Retake gen bio or take upper-level?

[kbRD2MD84]

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Hey y'all, it's me again, the girl with all the questions! So, I got around to calculating my GPA last night - as of right now cGPA is ~3.53 and sGPA is about 3.65 if I'm using all the right classes there. Both are lower than I hoped/expected, but I guess they're not awful, and I can pull them up a little between now and apps - but I doubt I can get the cGPA anywhere above 3.6 since it's pulling from 232 credits (yikes).

Anyway... I have a C in Gen Bio I from way back in 2002. Recency doesn't seem to be much of an issue with the programs I'm looking at. I don't think I need BIO I as a refresher, as I've taken a lot of A&P since and those tend to have a lot of overlap. Would it look better on my applications to retake Bio I or just take Bio II and an upper-level science? I'd really like to take immunology and/or genetics.

 

[Talkbirthytome]

Move on. Immunology and Genetics are valuable for the MCAT and medical school in general. This will help your learning and show that you can handle higher level courses.

 

[kbRD2MD84]

Take a different one. Immunology and Genetics are valuable for the MCAT and medical school in general. This will help your learning and show that you can handle higher level courses.

That's what I was thinking! I feel like I already have the deck stacked against me a bit being a nontrad. Anything that could set me apart from the masses of 22-year-olds would be a plus. Ultimately I hope to get into heme/onc so immunology might help show that I'm not just playing around.

 

[Talkbirthytome]

That's what I was thinking! I feel like I already have the deck stacked against me a bit being a nontrad. Anything that could set me apart from the masses of 22-year-olds would be a plus. Ultimately I hope to get into heme/onc so immunology might help show that I'm not just playing around.

Actually - being non-trad is appealing to a lot of medical schools. These students tend to have life experiences/exposure/work experience that surpass those of the traditional students. The appeal is so much so that some people intentionally take a gap year or two in order to set themselves apart.

Look up schools that have a higher mean average age of matriculated students (e.g. OHSU).

 

[kbRD2MD84]

Actually - being non-trad is appealing to a lot of medical schools. These students tend to have life experiences/exposure/work experience that surpass those of the traditional students. The appeal is so much so that some people intentionally take a gap year or two in order to set themselves apart.

Look up schools that have a higher mean average age of matriculated students (e.g. OHSU).

Very true! I actually had planned to look at that today - I feel better when they have more than 1 or 2 "older" students in their class. I know I have the potential to be one hell of an awesome doc, and I just hope that adcoms will see that too.

 

[Talkbirthytome]

Grind and you will be fine. Good luck!

 

[kbRD2MD84]

Grind and you will be fine. Good luck!

That I can definitely do!

 

[Goro]

Hey y'all, it's me again, the girl with all the questions! So, I got around to calculating my GPA last night - as of right now cGPA is ~3.53 and sGPA is about 3.65 if I'm using all the right classes there. Both are lower than I hoped/expected, but I guess they're not awful, and I can pull them up a little between now and apps - but I doubt I can get the cGPA anywhere above 3.6 since it's pulling from 232 credits (yikes).

Anyway... I have a C in Gen Bio I from way back in 2002. Recency doesn't seem to be much of an issue with the programs I'm looking at. I don't think I need BIO I as a refresher, as I've taken a lot of A&P since and those tend to have a lot of overlap. Would it look better on my applications to retake Bio I or just take Bio II and an upper-level science? I'd really like to take immunology and/or genetics.

Not woroth retaking a C! Take some other higher level courses and ace them

 

[kbRD2MD84]

Not woroth retaking a C! Take some other higher level courses and ace them

That's what I'm realizing. I keep thinking of that C as a death sentence but it's not. Also general bio puts me to sleep and I'd much rather learn cool stuff I don't already know 😀

 

[Goro]

That's what I'm realizing. I keep thinking of that C as a death sentence but it's not. Also general bio puts me to sleep and I'd much rather learn cool stuff I don't already know 😀

You can have a F in coursework and still get into med school.

 

[kbRD2MD84]

You can have a F in coursework and still get into med school.

Good point! I sorta do. I have an F in a chem that won't count as a prereq because I was dumb and didn't drop in time - but then I retook it and got an A next semester, haha. Hopefully they don't hold all my W's against me, because lord knows I only had about 1000 of those during my 2nd BS.

 

[kbRD2MD84]

Oh oh oh. Another question, but I think this one is probably stupid. I have 2 semesters of Anat & Phys (1 with lab, 1 without) and 1 semester of microbio (with lab). Do those automatically count as bio unless the school explicitly says they don't, or is that something I need to address with each school?

 

[Ad2b]

My school doesn't offer a 2nd semester of bio for non-majors so I don't have a typical "gen bio 2" on my transcript; however, I did take upper level bio courses with and without a lab (genetics, micro, etc.) so, my understanding is that schools will see if I did something other than bio 2... and give me a pass on the requirement

 

[kbRD2MD84]

I took gen bio 1 back in 2002 but never took 2 because I changed majors (partially thanks to that C in bio haha). I had to take A&P and microbio as prereqs for my dietetics degree, so I feel like I should have that covered. Still definitely need biochem, I think. I had "nutritional biochem" but it was very focused on nutrients (C/F/P, vits/mins) so I doubt that would count for anything as far as med school is concerned.

As far as chem is concerned - I already took "Fundamentals of General Chem", 5 credits, with lab, and "Inorganic, Organic, Biochem", 4 credits, with lab. Not sure where the second one would fall, but I feel like I only need 1 more gen chem at most and then orgo.

 

[Ad2b]

"Fundamentals of General Chem", 5 credits, with lab, + "Inorganic, Organic, Biochem", 4 credits, with lab.

did the 2nd chem get into entropy, batteries, etc.? Have you talked to a prospective med school to see their take?

 

[kbRD2MD84]

did the 2nd chem get into entropy, batteries, etc.? Have you talked to a prospective med school to see their take?

No, but I don't think I'm even going to try to use that as a prereq. It counted as a gen chem for the program I was in, but it was pretty generic. I don't really remember it but it definitely wasn't anything beyond general chem.