Taking 12-13 credit hours per semester and graduate in 5 instead of 4 years

[tennisball80]

How will the medical schools think if I take 12-13 credits per semester and graduate in 5 years in undergrad?

Pros:
More time to enjoy ECs
More time to study the MCAT
More time to relax
More time to do research

Cons:
Take 5 years, lose 1 more year of golden 20's time..

How do you all think my SDN fellows?

Update:

To summarize, it's ok to graduate in 5 years if there is a good reason such as working 40 hours per week.

Opinions?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Hoody]

I suppose its gravy.....if you do what you say...as in ECs, study MCAT, etc. Otherwise its just leaving more time for you to procrastinate...more.

 

[anonymousername]

let's see, you have a 3.5/3.6 GPA which is far from stellar. If you crush the MCAT, then the time it took you will be less important but it will still be an issue. If you screw up on the MCAT, you will not be a great applicant and adcoms would much rather have someone w/ the same stats who challenged them self in school.

Bottom line the way I see it: you will appear as someone who can't cope with the workload at university level and have chosen to slow it down. Even though you slowed it down, your GPA is not really that great and you could potentially be overwhelmed in medical school. People who have the same GPA/MCAT as you but took 15-17 units and similar EC's will appear stronger because they didn't take it easy.

Best of luck!

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

I suppose its gravy.....if you do what you say...as in ECs, study MCAT, etc. Otherwise its just leaving more time for you to procrastinate...more.

i think the word your looking for is groovy lol..

taking 5 years is alright i guess..
i mean.. it gives you more time..
but lol idk it looks kinda frivolous if you take a extra class every semester i.e the general reqs and make it 15-16 credits you'd graduate on time..( btw 15 credits a semesters is bearly any work.. you start at 9 and end at 1 at most every day if planned well)
thus saving you cash.. and time..
lol.. in all actuality i spent 1 summer took the full course-load 10 credits and the other 3 years for me are going to be at most 14 credits a sem.

personally if i did 5 years i'd leave with a double major and pre-med complete at the least..

end result med schools will mostly just give you a funny look.. otherwise it wont really effect your ability to get into medical school..
just expect to get some Bill Cosby looks lol

 

[Hoody]

let's see, you have a 3.5/3.6 GPA which is far from stellar. If you crush the MCAT, then the time it took you will be less important but it will still be an issue. If you screw up on the MCAT, you will not be a great applicant and adcoms would much rather have someone w/ the same stats who challenged them self in school.

Bottom line the way I see it: you will appear as someone who can't cope with the workload at university level and have chosen to slow it down. Even though you slowed it down, your GPA is not really that great and you could potentially be overwhelmed in medical school. People who have the same GPA/MCAT as you will appear stronger because they did not take it as easy.

Best of luck!

fail. epically.

Saying his GPA wont improve is only hypothetical. He hasn't slowed it down yet so his GPA hasn't had a chance to improve. If he does slow it down and his GPA doesn't improve, then you can re-post this. Futhermore, if all other things are equal, I have a hard time believing that adcoms are going to choose applicant Y or applicant X simply because applicant Y completed school in 4 years where as applicant X completed school in 5 years. I'm guessing they'll go off something with a little more weight....like PS and interview??

 

[Hoody]

i think the word your looking for is groovy lol..

groovy, gravy, groovy gravy...its all good.

 

[mechanictodr]

Med schools care about stats. If yours are better then they like that and you get an interview. Do well and you have a great chance of getting in. If slowing things down helps raise the GPA significantly and you can pull a 30+ MCAT then by all means don't let a course load hold you back. Just say you had to work or something so much during school that you could only take 14 credits. No med school is going to call Taco Bell and ask if you really worked there during college.

