Pre-med advisor

[Tatiana]

I just received the following message from
my "very prestigious" school's "very prestigious" pre-med advisor:

"FIRST-YEAR STUDENTS WHO WITHDRAW FROM CHEMISTRY 111 and intend to continue pre-healing arts requirements should register for either Bio 110 and, in most cases, continue in a the calculus sequence"

This doesn't seem to make sense. Most of the kids I've talked to are dropping chem completely and are taking Calc. III instead. How are they going to do organic w/o 2nd semester inorganic?

In addition, the same-premed advisor stated that chem majors should take their 1st bio course the 2nd semester of their sophomore year. Isn't that a little late? Using his plan, I'd never get genetics, a&p, and cell bio in before the MCATs. Whaddya think?

Confused,

Tatiana

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[simseema17]

I think he means that if you drop chem, you should continue with your other requirements and take chem next year. Some people find it hard to take chem, bio and calc in one semester, or year, so they wait till sophomore year to take chem. I took chem and calc my first year, and started my bio sequence my second year...but I am a psych major.

It all depends on what you want to accomplish before the MCAT or the DAT. When taking those two exams, it's probably more important to have all of inorganic and organic chem done...some bio also, but it's not imperative that you've taken genetics and a&p is really not that important for the MCAT or the DAT. Speak to your premed advisor about the track of classes you want to take throughout your college career...sometimes it's easier to plan these things out way ahead...Good luck to both of us!

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[Mango]

"Pre-Healing Arts?"

That's a new one.

 

[EricCSU]

Your success in organic chemistry does not depend upon inorganic chemistry. To start organic chem, it is helpful to have a general grasp of some very basic inorganic. Therefore, I don't see why you can't start organic after just a semester of inorganic, that is what I did. I never saw the students that had a year of general chem to be at an advantage to where I was.

The more important thing is whether you can put off inorganic 2 a semester, and therefore both organic classes by a semester. If you can, put in that bio class. If you can't, take your organic sequence and then either finish inorganic 2 while your taking organic or directly afterwards.

I'm not quite sure if I answered your question, but I'm only familiar with the advising system at my school; I'm a peer advisor for Exercise Science, which is about one third pre-human health (med, dental, pt, pa, etc.) Feel free to email me if you have questions.

Eric

 

[gower]

Rules often differ from college to college. At mine, the Chem II, II sequence had to be passed with C- grades or better before moving to Organic I, and C- or better before Organic II.
You can do well on the MCAT with no more than the 2 years of chem, Biol I, II, Physics I, II. It may be an advantage to have a physiology and a genetics course before the MCAT, but not essential if you are a skilled test-taker. If you are at a "prestigious" college, your SAT scores would have been quite high and that exam is also a function of test-taking skill.
There is a fascinating book, Gentle Vengeance, published in 1983, written by a student who went to Harvard med school and turned down an acceptance to UC San Francisco, the only schools he applied to. He was not an undergrad science major. He was in a postbac program at Columbia, working full time. He took the MCAT with no organic chem and physics. He got MCAT scores in the stratosphere. He tells how he prepared over the summer while he was taking calculus and working full time. Brilliant analyis of the kinds of questions on the MCAT. Too bad it is out of print now. Most of the book is about life at Harvard med during that time frame. He was clearly unusual and most people, except the most vain, would throw up their hands and give up if they compared themselves to him. Assuming you are not among the vain, don't; he was exceptional. Most of us are mere mortals.
If you can find a copy, maybe in your college library, read it.