Pre-Med Course Sequence

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Hi,

I just finished my freshman year of college & have not started any chemistry courses. From my understanding, the typical pre-med course sequence is:
1st year- bio 1&2 + chem 1&2
2nd year- orgo 1&2
3rd year- physics 1&2
4th year- upper level courses

Is it possible to take physics along with orgo since I will be starting my chemistry courses my 2nd year?
Or will that be too much & should I plan on taking a gap year after graduating?

Also, has anyone taken physics or orgo during the summer? How did it go? (I've heard this can be a bad idea as it is REALLY fast paced)

Thanks

 

[mvenus929]

You are more than welcome to take physics and orgo at the same time. Premeds in the past have done bio, chem, and physics at the same time. The key is to know whether or not you can take those courses together and do well in both.

Keep in mind that you also have to take some social sciences prior to the MCAT.

 

[infinitessimal]

I took gen chem my first year, bio + physics the next year, and orgo + calc the year after. You can do whatever you want

 

[giggglesngrins]

I took bio+chem+physics during the same semesters, so you can do it if you allocate resources wisely.

I did take orgo in the summer following, and it was intense. Admittedly, the professor is known for being highly rigorous, so I'm not sure how much intensity simply arose from her level of instruction. I did well, but it took a lot of work.

 

[DoctorWhoo]

At my school it is the norm to take physics and ochem at the same time during sophomore year. That said, you can really do anything that suits your needs and abilities. The general philosophy is that you should space your four year plan so that you are only rarely (if ever) taking three weeder courses in a semester.

I did:
High School- AP Chem, Calc, Stats, and Psych

Year 1- Chem 2, Bio 1, Calc 2
Summer 1- Physics 1
Year 2- Bio 2, Ochem 1&2, Physics 2
Summer 2- MCAT
Year 3- Advanced Ochem, Biochem 1&2, Medicinal Chem, Chem 1, and Biostats
Year 4- Molecular Genetics and other upper divs

 

[deleted621740]

At my school it is the norm to take physics and ochem at the same time during sophomore year. That said, you can really do anything that suits your needs and abilities. The general philosophy is that you should space your four year plan so that you are only rarely (if ever) taking three weeder courses in a semester.

I did:
High School- AP Chem, Calc, Stats, and Psych

Year 1- Chem 2, Bio 1, Calc 2
Summer 1- Physics 1
Year 2- Bio 2, Ochem 1&2, Physics 2
Summer 2- MCAT
Year 3- Advanced Ochem, Biochem 1&2, Medicinal Chem, Chem 1, and Biostats
Year 4- Molecular Genetics and other upper divs

Why the MCAT so early? How'd you do?

 

[darklabel]

At my school it is the norm to take physics and ochem at the same time during sophomore year. That said, you can really do anything that suits your needs and abilities. The general philosophy is that you should space your four year plan so that you are only rarely (if ever) taking three weeder courses in a semester.

I did:
High School- AP Chem, Calc, Stats, and Psych

Year 1- Chem 2, Bio 1, Calc 2
Summer 1- Physics 1
Year 2- Bio 2, Ochem 1&2, Physics 2
Summer 2- MCAT
Year 3- Advanced Ochem, Biochem 1&2, Medicinal Chem, Chem 1, and Biostats
Year 4- Molecular Genetics and other upper divs

Why'd you take Chem 1 your 3rd year?

 

[DoctorWhoo]

Why the MCAT so early? How'd you do?

I had taken all of my prereqs by then and felt like I could do it if I took a prep course. In addition, I wanted to get involved in a major leadership position during Summer 3... So I wanted to get the MCAT out of the way if I could.

I was scoring in my target range on practice tests by the end of the prep course, so I decided to go for it! Worked out very well for me 🙂.

Why'd you take Chem 1 your 3rd year?

I didn't take it my first semester since I tested out with APs. When I started looking into schools I knew I would apply to (UCI and UCLA) during summer 2, I realized they didn't accept AP Chem. In a horrible twist of fate I ended up taking Chem at the same time as advanced ochem and biochem. I literally went from blowing bubbles in lab to playing with liquid helium, running NMRs, and isolating proteins.


Main point of my post is that you can make your own timeline that suits your needs! If you do anything out of the norm, just make sure it is well thought out and that you have contingency plans in case your idea doesn't work out the way you thought it would (I had backup plans and ways out if I realized I was in over my head trying to take the MCAT during summer 2).

 

[Lambda Phage]

Here's what I did (bio major, biochem minor):

1st sem - Bio I + Chem I + Calc I + English I
2nd sem - Bio II + Chem II + Calc II
3rd sem - Bio III + Physics I + Organic I + English II
4th sem - Bio IV + Physics II + Organic II
5th sem+ - Upper level science (genetics, physiology, biochem, etc...)

I recommend throwing statistics somewhere in your first 2 years. You can take social sciences whenever but I did mine 3rd year. I took my MCAT summer after junior year after having taken a year of upper level sciences. If I had to do it again, I would have taken upper level physiology before my MCAT; instead, I chose to take physio my senior year.

It's a fair bit of work during the school year but I managed a science major + science minor without any AP credits or summer courses.


EDIT: Take general chemistry ASAP so that you can take organic during your 3rd year. The more upper level sciences you can fit in before taking the MCAT, the better off you'll be.