Possibly viewed as incomplete inorganic credits

[neurosci08]

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Hi everyone,

I'm worried that my inorganic credits maybe seem incomplete on my med school application despite what my pre-med advisor told me in the past. Since I took AP Chem in high school, my college bumped me into the Advanced Gen Chem class my first semester. This class was the normal 5 credits with lab, and it covered Gen Chem 1 and 2 together. Essentially I was not allowed to sign up for Gen Chem 2 since I took this class. There was really no other substitute for the extra class and my pre-med advisor said it would be fine and schools would know that Advanced Gen Chem counted for both (not sure how they would know....) Since then, I've been worried. I'm a non-trad applicant and the pre-med advisor I spoke of has since left the school. Also, I have taken biochem which some schools specifically say is okay substitute. Now though I am worrying that schools believe I am deficient in this credit.

Mainly I say this because I applied DO and MD and a DO school has actually contacted me about this deficiency. They accepted the explanation but now what if other schools are wondering about it and dismiss my application right away? I have not gotten any ii so I will probably be applying next cycle again. Should I take a community college course in gen chem 2 (online class and then once a week lab)? Or should I take it at my grad school (would be more difficult since over the summer it is offered for 5 weeks every morning and would cut into my research work hours). Or should I just let it be? (Also, for every application that allowed for explanations to admission committees I have written to them about it)

Thank you!

 

[LeePod]

I went through something very similar with my gen chem requirements. I called some schools ahead to see if it would be a problem, and all of them were accepting of my situation once I explained it. I suggest calling them if you have any doubts.

 

[MedPR]

You'll be fine at schools that accept AP credit. Probably not fine at those that don't.

 

[eleveneleven]

You'll be fine at schools that accept AP credit. Probably not fine at those that don't.

Agreed. I think you should probably try and take the Gen Chem 2 at your grad school if you want to meet requirements for every school.

 

[music2doc]

You could simply take an upper division i-chem course. The req'ts are generally 2 semesters general/inorganic chemistry. They are referring to the lower div course but if your school won't allow you to take that, the first sem of the next higher course will fulfill the number of courses in that field req't.

 

[thesauce]

You could simply take an upper division i-chem course. The req'ts are generally 2 semesters general/inorganic chemistry. They are referring to the lower div course but if your school won't allow you to take that, the first sem of the next higher course will fulfill the number of courses in that field req't.

Is inorganic chemistry synonymous with general chemistry? At my undergrad, inorganic was a 300 level course taken after organic (alongside PChem).

Anyway, assuming we're talking about gen chem, schools will understand the situation and it's doubtful that they would dismiss your application outright without clarifying with you first. In the past, schools could accept you without pre-reqs so long as you took them before med school starts.

 

[MedPR]

Is inorganic chemistry synonymous with general chemistry? At my undergrad, inorganic was a 300 level course taken after organic (alongside PChem).

Anyway, assuming we're talking about gen chem, schools will understand the situation and it's doubtful that they would dismiss your application outright without clarifying with you first. In the past, schools could accept you without pre-reqs so long as you took them before med school starts.

I think requirements are for organic chem, bio, physics, and inorganic chem. Gen Chem is typically taken because it's the lowest level chem that is acceptable.

 

[SOMBound13]

I used my AP Chem credits.

Usually SOMs that won't accept AP credits will accept the next higher classes....so I took BioChem (in chem dept).

 

[MedPR]

I don't know how accurate it is, but if you look at the MSAR the pre-req is "inorganic" chem.