Spending an Extra Year in College (5 Year undergraduate degree)?

[anishannayya]

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Hi, I'm a high school senior that will be attending either a CSU or a UC (have gotten accepted into both so far, am waiting till the 15th to hear back from all of them).

I have applied as a biology major because so far, biology has been my favorite course. It helps that almost all the prerequisites for dental school are required in ordered to obtain a biology degree.

As most of you know, a biology degree is typically around 140 units, and typically 12 units a semester is considered full time. Would it harm my application if I deliberately decided to take 5 years to complete an undergraduate degree?

I ask this not because I'm afraid of the course load, I have taken eight-nine classes (with most classes being AP or honors) every year in high school and have obtained a 3.7 GPA unweighted. I have also found time to participate in sports, volunteer activities, clubs, etc. I am confidant that in college I will be able to do the same. However, I believe that by spreading out my course load over another year, I would be able to achieve a near perfect GPA and increase the strength of the other parts of my application (volunteer work, research opportunities, extra time to study for DAT, part-time job, etc.).

Thanks!

 

[jyc]

Most science majors take on average 15 credit hours per semester. My highest number of credit hours in a semester was 18. Try 12 hours in the first semester of your Freshman year just to get used to things, but take more as you go on. If you want to go to dental school, take more classes per semester (and do well) to show admissions that you are able to handle a rigorous course load (you'll be taking 20+ credits per semester in dental school). Don't do 5 years. It's seriously a waste of time and money.

Get out of undergrad as fast as you can (while still doing well) and get into dental school. That's what I kept hearing when I was thinking about doing 5 years.

 

[sassykat]

i'm in my 5th year, doing a double degree in the sciences. NOT WORTH IT. think about it - you're competing against other people who are applying after only 3 years of college. my gpa would've been much higher had i not had to factor in tons of upper div science courses. but my advice is if you really want to stretch it out another year, you shouldn't do it with just one degree cause then it looks lazy..add a major or a minor at least.

 

[New2Philly]

I agree. Do it in 4 years. I would also advise to go to a UC. UC's have more money, more classes, more clubs, and more respect when applying to professional schools. You will also be around better labs for research. With the budget cuts it is harder to complete a science degree in four years at a CS (personal experience).

 

[Vicviper]

I went to UCI after transferring from a CC, and I did the fifth year to mainly do research - I only actually needed 2-3 more classes to graduate when I started that year. Don't worry too much about the work load, it's really not that bad. High School is really nothing like College, so it's really like apples and oranges to compare.

There are also summer classes, when you can quickly get rid of easy classes like English and history, because some of those hardly deserve an entire semester, haha. Many if not Most students do summer classes, and that's how they finish in 4 years. Either way, don't worry, but don't try to set yourself up for 5 years on purpose - if it comes to it, it comes to it, but try for four.

 

[anishannayya]

You guys convinced me to do it in four years. No way in three though, I'm already the youngest in my class and I don't want to be applying to dental school at 19.

What do you guys recommend in regards to AP credit? I have enough to test out of almost all my pre-reqs (and finish school in 3 years, or a very, very, leisurely 4). Is this a good idea? Should I test out of only non-major related pre-reqs (english, history, math)? Or should I just start from square one? I don't mind testing out of non-science classes, but I want to make sure I have a solid foundation and start at basic college bio, chem, and physics (I feel that my teachers focus(ed) only on the content pertinent and most tested on the AP test, and not on the subject as a whole). However, is a med school okay with me testing out of calc or freshman eng.?

Lastly, I'd like to get more opinions on attending a UC vs CSU. My parents have, to my utmost gratitude, agreed to pay for my undergraduate education. However, I do not wish to burden them with the cost of a UC education if I can spare the expenditure. From the professionals I have talked to, it really doesn't seem to matter. Another issue for me is smaller class sizes and the ability to interact with my professors. However, if attending a UC will make it easier to complete my research requirement, then that is something that I will have to take into consideration.

 

[iwannabadentist]

i went to uci as well and finished in 3 years and a quarter. i even completed a minor. id like to think i had a decent number of EC under my belt as well - check out my predents for the full downlow. its totally doable. if you really feel that you need 5 instead of 4 years to strengthen your application, finish your degree in 4 years and then take an extra year to do all the volunteer work and stuff. its much better that way so the adcoms will know that you are able to handle COLLEGE courseload. no one cares about high school - no matter how many AP classes you took.

also, once you get into your desired school, you will realize that many times AP credit doesnt count for as much as its hyped up to be. under no circumstances should you test out of anything that is a prereq for dental schools because most schools want you to have taken actual college lever courses, not the AP bull they feed you in high school. so dont test out of bio, gchem, math, english, physics. everything else is fine.

as for UC vs. CSU, wel i personally went to a UC liek i said, and many of my friends go to CSU colleges. PERSONALLY, i would not change anything if i had to do it all over again. nothing against CSUs, they are a great system of schools, but I just feel that there are far more opportunities at UCs in terms of extra curriculars, research etc. although, i'd be a fool to deny that the recent budget issues are having an impact on the quality of education offered at UCs, CSUs are not spared from this beating either. I think you should seriously consider your options for financial aid, and if all fails, you have your parents to rely on. if possible though, try living at home and commuting - that will save your parents over 10g a year!

 

[anonymousername]

cal, psych (cake) major, and I'm thinking about staying an extra semester because work has made it so my units/semester are relatively low (< 16)...i've been told that if I keep my gpa and dat high, no one will really care

 

[Vicviper]

I'd suggest a UC as well, not because being at a CSU would put you at any major disadvantage, but more that you'd just have a few more open doors for you to take advantage of at a UC. At UCI, just about anyone who wanted to do research was able to do research. Over half of all of my friends had done research, and the other half didn't even want to. Whereas my girlfriend goes to CSULB, and from what I'm hearing, it's much more difficult to get into research - though not impossible. Remember though, research isn't a requirement for any school (with the slight exception of UCSF).

As far as AP classes, other than gen ed requirements, as a Bio major, they'll really not do much for you at all. My 4 in AP Bio got all of 6 elective units.... woooo.....hoooooo. Granted, that class prepared me to do really well in Majors Bio, so it wasn't a bad thing. And even if you can be exempted out of GChem, any lab experience you may have had in high school will hardly compare to your year in undergrad, and so trying to jump right into ochem might be a total nightmare. Also, it will be more fresh when you're taking the DAT. Oh, and remember that a number of schools do NOT accept AP credit for pre-reqs.

 

[psi169]

i'm in my 5th year, doing a double degree in the sciences. NOT WORTH IT. think about it - you're competing against other people who are applying after only 3 years of college. my gpa would've been much higher had i not had to factor in tons of upper div science courses

I agree. I am also a double science degree and graduating with over 150 credits. Not worth it! I don't think it has made a difference AT ALL and it only affects your GPA by having more upper levels to conquer. I think schools just look at GPA and don't consider your major much.

I don't think taking 5 years would matter time-wise, but schools like to see that you can take 15 or more credits (and handle it) a semester because that is how demanding dental school is. Plus, if you take 5 years, thats more tuition you have to pay to the school for registration fees and such.