I say go for it if it helps raise the #'s

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

groovy, gravy, groovy gravy...its all good.

tomato tamato i guess

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

Med schools care about stats. If yours are better then they like that and you get an interview. Do well and you have a great chance of getting in. If slowing things down helps raise the GPA significantly and you can pull a 30+ MCAT then by all means don't let a course load hold you back. Just say you had to work or something so much during school that you could only take 14 credits. No med school is going to call Taco Bell and ask if you really worked there during college.

I say go for it if it helps raise the #'s

to a degree..
i think its good to challange yourself with a heavier work load in college though..
it'll give you some moderate ability to deal with med schools work load..
thats the only reason i really have against taking a limited amount of credits and not taking enough creds to grad in 4 years..

this reminds me of my endeavor when i decided that maybe i could just get a ph.d in psychology and realized i can grad from college in 2 instead of 4 years with a ba in psych if i work every summer =) it made me happy kinda.. lol..

 

[rockaction]

It may make you look lazy. They may wonder if you can excel in medical school if you've never challenged yourself.

 

[mechanictodr]

It may make you look lazy. They may wonder if you can excel in medical school if you've never challenged yourself.

And a history major going to med school challenged themselves how...? I really don't think Adcoms will notice or care. High #'s = high average stats and that means more people will strive to attend there which means more primaries and secondaries and more money. Medical school is a business and image is everything.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

And a history major going to med school challenged themselves how...? I really don't think Adcoms will notice or care. High #'s = high average stats and that means more people will strive to attend there which means more primaries and secondaries and more money. Medical school is a business and image is everything.

you'd be amazed how incapable some med school applicants are in the humanities/arts/social science area..
and obviously if non science majors are scoring higher on the mcat then science majors.. then SOMETHING went right with them.

i remember
AP world in high school.. most of the kids got a 2 on the ap exam and couldnt even remember who important people like karl marx,william the conqueror and john locke not to mention that 2 of these had actual phillospy that was extremely relevant to the development of society/ the world as we see it today.

not to mention non science majors actually understand human behavior and main stream sociology...

realisticly i know so many ppl major in biology who are soo.. dull.. they have utterly no love for the humanities or culture.. people like that are barely able to be standed most times..

and honestly when someone can think and write the liner line formula in there head before they can think of a piece of cultural heritage then there going to be very boring and unsuccessful doctors with no capability to actually understand where there patients come from and them.

 

[LizzyM]

let's see, you have a 3.5/3.6 GPA which is far from stellar. If you crush the MCAT, then the time it took you will be less important but it will still be an issue. If you screw up on the MCAT, you will not be a great applicant and adcoms would much rather have someone w/ the same stats who challenged them self in school.

Bottom line the way I see it: you will appear as someone who can't cope with the workload at university level and have chosen to slow it down. Even though you slowed it down, your GPA is not really that great and you could potentially be overwhelmed in medical school. People who have the same GPA/MCAT as you but took 15-17 units and similar EC's will appear stronger because they didn't take it easy.

Best of luck!

This sums it up.

 

[FirefighterDoc]

OP,
Like others have said, The first thing that's going to get you looked at by a school is your stats. If it takes an extra year to spread everything out and bring that GPA up then go for it. Just make sure that you are still doing something valuable with the free time like ECs and the like.

I Personally changed majors(And decided on going for medicine) just before my Sophomore year (this year) and my fall semester was a mad rush at trying to start all the pre med requirements and biology requirements. Not to mention i work two jobs(one of them was full time for half of last semester). Needless to say my grades suffered. I spoke with my advisor about taking 5 years instead of 4 and he said it was fine as long as you could justify it and fill it with others things instead of classes.

I personally am doing 5 years because of my two jobs( which i need to pay for school), and because now i can do a Spanish minor.

 

[circulus vitios]

I'm taking 5 years of 12 credit semesters. Working all weekend and commuting 80 miles round trip a day eats up a large chunk of my time. There's no way I could do 15-18 credits and still get good grades.

 

[tennisball80]

It's ok graduate as long as you have a good reason, right?

