separate lab and lecture grades

[sylus]

So at the school I previously went to, the lecture and lab grades for pre-reqs were separated- lab worth 1 credit and lecture worth 3. I got an A in the lab but a C- in the lecture. Looking at requirement for some medical schools, some do say they want a C or better in pre-reqs, and most also want labs. It seems as if my school's method is somewhat uncommon, and if I were to retake the pre-req I would have to retake not only the lecture but the lab as well. So are the schools going to cut me out if I don't retake because of the lecture grade, or might they consider the lecture and lab grade together since if it was a school in which they were combined, my grade would clearly have been higher. (I'll call and ask when it comes closer to application time, but just thought I'd see if anyone had any idea.)

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[Bacchus]

My university does it both ways. For example, this semester, I am taking a biochemistry lab subsequently with the course. The lecture is 3 credits, lab 1. I am also taking Genetics which is 4 credits, lab and lecture combined. I know intra-institution if you retake a class you can give the professor a document, signed, say that you will accept the previous lab grade (if combined into the course) for final grade purposes. I don't know if this would be allowed between universities. Contact the department head for the course and see if it is possible.

 

[mvenus929]

My university also does both. Gen chem is combined, as is A&P, but I'm pretty sure all other labs are separate classes (micro, gen bio, orgo, physics).

 

[Bre]

Yeah at my school it varies between departments. Although to answer your question I'm not completely sure if medical schools which say they require at least a C in prereqs will turn you down for the grades you posted. This is the kind of thing that will vary school by school so, like you said, calling the individual schools is the best way to answer it.

Beyond that, a C- in a prereq is going to hurt anyways. As long as your overall GPA is good and your MCAT score is solid then I don't think it will be a huge deal, but if those or anything else in your application suggests to the school that this C- isn't an isolated incident then you might want to consider retaking it and/or taking a higher level course to show that you can handle that material and know it well.

 

[futuredrcrawfor]

My school has all the Chemistry classes separate but the Biology and Physics classes are combined as of last summer. I hate it because with Bio you have to take a lab with everything and I wish I could take some classes w/o the lab just to learn the meat and not waste 3 hours a week doing trivial cookie-cutter labs.

And here if you retake the class you retake the lab too- no options for saying I already did well in lab.