Question for med students!?!?

[colliea21]

I was advised to take biochem, anatomy, etc. BEFORE getting into med school since it would be soo much easier. However, I was planning to just skip these and take the prereq. needed for admission only (This will save me a year!) What do you guys think? should I just jump into med school without these...is it doable?

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[45408]

don't waste a year. it wouldn't help that much anyways.

 

[DoctorFunk]

If you needed to take those classes before med school they would already be prerequisites.

I would probably start looking beyond your acquaintance for admissions advice.

 

[Ashers]

Some med schools require biochem. So you might want to look at specific requirements for schools in which you're interested.

 

[colliea21]

If you needed to take those classes before med school they would already be prerequisites.

I would probably start looking beyond your acquaintance for admissions advice.

No, these are not prereq, when I say prereq I mean biology I&II, orgo, etc...These are just strongly recommended...

 

[Law2Doc]

No, these are not prereq, when I say prereq I mean biology I&II, orgo, etc...These are just strongly recommended...

You misunderstood him -- he was saying that if schools really felt you needed those, they would have made those prereqs too. Most don't. If you show up ready to work hard, you will do fine without those courses.

 

[colliea21]

Some med schools require biochem. So you might want to look at specific requirements for schools in which you're interested.

biochem Im gonna take anyways...is the anatomy, cell biology, genetics and such that will take me a year

 

[colliea21]

You misunderstood him -- he was saying that if schools really felt you needed those, they would have made those prereqs too. Most don't. If you show up ready to work hard, you will do fine without those courses.

oooh, ok got it!~thanks

 

[Droopy Snoopy]

biochem Im gonna take anyways...is the anatomy, cell biology, genetics and such that will take me a year

Whoa, hang on. If it was just biochem and anatomy I'd say skip 'em. But if there's a whole host of science classes on top of those two you also have yet to take (physiology, micro, etc.?) you might consider staying put that extra year.

 

[colliea21]

Whoa, hang on. If it was just biochem and anatomy I'd say skip 'em. But if there's a whole host of science classes on top of those two you also have yet to take (physiology, micro, etc.?) you might consider staying put that extra year.

well, I'm not a biology major, so taking all those classes would take me a lot of time. I have yet to take biology II, go figure. In that year, if I do that, I would take cell biology, anatomy I&II, etc...I still need to complete the required courses of my major in order to graduate...so I can't just gonuts and take all biology/chem courses.

 

[Law2Doc]

Whoa, hang on. If it was just biochem and anatomy I'd say skip 'em. But if there's a whole host of science classes on top of those two you also have yet to take (physiology, micro, etc.?) you might consider staying put that extra year.

Disagree. You don't need to take physio or micro in undergrad either. A huge percentage of med school matriculants haven't had these and do fine. Med school teaches you all you need to know, and then some.

 

[Droopy Snoopy]

Disagree. You don't need to take physio or micro in undergrad either. A huge percentage of med school matriculants haven't had these and do fine. Med school teaches you all you need to know, and then some.

Of course, and every year non-majors without many of these courses enter medical school and do well. But cumulatively, having seen the basics of micro, phys, genetics, biochem, cell biology, anatomy, etc. should make it considerably easier for the OP. Just my opinion, but I'd look hard at picking a few of these and take a light schedule otherwise (some philosophy, Spanish, whatever), enjoy another year of undergrad, maybe work part-time and save up a little dough, and matriculate slightly more prepared. What's the rush? That is, unless he already has acceptances in hand.

 

[chocolate-e]

So you can either:

Work hard in those extra undergrad classes
MAYBE have an easier time in some of your first year classes
Accumulate debt (?) for an extra year of tuition
Risk lowering your science GPA

or

Work hard in your first year classes

Unless you need to bring up your science GPA or feel that your life will be incomplete without taking undergrad cell bio, I'd skip the extra year.

 

[Law2Doc]

So you can either:

Work hard in those extra undergrad classes
MAYBE have an easier time in some of your first year classes
Accumulate debt (?) for an extra year of tuition
Risk lowering your science GPA

or

Work hard in your first year classes

Unless you need to bring up your science GPA or feel that your life will be incomplete without taking undergrad cell bio, I'd skip the extra year.

That's pretty much the way I see it as well.

 

[deleted77919]

So you can either:

Work hard in those extra undergrad classes
MAYBE have an easier time in some of your first year classes
Accumulate debt (?) for an extra year of tuition
Risk lowering your science GPA

or

Work hard in your first year classes

Unless you need to bring up your science GPA or feel that your life will be incomplete without taking undergrad cell bio, I'd skip the extra year.

