Is Calculus Absolutely Necessary for Med School????

[LolaMD]

I just hate calculus so much.......


How many Med Schools actually require that you take a year of calc?

Did anyone take a quantative science class instead? Do med schools see that as an equivalent?



(Sigh)

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[phospho]

I just hate calculus so much.......


How many Med Schools actually require that you take a year of calc?

Did anyone take a quantative science class instead? Do med schools see that as an equivalent?



(Sigh)

yeah, calculus is a bitch... but all the medical schools I applied to required a year of that crap...

good luck!

 

[airplanes]

It's like Physics...you just gotta suck it up and get it over with. You should always double check the pre-reqs for every school you are thinking of applying to. Sometimes they will throw you a curveball or two, OHSU requires a formal Genetics course, for example.

edit: Hmm I might be wrong. I still think its always a good idea to check the pre-reqs of every school though.

 

[redlight]

i don't think the list is that big. many schools want math, but i don't think many REQUIRE CALCULUS specifically. do a search on sdn or google it. i think someone summarized which schools fall into which categories.

id advise taking it.. drop it if you hate it.. but dont limit which schools you can apply to by not taking calculus. plus it has applications in a bunch of other stuff (think rates, optimization, physics) so the background could come in handy.

stats is good to take. it's applicable with research and in most universities it isnt considered a tough course. my calc II class had calc based stats and i found it pretty interesting and it wasnt even hard (i think).

 

[alanine1985]

Some require it some don't but cal I isn't a big deal seriously and I don't know what your degree is going to be in but I know Chemistry requires some calculus. Anyway you don't want to limit yourself to what schools you can apply to in the future suck it up and do the math.

 

[135892]

I just hate calculus so much.......


How many Med Schools actually require that you take a year of calc?

Did anyone take a quantative science class instead? Do med schools see that as an equivalent?



(Sigh)

I don't think most schools specifically require calculus. However, I do think that it would be a good idea to take at least one intro calc class, mostly for your own benefit. Calculus, and math in general, is everywhere, so even if you don't directly have to use upper-level math yourself, its still a good thing to know in case it comes up in papers that you'll be reading down the line. So, maybe look to see if your school offers some sort of "calculus for liberal arts" class.

 

[redlight]

oh, i'll also add that knowing calculus can make life easy. it can often be a shortcut in science/econ/other types of math problems.

 

[dozitgetchahi]

Some require it some don't but cal I isn't a big deal seriously and I don't know what your degree is going to be in but I know Chemistry requires some calculus. Anyway you don't want to limit yourself to what schools you can apply to in the future suck it up and do the math.

I took a year of the science-majors calc because I'd heard most med schools required it. When I actually applied, however, I was surprised to find that most schools didn't directly require it or only wanted to see a "year of math courses", which can include any sort of nonsense math classes your college offers.

I wouldn't kill yourself to take it considering that calc likely has jack diddly squat to do with whatever medicine you'll be practicing in the future. It's not like most docs spend their days burning out triple integrals or anything.

 

[TexasPhysician]

Most schools DON'T require Calculus.......at least not 3 years ago when I applied. I NEVER took Calculus (just statistics). It never hurt me on interviews, and isn't hurting me now. Calculus is useless.

 

[flip26]

yeah, calculus is a bitch... but all the medical schools I applied to required a year of that crap...

good luck!

Then did you only apply to Harvard? Maybe there are a couple more, but even Hopkins and WashU will accept a substitute of stats for a half year of calculus...

I have a list of approx 30 schools I am considering, about half of them in the Top 30, and none of them require a year of calculus, but many/most do require a year of math that can include calculus, stats, etc.

 

[binko]

Most don't require it directly but they require physics, which at the places I've been for undergrad require at least a semester of calc.

You def. don't need anything beyond first-year calc, though. I nearly died about ten minutes into the first diff. eq class of the semester and promptly dropped it. I had to drop my physics major as well, but could still take plenty physics for med school purposes.

 

[atl27]

like some others have said, not many schools require calculus. Most require a year of math, but this can be any math class.

Calculus is a waste of time. Also, take non-calc based physics. Algebra based is all you need for the mcat and beyond.

 

[LolaMD]

Thanks so much guys for the input.

 

[135892]

Here's a link I remember someone posting a while ago, it gives the requirements of all schools: http://www.brynmawr.edu/healthpro/advanced.html

Just skimming through that list, it seems that there are actually a few schools that require at least one semester of calculus, Harvard requires 2.

 

[flip26]

Here's a link I remember someone posting a while ago, it gives the requirements of all schools: http://www.brynmawr.edu/healthpro/advanced.html

Just skimming through that list, it seems that there are actually a few schools that require at least one semester of calculus, Harvard requires 2.

I looked over that list, and there are some errors on it.

Your best bet is to check the website for each school.

 

[135892]

I looked over that list, and there are some errors on it.

Your best bet is to check the website for each school.

Yeah, some of it seemed a bit off to me as well, but I wasn't sure...

 

[Naijaba]

Hi LolaMD,

Calculus is essential to a complete understanding of medicine. At the most basic level, the diffusion equation describes the movement of molecules down their concentration gradients. A growing trend in medical research is the use of computers to calculate, based upon simulations, the appropriate medicinal dosage rather than having to carry out costly laboratory experiments.

Moreover, as a doctor you will use tools built upon calculus knowledge. Though you may hate it, the most revolutionary advances in medical technology use much more math than calculus.

