Is this too much to take on during summer school?

[deleted822674]

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Planning on taking Organic Chem 2 with Lab and an online introductory stats & probability course during an 8 week summer school session. I'd have 2 four hour chem labs, 2 hour long lab lectures, 4 hour and a half long chem lectures, and 4 stats problem sets a week. Does this seem like a bit much to take on? Thanks!

 

[RTC19]

I think that sounds like too much, especially with the labs.

 

[Angus Avagadro]

I believe pre reqs should be taken during the course year with a normal to heavy course load.it is a red flag to see Orgo taken in summer to concentrate only on that course. I would expect a explanation as to why. I always scrutinize apps for other GPA enhancing maneuvers. You gotta practice like you play. If you cant do it in college, what makes you think you can do it in med school? Take a philosophy or english course in the summer if you need the credits.

 

[Moko]

I disagree that it's a 'red flag' to see OChem being taken over the summer. It's the same amount of information being taught over a shorter time frame. As long as the rest of your grades are consistent, this will not negatively impact you. The MCAT serves as an equalizer for folks who only got good grades because they were gaming the system.

Two summer classes should be doable as long as you aren't preoccupied with other things too. The key is to be honest with yourself though. It's better to do just one class and get an A on it, rather than to take two classes and get B's. Good luck.

 

[Angus Avagadro]

I disagree that it's a 'red flag' to see OChem being taken over the summer. It's the same amount of information being taught over a shorter time frame. As long as the rest of your grades are consistent, this will not negatively impact you.

Two summer classes should be doable as long as you aren't preoccupied with other things too. The key is to be honest with yourself though. It's better to do just one class and get an A on it, rather than to take two classes and get B's. Good luck.

It's a 4 credit class with a lab during the summer.. During the year it's a 4 credit class with a lab along with 12 other credits and maybe another lab. Big difference especially during final exam time. Med schools want to see how you handle challenging courses with a full load.

 

[Moko]

It's a 4 credit class with a lab during the summer.. During the year it's a 4 credit class with a lab along with 12 other credits and maybe another lab. Big difference especially during final exam time. Med schools want to see how you handle challenging courses with a full load.

I have yet to see an applicant be penalized over a summer class when the rest of their application is solid. It's one thing if a 'meh' student only got A's during the summer; but if those summer grades are consistent with the grades obtained during the rest of the year, why would I assume the worse? I agree that people need to show they can handle a full course load, but that's not to say that they need a full course load every semester.

Our disagreement here highlights the diversity of opinions among reviewers, which is why folks should be applying broadly.

 

[Angus Avagadro]

I have yet to see an applicant be penalized over a summer class when the rest of their application is solid. It's one thing if a 'meh' student only got A's during the summer; but if those summer grades are consistent with the grades obtained during the rest of the year, why would I assume the worse? I agree that people need to show they can handle a full course load, but that's not to say that they need a full course load every semester.

Our disagreement here highlights the diversity of opinions among reviewers, which is why folks should be applying broadly.

Your reasoning is definitely sound. However, the student with a solid app usually doesnt take orgo over the summer, it's usually the other way around. Being used as a GPA enhancing maneuver where the rest of the app is meh. I agree it wont hurt someone with a sound app, but usually they are trying to avoid taking it during the regular semester in my experience. I am definitely less enthusiastic about someone's app who does

 

[deleted822674]

Your reasoning is definitely sound. However, the student with a solid app usually doesnt take orgo over the summer, it's usually the other way around. Being used as a GPA enhancing maneuver where the rest of the app is meh. I agree it wont hurt someone with a sound app, but usually they are trying to avoid taking it during the regular semester in my experience. I am definitely less enthusiastic about someone's app who does

I'm mainly taking it because of course availability issues at my university. Unfortunately the college of chemistry didn't schedule many labs for the fall, so I was unable to get into a lab section. As a result, I moved the course forward to the summer so I can avoid putting off ochem 2 into the future. As far as academics go, I am pretty solid right now (4.0), so I hope taking ochem 2 in the summer doesn't reflect too poorly on me in the application process. Thanks for the advice!

 

[deleted822674]

I have yet to see an applicant be penalized over a summer class when the rest of their application is solid. It's one thing if a 'meh' student only got A's during the summer; but if those summer grades are consistent with the grades obtained during the rest of the year, why would I assume the worse? I agree that people need to show they can handle a full course load, but that's not to say that they need a full course load every semester.

Our disagreement here highlights the diversity of opinions among reviewers, which is why folks should be applying broadly.

Thank you for the insight! I greatly appreciate it and I'll keep your advice in mind in the future! 🙂

 

[Sephirakra]

Planning on taking Organic Chem 2 with Lab and an online introductory stats & probability course during an 8 week summer school session. I'd have 2 four hour chem labs, 2 hour long lab lectures, 4 hour and a half long chem lectures, and 4 stats problem sets a week. Does this seem like a bit much to take on? Thanks!

I took a 5-credit microbiology course with lab and a 5-credit inorganic chem course with lab during an 8-week session in my last summer of undergrad. Oh, how the lab reports piled up! I learned a lot, missed out on a lot of sleep, and it crippled my GPA. Only you can gauge your limits, but this still sounds like a bad idea.

 

[Planes2Doc]

In hindsight, I wish I didn't take organic chemistry during the summer. If you do decide to do this, make sure your ECs are on the light side. Stick to clinical volunteering once weekly. Don't do any clinical employment.

 

[SM25]

Depends on how the Orgo II is taught. If it's all written reactions then you should only take it by itself. If it's multiple choice, then that's different. Different places teach orgo differently and I don't get it.