, go for it...but I also feel that if you are doing that just to get into medical school, have no real affinity for the required courses, you are probably not going to do as well...where is the motivation (other than medical school). I'm going to make sure to take all of the science prereqs (only two left are Orgo and Physics), and possibly a couple of higher biology classes that are of interest to me, but my major is gerontology. Considering that the majority of our patients will be senior citizens and the population is aging, I'll make more use of this degree than I will in classes like botany and ecology.

But again, I'm not saying not to go for it, if that is YOUR interest.

Krisss17

 

[Wackie]

Thanks for everyones advice.

What also concerns me, coming from the "thought" (no offense) that psychologists usually have more issues than their patients, is now I'm wondering "Oh gawd. What's deep seedily wrong with me?"
I'm done being silly now.

Still I find behavioral problems more interesting than nematodes. So I should probably switch.
My next question would be how to find out if a class counts towards the science GPA in med application terms?

can you do other homework or reading?

You can, but *I* can't. I need quiet in order to study. They're answer/question type sessions where students ask questions and the TA answers. I get nothing out of it.
I'd find it more useful for math, but for biology I suck at the memorization instead of the concepts. And for memorization I need time and quiet.

 

[remo]

When I did my post bac I only took classes where I could blow off the recitation/discussion classes (i.e. there was no grade points involved in attending them). I never went to a single discussion class in 1 1/2 years and it didn't hurt my grades at all. If it is possible to pick and choose which classes you take then this might be possible.

 

[alphaeve]

I was a psych major in undergrad. I'm not sure about your specific school, but I think most psych departments have several classes that are biology related, and they'll typically let you choose your topics classes. Intro psych is usually a survey and most other required psych classes are scientific method related (statistics, research methods, et al). Most of my upper level psych classes were things like physiological psychology, learning and memory, drugs brain and behavior, perception, and psychological disorders. If animal bio really interests you, maybe you can shape your psych degree around that, and end up with more of a neuroscience/ bio-psych degree of your own making.

 

[Nasrudin]

I kind of have the opposite problem--I'm interested in most things and hate ruling things out. I'd like to have studied religion, philosophy, history, spanish, chinese, urban planning, health education, journalism, creative writing, music and so on. But working full-time and trying to get on with it has made me realize that Biology is the shortest path between two points--me and medical school admissions with all the pre-reqs done. So biology for me. I find little bacteria, worms, hagfish, plants, fungi, and so on to be interesting as well so it hasn't been a problem.

As to your original question. I'd think that every degree program has its tedious aspects. I wouldn't think that psychology would be too much less attendance-based than biology if at all. Your real question has to do with interest and certainly studying is easier if the subject interests you. If you think psychology is fascinating and you are not pressed for time etc. then go for the switch. take care.

 

[Kateb4]

Can you go talk with an advisor in the psyc department to see if they have anything that could meet your needs. Can't hurt, but if you are in upper level classes, changing your major may mean more classes and more time so... best to consider all of your options and see what works best for your goals!

 

[Wackie]

Can you go talk with an advisor in the psyc department to see if they have anything that could meet your needs. Can't hurt, but if you are in upper level classes, changing your major may mean more classes and more time so... best to consider all of your options and see what works best for your goals!

That is exactly what I need to do. Luckily, I've been doing mostly pre-reqs and core classes.

I'm not sure if they'd give me much information on what a bachelor's in psyche or biology is good for should I not get into med school.

 

[Simballo]

The more biology you take in undergrad, the less new material you'll have to master in dental school.

Here's the required list for SIUE-SDM and just below it is the recommended courses which are biology.

http://www.siue.edu/dental/programs/dmd/admission-requirements.shtml

It's easier to learn it under grad than to learn it at the graduate level when you've a much larger course load.

 

[Shotapp]

dude look at the date the thread was made.......

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

I had the same issue in my calc series and linear algebra course. Luckily, we didn't have any recitation classes for my upper division math courses, although I probably wouldn't have minded one with a good TA for abstract algebra (as long as it wasn't mandatory). Still got an A in that course though (don't ask me how--perfect example of knowing something intuitively but not being able to explain it at all to anyone).

Oh ****. Definitely didn't notice this was from 2007. Damn necro threads.

 

[esob]

My bio dept did away with recitations but the chem dept still has them. However, if you take chem in the summer, the recitation is just the testing period, no other work is required.