Junior in HS with a question

[schreck]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

Hey, I'm Alex and I am currently a high school junior (HS class of 2007). I have wanted to be a doctor for quite some time and feel strongly about this. I was wondering if anyone would think it would be the least bit helpful or a good experience for me to take AP Biology next year? The opportunity is there and not only will it further my knowledge but also it will allow me to receive some college credit (6 credit hours).

Right now I have Social Issues in Biology and Astronomy/Meteorology listed for my classes next year. I think that I will enjoy the classes equally. Do you think I should take the AP class (would it help me in the future at all?) or should I just stick with what I'm taking)

Also--do you think it would be better for me to major in Biology or something of that sort or would it be ok for only do prereqs and Major in Spanish/minor in German.

I greatly appreciate any and all comments.

Cheers,
Alex

 

[ShyRem]

Major in what you like. There are a few med schools that will not accept AP credit, so take it only if you think it'll help you later on. Many folks take AP physics, chem, or calc to get a leg up and make the first year of college easy.

 

[DoctorPardi]

As far as AP biology goes, I think ultimately it will be inconsequential. I say take it if you are interested and want to be challenged, but if you want to take your senior year easy don't take it.

Your major should be what you are interested in. If you find yourself really interested in Spanish then by all means become a Spanish major.

It is really easy to get caught up in the "what should I do to get into medical school game" but I'd say do whatever you want to do, but make sure you do it well. If you graduate with a 4.0 or a 3.8 in your chosen major and have a science gpa too you'll do fine and possibly better than if you went the straight biology major course.

Hopefully this wont sound too hypocritical because often I find myself thinking of how I can do this or that to improve my status as an applicant, but I am a constant worrier so hopefully you can avoid this and be happier because of it.

 

[chrishuynh]

Hey, I'm Alex and I am currently a high school junior (HS class of 2007). I have wanted to be a doctor for quite some time and feel strongly about this. I was wondering if anyone would think it would be the least bit helpful or a good experience for me to take AP Biology next year? The opportunity is there and not only will it further my knowledge but also it will allow me to receive some college credit (6 credit hours).

Right now I have Social Issues in Biology and Astronomy/Meteorology listed for my classes next year. I think that I will enjoy the classes equally. Do you think I should take the AP class (would it help me in the future at all?) or should I just stick with what I'm taking)

Also--do you think it would be better for me to major in Biology or something of that sort or would it be ok for only do prereqs and Major in Spanish/minor in German.

I greatly appreciate any and all comments.

Cheers,
Alex

Ok, I never took AP Biology in HS so I am not sure. BUT to tell you the truth, Biology is a very general branch of science which incorporates certain aspects of medicine. I believe AP Biology will help you in intro bio classes but from then on its all fair game. I think AP Biology mainly concentrates on cells, plants, ecology, etc. which is not really medicine per say but does includes some basic principles of it. With that said, taking AP Biology will not "rock your world" in a medical perspective but should help you if you like learning about life (the very essense of Biology). About what major you should pick in college, do whatever you really want to do and just do pre-reqs. However, I must say that being a Biology major has its perks as you will learn more than enough for the MCAT. In other words, being a biology major may help since you have so many years of science that it will build a strong background for MCAT studying.

 

[luke77]

I would definitely take AP Bio if the colleges you are thinking about going to give credit if you pass the AP test. At my school, Intro to Biology is graded pretty toughly because it's a Med School weed-out class, and it would be nice to not have to take it.

 

[badlydrawnvik]

if nothing else, you'll be ahead of the game for your intro bio class even if your school does not give you credit for it.

 

[riceman04]

Hey, I'm Alex and I am currently a high school junior (HS class of 2007). I have wanted to be a doctor for quite some time and feel strongly about this. I was wondering if anyone would think it would be the least bit helpful or a good experience for me to take AP Biology next year? The opportunity is there and not only will it further my knowledge but also it will allow me to receive some college credit (6 credit hours).

Right now I have Social Issues in Biology and Astronomy/Meteorology listed for my classes next year. I think that I will enjoy the classes equally. Do you think I should take the AP class (would it help me in the future at all?) or should I just stick with what I'm taking)

Also--do you think it would be better for me to major in Biology or something of that sort or would it be ok for only do prereqs and Major in Spanish/minor in German.

