Pre-med courses and gpa

[kv11]

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Im a student at Northwestern planning to apply to med school at the end of next year. i did the calculations and even if I got all As for the rest of my undergrad (seems unlikely bc i still got some bio and physics left), I would end with a 3.6 gpa and a science gpa even lower or around that. This is bc my first quarter of college as a freshman was really difficult and i started with a 2.5 gpa. My grades after that quarter have been all As and Bs. my major is neuroscience so it requires me to take the bio, chem, physics pre reqs anyways and so i have to take those courses at northwestern since they don't accept any credit from other universities.

I am considering taking so courses at my local community college that can boost my gpas up. They're not really pre-med courses though. I'm planning on taking courses like Mathematics in healthcare, Nutrition, or Ecology, etc. I would take them this semester simulatenously with my other Northwestern courses.

My question is, does it look bad on applications if they see that I have a bunch of so called easier science courses I took at a community college? Does it make them think that i did that only for the gpa? Which i did but is there another way i could justify it or is it better to just stick to my northwestern courses? Sorry its a bit complicated.

 

[LizzyM]

Stick to your home institution. Adding community college courses concurrently does look like GPA padding which is not a good look. Better to apply yourself and get the best grades possible at Northwestern than to divide your time and have some of your success be judged as inconsequential fluff.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Northwestern has a strong prehealth advising system so have you talked with them? I agree you are better served just staying at your institution and finishing your degree. Why spend money unnecessarily when you need to save it for medical school?

 

[kv11]

Stick to your home institution. Adding community college courses concurrently does look like GPA padding which is not a good look. Better to apply yourself and get the best grades possible at Northwestern than to divide your time and have some of your success be judged as inconsequential fluff.

Ok, thank you!

Northwestern has a strong prehealth advising system so have you talked with them? I agree you are better served just staying at your institution and finishing your degree. Why spend money unnecessarily when you need to save it for medical school?

They also seem to recommend staying with Northwestern's coursework. That makes sense. Thank you!