I advise you to take a deep breath, study some, and really try to see the utility of calculus in your future career as a doctor. Although you won't be sitting there solving equations, you will have a deeper understanding of the technology and physics that you will be using to improve the lives of patients.

P.S. Here's a link to an article on my website about enzyme kinetics and calculus:

http://eigensheep.bio.uci.edu/?p=75

 

[Van Chowder]

Well heres the thing, One out of 9 people in the united states live in california, making it the most highly populated state by far..

All of the UC's require a year of calc, which means for those of us where money IS an issue and want to apply in state, calc Is very important.

In turn, At least 1 out of 9 people on here HAVE to take calc if they want to apply instate.

 

[njbmd]

Some medical school (a few) have a calculus requirement. If you are not interested in applying to one of these, then skipping calculus should not be much of a problem.

Calculus has some subtleties that often escape some courses takers on first glance. Getting some good tutoring is the key to doing well if this turns out to be your problem. If you algebra and trig skills are not up to par, then you may need to do some remedial work here (some high schools do not teach these courses well).

My first math course in college was a third semester (multivariate) of Calculus which turned out to be easier than the first two semesters (differential and integral). I did have a solid background in algebra, trig and geometry which made everything that came after those courses, pretty easy.

 

[Revilla]

I just hate calculus so much.......


How many Med Schools actually require that you take a year of calc?

Only a small handful of schools require a year of calculus. I think it's Duke, Harvard, and Johns Hopkins. Could be a couple more that I'm not thinking of. A few more require one semester of Calculus. Most don't require any Calculus. It just depends on where you want to go.

 

[flip26]

Well heres the thing, One out of 9 people in the united states live in california, making it the most highly populated state by far..

All of the UC's require a year of calc, which means for those of us where money IS an issue and want to apply in state, calc Is very important.

In turn, At least 1 out of 9 people on here HAVE to take calc if they want to apply instate.

Totally wrong bull****.

Jesus, don't post this garbage.

 

[TMP-SMX]

Check the schools you plan to apply and don't take it if you don't have to. No reason to suffer through a class you don't need.

You don't have to take calculus to understand slopes, physics, enzyme kinetics, or anything else because you learn the concepts in pre-calculus anyway. I took calculus and found it a waste of time and energy. It didn't help me understand anything about the sciences and now I don't remember much of it at all. At best, it is only mildly applicable to the first year of medical school with biochem or second year with pharmacology. However, when it comes down to it, none of it is applicable to the practice of medicine at all as you aren't going to be doing any enzyme kinetics. It is all figured out for you by the pharmacologists and pharmacists. You don't have the time to figure these things out and that isn't what you are paid to do.

 

[TexasPhysician]

Hi LolaMD,

Calculus is essential to a complete understanding of medicine. At the most basic level, the diffusion equation describes the movement of molecules down their concentration gradients. A growing trend in medical research is the use of computers to calculate, based upon simulations, the appropriate medicinal dosage rather than having to carry out costly laboratory experiments.

Moreover, as a doctor you will use tools built upon calculus knowledge. Though you may hate it, the most revolutionary advances in medical technology use much more math than calculus.

I advise you to take a deep breath, study some, and really try to see the utility of calculus in your future career as a doctor. Although you won't be sitting there solving equations, you will have a deeper understanding of the technology and physics that you will be using to improve the lives of patients.

P.S. Here's a link to an article on my website about enzyme kinetics and calculus:

http://eigensheep.bio.uci.edu/?p=75

You need Calculus as much as you need Social Work, Accounting, or anything else. The most useful math class by far is Statistics.

 

[eman53007]

you can be nice (like me) and just use your AP Calculus credit and not take any math during your undergrad years.

As a chem major, multivariable calc was recommended for physical chemistry, but I got A- and A during my semesters =]

 

[Spiker]

For second math class just say if you take statistics can you take it at another department? In our school statistics is only offered at psyh department and the one offered at math department is like 4000 level which you cant take unless u are math major.

 

[CluelessAsian]

It just depends on what schools you want. Most med schools I want to apply to only require 1 year of [math] courses. It doesn't have to be calculus. Check before making decisions.

Well, my advisor told me I needed a year of calculus and I'm on calc 2. If only I read about med school prerequisite before I went to the orientation, I could've saved so much time lol.

Fortunately, calculus is easy for me so atleast it helped raise my science GPA.

 

[Drogba]

Calculus is no more useless than most of the stuff taught in our other required coursework...

 

[Spectrum]

Honestly, the thought of taking calculus scared me to death at first. But I am really glad I did. I was not a science major and had very little math background -hence I took the algebra-based physics courses. I took calc after taking physics and really feel that I would have understood some of the notation and jargon better if I had had the calc background. I agree that the little things you learn in calc might save you steps and headaches later.

BTW, I really loved my calc class and the professor so that helped a lot.

 

[phospho]

Then did you only apply to Harvard? Maybe there are a couple more, but even Hopkins and WashU will accept a substitute of stats for a half year of calculus...

I have a list of approx 30 schools I am considering, about half of them in the Top 30, and none of them require a year of calculus, but many/most do require a year of math that can include calculus, stats, etc.

you're right... it's actually 1 year of "math". I'm sorry, I haven't looked at the requirements for more than a year and a half. Also, some schools (like UCLA) say "one year of math including a course in calculus".

I'm trying to think of why I took a year of calc if it wasn't required. I know I wouldn't have taken it if it wasn't absolutely required, so I'm thinking it might have been reuired by my major. Oh well.

OP, i wouldn't take calculus unless i absolutely had to. You make a list of the schools you want to apply to, and you go each one's website and see its requirements.