Mathematics Pre-req Requirements - MD Schools

[Jordan Frazier]

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I have a question pertaining to my title. I have noticed a lot of medical schools only require a "college level math class" to apply, but I'm curious to know if there is any actual discrimination towards applicants who have only taken College Algebra. As a student, mathematics isn't one of my better assets. I'm capable of succeeding in Calculus, but I'd rather not take any math in college if it isn't necessary. I'm aware most universities require calc for a student to be considered pre-med, but I'm primarily concerned about the discrimination factor during the application process.

 

[mokhoras]

.

 

[OCDOCDOCD]

From what I can tell looking at college websites, they're fine with algebra and precalc. Only when they mention other math classes do they want those. That said, you should take statistics since it's very relevant to medicine and is a common requirement/"recommended course". It's also not very hard, so even if you suck at math you should be able to do well.

 

[sinombre]

Some will be fine with it, some won't. IIRC all UCs define "college level math" as statistics and/or calculus.

 

[phunky]

Please, take calculus for your own intellectual enrichment.

 

[Narmerguy]

Please, take calculus for your own intellectual enrichment.

Nah, if you're going to take something take Stats. 10x more useful in the real world and for your intellectual enrichment. Very few people will think about the kinds of things that can benefit from calculus (but for the record, I think calculus is beautiful and amazing).

 

[BigBlueBear]

nah, if you're going to take something take stats. 10x more useful in the real world and for your intellectual enrichment. Very few people will think about the kinds of things that can benefit from calculus (but for the record, i think calculus is beautiful and amazing).

+1

 

[Lollygag]

Nah, if you're going to take something take Stats. 10x more useful in the real world and for your intellectual enrichment. Very few people will think about the kinds of things that can benefit from calculus (but for the record, I think calculus is beautiful and amazing).

Agreed.

It seems like most of the schools that require calculus are the top ones like Hopkins, JHU, Duke, I think Stanford? Although I'm sure theres a few mid tiers that may require it.

 

[JESSFALLING]

Agreed.

It seems like most of the schools that require calculus are the top ones like Hopkins, JHU, Duke, I think Stanford? Although I'm sure theres a few mid tiers that may require it.

In case you're applying in CA or TX...Calculus is required at several of the UC campuses; and TX has at least one campus that requires it.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

Nah, if you're going to take something take Stats. 10x more useful in the real world and for your intellectual enrichment. Very few people will think about the kinds of things that can benefit from calculus (but for the record, I think calculus is beautiful and amazing).

Some people will claim that taking calculus or other problem heavy courses build cognitive capacities. But I just think it's nice because it makes you a lot stronger with algebra and number intuition.

College Math = College Algebra, College Stats, Precalc, Calc & other calc based courses.

 

[sinombre]

Some people will claim that taking calculus or other problem heavy courses build cognitive capacities. But I just think it's nice because it makes you a lot stronger with algebra and number intuition.

College Math = College Algebra, College Stats, Precalc, Calc & other calc based courses.

Not at all schools... I had to call a couple of years ago before I had taken calc and stats (I was a non-science major). At least when I called, there were some schools that only considered calc and stats as "college math."

 

[Eon]

Would it be ok if I AP out of Stat/Calc I and just take 1 semester of Calc II to get my "1 year of math"? The uni that I'm probably going to says the requirements call for 1 year of Calc. With AP credits, I can drop it down to half a semester. Would this be find for med schools?

 

[Cambino]

Some schools explicitly say "One year of calculus and statistics", otherwise I think anything above precalculus should be okay.

Calculus is above precalculus...?

 

[thegypsyqueen]

Not to derail the thread, but I have a math prereq question as well. I have college credit earned in HS for stats, university credit for: economic stats, economics math I and II (basically calc I material), and Econometrics. Does this satisfy the requirements for most or all schools or do they require that the math be from the math or a science department?