I greatly appreciate any and all comments.

Cheers,
Alex

taking more AP classes (and performing well in them) will help in gaining acceptance to more selective schools. The college credit is definitely a plus too. But right now focus on only getting into college. You have this long tedious application process coming up. Have you taken Chemistry, AP chem, physics, AP Calc AB, etc...?

Those are important classes to take in high school

 

[NothingClever]

1) AP Biology will cover everything that a regular undergraduate introductory biology course would. I took AP biology in high school, and it was one of my favorite courses... it also helped me to receive top grades in my intro bio courses.

I must suggest, though, that even if you do take the AP course, still take your undergraduate institution's introductory bio course! Many of the more competitive medical schools are no longer accepting certain AP credits. In the future, I've been told that this will be a trend and more and more medical schools will stop accepting AP credits for science pre-requisites. I had to learn this lesson too late (when I was applying to medical school), and couldn't apply to certain medical schools.

2) Definitely take the major which is of the most interest to you. However, to answer your question, foreign languages (especially Spanish) are looked upon favorably. Learning all of the new medical terms during medical school is analogous to learning a new language, and the skills that you would acquire from your spanish classes are thought to be transferable to medical school. In addition, being able to speak Spanish is becoming a very desirable skill, especially as the hispanic population in the US continues to increase.

 

[browniegirl86]

Hi Alex,

Ask around with friends that are older and see if anyone has any comments about the specific AP bio class/teacher at your school. For me, the class was great. My teacher was wonderful, I retained all the information I learned, and I ended up scoring a 5 on the test and getting 4 hours of credit and 8 hours of A's from it.

If you don't hear great things about the class, stick with what you have. You'll get better grades if you enjoy what you're learning.


Good luck with your goals! You should stick around on SDN, there are lots of good, like-minded people here. Just beware: you may find yourself on SDN when you should definitely be doing something else. Like ALL THE TIME.

 

[browniegirl86]

I must suggest, though, that even if you do take the AP course, still take your undergraduate institution's introductory bio course! Many of the more competitive medical schools are no longer accepting certain AP credits. In the future, I've been told that this will be a trend and more and more medical schools will stop accepting AP credits for science pre-requisites. I had to learn this lesson too late (when I was applying to medical school), and couldn't apply to certain medical schools.

And just for a different perspective on this:

If you end up testing out of intro bio, that's great. I did it, and since I was a bio major, I had taken LOTS of upper-division biology classes. Most of the schools to which I applied (ranging from state schools to top 10 and Ivies) only required that, after testing out of a subject, I took upper division courses in that area. Since you're interested in medicine, it makes sense that you'd be interested in biology, so if you end up testing out of intro bio, you can take the credit AND take an upper-division class and you'll be good to go.

 

[luvbugstarsky]

Here's some advice kid. The fact that you found this site in high school makes me want to pray for you. Run... get away from SDN... block it like it's the sickest snuff film website you've ever seen.

Don't listent/read anything anyone says on this website. You'll get hit by lightning before you find something here that is actually helpful or true.

The best things you'll hear before becoming a pre-med.
1) Follow your heart, do what you like, do what you're passionate about. The app and all the resume will fall in line if you remember this and follow it. If you like AP bio take... if you don't... don't.

2) Find 3 people when you get to undergrad: a nice person in the administrative or student affairs office at the closest med school, med student or two that you'll get comfortable calling and asking advice from, a good general undergrad advisor.

3) Don't ever, ever, ever, take anything you read on this website to heart. No one here knows anything... everyone's pre-med/application/ med school experiences are unique. If anyone here tells you they know something for a fact, that the only reason you need not to believe them.

 

[Zoom-Zoom]

WTF? You can include this guy ^ in things not to pay attention to 🙄 I wish I knew about the whole pre-med thing before I started college. You're not that far away...

Take AP Bio. I took calc, physics, psych, art history, english, history..and no bio, and I regret it. Take Chem too if you can. Our into bio class in college was all messed up. We started in the middle of the book and skipped around all irratically. Then next semester we did the first and last parts of the book. All the crap I was supposed to learn in Bio1 all of a sudden made sense in Bio2. (I mean honeslty, how are you supposed to memorize alternation of generations and all the n and 2n stuff without knowing the difference between miosis and mitosis, or even what chromosomes are!) All the AP bio people had a serious leg up, and didn't even seem to realize it. Consequently, I believe most people who tell you it's a waste will be the people who took it in HS and forgot how much they remembered...but It's good to see this isn't the case here...

