Pre-req conflict, time crunch

[hoosier17]

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Hi all,

So I'm a senior who started the pre-req classes for pre-med a little late, however I've been on track to finish all of them before next summer up until now. I have Org I and II, Bio I & II left, and Phys II left to finish. I planned on doing at least Org I, Bio I, and phys II this semester, then Bio II and Org II next spring, and then taking the mcats and applying this next summer of 2011.

I'm currently signed up for bio I and phys II but organic has been packed since the beginning of summer and no spots have opened up and the first week of school is under way. Ive talked to a lot of people and my options seem to be to; (1) wait for it to open up (which it still hasn't and doesn't look like it will), so I emailed the course supervisor and professor and they both said it was too packed to help, but recommended (2) two other alternate organic courses, but the alternate classes conflict and would mess up my schedule terribly and taking away more courses that I need to graduate. or (3) take organic II in the summer, possibly before or possibly after taking the MCATs and sending applications. My internship for next summer is very prestigious and the research grant is getting close to being published, so I'm not sure giving that up for a summer class would be worth it.

I am mostly looking for advice at what to do right now. I searched previous posts but will my application suffer or be thrown out without ORG II finished before applying? regardless, I will also have to go an extra semester next fall (2011) instead of graduating in may to make up for the room i made to take the pre requisite classes. My main concern for freaking out is if I have to wait until the summer of 2012 to apply which makes the delay a gap of 2 years after graduation until medical school just because of one class.

Sorry for the length and any help is greatly appreciated. I probably left a few things out so feel free to ask any questions.

 

[katiemaude]

Can you take Ochem I at another institution? I had to do that this semester with Physics I because my school doesn't offer it until the fall. I'm paying double to do so, but it means I can take the MCAT in June or July with all my prereqs done. I sympathize.

 

[TarHeelEMT]

My question for you would be this: "Is there any compelling reason why you must apply for the fall immediately after your graduation?"

If you're horribly stressed out and are cutting corners to cram very difficult classes into a short amount of time while preparing for the MCAT, then you're unlikely to have the time to do any of them well. That doesn't do you any favors. If anything, it will probably hurt.

It's tough to recognize for a lot of folks who have known nothing in their lives but moving from one school to the next, but there's nothing wrong with deferring medical school for a year or two while you prepare. It'll give you a chance to give each class its due diligence, prepare well for the MCAT, and earn some real life experience from which to benefit.

(Edit: By the way, this advice comes from someone who completed a BS in biology in two years at the end of my schooling. I wasn't a pre-med at the time, but cramming all of those classes into such a short span of time was no fun and earned me some marginal grades that had to be explained away while applying to school. It was during my two years out of school that I discovered my passion for medicine, and it was the experiences I got during those years that gave me the background to speak passionately and compellingly about why I wanted to be a doctor.)