Some questions about reinvention going forward…
- I read med schools do not like pre-reqs from community colleges is this true?
in your case it likely won’t matter. You’re starting at a CC and then transferring to a 4 year university which is a perfectly acceptable path. Issues with CC courses usually come up if you are enrolled in a 4 year university and decide to take a known rigorous course at a CC. To be sure you won’t run into problems, get a subscription of the MSAR from the AAMC which will show information about how each school will view CC classes. Some accept them on a case by case basis, very few state a preference against them.
- Which science/math pre-med pre-reqs are okay to take while at the ccc?
whichever ones you want really. If it were me, I would start with the year long sequences of chemistry and biology since you will be able to take upper level courses in those subjects once you are at a 4 year university. Also UC general chemistry, biology, and physics courses tend to be very very large.
- I finished one Statistics class with an A, do I really need calculus for med school…? Or can I take one additional Stats class upper division after I transfer?
check the MSAR for specific requirements.
- If I need calculus it will require a math sequence of 3 classes to complete… would it look bad to compete the entire math sequence at a community college? Could I take algebra & pre-cal P/NP since med school only cares about calculus?
likely 1 semester would be fine.
- Should I be aiming to transfer to a private instead of a UC given the grade deflation I have been reading about at UCs especially in the sciences? I can do the UC undergrad w/o loans but that will not be the case with private.
You should take classes where ever you feel you will be able to do well and will incur the least amount of debt. Minimizing debt at the undergraduate level is important because you will finance your medical school education through loans and having a high loan balance to begin with will complicate things later on.
I wouldn’t stress about grade deflation. This is a topic that comes up every few months and many premeds feel as though their programs deliberately lower grades or make it more challenging to earn high grades. Your focus should be on doing well in your classes where ever you take them and learning the material so that you are prepared for the MCAT. With the exception of a few programs I have yet to see any significant evidence of great deflation.
- I live closest to UCLA and about 1-1.5 hours depending on traffic from UCR and UCI. Are UCLA/UCI/UCR all viewed the same in terms of reinvention? Should I be aiming for UC Riverside for my BA given they have the Thomas Haider Program or UCLA/UC Irvine since they higher regarded? Does Haider even count w/ non-traditional?
which school you attend really doesn’t matter. Pick the school that is going to allow you to do your very best in your classes and that is the most financially feasible for you.
- Is a BA in English vs. a BA in Creative Writing viewed the same by med schools?
medical schools do not state a preference for major and encourage applicants to major in a subject that they are passionate about. You should pick a major that you’re interested in and that is going to help you develop the skills that you feel are important. The only thing you need to do for medical school academically is to ensure that you complete the prerequisite courses for the schools that you intend to apply and do well on the MCAT.
- Should I not take science classes in undergrad (they are not required for my current major) focus on increasing my cGPA and just plan to do a post-bac?
in my post back program I knew of students who were fresh out of undergrad who knew that they wanted to go to medical school but decided to major in something else and didn’t take any prerequisite classes. If you can complete the pre-requisite courses while you are in school then why wouldn’t you do that? it likely would be more affordable for you to complete the classes while you are in school and won’t add additional years of coursework before you’re ready to apply to medical school. Once you are set to graduate and have a better idea of what your GPA is then you can make the call about whether or not a post back program is necessary. Unless your GPA is going to be a low number it is unlikely that I post back program is going to be necessary given the amount of credits you will have already accumulated. Once you are set to graduate and have a better idea of what your GPA is then you can make the call about whether or not a post back program is necessary. But if you can go through the next few years of your current education plan and can demonstrate that you are able to perform well academically your application to medical school will be viewed more favorably than a gpa number out of context would predict. Having an upward trend is going to be very important for your application to medical school.
assuming all of this goes well and you do well on your MCAT you will likely need to apply to a broad range of medical schools both allopathic and osteopathic.
it sounds like you have a pretty solid plan in place for going back to school and ensuring that you are in the best position possible to do well academically. Good luck to you!