 

[Law2Doc]

Don't ever, ever, ever, take anything you read on this website to heart. No one here knows anything... everyone's pre-med/application/ med school experiences are unique. If anyone here tells you they know something for a fact, that the only reason you need not to believe them.

Agree with Zoom-Zoom -- put the above poster on the top of your list of folks not to believe and who don't know anything. I personally don't think it's smart to be very focused on med school until you get to a later stage. Enjoy and do well in high school, and same for college, although find a way to work in the prereqs in whatever major you choose. I would put SDN away for a few years unless you are really bored -- it will just make you stressed, particularly during the interview to acceptance/rejection phase.
There is both some very good and some very bad advice on SDN. If you want to rely on it, you need to be able to decipher which is which. It will at least give you an overall feel for the process, what scores are good, what stats folks struggle with. It will probably help more when you get closer to applying.

 

[musiclink213]

I took AP Bio, and got credit for the two semesters of intro bio (8 credits). So I didn't have to take intro bio, but if your fututre UG gives you the AP credit, make sure to take at least that many upper level bio credits.

I think it was great, and especially if you don't need to take it during your freshman year, it'll free up your schedule a bit, making your first semester a bit easier, assuming you don't jump into upper level classes right away.

 

[schreck]

Thanks for all of the responses as they are greatly appreciated.

I am still in between and am not sure what I am going to do. The early college credit is also something that would be nice if it would work out that way.

Haha, but many of you are right, this place does stress people out. I see all of the things about high gpa's not getting into med school and it worried me for a second but then I was just like wtf. I am 4-5 years away from that.

Thanks again,
Alex

 

[omgwtfbbq?]

Bad idea, luke77 - most medical schools do not take AP credit for courses, with few exceptions. The most common exception I've seen is AP credit for math. But not for your core chem, bio, phys classes

 

[badlydrawnvik]

Bad idea, luke77 - most medical schools do not take AP credit for courses, with few exceptions. The most common exception I've seen is AP credit for math. But not for your core chem, bio, phys classes

given adequate upper level coursework, this is not true. usually people who get massive amounts of AP credit for college and major in science end up doing a lot of upper level coursework anyway, which is fine for prereqs.

 

[eastsidaz]

Take it if it'll help you get in to a good college. Otherwise, what you do in high school is largely inconsequential. For me, the game has been like this: high school is all about getting in to a good college, college is all about getting in to a good med school. From what I've heard, med school is all about getting into a good residency program...then it becomes about getting a good fellowship, good job.

But this only refers to the academic side of things--don't forget to have fun! Senior year of high school is a blast.

 

[schreck]

Thanks again for the responses.

I have a question about colleges. Right now, I have around a 3.65 gpa and my projected range of ACT scores is 26-30ish from practice tests/etc (I take it on the 8th so I'll let you all know what i recieve when I find out). I know my gpa isn't great and my laziness has gotten to me (especially in math which has REALLY brought me down as I am a year or so ahead)

Anyway, I currently plan on applying and attending Florida Gulf Coast University in Fort Myers, Florida. I can get an out of state tuition waiver and get my residency in my first year because I have family members and I can change my address, yada yada yada. If I do get a decent ACT score should I transfer to University of Florida after sophomore year or freshman year as it is a better school? Or would it really have no affect on me to just stay in Ft. Myers until I graduate and apply for med school. (If I don't change my mind, that is)

Thanks again,
Alex

 

[DrBowtie]

I'd go to UF. There are more opportunities there.

 

[drhouse]

people who think seriously about this stuff in high school are weird.

 

[PurpleHaze]

I'd say take the AP Bio BUT I'd also urge you to take your intro Bio classes in undergrad as well, even if you end up getting college credit from your AP Bio course. My roommate freshman year, AP'd out of both intro bio classes and had to take the upper level Zoology course her first semester and got all but demolished because of it.

 

[45408]

people who think seriously about this stuff in high school are weird.

🙄 some people know ahead of time what they want