Official Harvard Extension 2015 Thread

[Gurby]

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I will likely take physics with Orgo I in the fall but I have a better background in physics than I do in biochem/bio and I am looking at the possibility of taking that at Northeastern which might be more expensive but at least better commute for me. Do you see any downside to that?

I feel like going elsewhere to take Bio is kind of disappointing... Yes it's hard, and yes getting A's is important... But med school is hard too. I also don't know about how it might affect your committee letter if you go for sponsorship through HES. Just my opinion.

Something I JUST learned about that might be of interest... Harvard Summer School is now offering a 1-semester summer Orgo class that is catered specifically towards the MCAT and medical school. It's taught by Logan McCarty who is the freaking man:
https://www.summer.harvard.edu/courses/principles-organic-chemistry/33668

It seems like a no-brainer to me that anyone planning on only 1 semester of orgo should be taking this summer class, as opposed to Fall Orgo1 which misses a lot of topics covered by the MCAT. In light of this I'd like to change my recommendation from earlier post... I would suggest taking summer Orgo (4 credit class) and fall Biochem.

 

[Gurby]

Hi Gurby, I have already taken Bio at HES. I was planning to take physics elsewhere as I have some background in it and would likely benefit little from any quality HES might add to physics, but I don't know anything about physics at HES either.

When I took physics lectures were recorded, homework could be submitted online, and there was even an online help section. It would be very easy to never go to campus except to take tests, if that's what you wanted to do. So I don't really see what you gain by taking it at Northeastern.

 

[deleted615211]

Hi Gurby, I am also planning to take biochem this summer. I am taking Orgo in the fall and wanted to do biochem this summer to focus on Orgo in the fall. I am undecided thinking about the higher cost as well as the difficulty of the course. Do you know if summer biochem is substantially different in difficulty from fall biochem? From jonniboi's post, the fall biochem sounds manageable while from your experience the summer one sounds tough. If it is substantially difficult, I rather avoid the higher cost and take on the work alongside Orgo in the fall. What do you think?

Just an FYI, I took Orgo I and Biochem last fall and got an A in Orgo and an A- in Biochem, so if you're worried about it being manageable I think it definitely is. On the side I also work full time as an engineer at a Biotech company so that's already a ~50-60 hour time per week I have dedicated elsewhere.

 

[deleted615211]

I feel like going elsewhere to take Bio is kind of disappointing... Yes it's hard, and yes getting A's is important... But med school is hard too. I also don't know about how it might affect your committee letter if you go for sponsorship through HES. Just my opinion.

Something I JUST learned about that might be of interest... Harvard Summer School is now offering a 1-semester summer Orgo class that is catered specifically towards the MCAT and medical school. It's taught by Logan McCarty who is the freaking man:
https://www.summer.harvard.edu/courses/principles-organic-chemistry/33668

It seems like a no-brainer to me that anyone planning on only 1 semester of orgo should be taking this summer class, as opposed to Fall Orgo1 which misses a lot of topics covered by the MCAT. In light of this I'd like to change my recommendation from earlier post... I would suggest taking summer Orgo (4 credit class) and fall Biochem.

I second this, Logan is the man. If I had a choice I'd take every class available from him, his Physics class was badass and the current orgo curriculum was developed by him.

 

[deleted615211]

Now I am back to being undecided. Thank you for sharing your information, we have a similar background and schedule so I am glad to hear about your experience. Did you take physics in the fall? Does Logan teach it every year? Does it help for MCAT? That's the only benefit I would look to get out of a physics class and I am now considering taking it at HES. But I can't decide about when. Whether to do biochem now and take physics in the fall (before MCAT) or simply self study for physics and take biochem in the fall?

I took Physics in the fall. In my opinion, you'd be hard pressed to find a better Physics course; between Physics by Logan, & Chem (taught by Tucci) they were amongst the best courses I've ever taken. I will warn you though that Logan although he's amazing at teaching Physics makes the class extremely hard (but class is curved around an 80, >85 is an A/A-). Since he was so great at teaching and getting me motivated to learn about Physics, I found myself studying a LOT and learning a great deal. For me it was difficult but achievable to get an A.

Honestly in terms of difficulty, I think biochem is fairly easy from Professor Haynes. She tests mostly from the slides, so long as you take excellent lecture notes, do her practice problems, read up on confusing parts from lecture in the book, you should easily get an A. Biochem was no where the difficulty of Physics/Orgo for me (I personally found Physics more difficult than Orgo... but that maybe just me).

 

[deleted615211]

Now I am back to being undecided. Thank you for sharing your information, we have a similar background and schedule so I am glad to hear about your experience. Did you take physics in the fall? Does Logan teach it every year? Does it help for MCAT? That's the only benefit I would look to get out of a physics class and I am now considering taking it at HES. But I can't decide about when. Whether to do biochem now and take physics in the fall (before MCAT) or simply self study for physics and take biochem in the fall?

