Is taking Orgo 2 + Biochem in the same semester a recipe for disaster?

[Radon XP]

Hypothetical schedule:

Biochemistry I
Organic Chemistry II + Lab (5 hours)
Intro Psychology
Political Science upper-level

Does this sound like a bad idea? I am considering this for next year because I see no other way to finish all my pre-reqs for the new MCAT unless I force myself to study during the semester instead of over the summer (which I don't want to do). I am applying senior year anyway.

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[jdfamily]

At my school it would be doable. Last fall I had 19 credit hours with Ochem 2. I took biochemistry the next semester but figure I could have done it with Ochem 2 instead of another class. A tiny bit of stuff (like sugars) is overlapped in both, but not much.

I would talk to people who were able to get A's in the class and teacher that you are considering taking and see what kind of committment they were. I myself decided to do a 19 credit hour fall semester and take a 14 credit hour spring semester, with easier classes, so I could study for the MCAT in May. It worked out well for me.

Good luck!

 

[bunionberry]

Biochemistry isn't too bad. It's pretty much straight memorization with a little gen chem/o chem thrown in. The only difficult stuff was keeping the starting materials/products of each biochemical pathway straight. It's really easy to forget what belongs where and the intermediate steps of processes.

However, taking that with organic II with lab might be kind of a pain. My university has lab and lecture as separate courses and lab occupied a significant amount of time. I'd spend a good 7-8 hours each week on Q&A/lab reports for each experiment. Not to mention lab itself always took the full 4 hours. Your university might be different though.

I guess the most important thing though is to just find out who is teaching what and see what people say about them. If they seem like good professors, just take the courses. But I'd recommend saving biochem for later if you can. It's a course that can help you on the MCAT but isn't exactly crucial to doing well...unless they're really changing that with the new one. I took the test last August and biochem wasn't stressed too heavily from what I remember.

 

[deleted530324]

Looks good to me.

I took Ochem 2 and biochem 1 in the same semester junior year. Got an A in Ochem 2 and the lab, and an A- in Biochem. First semester I didn't get a 4.0, but still got like a 3.8. I attribute that to it also being my first semester at a new school.

Obviously, depends on the school/professor/your strengths. I'm not that smart compared to most of the gunners. Ochem 2 and biochem 1 were pretty easy for me, but I did get destroyed my senior year with a few grad level biochem courses.

 

[Radon XP]

Biochemistry isn't too bad. It's pretty much straight memorization with a little gen chem/o chem thrown in. The only difficult stuff was keeping the starting materials/products of each biochemical pathway straight. It's really easy to forget what belongs where and the intermediate steps of processes.

However, taking that with organic II with lab might be kind of a pain. My university has lab and lecture as separate courses and lab occupied a significant amount of time. I'd spend a good 7-8 hours each week on Q&A/lab reports for each experiment. Not to mention lab itself always took the full 4 hours. Your university might be different though.

I guess the most important thing though is to just find out who is teaching what and see what people say about them. If they seem like good professors, just take the courses. But I'd recommend saving biochem for later if you can. It's a course that can help you on the MCAT but isn't exactly crucial to doing well...unless they're really changing that with the new one. I took the test last August and biochem wasn't stressed too heavily from what I remember.

I'm taking the 2015 MCAT, for which Biochem will be a pre-req.

Orgo 2 lab sounds brutal.

 

[Spinach Dip]

Sure it's possible. I know several people who did Ochem and Biochem simultaneously.

If you need to, you could always drop the intro psych class to free up some time in your schedule.

 

[Radon XP]

Sure it's possible. I know several people who did Ochem and Biochem simultaneously.

If you need to, you could always drop the intro psych class to free up some time in your schedule.

2 problems with that, though:

Psychology will be a pre-req for the new MCAT
I need 30 hours a year for my scholarship (which means I'd need to take summer courses)

I've heard that Intro Psych isn't that hard at any rate.

 

[jdfamily]

Another factor to consider is whether or not you want to have time to invest in EC's and a social life. Sounds like you can do well in the classes if you are focused, but if you feel like you will get burned out then it might be better to take a summer semester instead.

 

[deleted303591]

Consult myedu.com to see the average GPA by professor, course, and both (combined).

That should help a lot.

 

[boboyahoo]

Consult myedu.com to see the average GPA by professor, course, and both (combined).

That should help a lot.

That advice is KING 👍

 

[mk2015]

That's pretty common at my school. I did it last semester and pulled off an A- in both. So needless to say its doable as long as you have a good professor and put in the time to learn the material.

 

[487806]

Hypothetical schedule:

Biochemistry I
Organic Chemistry II + Lab (5 hours)
Intro Psychology
Political Science upper-level

Does this sound like a bad idea? I am considering this for next year because I see no other way to finish all my pre-reqs for the new MCAT unless I force myself to study during the semester instead of over the summer (which I don't want to do). I am applying senior year anyway.

No you're fine. I know people with far worse schedules, although they are upper level engineering and physics courses, and they did well

 

[NervousNerd]

Biochem is not that bad provided you are strong in Ochem. I actually feel, if you have a very solid understanding of Ochem 1, that coupling biochem with Ochem 2 may actually be HELPFUL

 

[Radon XP]

Another hypothetical:

Orgo I + Lab
Cell Bio
Genetics
Intro Sociology

Orgo + two upper-level biology courses too much?

 

[Lambda Phage]

There's a thread for schedule critiques, but yeah, you'll be fine. Cell Bio and Genetics are usually not that difficult.

 

[Ansar]

At my school, they make it hell for the student by always scheduling exams on the same day (so you have one exam around noon and one at night).

A friend took both at the same time and had more success in Biochem than Ochem II. Varies by person.

 

[brownbaglunch]

.

 

[SN12357]

Hypothetical schedule:

Biochemistry I
Organic Chemistry II + Lab (5 hours)
Intro Psychology
Political Science upper-level

Does this sound like a bad idea? I am considering this for next year because I see no other way to finish all my pre-reqs for the new MCAT unless I force myself to study during the semester instead of over the summer (which I don't want to do). I am applying senior year anyway.

These posts confuse the hell out of me.

Medical school involves many intense science courses all at once.

Why do people even bother asking if taking a mere TWO is a bad idea? Maybe there's an easier alternative based on your school's scheduling and your personal requirements, but in the abstract every single premed should be able to handle orgo and biochem at once.

 

[werd]

These posts confuse the hell out of me.

Medical school involves many intense science courses all at once.

Why do people even bother asking if taking a mere TWO is a bad idea? Maybe there's an easier alternative based on your school's scheduling and your personal requirements, but in the abstract every single premed should be able to handle orgo and biochem at once.

i agree with you in sentiment. but in college you have control over when/how you take your courses, so it's wise to take them in a way that will maximize your grades and success.

the way i would rephrase the above is "if you're going to be okay in med school, you're going to be okay with those courses at the same time."

 

[Dr.Forssmann]

if your a science major your eventually gonna have to take some tough classes with overlap. I took cell bio, micro biology, physics, physics lab, and art and did pretty well.

the trick, my friend, is time management. start using google calendars.