Is this course load doable?

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toro2013

toro2013

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Biology II w/lab
Chemistry II w/lab
Calculus I
Microbiology
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toro2013 said:
Biology II w/lab
Chemistry II w/lab
Calculus I
Microbiology
Click to expand...

For an undergrad student I feel like that could be a pretty tough load.

People in vet school will roll their eyes and wish for something that easy, but as an undergrad? That might be asking a lot. If you're a total Type A straight-A hard-working disciplined
student, sure, you can do it. If you struggle much with keeping up and making yourself study ... might want to tame it down a bit.
 
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Agreed, as a senior in UG, I think that is pretty heavy. I speak as someone who aces in the sciences constantly and totally thought I could handle biochem, immunology, pharmacology, physics II, virology, and finish a thesis at the same time this semester. I'm dying pretty much. Please don't burn yourself out. if I were you I'd replace one of those rigorous courses with something fun (art, aerobics, a sport, etc) if you could. Totally don't have to but I'd think it'd be better 🙂
 
I guess my question is what level of Micro is it? At my undergrad you couldn't take Micro unless you've gone through what old essentially be Bio 1-3 and their labs. So if it's a lower level micro it might not be as bad. Micro at my undergrad was a ***** of course and required a lot of work outside of class.

That being said, that could be a pretty brutal course load esp if you're only in your first or second year. Senior year i had semesters like that and it was only easier cause I sort of figured out how to study by that point.
 
rockatiel said:
Agreed, as a senior in UG, I think that is pretty heavy. I speak as someone who aces in the sciences constantly and totally thought I could handle biochem, immunology, pharmacology, physics II, virology, and finish a thesis at the same time this semester. I'm dying pretty much. Please don't burn yourself out. if I were you I'd replace one of those rigorous courses with something fun (art, aerobics, a sport, etc) if you could. Totally don't have to but I'd think it'd be better 🙂
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Thanks, for the input. This is starting my second bachelors. I already have one in finance and figured out that's not what I want to do anymore. At least I have until fall to decide if I will drop one or not.
 
orca2011 said:
I guess my question is what level of Micro is it? At my undergrad you couldn't take Micro unless you've gone through what old essentially be Bio 1-3 and their labs. So if it's a lower level micro it might not be as bad. Micro at my undergrad was a ***** of course and required a lot of work outside of class.

That being said, that could be a pretty brutal course load esp if you're only in your first or second year. Senior year i had semesters like that and it was only easier cause I sort of figured out how to study by that point.
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It is an intro Micro class only requires Biology 1 as prereq. It is a second bachelors for me. First one is in finance then decided I did not want to purse that industry. Thanks for the input!
 
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batsenecal said:
At my undergrad, this would be 14, so I am assuming this is 14-17
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Oh, wow. Just serves to show how different schools are! This courseload would be 19 hours at my undergrad.

OP, it's definitely doable. I've done 20+ hours at a couple points with a 25-30 hr/wk job, research, and shadowing, so 16 to me isn't too terrible at all. That being said, that sounds like a fairly difficult 16 hours.

Edit: Didn't notice that you already have a bachelors.
 
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I took Anatomy and Physiology II w/lab, Biology II w/lab, Chemistry II w/lab, and a Physics Lab. 18 hours of classes and had a blast. Biology and Micro may have some overlap on concepts, so that will make the courses a little easier. Since you have one degree already, you should have a pretty good idea what you need to do so go for it.
 
orca2011 said:
I guess my question is what level of Micro is it? At my undergrad you couldn't take Micro unless you've gone through what old essentially be Bio 1-3 and their labs. So if it's a lower level micro it might not be as bad. Micro at my undergrad was a ***** of course and required a lot of work outside of class.

That being said, that could be a pretty brutal course load esp if you're only in your first or second year. Senior year i had semesters like that and it was only easier cause I sort of figured out how to study by that point.
Click to expand...

I took advanced micro. And I *liked* it.

Some days, I feel like I belong in a lab somewhere making plates and being a nerd. I mean, I like being a vet. But I like micro a whole bunch.

toro2013 said:
Thanks, for the input. This is starting my second bachelors. I already have one in finance and figured out that's not what I want to do anymore. At least I have until fall to decide if I will drop one or not.
Click to expand...

So would this be your first semester of crazy science courses? It could be a bit overwhelming if you aren't used to all the science and labs and stuff. You don't have any other gen ed type things (you know, a humanities requirement, or speech, or something) to add in and shift the science to where it's not all at once?

I went balls out for my second bachelor's - advanced micro, medical mycology, parasitology, molecular micro labs, biochem II, pathogenic microbiology, advanced cell and molecular biology, and some cancer in medicine class - plus a critical thinking requirement and some other careers class - all crammed into two semesters. It was fine, but my first bachelor's was in zoology, so I had already taken all those other science-y things and I was okay with it.
 
twelvetigers said:
I took advanced micro. And I *liked* it.

Some days, I feel like I belong in a lab somewhere making plates and being a nerd. I mean, I like being a vet. But I like micro a whole bunch.



So would this be your first semester of crazy science courses? It could be a bit overwhelming if you aren't used to all the science and labs and stuff. You don't have any other gen ed type things (you know, a humanities requirement, or speech, or something) to add in and shift the science to where it's not all at once?