I havent taken the MCAT yet, so I can't say about how much it helps. From what I hear Logan prepares you very well.

 

[BOAO523]

Hi BOAO523, I am an extreme newbie but thought I would give you a bit of my opinion. I work full time and have taken a total of 5 courses starting in the fall (with the 2 going on this semester). Regarding taking a course to test the waters, I would say the classes I took so far have been different from each other in terms of what it takes to get through them. I don't think I would have gotten a sense of how I would handle any of them based on my experience in the other classes.

Also, I don't know about your financial situation but once your start paying for the classes, the money does matter more and more so if you can, think about choosing a course that will definitely help you and fits well into your plans. Finally, be conscious about not underestimating the courses. You don't want to go into any of them with even a tiny bit of disadvantage. If you are missing any background that might be even remotely important in a course, try to avoid talking yourself into taking it in a rush. You want to take it when you are prepared and will do your best. These are just general opinions, hope you will find them helpful but don't take them as fact.

Hi Stuaccount, thank you very much for the advice. I have decided to not rush into it and I will take these courses in roughly the order they're designed to be taken in. As for taking courses lightly I agree with you...if the end goal is to get into med school then doing everything you can to get as high of a grade as possible is imperative.

Now that you have taken 5 of the courses, do you have any recommendation on which professors I should try to take for each courses? Are there some better than others?

 

[BOAO523]

I took biochem last semester with Professor Robin Haynes, She was pretty good and graded generously. I felt that background knowledge in Bio/Chem/Orgo while a plus was completely unnecessary for the course. It'll definitely help you get a better grade, but if you read the book (especially on confusing topics), go over her slides and outline everything you should easily be able to get an A-. But this is my opinion, she's really good about giving students extra help and the curve is pretty generous as well.

Hi Jonniboi, thank you for your advice! In light of this I will take Chem and bio before trying to take Biochem. Your recommendation would be to take it in the fall instead of the summer?

 

[BOAO523]

I feel like going elsewhere to take Bio is kind of disappointing... Yes it's hard, and yes getting A's is important... But med school is hard too. I also don't know about how it might affect your committee letter if you go for sponsorship through HES. Just my opinion.

Something I JUST learned about that might be of interest... Harvard Summer School is now offering a 1-semester summer Orgo class that is catered specifically towards the MCAT and medical school. It's taught by Logan McCarty who is the freaking man:
https://www.summer.harvard.edu/courses/principles-organic-chemistry/33668

It seems like a no-brainer to me that anyone planning on only 1 semester of orgo should be taking this summer class, as opposed to Fall Orgo1 which misses a lot of topics covered by the MCAT. In light of this I'd like to change my recommendation from earlier post... I would suggest taking summer Orgo (4 credit class) and fall Biochem.

Hi Gurby,
This definitely sounds like an exciting development.
Form your experience, are these kind of offerings 1-time things or do you think it might be offered next summer as well?

If it is offered next Summer as well and if there are no overlaps in times when classes are offered (is it common to run into timing issues?) would the following plan make sense?:

Year 1: chem and Bio. Summer: Orgo 1. Year2a: physics 1 and biochem. Year 2b: physics 2 and MCAT prep.

 

[Gurby]

Hi Gurby,
This definitely sounds like an exciting development.
Form your experience, are these kind of offerings 1-time things or do you think it might be offered next summer as well?

If it is offered next Summer as well and if there are no overlaps in times when classes are offered (is it common to run into timing issues?) would the following plan make sense?:

Year 1: chem and Bio. Summer: Orgo 1. Year2a: physics 1 and biochem. Year 2b: physics 2 and MCAT prep.

I would expect them to continue offering the class, especially as more schools stop requiring 2 semesters of Orgo. Impossible to say for sure, though. Right now not that many people have signed up for it, which is sad and weird.

Schedule looks perfect.

 

[deleted615211]

Hi Jonniboi, thank you for your advice! In light of this I will take Chem and bio before trying to take Biochem. Your recommendation would be to take it in the fall instead of the summer?

In full disclosure I have not taken any summer courses because it's expensive, and does not fit into my schedule working fulltime on the side. In light of that I can recommend fall Biochem, although I cannot make any fair suggestions towards the summer course.

 

[MDMPH Goal]

Hi There! I will be starting the program in fall having already completed 3 semesters of Bio (cell, human, and histology), stats, and the first semester/lab of gen chem. Given that I would like to also work part time in a lab and volunteer/ shadow and not constantly be stressed out, would taking 3 courses per semester be doable? I had a 3.95 overall GPA in undergrad/ 4.0 science (though I dropped the science major after the first year), so I need 20 credits for sponsorship which would be 5 classes, right? If 3 classes is doable, would I be able to take the second semester of gen chem concurrently with orgo so the schedule would be Fall physics 1, gen chem 2, orgo 1 Spring physics 2, biochem, orgo 2? Or does that schedule not make sense?

