Taking organic chem in the summer, red flag or no?

[Anthodite]

Listen I switched majors to bio after transferring as a non science major from undergrad and in order to streamline my degree(take an insane amount of credits per semester) I’d have to speed up the timeline for when I take my sequential chem classes. Is it an auto reject if I have a heavy as heck course load every semester and take Organic chem I in the summer?

I feel like one glance at my application can tell you I crammed a four year degree into two years. Like literally I just wanna do this so I can take Biochem II(for one postbach program) and not delay graduation by ANOTHER semester.

TLDR: My bio advisor said med schools don’t like when students take orgo over the summer because it looks like a lighter course load, but I have a heavy course load all semesters.

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[DoneDone3451]

No, if you do well it does not matter. Getting an A in orgo over the summer is fine, just understand the material enough for the MCAT.

The reason many people advise against it is because of the increased pace in an already difficult course, plus the summer time is when most applicants will try to work/volunteer to gain clinical experience.

 

[Hollow Knight]

No

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I switched majors to bio after transferring as a non science major from undergrad and in order to streamline my degree(take an insane amount of credits per semester) I’d have to speed up the timeline for when I take my sequential chem classes. Is it an auto reject if I have a heavy as heck course load every semester and take Organic chem I in the summer?

You get no bonus points for overloading your semesters with harder classes.

 

[Hollow Knight]

I actually read your whole post.

My bio advisors gave bad advice too. Just read the articles on here and follow them.

Like Mr. Smile said though, you are making things harder on yourself than necessary. I don’t know your situation but if your GPA is lower it won’t be excused because you took more classes at once….. if that makes sense.

 

[Anthodite]

You get no bonus points for overloading your semesters with harder classes.

Sorry I wrote that in a heat of a moment. To clarify my advisor said med schools hate when ppl take gen chem in the summer because it "lightens their load"( which I'm not sure is even possible for me) and I'm just speeding up my degree to graduate on time(which means more classes per semester than average). Will taking orgo in the summer really make me look that bad? If I bump up the timeline in which I take orgo 1 in the summer, I'll have time to graduate on my target semester and have the prereq for a postbach I want to do which is Biochem-II.

 

[Anthodite]

I actually read your whole post.

My bio advisors gave bad advice too. Just read the articles on here and follow them.

Like Mr. Smile said though, you are making things harder on yourself than necessary. I don’t know your situation but if your GPA is lower it won’t be excused because you took more classes at once….. if that makes sense.

Thanks for answering, I wasn't sure if I saw any specific articles on here.

And totally get it, I intend to keep my GPA up but I'm only taking a heavy course load so I don't spend four more years in undergrad in addition to the 3 years I spent on an applied associates.

 

[LizzyM]

The one situation where it looks ugly is when you are at a T20 undergrad institution and take the summer course (o-chem or physics) at a much lower ranked school. That looks like you are trying to dodge a weed-out course at your home institution where the competition is stiffer and perhaps the exams are more difficult.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Sorry I wrote that in a heat of a moment. To clarify my advisor said med schools hate when ppl take gen chem in the summer because it "lightens their load"( which I'm not sure is even possible for me) and I'm just speeding up my degree to graduate on time(which means more classes per semester than average). Will taking orgo in the summer really make me look that bad? If I bump up the timeline in which I take orgo 1 in the summer, I'll have time to graduate on my target semester and have the prereq for a postbach I want to do which is Biochem-II.

I don't know where advisors get this idea. See above advice.

I had a conversation with a peer that claimed they had an interesting correlation between the likelihood of remediating a failed med school class among those students who took organic chemistry during the summer. No one had a good explanation why, plus I could not replicate this trend.

We write articles on the main SDN website.

How to Spend a Premed Summer - SDN

The Student Doctor Network provides free tools, resources, and advising services to help students become health professionals.

www.studentdoctor.net

Is Summer MCAT Prep Right for Me? - SDN

The Student Doctor Network provides free tools, resources, and advising services to help students become health professionals.

www.studentdoctor.net

 

[LunaOri]

Definitely not a red flag.

 

[eigen]

TLDR: My bio advisor said med schools don’t like when students take orgo over the summer because it looks like a lighter course load, but I have a heavy course load all semesters.

Given that I typically advice students *against* taking orgo over the summer because the pace is insanely high relative to the semester and it's a much more challenging format... This is really bad advice.

 

[LeaveNoTrace]

I mean - can you hack it? Why so many credits at a time? There might be a good reason; if you're doing well and you're just speedrunning your degree for whatever reason it's all good and doesn't mean anything.

 

[Isoval]

I took Organic Chemistry 2 in the summer.

After committing the original sin, I was taken out back behind the watershed and beheaded with a rusty scalpel.

 

[Agape_ornis]

I took orgo 2 in the summer and have been accepted to medical school, so I don't know if it matters that much.