Mixing GE with vet school pre-reqs?
Started by HelloNello
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I recommend taking general education with the prereqs. My advisers have always said that too. For one reason, you will have some easy classes to counteract all the studying you'll require for the prereqs. That way you're not pulling your hair out the first few semesters.
Also, I don't know if this was mentioned, most prereqs require prereqs themselves. So, you won't be able to get into all science classes right away.
Also, I don't know if this was mentioned, most prereqs require prereqs themselves. So, you won't be able to get into all science classes right away.
I definitely liked mixing it up, it kept a feeling of balance. For me my non-science classes were more challenging, (I definitely struggled more in creative writing than I did in organic!) so I actually used my science courses to break up my gen eds. Also, I went to a really small school so breaking up my science classes allowed me to see more than the same 20ish other bio majors.
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I majored in biology and English. So once I got past my freshman year I was typically taking 2 science courses, 2 English courses and some other GE class each semester. It worked out well for me because English classes were my "fun" classes, the science classes were typically more time consuming and the other GE class was typically the least time consuming. There were some semesters though where there was another class thrown in there or a ton of labs. For about 4 semesters I was taking 18 credits each semester. But I can tell you that I was comfortable taking 2 science, 2 English and a GE without being overloaded.
Oh goodness, don't kill yourself by taking GEs all up front and packing your last couple years with nothing but science classes.
There's a reason some science classes are a credit or so more than other classes: they're time-consuming. The last thing you want is to be taking four science classes with labs all in one semester because you didn't spread things out and got in a position where you had to take them in order to graduate on schedule.
Because I am a non-trad who had to go back to school for the pre-vet requirements, I was only taking science classes (my undergrad was, of all things, theology - you can imagine how many science classes I took). I can attest to the fact that it can be a pretty big bummer to pack them all together. Doable, but not as fun as they could be.
There's a reason some science classes are a credit or so more than other classes: they're time-consuming. The last thing you want is to be taking four science classes with labs all in one semester because you didn't spread things out and got in a position where you had to take them in order to graduate on schedule.
Because I am a non-trad who had to go back to school for the pre-vet requirements, I was only taking science classes (my undergrad was, of all things, theology - you can imagine how many science classes I took). I can attest to the fact that it can be a pretty big bummer to pack them all together. Doable, but not as fun as they could be.
👍 Agreed! I'm a bio major (but I also am ending up with a philosophy major & English lit minor). So, even though your eye might be strictly on vet school & filling those pre-reqs, take something else to take the edge off. Having a mix of classes made my life less stressed. But that's just me.
Not all schools assign science courses higher credit value than non-science courses. 2 of the 4 schools I attended assigned every class 1 credit. IE, if you had a science course with three 70 minute lectures and two 4 hour labs, it was worth 1 credit, while your lit class that had two 90 minute lectures was 1 credit.
However, either way, you want to start getting some of the pre-reqs out of the way ASAP. intro level sciences and chemistries are often pre-reqs for vet school and for upper level classes. And organic chemistry is a stumbling block for quite a few folks...so if you do (hopefully not) have to retake a course, you have space to do so. Either way, you want to give yourself a mixture. I had two semesters with all sciences in UG, and I loved it, but that included my thesis research and involved professors that I knew I could keep up with....and were not all pre-reqs (so if I did have to trash a course, it would not impact my pre-req GPA.) Also, if you have some 'unique' pre-reqs (PE, diversity, consortium, etc) you might want to keep your eyes open for a course that you would really enjoy and snatch it up when available rather than waiting for the last oppurtunity and being stuck in a course that you detest (or with a professor you can't stand.) I did put a lot into my first couple years so my last couple were more open to pursueing my interests.
I made the mistake of taking all my GE courses and then trying to cram in my pre-requisite courses. It's something I really regret and I would advise anyone/everyone against it. I would recommend semesters with 1-3 GE courses and 2-3 pre-requisites. Pre-reqs aren't meant to be easy so the GE courses can help you balance the work load (and your grades!) For reference, at my undergrad, a typical semester load is five classes: usually three credits each but sometimes two and sometimes four.
Due to dual enrollment and AP credit from high school, I started my undergrad already having completed 29 hours (mostly GE). Therefore, I took at least 2 (and normally more) sciences/pre reqs each semester, and took anywhere from 15 - 18 credits each semester. I think my easiest semester was 8 science hours (out of 17 total credit hours), while my worst semester was 11 science hours (out of 15 total credit hours).
How about 15 out of 18? Haha. Oh wait, I forgot - I'm insane.
I ran out of GE quite a while ago. I can testify that taking mostly science classes is less than ideal, especially when it comes to organic chemistry in physics - try to have more GE those semesters if you can. And, if Japanese II is part of the 'GE' maybe you should keep that one for an easier semester or something.
Just saying. 🙂
I ran out of GE quite a while ago. I can testify that taking mostly science classes is less than ideal, especially when it comes to organic chemistry in physics - try to have more GE those semesters if you can. And, if Japanese II is part of the 'GE' maybe you should keep that one for an easier semester or something.
Just saying. 🙂