I currently work full time and will be traveling out of the country this summer, otherwise I definitely would have gotten gen chem 2 out of the way this summer. Finances are not an issue and I rushed through my undergrad so I'm far more interested in taking my time and doing this right than I am in packing everything into one year. That said, if it's reasonable to do, I would certainly prefer to apply to med school sooner rather than later.

Thanks in advance for any advice you might have!

 

[DoctorDividends]

Is anyone considering taking Biochem in Spring 2017? The rub is that the Spring Biochem course is online only. I emailed Dr. Fixsen about the different Biochem options, and this was his reply:

"Biochem is required for the MCAT and should be completed before taking that exam. The summer biochem has a lab component, the fall and spring does not. The spring courses is simply a replay of the fall, so identical in content. You need to complete the first semester of bio before attempting biochem."

I haven't taken Bio I/II yet, and would prefer to avoid the 7 week summer Bio bootcamp. That means taking Bio I in Fall 2016, after which I can take Biochem in Spring 2017.

I'm a little concerned about taking an online only course. On the other hand, Dr. Fixsen didn't raise any concerns about it (I did ask him if the on campus class was strongly preferable). Is anyone else in a similar situation?

 

[BOAO523]

Hi All,

When are labs held during the year? Are they held at different times at night, are they held in the day, or are they part of the scheduled lecture time?

Are there any concerns with time overlaps for those who are taking 2-3 classes or work during the day?

 

[mwroark]

hello - is there any way someone could give me info on the textbooks that will be required for the classes in this program? I want to buy as many as I can in China before coming to start the program?

 

[BOAO523]

I don't know if this is true of all classes but for the ones I took, there are multiple options for the labs. Some are evenings, some mornings and some are weekends (Chem) or all are on evenings (Bio, I believe). In the case of physics I think there is also an option to do the lab component over a week long (or so) period over the January session and simply take the course as lecture only during the regular semester. I believe for the January session, the labs are during the day but check last year's course catalog to confirm. I considered this option for physics for myself but was a bit worried by the remote possibility of having the class be seen as a non-lab physics course by prospective schools and decided against it. That might be an imaginary problem but I didn't want to have to worry about explaining that either way. That may or may not matter to you.

As for overlapping classes, I would check last year's course catalog for this also but I believe out of the core science courses the ones that are likely to overlap are where one is a prerequisite for the other. But I encourage you to spend time looking at past course catalogs as these also sometimes have course syllabus on them.

I have done just that. Thank you for the advice!

 

[Webiven]

I am starting the premedical program at HES this Fall. I would like to find roommates that are also starting the program. I checked several Facebook groups and Craigslist; however, I thought I might have better results here. Since the classes are in the afternoon, I prefer to live further off campus for cheaper rent and commute to class, preferably $1,000/month or less.

A little about me - I am 25, male, engaged, undergrad in accounting and finance, and three semesters in law school. I want to become a pediatrician.

Please let me know if you are interested, and thanks!

 

[IntStuAus]

Hi there,

I am starting HES this Spring 2017 and looking a place to move in this January. Currently trying to locate an area/place where it would not cost me $1000/pp/room max (more or less). I would prefer to live close by as I would be studying full-time.

-Would anyone suggest which suburbs or areas to choose?
-Which websites and Facebook group/page should I try to look into to find some available room/apartment?

Furthermore, though I won't start the science based subjects until Summer 2017, I'll be taking statistics, calculus and an expository writing course this Spring. My plan would be to take Gen Chem over the Summer 2017. Whilst Bio, Org Chem and Physics for Fall 2017, and Bio, Physics and Biochem for Spring 2018. In addition, I would be volunteering/working in any healthcare facility/research and/or shadow a doctor on top of that (Probably 15-20 hrs a week) and take 1 more English course either on Fall 2017 or Spring 2018.

-Would this schedule be doable?
-Would you recommended this schedule if I want to finish all my science based subjects in a year?
-How much study would you reckon take for each course per week?

Looking forward to any feedback and suggestions you guys can share. Would appreciate it greatly as I am International student who just moved in the US and don't really have any knowledge where to start.

 

[Healer123]

Hey,

Throwing this into 2015 for some advice:

BIOCHEM IS ONLY TAUGHT ONLINE IN THE SPRING! Will this affect my applications? I have to take biochem in spring because I am taking orgo 1 in the fall. I know some places do not accept online courses, so is it on our transcripts from the extension school? any info appreciated 🙂

 

[research5]

Hi I do not know if there are any threads for 2017, but I was wondering if anyone took human anatomy & physiology classes, and what there experience was like with the professor teaching the class. What does one have to do in order to get a A in the class? Are there people who have taken only upper division courses at the HES, not just the general prerequisites? Additionally, does HES do grade deflation, there are some people I have come across that say this. So any insights would be greatly appreciated it.