 

[rockaction]

And a history major going to med school challenged themselves how...? I really don't think Adcoms will notice or care. High #'s = high average stats and that means more people will strive to attend there which means more primaries and secondaries and more money. Medical school is a business and image is everything.

History majors who graduate in 4 years still prove they know how to manage their time by having to write research papers, read large amounts of material, and still do well in their science pre-reqs.

The adcoms at one school I interviewed at said that they like to make maps of your college career and pretty much piece together how you spent your time in college. I think at a school like that, they'd be unimpressed with high #'s if you took such a long, lax time to earn them.

Now, if you had a real reason (like having to support yourself through college by working a crap-ton), I don't think it would matter. But if I am reading this thread correctly, your intentions are to make getting good grades and test scores easier. Hm, that doesn't seem like a good enough reason to me.

 

[schrizto]

you'd be amazed how incapable some med school applicants are in the humanities/arts/social science area..
and obviously if non science majors are scoring higher on the mcat then science majors.. then SOMETHING went right with them.

i remember
AP world in high school.. most of the kids got a 2 on the ap exam and couldnt even remember who important people like karl marx,william the conqueror and john locke not to mention that 2 of these had actual phillospy that was extremely relevant to the development of society/ the world as we see it today.

not to mention non science majors actually understand human behavior and main stream sociology...

realisticly i know so many ppl major in biology who are soo.. dull.. they have utterly no love for the humanities or culture.. people like that are barely able to be standed most times..

and honestly when someone can think and write the liner line formula in there head before they can think of a piece of cultural heritage then there going to be very boring and unsuccessful doctors with no capability to actually understand where there patients come from and them.

If humanities/social science majors do score higher on the MCAT than science majors like you say (I haven't checked any official statistics), it might also be because the number of science majors who apply to medical school greatly outnumbers the number of nonscience majors. A greater variation of scores can be found when the range of people is greater.

Also, it really isn't right to generalize that "non science majors actually understand human behavior and main stream sociology" and science majors don't. It makes me want to ask, are you majoring in a science or nonscience? Your posts sometimes come across as a bit fragmented with spelling mistakes.

let's see, you have a 3.5/3.6 GPA which is far from stellar. If you crush the MCAT, then the time it took you will be less important but it will still be an issue. If you screw up on the MCAT, you will not be a great applicant and adcoms would much rather have someone w/ the same stats who challenged them self in school.

Bottom line the way I see it: you will appear as someone who can't cope with the workload at university level and have chosen to slow it down. Even though you slowed it down, your GPA is not really that great and you could potentially be overwhelmed in medical school. People who have the same GPA/MCAT as you but took 15-17 units and similar EC's will appear stronger because they didn't take it easy.

Best of luck!

He is a freshman, so that gpa is only from one semester.

 

[anonymousername]

have any accepted students been in this situation?

it would be more helpful to hear from them and if they were asked about it in interviews.

 

[metallica81788]

It may make you look lazy. They may wonder if you can excel in medical school if you've never challenged yourself.

I agree with this.

I wondered if my 13 hours/semester was an issue and I graduated in 4 years.

Taking an extra year just because of low class loads is not a good idea. If you have another valid reason, go for it. If anything, graduate in 4 years and use the 5th year for all that other stuff before/while you apply.

 

[deleted303591]

It may make you look lazy. They may wonder if you can excel in medical school if you've never challenged yourself.

That is complete BS!

First, there are many applicants that come from diverse situations. Some have children, some have to work full-time, and others may have medical conditions that may prevent them from taking 15+ hours per semester.

Not all people have the opportunity to get a traditional four year university experience.

Also, if the kid thinks that the 5 year program is more suitable for him, then he should do it. Considering that many applicants come from diverse situations, they will not frown upon the extra fifth year. I would just make sure that your stats are VERY competitive.

I myself am on the five year plan, if not longer. But medical issues are the direct cause of this extension.

