Ivy Student taking Pre Rec's at another school???

[snoopaloop]

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Hey all,

I am a non traditional premed at an Ivy. I didnt take a single science class in high school (which was years and years ago anyway) I've had no exposure to Chem or Physics etc. I was wondering how it would look if I took these classes at a less competitve university nearby?
My pre med advisor told me this wasnt a good idea but I told him a *C* wouldnt help me out in the process either! Does anyone have experince with this? Has any one matriculated doing it this way? Thanks again!! 😀

 

[IndyZX]

science courses in college are introductory. it doesnt really matter if you covered the material in hs or not.

i had 1 yr of HS bio, chem, and physics (the latter two were taught very poorly), and i have done fine.

however, if you want to take a CC course, go ahead, you have your reasons.

 

[tBw]

Theres technically no rule against taking your pre-med pre-reqs at another university, though depedning on the institute (ie state school vs community college) some schools may be unhappy. However, most schools will ask why you did it, and to get a better grade is exactly the answer they are suspicious of!

Also, bare in mind that at some point you will need letters of recommendation and if you have all your science profs from some CC they are going to be significantly less weighted than similar letters from an Ivy prof....

 

[sunflower79]

I'm guessing you feel intimidated about being surrounded by eager beavers in your g-chem and o-chem classes. (yes I'm from the west coast, we don't say orgo 😛) I would suggest you get your feet wet by taking some bio or chem class first at a community college. But you should take most of your prereqs at your Ivy school. Like an above poster said, taking your pre-reqs elsewhere raises suspicion. If I were an adcom member (and I might be in a year or two!) I would favor a B or B+ at an Ivy (if that were your undergrad) over an A somewhere else.

my $.02,
sunflower79 🙂

 

[Bonds756]

Maybe a couple of the recs (no more than 2) at a CC would be ok, but any more than that and med schools will just view it as taking the easy way out. Just try to work hard in the classes at your school and keep up with the work to make sure you do well.

 

[Cerberus]

Dont be so certain that the lowly state school is gonna be a walk in the park. Many ivies are know to inflate grades...

 

[sophRI]

you might take some summer classes to get started if you really think you are behind, or some intro classes for non science majors. you could do something at the CC for no credit as a refresher, or pay a little $ and get a tutor (some schools even offer free tutoring). these won't count as pre-reqs, but they'll prepare you to take the pre-reqs at your school and do well in them.
i agree with cerberus... a lot of people go to CC because they can't afford anything else, or go there part time and focus all of their energy on one course - it isn't a guaranteed good grade and it will be tough to explain why you didn't take it at your own school. taking the extra time for a summer class or an extra few courses is definitely worthwhile if you end up with better grades in the end.

 

[David Blonder]

Due to the fact that my engineering program was so inflexible at Tufts, I took many of my pre-med's over the summer. Harvard happened to offer both organic I and II, so I took them there for convenience. I really don't think it matters in terms of degree of difficulty, but be forewarned: my A's did not appear on my Tufts transcript! I had to request a separate transcript from Harvard for AAMCAS, and my over-all gpa was re-calulated separately.

 

[aleezay]

Ivies may inflate grades, but I personally don't see it happening in the sciences.

 

[merlin17]

Have you considered a reputable summer program like the one at Harvard mentioned above? Even though the credits may not transfer to your school (i.e. Harvard only accepts credits from its summer school and your school may have a similar policy) these courses are sort of a known quantity. Pretty much everyone who takes these courses are premeds who for some reason or other didn't have time to take the required classes during the regular semester. They are much much easier to do well in than the normal Harvard version of the courses and they are pretty solid in terms of the material covered. Might be a good alternative.

I think as a general rule it is okay to take one or two of your prereqs at another school as long as you have a reason.

 

[aleezay]

Originally posted by Wilford Brimley
Correction: SOME Ivies! 🙄

Thanks for clearing that up, champ. I don't know how I would have survived without that clarification. 🙄

 

[Rudy1223]

lol, gotta get the upper hand huh?😉

 

[aleezay]

Originally posted by Wilford Brimley
No problem, chief. I'm on to you like spellcheck. 🙄

Aww, and to think I liked the quip you had before this new edited version. 😉

 

[sunflower79]

Originally posted by Street Philosopher
An A at podunk is better than a B+ at Harvard.

yeah, but not if you took ALL or even most of your pre-reqs at podunk but did your undergrad at Harvard. 😛

 

[Bonds756]

The issue is not if there is grad inflation at Ivies or if summer classes are easier or if come community colleges are hard. It will look bad in the eyes of ad coms if a significant number of requirements are taken at a CC (or anywhere else that is not the university you are graduating from, excluding post-bac).

 

[SeeGulz]

Some schools will hold CC credits against you even if you have good reasons for taking courses there. I had already graduated when I decided to become a doc, and the nearest university is an hour and a half away, compared to a 20 min. drive to the CC. The university costs more, and the chem/organic is actually harder at this particular CC anyway. I had already taken the MCAT with 13's in the sciences, so I thought it wouldn't matter where I took the pre-reqs. But, I know for a fact that it hurt me at at least one school.

Still, I would think it would look better for you if you get your feet wet at a CC during the SUMMER, rather than take courses at the less competitive school during the same semester/quarter as your Ivy (was that your plan?). Otherwise it becomes painfully obvious that you are looking for the easy alternative, even though it might not be easier at all.

I have taken classes at CC's, GWU, and Georgetown, and the difference is usually negligible (though some of the best professors have been at the CC's). They use basically the same textbooks, and a 95% is an "A" no matter whom your competition is, whereas if you don't know the material cold, you are not getting that A anywhere.

Whatever you do, start studying the material on your own prior to enrolling and you should feel much more comfortable in the classroom. MCAT books help break things down into the most important concepts, though an organic text for a one semester Organic Chem course would help too. I am probably more non-traditional than you are. I didn't even attend high school. But with a little self-study prior to enrollment, you should be ok no matter where you take the pre-reqs. Good Luck!🙂