I went balls out for my second bachelor's - advanced micro, medical mycology, parasitology, molecular micro labs, biochem II, pathogenic microbiology, advanced cell and molecular biology, and some cancer in medicine class - plus a critical thinking requirement and some other careers class - all crammed into two semesters. It was fine, but my first bachelor's was in zoology, so I had already taken all those other science-y things and I was okay with it.
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Yes this will be my first semester of all science. All my Gen. Ed. requirements are done so just have about 3-4 semesters of pre reqs. I feel that my manage my time fairly well. Think I am going to go for it.
 
ketoone said:
Oh, wow. Just serves to show how different schools are! This courseload would be 19 hours at my undergrad.

OP, it's definitely doable. I've done 20+ hours at a couple points with a 25-30 hr/wk job, research, and shadowing, so 16 to me isn't too terrible at all. That being said, that sounds like a fairly difficult 16 hours.

Edit: Didn't notice that you already have a bachelors.
Click to expand...

Thanks for the input. I am going to be working as well, thankfully it is at an ER/Specialty clinic so I knock out my vet hours while getting paid.
 
If you are a math person, I would say go for it. For a non-math minded person like myself, taking Calculus and General Chem together would be a nightmare.
 
toro2013 said:
Yes this will be my first semester of all science. All my Gen. Ed. requirements are done so just have about 3-4 semesters of pre reqs. I feel that my manage my time fairly well. Think I am going to go for it.
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You could also try taking a course over the summer to help spread out the load. I took the organic chemistry I &II over the summer during my first bachelors and while I had no life that summer as two semesters worth of classes were crammed into 8 weeks. But it was quick and over with in no time and it freed up my fall/spring semesters for other courses.
 
It depends on what kind of student you are. Last semester I took biochemistry, micro, physics II, cell biology, and a psych class. All of the bios were upper level. I worked about 15-20 hours a week. It was a little hectic, but I got through it! If you generally find your science classes manageable and you have the time, you should be fine. If you have to study a ton normally, then this may be tough.
 
toro2013 said:
Biology II w/lab
Chemistry II w/lab
Calculus I
Microbiology
Click to expand...

I would say it's doable. I took Physics 2 w/ lab, Organic chem w/lab, microbiology w/lab and genetics last semester. It was tough but I did fine. Just write EVERYTHING in your planner 🙂
 
I've done gen bio and chem with their labs at the same time. That isn't so bad honestly but adding in micro and calculus is going to seriously bog you down. You'll have possible quizzes and exams and then lab reports. I'd personally take some easy gen ed classes instead of all 4 heavy ones. I also took calculus I online. Horrible, horrible mistake. It's a hard thing to learn and won't be easy especially if the teacher sucks at teaching.
 
Hopeful_DVM said:
If you are a math person, I would say go for it. For a non-math minded person like myself, taking Calculus and General Chem together would be a nightmare.
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It is. I did it. Also took my second calculus with physics (which I didn't take in high school and turns out I really had a hard time understanding at first) I did it but I don't know how. It was a LOT of work.
 
This will vary from person to person. I took Small Animal Med, Biochem, Cell Bio, A&P II, and Micro II all in one semester and it definitely kept me busy, but I did actually like it. If you are the type of person who likes to constantly stay busy and if you have good organization, I say it is doable.
 
toro2013 said:
I guess I don't have to but I am trying to stay on track to apply for vet school next year
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You could consider taking one of the classes over the summer. I took 1 summer class each year of my undergrad and it really wasn't that much of an inconvenience. I don't know what your university is like, but Ohio State also offers some classes as a "May-term" which is a super-accelerated course in-between spring semester and summer semester. If that is available (or something like it) you could consider doing that as well. Just some ideas 🙂
 
Sassafras20 said:
You could consider taking one of the classes over the summer. I took 1 summer class each year of my undergrad and it really wasn't that much of an inconvenience. I don't know what your university is like, but Ohio State also offers some classes as a "May-term" which is a super-accelerated course in-between spring semester and summer semester. If that is available (or something like it) you could consider doing that as well. Just some ideas 🙂
Click to expand...
Good idea as well. I took Immuno and Micro I over the summer and it really was not an inconvenience.
 
It's doable, but you also have to ask yourself what other areas of your life you are willing to sacrifice for it. Don't overwork yourself if you don't have to.

To a vet student such a load might not seem so bad, but remember that people starting undergrad (the OP already has a bachelors so I'm pretty sure they would be able to handle it, but I wanted to make a general note) don't have the best time management or study skills. And it's not their fault - those are things you don't really learn in high school because everything is force fed and you have little autonomy. The transition to college is a big one in terms of independence, and it takes some people longer than others to adjust.
 
I spoke to LSU School of Veterinary Medicine and they will not accept the 2000 level Microbiology course so looks like I am only taking the 3 other courses. Thank you everyone for your input.
 
It doesn't seem too bad. It'll keep you busy, but it's doable. It's all about time management and learning how to study! You can do it!!!
 
WhtsThFrequency said:
It's doable, but you also have to ask yourself what other areas of your life you are willing to sacrifice for it. Don't overwork yourself if you don't have to.

To a vet student such a load might not seem so bad, but remember that people starting undergrad (the OP already has a bachelors so I'm pretty sure they would be able to handle it, but I wanted to make a general note) don't have the best time management or study skills. And it's not their fault - those are things you don't really learn in high school because everything is force fed and you have little autonomy. The transition to college is a big one in terms of independence, and it takes some people longer than others to adjust.
Click to expand...

Well said. I was one of those people that had to really learn study skills from scratch. High school really does not do a great job of preparing you for college in that aspect.
 
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