Need some schedule planning help

[rajp98]

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I am planning on taking the MCAT in January. I'm a rising Junior now, and have just started preparation for it as of last week.

Since I'm taking it in January, I was planning to rely on the Fall semester and December break to study/practice. To do this, I was looking to lighten my class load to take only 2 science classes and 1 normal class (total of 9 credits). My advisor said she doesnt recommend this, because med schools want to see a heavy class load before the summer of applying, but I would need this to study effectively for the MCAT.

Should I go with the light load or listen to advisor?

 

[AttemptingScholar]

Do what you need to do to be successful. Make sure you take Biochem before you take the MCAT. Just be sure you are allowed to do this, at my school that would disqualify me as a full-time student.

 

[rajp98]

Do what you need to do to be successful. Make sure you take Biochem before you take the MCAT. Just be sure you are allowed to do this, at my school that would disqualify me as a full-time student.

Do med schools want to see a heavy class load before the summer of applying? Will it look bad if i dont have 3 sciences during Fall?

 

[AttemptingScholar]

Do med schools want to see a heavy class load before the summer of applying? Will it look bad if i dont have 3 sciences during Fall?

Med schools want proof you can handle a rigorous course load. If you have proven this previously, you'll be fine. If you've taken a lot of prereqs at a CC and/or over the summer and winter then you would want a more difficult course load now. So long as you've proven you can have multiple sciences, you're okay. If you feel confident you can handle both, a harder schedule can only help you, but if you need the dedication for the MCAT you don't want to ruin what may be the most important test of your life. The MCAT is a greater priority than a single class.

 

[rufflev]

Do med schools want to see a heavy class load before the summer of applying? Will it look bad if i dont have 3 sciences during Fall?

Getting A's in all three classes with a good MCAT score, say 510+ is much better than seeing 2-3 A's with 1-2 B's with an average or subpar MCAT score.

Do what you think is best for you, from my personal experience, a majority of academic advisors give advice that pertains to an ideal world - but in actuality, the numbers mean more than the course load, assuming that you've shown success doing a full science-based course load in the past.

 

[efle]

Absolutely prioritize the MCAT. This single exam is worth about the same as your entire undergraduate academic record. Taking a light semester is a better option than sacrificing any points off your MCAT score.

 

[rajp98]

Thanks so much guys! Your advice is super valuable to me.

 

[Dox4lyfe]

It's difficult for adcoms to determine which classes you took in which semester within a given academic year. If you're worried about the light course load, you can overload credits in the spring semester to make up for it.

As the others stated, prioritizing the mcat is super important!

Does your school not require a 12 credit minimum to be full-time? Have you thought about signing up for an easy PE class or something for easy credits to stay full-time?