 

[desperadoflakes]

Hate to go off topic as well, but I have a question. If I got a B in Calc I and B- in Calc II in my freshman year due to my head just not being on my shoulders all too straight, would it be beneficial to me to take calc III and get an A just to prove to adcoms that those grades weren't representative of my ability? Would like your guys' opinion on this

 

[weezynation]

Hate to go off topic as well, but I have a question. If I got a B in Calc I and B- in Calc II in my freshman year due to my head just not being on my shoulders all too straight, would it be beneficial to me to take calc III and get an A just to prove to adcoms that those grades weren't representative of my ability? Would like your guys' opinion on this

If you want to take it and know you will do well in it (as in a "A"), sure why not. However, what you will be trying to prove to adcoms probably wont even be relevant. They will be looking at your overall cgpa and sgpa, and gpa trends by academic year. Why don't you take some upper level Biology course to show adcoms that you can handle a class that is actually related to your future profession, unlike Calculus III?

 

[jayoh]

Nah, if you're going to take something take Stats. 10x more useful in the real world and for your intellectual enrichment. Very few people will think about the kinds of things that can benefit from calculus (but for the record, I think calculus is beautiful and amazing).

I guess one could argue that calculus is directly relevant to Physics, though. I would hate to take physics without a solid understanding of calculus.

Outside of physics, though, I agree that stats is more useful.

 

[Meihua]

Would it be ok if I AP out of Stat/Calc I and just take 1 semester of Calc II to get my "1 year of math"? The uni that I'm probably going to says the requirements call for 1 year of Calc. With AP credits, I can drop it down to half a semester. Would this be find for med schools?

I used AP credits for my math requirements - all the schools I checked were willing to accept AP credit to fulfill the math requirement (except I think Vanderbilt, which doesn't accept any AP credits). If you're worried and/or planning on using AP credits for anything else, I would take the time to double-check with any schools you might be interested in.

 

[Narmerguy]

I guess one could argue that calculus is directly relevant to Physics, though. I would hate to take physics without a solid understanding of calculus.

Outside of physics, though, I agree that stats is more useful.

I definitely agree, but even still, the way in which premeds will use physics basically requires no calculus understanding once they get to medicine. It's sufficient, for example, to understand that a wire produces a magnetic field around it because of the moving charges without actually having to know how to calculate said magnetic field. An appreciation for the way in which this field changes with the current is great, but also doesn't require fundamental calculus to understand.

As a biophysics major, it's hard for me to imagine students taking physics without accompanying calculus. Ideally I'd like premeds to take both (calc and stats). But still, if we had to choose, I think stats is incredibly powerful not just for us as scientists, but as good citizens and educated individuals.

 

[AsianPersuasion]

ugh my state med school requires or I should say "highly recommended" 1 year of calc and one semester of Stats :/

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

I guess one could argue that calculus is directly relevant to Physics, though. I would hate to take physics without a solid understanding of calculus.

Outside of physics, though, I agree that stats is more useful.

Most people take algebra based physics though, directly absolving them of the necessity to really understand calculus.

 

[somethingdeep]

Nah, if you're going to take something take Stats. 10x more useful in the real world and for your intellectual enrichment. Very few people will think about the kinds of things that can benefit from calculus (but for the record, I think calculus is beautiful and amazing).

I would say stats is more practically useful, but calc definitely wins in terms of intellectual enrichment.

More on the topic of the thread, add UCLA to the list of schools that do NOT accept AP credit.

 

[Narmerguy]

I would say stats is more practically useful, but calc definitely wins in terms of intellectual enrichment.

More on the topic of the thread, add UCLA to the list of schools that do NOT accept AP credit.

Hmm, I'd disagree. Statistics is the primary means by which we can take a series of observations about the world and extract some kind of meaning. Statistics is literally the foundational tool of modern science. Economics, psychology, pretty much any experimental science, etc. Understanding the meaning of "randomness" and being able to model the world around us has changed the way we understand culture, social inequalities, the physical world, even sports! You can use statistics in nearly every discipline. A particularly memorable example for me was a theological scholar who did a statistical analysis of a controversial passage in the bible to reveal the most likely meaning of a single word upon which the entire passage's interpretation hinged.

Statistics is the foundation upon which so much knowledge is built, and understanding statistics opens up the entire world to you. Thus, in many ways, if one can understand statistics, one can understand (or probe) almost anything imaginable. Calculus is beautiful and has become increasingly sophisticated, but I think it's hard to support that it providers greater intellectual enrichment than statistics given its inherent limitations.