Taking an easy class or hard

[R.S Woodson]

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Hello Everyone,
I have a question, I have to take a biochemistry class and there are two choices, I can take it with an easy professor and get an easy "A" or take a harder professor and work my butt off to pass the class. The problem is I am worried that if I take the easy class I won't learn as much as I would in the harder class. Do I need biochemistry for the MCAT? I have been told that my GPA is more important than how much I have learned.

 

[tnt3]

I would take with it the easy professor. There is a chance that you may fall behind in the hard class and that you may end up not learning much at all. I think you're more motivated to learn in a class that you're doing well in. People tend to lose their motivation if they're struggling in a class. However, it all depends on whether the easy professor is competent at teaching the materials. From my personal experience, I found that I learned a lot more from community college classes than some of the classes i took at Cornell. And, you're right...GPA is pretty important.

 

[nezlab99]

I have been told that my GPA is more important than how much I have learned. ••

That is very very sad. I hope this outlook changes before you actually practice medicine.

 

[jubei0766]

Even if you are taking the harder professor, you won't be the only person struggling...the chances are everyone will as well and the professor could even curve the class generously.

I made such a mistake of choosing an easier professor(according to the "honest" opinion of premeds) and thought I was going to kick butt... and got my butt kicked in Ochem. But I chose the harder professor(I have always wanted to take the harder professor b/c I wanted to learn a lot but didn't b/c I thought I was going to get a bad grade)the next quater and got a better grade! so you never know! You should not discriminate classes based soley on professor's reputation(unless s/he has a terrible lecture style that prohibits your learning experience).

Nevertheless, don't take chances with your GPAs.
Biochemistry is a difficult class and I seriously doubt if there will be any noticeable differences in the overall outcome even though there are easy and hard professors teaching the same class.
Good luck.

P.S. Take good lecture notes and get a hold of previous years' exams if you want to be successful in biochemistry.

 

[Optimistic]

what makes you think that you will not learn that much in easy class. Is that professor a bad teacher? If he is then I won't take his class . If you dont know which teacher is better then you are probably better off taking it with easy professor as that assures you a good grade atleast, and how much you learn also depends on you too. so if you want to learn more you can do that by putting extra efforts.Goodluck.

 

[AYLC]

Just a few words....you can learn things regardless which class you chose. I agree that GPA is import to make your app looks good, but 3 or 4 credit hours of biochem usually does not make major change on your overeall GPA. It is you who decide if you will learn from either class, not the teacher....I will go with the hard one b/c I know that I am not the only one who struggles during the class. Good luck with your biochem and hope you enjoy it.... 🙂

 

[Doc Oc]

You'll be taking biochem at most medical schools, information you can use in one of two ways:
1) You can take the easy class and get the good grade, since you'll be learning it again anyway.
2) You can take the hard class, work your butt off, maybe not get as good of a grade, but have an easier time in med school biochem and have more time for your other classes.

One grade in one class is not going to make or break your application. A helpful fact: (part a repeat of something I said on an earlier post in a different topic) I was accepted to all 5 schools I interviewed at (3 DO, 1 in-state MD, 1 out-of-state MD), and turned down interviews at Penn State and MSUCHM. I took the two "harder" biochem classes, got a C in the first, a B in the second. I also got a C in the first half of physics, a D in the first half of physiology, and a C in French I for goodness sakes! So if the rest of your application is strong, then ONE bad grade (which may not even be "bad", it may just be lower than you are used to)is not going to kill you chances, especially with some evidence that five didn't kill mine 🙂 Because I had a difficult courseload during undergrad, I haven't found med school to be that stressful (yet). I study a little more than I did for undergrad, but not much. My point: Hard classes will better prepare you for what you'll encounter in med school. Suffer for one semester, and it will help you for a couple years later in med school.

 

[jhug]

Doc oc-- jump in topic-- where did you end up attending?

To add to the answers.. i took the easiest upper division physics class-- this was comparable to high school stuff- super easy! yet, it was a topic i am sincerely interested in and i remember more from that class than any other--i really clicked with the professor. My advice would probably be, if possible, go to both beforehand and see which teacher you like the most, get a feel for the class and see which suits you best- i would even say register for both, go to both and after 2 weeks (or however long your school lets you go without getting anything on a transcript) drop the one you don't like. Good luck!

 

[johnthestreak]

i am taking biochem right now and i hate it. take the easy prof, you don't need to put yourself through any unnessesary stress (like me). get an A and move on, all you need is somewhat of a background in medschool so that the stuff "looks" familiar, that's when you really learn it!