Looking for advice on my schedule

[lsu hopeful]

Hey guys,

99.9% of you are much more wise than I. I'm at a bit of a crossroads. I would appreciate any advice you may have to offer specific to my situation. My main concerns are the integration of my pre-req schedule, the date I will have the best chance at the MCAT, and my application date. I already have a BA, so I just need the pre-reqs, which work perfectly to help me prepare for the MCAT.

This is my pre-req schedule:

Spring 2011 (current) - Inorganic Chem I, Bio I
Summer 2011 1st Term - Physics I (no time for lab, take Summer '12)
Summer 2011 2nd Term - Inorganic Chem II (no time for lab, take Summer '12)
Fall 2011 - Organic Chem I, Bio II

Spring 2012 is the kicker and what's causing me so many problems. I can take either Organic Chem II OR Biochem I. I'll also be taking Physics II this semester.

My thoughts are as follows:

1.) Keep this schedule, bust my rump and take the MCAT in April to have a solid app for 2012. If I do this, should I take OChemII or Biochem in Spring 2012?

2.) Keep this schedule, finish out Spring 2012 with OChemII, take MCAT in July and still apply in 2012.

3.) Go a bit slower, skip the summer classes, apply in 2013 with a much easier pace than what's laid out above.

Notes:
-I already have a bachelors, so when I finish my pre-reqs, I need to get into Med School ASAP. Time between finishing pre-reqs and getting in med school is wasted, for my situation
-Again, specific to my situation, I don't believe the load I'll be taking on during the summer will hamper my ability to make A's.
-I work 40 hrs/week, but I can study at work and it's very flexible to my class hours

I have read in TONS of places that the best time to take the MCAT is in April, for numerous reasons. I'm just torn as to the best plan to lay out for myself.

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[Pons Asinorum]

Taking Physics II, Organic II (or biochem) and studying for the MCAT *look* problematic, but only you can say if you can swing it or not. I think that how you perform in Organic I will help make that decision. If you still want to take the MCAT in April 2012, I recommend taking Organic II instead of Biochem - I guarantee one of those two subjects will have material on the MCAT, and it ain't biochem. Personally, if you feel like your EC's and PS are/will be strong, I like your option 2. Rushing and "busting rump" is not recommended when you have a viable non-rushing option. You could also submit your AMCAS primary early, get it verified and then just have it waiting on your MCAT score to post. Getting that score in and schools looking at your complete primary in August is not too late at all.

 

[lsu hopeful]

Sounds plausible. Thanks for sharing! I think I'm going to go with door #2 as you suggested! That will give me a good 2 months (may and June) to focus on MCAT study since I'll only be taking my physics I and inorganic chem2 labs I didn't take the summer before.

Yay! I finally have a good plan. This has been killing me trying to figure it out because of the horror stories people wrote about not taking the MCAT in April.

 

[Pons Asinorum]

Sounds plausible. Thanks for sharing! I think I'm going to go with door #2 as you suggested! That will give me a good 2 months (may and June) to focus on MCAT study since I'll only be taking my physics I and inorganic chem2 labs I didn't take the summer before.

Yay! I finally have a good plan. This has been killing me trying to figure it out because of the horror stories people wrote about not taking the MCAT in April.

Come back as you're getting into May/June and let us know how the AAMC FL's scores are trending and issues you're having. As a nontrad, I think the MCAT can be a real strength on your application if you can perform well. You can't change old grades; you can work your tail off and maximize your MCAT score.

 

[OneTyme]

Taking Physics II, Organic II (or biochem) and studying for the MCAT *look* problematic, but only you can say if you can swing it or not. I think that how you perform in Organic I will help make that decision. If you still want to take the MCAT in April 2012, I recommend taking Organic II instead of Biochem - I guarantee one of those two subjects will have material on the MCAT, and it ain't biochem. Personally, if you feel like your EC's and PS are/will be strong, I like your option 2. Rushing and "busting rump" is not recommended when you have a viable non-rushing option. You could also submit your AMCAS primary early, get it verified and then just have it waiting on your MCAT score to post. Getting that score in and schools looking at your complete primary in August is not too late at all.

Agreed, Ochem is key for good MCAT performance.

The best plan for me was setting out with an overall plan and ramping up or down as I went based on honest self evaluation of how I was doing. Staying on schedule for no wasted time was important to me too but MORE important was having the grades and MCAT score to get me into medical school.

 

[lsu hopeful]

Really liking you guys' advice!

 

[Pons Asinorum]

The best plan for me was setting out with an overall plan and ramping up or down as I went based on honest self evaluation of how I was doing.

Great advice - and the only way to perform a truly honest self evaluation is to take AAMC practice FL's under timed conditions just like you will for the real exam. There is debate, especially in the MCAT forum, about the newer exams being more like the "real" exam difficulty-wise, but don't worry about that. The way that they are scaled, any of the AAMC exams (3-11) will give a great picture of where you are. If you feel, based on GPA, that you need a 32 to be competitive at the programs you want to attend, then damned well better be averaging a 32 or better on multiple AAMC FL's prior to showing up at Prometric to get your photo taken. I can't stress that enough. You can't count on performing better on the real thing than you have on the very-near real things. Regardless, focus that energy on the MCAT. It is seriously vastly more important than anything else you could possibly be doing to strengthen your app.

 

[artsydoc]

I'd actually advise against option 2. I somewhat regret taking the MCAT in July because my apps got in a lot later than some of my peers. It worked out in the end but everyone says take it in April because that's the wisest course of action. It will allow you to get your application submitted in June, which in turn will give you the absolute best chance of acceptance.

Look carefully at your stats as you go through these courses as well, and see how you do on MCAT practice tests. If they're high, you can probably get away with applying a bit later. If more middle of the road don't take any chances.

Option 1 will work if things are going very smoothly (take Ochem II btw, much more valuable for MCAT) Option 3 if you can spare the time is great because that way you can take biochem as well as ochem and make sure you have all the volunteering and research that schools like to see if you don't already.