 

[randombetch]

let's see, you have a 3.5/3.6 GPA which is far from stellar. If you crush the MCAT, then the time it took you will be less important but it will still be an issue. If you screw up on the MCAT, you will not be a great applicant and adcoms would much rather have someone w/ the same stats who challenged them self in school.

Bottom line the way I see it: you will appear as someone who can't cope with the workload at university level and have chosen to slow it down. Even though you slowed it down, your GPA is not really that great and you could potentially be overwhelmed in medical school. People who have the same GPA/MCAT as you but took 15-17 units and similar EC's will appear stronger because they didn't take it easy.

Best of luck!

fail. epically.

Saying his GPA wont improve is only hypothetical. He hasn't slowed it down yet so his GPA hasn't had a chance to improve. If he does slow it down and his GPA doesn't improve, then you can re-post this. Futhermore, if all other things are equal, I have a hard time believing that adcoms are going to choose applicant Y or applicant X simply because applicant Y completed school in 4 years where as applicant X completed school in 5 years. I'm guessing they'll go off something with a little more weight....like PS and interview??

This sums it up.

Love how Hoody claims anon "failed" right before LizzyM said anon pretty much summed it up.

Taking 12 credits a semester is an obvious red flag. Just think about it - this person took 3 classes a semester, and even if he/she did well, how do you know how well he/she'll handle the rigor of med school and working 80 hours a week during residency?

 

[randombetch]

That is complete BS!

First, there are many applicants that come from diverse situations. Some have children, some have to work full-time, and others may have medical conditions that may prevent them from taking 15+ hours per semester.

Not all people have the opportunity to get a traditional four year university experience.

Also, if the kid thinks that the 5 year program is more suitable for him, then he should do it. Considering that many applicants come from diverse situations, they will not frown upon the extra fifth year. I would just make sure that your stats are VERY competitive.

I myself am on the five year plan, if not longer. But medical issues are the direct cause of this extension.

The issue isn't taking longer to graduate - it's taking a lighter workload.

 

[metallica81788]

That is complete BS!

First, there are many applicants that come from diverse situations. Some have children, some have to work full-time, and others may have medical conditions that may prevent them from taking 15+ hours per semester.

Not all people have the opportunity to get a traditional four year university experience.

Also, if the kid thinks that the 5 year program is more suitable for him, then he should do it. Considering that many applicants come from diverse situations, they will not frown upon the extra fifth year. I would just make sure that your stats are VERY competitive.

I myself am on the five year plan, if not longer. But medical issues are the direct cause of this extension.

The above situation is understandable for taking 5 years to graduate. It's called extenuating circumstances.

The issue isn't taking longer to graduate - it's taking a lighter workload.

Exactly. If you do it just because you don't want to take more classes then it's different.

 

[zayka]

I don't really understand why you would want to do this... You don't need that much time to study for the MCAT, and you should be able to handle research and EC's while taking a full course load and excelling - it's possible, unless you intend to party and plot to get Megan Fox in excess (for regular circumstances...).
Anyway, by 3/4 years, you will likely (at least I did) want to get on with your life, move away, be on your way to a profession, etc.

 

[Drrrrrr. Celty]

If humanities/social science majors do score higher on the MCAT than science majors like you say (I haven't checked any official statistics), it might also be because the number of science majors who apply to medical school greatly outnumbers the number of nonscience majors. A greater variation of scores can be found when the range of people is greater.

Also, it really isn't right to generalize that "non science majors actually understand human behavior and main stream sociology" and science majors don't. It makes me want to ask, are you majoring in a science or nonscience? Your posts sometimes come across as a bit fragmented with spelling mistakes.



He is a freshman, so that gpa is only from one semester.

im a psych major =p
my spelling more or less stinks because my comps spell check goes offline sometimes making me think i actually spelled a word correctly, but in reality i spelt it incorrectly.
>.>

i wasn't generalizing..
i was just pointing out i know some really really really dull bio majors...