My 1st Year college plan

[DP4NB3S301314]

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Hello all! I have been reading comments on SDN for awhile since I join this big family.🙂


So, I will be attending UCSC this fall. And I will be taking 3 classes this year:

1) General Chem
2) Calculus
3) College Core Courses (English, Writing/Reading)

These classes are all in Mon/Wed/Fri,with labs/discussion in Tue/Thu.

I wonder if its a good idea to start doing volunteer at local hospital during my first year college? Or should I focus on my school work and shoot for 4.0?

My summer going to spend on research and shadow doctors. Also, I have work-study in school. So I can only do volunteer at night.

Lastly, when should I review MCAT? Do I apply med school in my Junior year or senior year?

Please comment/revise my 1st year plan, any inputs are apperciated!🙂

 

[HealthHare]

If you are a full-time student you might want to take 4 courses per semester rather than three. I find four a good balance, and you won't have to overload in future semesters to graduate on time. Even if you are coming in with AP credits taking at least four courses is always a good idea.

Its never to early to start volunteering. The more time commitment you show to a certain activity the better you will look to adcoms. Choosing a light volunteer schedule (2-4 hrs a week) should be good for a first year.

If you go to the MCAT section of SDN there is a lot of info about when and how to study for the MCAT. Most applicants take it sometime in their Jr. year and apply in the summer before sr. year. If you want to apply during senior year then you will have to take a gap year before matriculating.

Grades should be your biggest priority. Ending first semester first year with a 3.8+ will make life a lot easier for you moving on.

Hope this helps, good luck🙂

 

[DP4NB3S301314]

If you are a full-time student you might want to take 4 courses per semester rather than three. I find four a good balance, and you won't have to overload in future semesters to graduate on time.

My school is in quarter system, 5 units per class. Which round up 15 units a quarter and 45 units per year without failing. Any students that takes 19 units and up are consider "overload". They need permission to do that. So weird. Thanks for your input though!



Besides volunteer and research, what else I need to do for my spare time? I really really need to get in Med School 1st time. I can't fail cause my parents got divorce...which mean I got no finacial support. 🙁 cried...I'm sooo depress right now. Please tell me what I need to accomplish and things I need to avoid during undergrad. ty.😳

 

[HealthHare]

My school is in quarter system, 5 units per class. Which round up 15 units a quarter and 45 units per year without failing. Any students that takes 19 units and up are consider "overload". They need permission to do that. So weird. Thanks for your input though!



Besides volunteer and research, what else I need to do for my spare time? I really really need to get in Med School 1st time. I can't fail cause my parents got divorce...which mean I got no finacial support. 🙁 cried...I'm sooo depress right now. Please tell me what I need to accomplish and things I need to avoid during undergrad. ty.😳

In addition to research, volunteering, and shadowing you need to do things that you enjoy. Showing passion in something other than RVS is a good way to differentiate yourself from other applicants. IMHO if you get 3.5+ gpa and 30+ mcat you WILL get in somewhere if you apply widely.

Relax, its only first year. Like I said before your main priority should be your grades. Make sure you devote enough time to study, but also to have fun. Enjoy whatever is left of your summer!!!

 

[WuMedic]

Based on my brief experience on the quarter system:

Looks good. Add a 2 unit fun class to keep yourself interested in going to class. I took a computer science class since it was something I was interested in at the time. Even astronomy or poly sci would be good if you are into that sort of thing.

As a freshmen, you should have plenty of time to volunteer still. Find something you want to do at the hospital and see if you can spend a few hours a week there. 4hrs/wk is generally good to start. I got up to 8 hours a week a few months in until junior year when I pulled back to 4.

Choose at least 2 extracurricular that you like with no regard for what they will do for your resume. It'll keep you sane and give you something to do between hitting the books and sleeping. Play an instrument? Like to sing? Sports? Academic clubs are also good but don't count toward your two! 😛

 

[docelh]

Depends on how good of a student you are in those math/science subjects.

btw, your username is totally NERDY, so I think you probably are fine.

 

[Led Zep]

Looks good, work hard and keep those grades up, the effort you start putting in now will pay for itself, keep your nose to the grindstone

 

[amistret]

Not to be a creeper homie, but im also going to be a first year at UCSC a Bio. Major. However, im a transfer student and have been taking a summer class. But my first quater is gonna be calc, chem 1a, and bioethics. As lame as it sounds I have been looking for someone to kinda be in this together with me just studying and busting butt to get into medical school. if you want let me know what your schedgy is and maybe we can study and volunteer and shtuff. hit me up.

 

[TarHeelEMT]

As a first semester freshman, your primary responsibilities should be:

1) Having fun
2) Exploring things you never knew existed
3) Whatever you want to put here
4) School

(in that order)