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[david425]

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[Lawpy]

Thermodynamics and transport phenomema certainly satisfy the physics requirements. If you want to play safe, you can take a course in astrophysics, or classical mechanics/electrodynamics

 

[mimelim]

What school? If you link the course catalog I can be a lot more helpful.

 

[Cidermonk]

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[Lawpy]

You also have the option of removing the AP credit from your transcript. That way you can take PHY 101 and 102 (or whatever intro level courses at your uni) to both boost your gpa and also drill the material needed for MCAT. It's what I'm doing this summer...

I wouldn't recommend it, from the following:

Some of the med schools I'm interested in want supplemental upper division classes and labs for the AP credit.

And besides, it's a waste of time and effort dealing with intros, which are not necessarily grade boosters.

 

[Cidermonk]

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[gonnif]

I contacted a school regarding this, and they actually advised me to do so. Their explanation was that you will be applying with only AP credit compared to all the other applicants with solid college credit. If you would like to take upper level physics courses to meet your eight hour requirement, make sure you do well in them (this is actually the best course of action). If you don't do exceptional in the courses, all your left with is some high school credit and mediocre grades to fulfill the physics requirement.

There is a distinction to be made here. It is an actual requirement to do this (which some schools have) or solely a perceived competitive advantage?

If it is a requirement, you typically dont need to fill this for admissions but prior to matriculation

If it is being done for competitive, you really have to look at the rest of your application and see if it is worth the risk of bad grade or additional work just prior to the MCAT or other required courses. If you are a bio or chem major with significant upper level science in those areas, the lack of an actual physics course (over AP credits) is really a blimp if anything to adcom. While the admissions office staff or director may have given you this suggestion, to the many members of the adcom, it will unlikely be noticed.

It would be much more valuable in time, energy and resources to focus on you needed courses and MCAT than the upper level physics

 

[Lawpy]

I contacted a school regarding this, and they actually advised me to do so. Their explanation was that you will be applying with only AP credit compared to all the other applicants with solid college credit. If you would like to take upper level physics courses to meet your eight hour requirement, make sure you do well in them (this is actually the best course of action). If you don't do exceptional in the courses, all your left with is some high school credit and mediocre grades to fulfill the physics requirement.

There is a distinction to be made here. It is an actual requirement to do this (which some schools have) or solely a perceived competitive advantage?

If it is a requirement, you typically dont need to fill this for admissions but prior to matriculation

If it is being done for competitive, you really have to look at the rest of your application and see if it is worth the risk of bad grade or additional work just prior to the MCAT or other required courses. If you are a bio or chem major with significant upper level science in those areas, the lack of an actual physics course (over AP credits) is really a blimp if anything to adcom. While the admissions office staff or director may have given you this suggestion, to the many members of the adcom, it will unlikely be noticed.

It would be much more valuable in time, energy and resources to focus on you needed courses and MCAT than the upper level physics

I'm sure OP already is aware of that, so I don't understand the pessimism. Here's what the OP is asking:

Some of the med schools I'm interested in want supplemental upper division classes and labs for the AP credit.... I'm an engineering major, so I'm already going to be taking physics based classes like thermodynamics and transport phenomena, are those enough to fulfill the requirement?

And the answer is yes, aside from valid clarification requested by @mimelim. Taking introductory level courses, or postponing physics for later are off-topic in this regard.

 

[gonnif]

I'm sure OP already is aware of that, so I don't understand the pessimism. Here's what the OP is asking:

The reason why I lay it out in detail, is for the other students who may be reading this and also have a similar issue. They often focus on the very granular issue (oh I need that upper level course) without looking at the rest of the picture and how they are as a applicant overall.

 

[Lawpy]

The reason why I lay it out in detail, is for the other students who may be reading this and also have a similar issue. They often focus on the very granular issue (oh I need that upper level course) without looking at the rest of the picture and how they are as a applicant overall.

In that case, I agree entirely.

 

[dechristine]

I would advise you against retaking physics 1 and 2 — everyone I know who have taken those classes have continually complained about how awful the lab sections are (and the lab reports) as well as how much they hate MyPhysicsLab. Of course, that's specific to my school, so maybe your's would be better!