I took lots of science in undergrad and am glad that I did, but I still agree with the above. It isn't worth an extra year for things that will only be os small use. You can pick up what you need to know in medical school. That's what the classes are for.

 

[LuckyBambooGirl]

I would spend the extra year and take the classes. I took lots of difficult science classes in undergrad and it really helped me succeed in my first year of med school. Some of my friends who did not take them really struggled.

 

[Law2Doc]

I would spend the extra year and take the classes. I took lots of difficult science classes in undergrad and it really helped me succeed in my first year of med school. Some of my friends who did not take them really struggled.

That may be so. But generally, the other two quadrants will be represented in med school as well -- there will also be people who had none of those things and do quite well, and folks who had all those things and do poorly. So this kind of anecdotal argument is always a wash.

 

[TMP-SMX]

Anatomy is definitely not one of the recommended courses for any med schools I know of. Many recommend some kind of molecular biology, genetics, microbiology, physiology, or cell biology.

 

[Flopotomist]

Another vote for screw taking an extra year. I was a Philosophy major and am a first year right now (and doing fine).

Is it a bit harder? Sure... while everybody else was memorizing amino acids, I was looking up what an "amino" was. BUT by test day, I was perfectly caught up.

Don't let people undermine your confidence. If you want to go to medical school - take the minimum pre-reqs, enjoy your undergrad experience taking whatever you want.

Medical schools have been doing this for long enough to know what they are doing. If you get accepted, trust the process - you will be fine.

 

[45408]

cumulatively, having seen the basics of micro, phys, genetics, biochem, cell biology, anatomy, etc. should make it considerably easier for the OP.

I disagree. I took micro, genetics, biochem and cell bio before med school, and I really don't think more than a few generic points stuck in my brain very well (okay, I still had the TCA cycle memorized).

 

[Skills of House]

Doesn't USC require biochem...I didn't apply there but I remember considering the school and I thought one of the reasons I didn't complete the application is that they reqd it...and being in engineering, biology wasn't even required, let alone biochemistry!
But I think biochem would definitely help...I took anatomy in undergrad, but it was in so much more detail in med school that it did't help to have taken it.

 

[naegleria brain]

fulfill your requirements but don't plan on taking any classes to 'prep' you for medical school - the vast majority are insufficient in detail that is warranted at a medical level

secondly, undergraduate classes have a heavy research-edge to them. medical classes are more clinically based. we had biochemistry majors be totally lost during our biochemistry module because of the different emphases.

there is no short cut to cutting down how much you are going to have to work your first year of medical school. don't assume more work now means less later, because the 'less later' is still probably more studying than you've ever done before

save the year, get into med school, and begin again

 

[naegleria brain]

correction: undergraduate histology is very helpful for medical school. but by the time you finish the other classes and get to your histology module, it's an absolute breeze, and you'd wonder why u even bothered with the stress as an undergrad - again tho, not really pertinent.

 

[da8s0859q]

In the one meeting I had with the campus's premed advisor (I'm not a hard science major), she also mentioned that many former students had told her to suggest taking biochem in undergrad to those of us not yet in med school.

However, other than a&p1 and 2 and perhaps pathophysio, I plan on not taking much beyond the remaining prereqs: orgo2, bio2, chem2, phys1/2. Strictly speaking, I imagine it'd be a good thing in a perfect world, but those with more experience than myself have already established why it's a quite modest return on an inequivalent investment in time/effort/money through undergrad.

 

[LJDHC05]

coming from a Chem Major/Biochem minor:

Unless you are applying to schools that specifically state that they require biochem, there's no need to take it (there are a few). It will be gone from your brain for the most part by the time you get into school anyway, and then all the other stuff you have to learn will push it out...unless you have super-human retention skills

 

[The Buff]

No way I would ever consider adding to my debt by taking an uneeded year of undergrad. I was a history major (didnt take anything beyond bio I&II) and am doing just fine in medical school. I am sure upper level courses might make the start of med school a little easier, but that slight advantage is nowhere near to overcoming the extra cost and effort of another undergrad year.

 

[colliea21]

Thanks guys, I really appreciate it...I'm pretty sure now that I won't take that extra year off!

 

[vtucci]

I was advised to take biochem, anatomy, etc. BEFORE getting into med school since it would be soo much easier. However, I was planning to just skip these and take the prereq. needed for admission only (This will save me a year!) What do you guys think? should I just jump into med school without these...is it doable?

Required, no. Helpful- absolutely. Guaranteed- there will be people in your class who have taken these courses.

I think anatomy is like learning a foreign language and any prior acquaintance with it, is an advantage. Biochem classes are very variable in what they cover. If the course covers the metabolic pathways in addition to DNA and enzymes, I would say if you can fit it in, go for it.