Timeline

[triploblast]

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Hello everyone...

Thanks for taking the time to respond to questions on this forum... this website has already been a huge help.

There are a few things I am trying to figure out and I'd love some input. I am a nontrad student as I took four years off after high school before returning to college to finish my degree. I took 98% of my gen ed requirements through local community colleges, with the vast majority of those taken online while I was working full-time.

GPA is okay... My undergrad university states that I graduated with a 3.86.

BYU's AMCAS GPA calculator states that I have a 3.74 Overall GPA and a 3.72 BCPM GPA. Not as high as I'd like, but I know I'll have a small chance to make some improvements with the rest of these prereqs.


I have a degree in the biological sciences - wildlife biology to be specific - having just finished my BS at a 4-year university last Fall.

I am considering the long road of med school, but have most of the prereqs to finish first.

I have taken a statistics course, though in addition to being a 200-level course at a junior college, it was also online. I am aware that some med schools do not accept the online format of required courses...

*Would it be best for me to go the in-person pre-calc/calc route, or can/should I simply retake a stats course in-person?

Oddly enough, I have never taken an anatomy/physio class, since it was never a requirement in my early days and I was far too focused on finishing the BS to deviate from the required courses...

*Should I throw an anatomy class in for good measure?

I am not afraid of working hard or spending all of my free time studying... I am just trying to figure out a longer-term timeline and know these classes won't exactly be easy.

While I would ideally be able to continue working full-time while completing these requirements, I think I can get away with dropping down to part-time if it'll get me on a quicker track to the MCAT/med school. I have some lab research experience, though it is from working with mycorrhizal fungi on an NSF grant, and then running a genetic study on whiptail scorpions. Not exactly the clinical experience that I know I am going to need to squeeze in as well...

Courses Left:

Pre-Calculus
Calculus
Biochemistry
Organic I
Organic II
Physics I
Physics II

*With the courses I have left... Would you find it reasonable to think that I could finish all of them in three semesters (done by Fall '18), squeezing clinical experience/shadowing in during the summer of '18? I obviously want to retain the material and do well on the MCAT, but I would certainly like to keep making forward progress.

 

[GreenDuck12]

Welcome to the forums,

In terms of taking pre-calc/calc vs retaking statistics vs keeping your original statistics course, is not sure. Your gpa is solid so I don't think any admissions committee would think you were taking the easy route with online/cc classes. I would get a copy of the MSAR and look at schools you would like to apply to to see if they accept your class. If they don't, then I would either retake or take pre-calc/calc. Having a background in stats is helpful for the MCAT.

Anatomy and physiology are not required to apply to medical school. Some students take it any way. Personally, I have only met students that either loved it and did well or hated it and did poorly. Regardless of what you decide, you will take it in medical school.

In terms of completing the courses you list above by fall 2018, it is possible but it depends on your university. Some universities require you to complete a semester or organic (or the year) before taking biochemistry. If either is the case, that complicates things. It's feasible to take three classes at once but be careful with organic chemistry. Organic chemistry requires a lot of time spent solving problems. If you are taking three classes and working and volunteering, things could get dicey.myou mention being done by fall 2018 but other important questions are when would you like to apply to medical school and when would you like to take the MCAT?

Given that you also need to build some volunteer experience in the form of several hundred hours in a medical setting, I would start doing that now.

Best of luck to you.

 

[Blanky]

Semester 1 - Pre-Calc, Orgo 1 +lab
Semester 2 - Orgo 2 +lab, Physics 1 +lab
Semester 3 - Biochem, Physics 2 +lab
Looks like an easy 3 semesters

Semester 1 - Precalc, Orgo 1 +lab, Physics 1
Semester 2 Orgo 2 +lab, Physics 2 +lab, Biochem
Looks like you will be doing physics without much trig knowledge and then taking biochem without finishing orgo 2 if that matters... I also don't see the need for calc1 unless preference.