I'm not sure if you would be able to get your engineering thermodynamics to count as your physics class, though. Some schools might be receptive because thermodynamics is a physics topic, and some schools might reject it just because it has CHME/EE/whateverE in front of the class name instead of PHYS. In my experience, engineering thermodynamics tends to focus on the macroscopic scale while physics thermodynamics tends to focus on the microscopic scale, with an emphasis on statistical mechanics. So, topics such as the partition function/grand canonical partition function and bose-einstein/fermi gasses are not usually covered in engineering thermodynamics because it's not as pertinent to engineering.

Some of the coolest physics classes that I've taken are modern physics and astrophysics. I think you would really like modern physics — it's basically all the physics that have happened after Newton (which, when you think about it, is ~400 years worth of physics). I LOVED it and as an engineer, you would have the math background to understand it. I took it while taking Calc 2, which I don't recommend — it's definitely easier to understand after taking Calc 3 and Linear Algebra (although I did just fine). I'm sorry for the essay, I just really like physics 😳

 

[sovereign0]

Some of the med schools I'm interested in want supplemental upper division classes and labs for the AP credit.

Did this information come directly from the medical school? From what I had heard, I thought medical schools liked to see pre-requisite courses taken at the university level, at that AP credits didn't fit the bill. I didn't know upper level classes could fill the requirement for lower level classes.

 

[gonnif]

AP courses and acceptance can be quite confusing as they vary across schools and even within schools. Here are some general guidelines but all these must be confirmed on each school's website.

1) Some schools will allow some AP courses but not others

Example Weill Cornell Medical College http://weill.cornell.edu/education/admissions/app_req.html

Advanced Placement credit. AP credit from high school can be used to satisfy the WCMC requirement in physics. AP credit in other areas cannot be used to satisfy the WCMC requirement. If a student has AP credit in an area other than physics, the student fulfills the WCMC requirement by completing advanced science coursework.


2) Many schools will not accept them as full and complete fulfillment of prerequisites. Some do.

Example will NOT accept: Cooper Medical School of Rowan University http://www.rowan.edu/coopermed/students/admissions/prerequisites.php

No AP/IB credits may be used in place of an actual course, even if the undergraduate institution grants a credit for the AP coursework. Upper level coursework in the same subject area may replace the listed prerequisite. (Note: All science courses used to satisfy a prerequisite must include a laboratory component, so online coursework will not be acceptable to substitute for hands-on lab credit).

Example Will Accept AP: NYMC https://www.nymc.edu/Academics/SchoolOfMedicine/Admissions/PremedicalCourseworkRequirements.html

All courses offered in satisfaction of the premed requirements for admission must be taken at, or accepted as transfer credits by, an accredited college in the United States or Canada and must be acceptable to that institution toward a baccalaureate degree in arts or sciences. (This includes Advanced Placement courses taken in high school.)


3) Many schools will accept the fulfillment of the course (ie general bio, general chem) but not the credits as counting towards 2 years of Bio, 2 years of Chem and therefore require additional upper level coursework.


4) Many "recommend" additional course to be competitive

Example: SUNY Upstate (http://www.upstate.edu/com/admissions/faqs.php)

"Yes, as long as you were awarded college credit and the course(s) are listed on an official transcript from your primary undergraduate institution. The Admissions Committee recommends that you also complete advanced science coursework in order to be competitive for admission."

Example: SUNY Downstate http://sls.downstate.edu/admissions/com/requirements.html

Do we accept AP credits for our prerequisites?

If your undergraduate college has awarded you AP credits and the credits are listed on your transcript, we will also accept your AP credits to fulfill our prerequisites if the course is listed by subject title on your final official college transcript. However, in order for the Admissions Committee to consider you to be competitive for admission, you should take advanced level science course work equivalent to the number of credit hours which have been accepted for AP prerequisites.

 

[Cidermonk]

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[Lawpy]

Feel free to take upper level physics courses in addition to AP credit, but you might run into problems when applying, due to not having the correct requirements.

What? Any upper level physics course is the "correct requirement". Just as any upper-level course is the "correct requirement" for AP placement for that course. There really isn't any issue here, but considering OP's skepticism, it seems like upper level physics will tank his GPA for sure if he goes in with that mindset.

 

[gonnif]

Rule 1: Take a Breath

For most well qualified students who have strong science backgrounds, this is unlikely to be an issue.

1) Most schools appear to have an acceptance of AP Physics with a recommendation for advance coursework; there are exceptions to this where it appears required but even so, as in the Yale rule above a technology course will suffice.

