Pre-reqs Courseload

[doctorbob22]

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Hey guys I'm pulling my hair choosing classes for summer and fall and I'm trying to figure out a good course load for science Pre-reqs. What do u think is a reasonable amount of credits to take a semester and still have time for quality? Any experiences on ppl taking too many or courses that shouldn't be taken together? I'm volunteering and have a job so I don't know what I can safely handle.

Also what do u guys think have been the easiest and the hardest courses uv taken so i can balance them out. Thank u guys in advance

 

[drshark]

Depend on how many hours you work and volunteer. I'd say 2 hard sciences classes at a time and the rest GEs or easier sciences are a good balance. Around 15 units. As for the summer I'd maybe take 2 courses, one per session. They are so accelerated that you don't want to overwhelm yourself and do poorly.

 

[NontradCA]

Thug life. 20+ units erry semester.

Honestly that's what I do. But I realize that's not for everyone. The point is this is the kinda thing that's going to be different from person to person. I can self teach, so I rarely attend lectures or get caught up too much in a single class and its working. You have to find what works for you. That's the point of undergrad.

 

[GUH]

Hey guys I'm pulling my hair choosing classes for summer and fall and I'm trying to figure out a good course load for science Pre-reqs. What do u think is a reasonable amount of credits to take a semester and still have time for quality? Any experiences on ppl taking too many or courses that shouldn't be taken together? I'm volunteering and have a job so I don't know what I can safely handle.

Also what do u guys think have been the easiest and the hardest courses uv taken so i can balance them out. Thank u guys in advance

I never took more than 13 units (usually 12) while doing science pre-reqs, never took more than two science courses at a time, and have zero regrets thus far.

Especially if you have a job and volunteer on the side, do not take more than a couple of core science courses at the same time unless you are really really confident you can ace them all while still balancing the other stuff. Most people can't. The most important thing is to get A's; doing a bunch of stuff at the same time will not help your application if you don't have a very strong GPA.

 

[pathologyDO]

I agree with most of the above posts. You shouldn't add more than two difficult courses in one semester (i.e. Orgo + Molecular Biology = plenty; Orgo + Molecular Biology + Anatomy = probably not a good idea.)

If you're working too then I would try out 12-14 credit hour semesters

Harder Courses:
- Biochemistry
- Organic I & II
- Phyiscs I & II (easier of the hardest imo)
- Molecular Biology
- Anatomy/Physiology

Easier
- Gen Chem I & II
- Introductory Biology course
- Genetics (hardest of the "easy" imo)
- Most gen ed electives
- Psychology (including intro psych, child psych, abnormal psych)

 

[dial1010usa]

I'm taking Bio Molecules, Physiology & Solar System this qtr. It's lot of work plus volunteer stuff.

 

[sstespri]

I'm taking two summer sessions (6 weeks each):
Session 1:
Physics 1 and Gen. Chem. 1

Session 2:
Physics 2 and Gen. Chem. 2

I'll be finishing the remainder of my prerequisites this coming fall and next spring before applying next Summer. I'm nervous about working full time and taking evening/weekend classes.

Does my summer look too tough? I work in a school so I have my summers off. I'm volunteering as well.

 

[Goro]

4-8 semester hrs. You should be able to handle, say, Bio 1 and Chem 1 (with labs) in a single semester.

Hey guys I'm pulling my hair choosing classes for summer and fall and I'm trying to figure out a good course load for science Pre-reqs. What do u think is a reasonable amount of credits to take a semester and still have time for quality? Any experiences on ppl taking too many or courses that shouldn't be taken together? I'm volunteering and have a job so I don't know what I can safely handle.

Also what do u guys think have been the easiest and the hardest courses uv taken so i can balance them out. Thank u guys in advance

 

[GUH]

I'm taking two summer sessions (6 weeks each):
Session 1:
Physics 1 and Gen. Chem. 1

Session 2:
Physics 2 and Gen. Chem. 2

I'll be finishing the remainder of my prerequisites this coming fall and next spring before applying next Summer. I'm nervous about working full time and taking evening/weekend classes.

Does my summer look too tough? I work in a school so I have my summers off. I'm volunteering as well.

If your summer school is anything like I remember mine, that's too much for most to handle. You're talking about what essentially amounts to half of your basic premed requirements in one summer.

 

[pathologyDO]

If your summer school is anything like I remember mine, that's too much for most to handle. You're talking about what essentially amounts to half of your basic premed requirements in one summer.

+1

That looks like a very difficult summer. I would eliminate the second part .... otherwise you will be burnt out by the time Fall rolls around...

 

[DocGodfather]

I'm taking two summer sessions (6 weeks each):
Session 1:
Physics 1 and Gen. Chem. 1

Session 2:
Physics 2 and Gen. Chem. 2

I'll be finishing the remainder of my prerequisites this coming fall and next spring before applying next Summer. I'm nervous about working full time and taking evening/weekend classes.

Does my summer look too tough? I work in a school so I have my summers off. I'm volunteering as well.

I think that might be too much if you weren't working full-time, especially with the labs. If you're working full-time, taking two science courses plus labs in 6-weeks might not be a good idea.

 

[TriagePreMed]

I agree with most of the above posts. You shouldn't add more than two difficult courses in one semester (i.e. Orgo + Molecular Biology = plenty; Orgo + Molecular Biology + Anatomy = probably not a good idea.)

If you're working too then I would try out 12-14 credit hour semesters

Harder Courses:
- Biochemistry
- Organic I & II
- Phyiscs I & II (easier of the hardest imo)
- Molecular Biology
- Anatomy/Physiology

Easier
- Gen Chem I & II
- Introductory Biology course
- Genetics (hardest of the "easy" imo)
- Most gen ed electives
- Psychology (including intro psych, child psych, abnormal psych)

Funny enough I found Gen Chem to be harder than Physics, O.Chem, Anatomy or Molecular Biology. I haven't taken Biochem or Physiology.

 

[Eiot]

Funny enough I found Gen Chem to be harder than Physics, O.Chem, Anatomy or Molecular Biology. I haven't taken Biochem or Physiology.

Every class will have its own set of challenging criteria. The rest of the difficulty is professor dependent.