2) Fulfillment of prerequisites is a post-admissions/per-matricultion issue; med schools dont check the thousands of application for this, only the students after they have been offered admission. At that point you can request a waiver to the requirement; some schools are easy on this; others sticklers. At worst it would mean taking a summer course to fill it.

 

[Lucca]

Thank you everyone for the help! If I could do it over again, I would probably just take the intro classes just to make everything simpler, but I've unfortunately already claimed the credit and I don't think that I can forfeit it/ retake the classes at this point.

Just as an example of what I was talking about, this is from Yale's website:

U.S. Advanced Placement credits from high school do not themselves satisfy premedical requirements, but advanced college, university courses or institute of technology courses (for which students are made eligible by AP credits) may be substituted for introductory-level courses in each of these subjects.

I guess the answer to my question for this particular example is obvious - I would have to go ahead and take upper division physics classes to satisfy this requirement. The reason I don't really want to do this is because 1) It wouldn't be useful to preparing for the MCAT or my future, and 2) I'm already going to be taking mostly math/ science/ engineering classes so I'd like to use any free space I have to take humanities/ social sciences to get some variety in my schedule.



http://catalog.utexas.edu/undergraduate/natural-sciences/courses/physics/

Here's the catalog; any classes you would recommend if I decide to take an advanced physics?

Thanks again!

1. You did the right thing claiming introductory physics especially now that I know which school you are talking about. Those courses are death, don't worry.

2. I am fairly confident your engineering requirements are going to count towards your upper division physics (would need adcom confirmation on this, or call the school).

IF you want to take an upper division physics course then I would recommend Modern Physics, Waves if you already have diffeq and waves lab or modern lab if you really need the lab (doubt it given you are an engineer). Stay away from classical electro/dynamics, here be dragons and I would not subject someone to that torture without good reason. I advise asking physics majors (which I am not, I just take physics when I can cuz I enjoy it, will probably end up with a minor on accident) at your school what professor class combinations they think are the best and go with those. Consider elective physics classes like introduction to computational physics or something like that as well although I have not taken that and cannot tell you about it.

 

[mimelim]

Thank you everyone for the help! If I could do it over again, I would probably just take the intro classes just to make everything simpler, but I've unfortunately already claimed the credit and I don't think that I can forfeit it/ retake the classes at this point.

Just as an example of what I was talking about, this is from Yale's website:

U.S. Advanced Placement credits from high school do not themselves satisfy premedical requirements, but advanced college, university courses or institute of technology courses (for which students are made eligible by AP credits) may be substituted for introductory-level courses in each of these subjects.

I guess the answer to my question for this particular example is obvious - I would have to go ahead and take upper division physics classes to satisfy this requirement. The reason I don't really want to do this is because 1) It wouldn't be useful to preparing for the MCAT or my future, and 2) I'm already going to be taking mostly math/ science/ engineering classes so I'd like to use any free space I have to take humanities/ social sciences to get some variety in my schedule.



http://catalog.utexas.edu/undergraduate/natural-sciences/courses/physics/

Here's the catalog; any classes you would recommend if I decide to take an advanced physics?

Thanks again!

A few things to preface my post.
#1 I certainly have no foundation to tell you what to do with your AP credits
#2 I did not attend UT and this is purely from my background in Physics, doing a Physics major and how courses were at the two schools who's Physics departments I knew very well.
#3 This assumes that you have no interest in a Physics major or taking things all THAT seriously

1) Classes that will be easier 'A's
Physics 341: Selected Topics in Physics
Physics 345: Bio Physics
Physics 375R: Introduction to Relativity
Physics 375P: Introductory Plasma Physics
Physics 375S: Introductory Solid-State Physics
Physics 337K: Electronic Techniques

There are limits to how hard these classes can be before they become impossible for most people, even Physics Majors. They are generally smaller classes where there is no curve, just a professor giving intro lectures on a topic that they are very likely doing research in. Their expectations tend to be relatively low because despite being 'upper level' courses, most people have zero foundation in them.

2) Classic "difficult" classes
Physics 336K: Classical Dynamics
Physics 336L: Fluid Dynamics
Physics 352K/L: Classical Electrodynamics I/II
Physics 362K/L: Quantum Physics II/III

These are standard track Physics major classes. You will be competing with people who live and breathe Physics. In general, I would avoid these unless you either love Physics or have to take them.