UCLA LS Series

[BloodySurgeon]

Hi. For those of you who know about the LS series, do I need to take 1-4 for med school. I have taken LS 1 +2 + 4, but not 3. Can I do an UD bio class instead. I have taken biochem, and I plan to take either a physiology, microbiology, or an immunology class before the end of next year. Will this satisfy the requirement? Also, do I need to finish all the requirements before I apply or before interviews. Because this is the only class I hadn't taken and I would prefer taking it the upcoming fall after I apply.

Life Science Series (Quarter System)
-------------------------------
LS-1: Ecology + Evolution
LS-2: Cells, Tissues, and Organs
LS-3: Molecular Biology
LS-4: Genetics
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[drhopefulucla]

Hi. For those of you who know about the LS series, do I need to take 1-4 for med school. I have taken LS 1 +2 + 4, but not 3. Can I do an UD bio class instead. I have taken biochem, and I plan to take either a physiology, microbiology, or an immunology class before the end of next year. Will this satisfy the requirement? Also, do I need to finish all the requirements before I apply or before interviews. Because this is the only class I hadn't taken and I would prefer taking it the upcoming fall after I apply.

Life Science Series (Quarter System)
-------------------------------
LS-1: Ecology + Evolution
LS-2: Cells, Tissues, and Organs
LS-3: Molecular Biology
LS-4: Genetics
---------------------------------

i'm a ucla student, and from what i know, every major except for psychobio (and of course non-science majors) require you to take LS1-4. i've honestly never met a pre-med who hasn't, but other than that, i'm not all too sure. with regards to your second statement (i applied this cycle), you don't have to have all your requirements completed by the time you apply. rather, some schools will simply say that you must have them completed by the time you matriculate at their school, while others will give you a form, ask you which requirements you haven't yet completed, and ask you to give them a potential completion date.

 

[eight sat up]

Yeah, you can probably take it after you apply, but I would call each school to make sure. Why aren't you giving LS3 love, anyway?

 

[west nile]

yea i don't know any premeds who haven't taken the full LS series either, you can't take it over summer?

 

[evandavidson]

I was a UCLA undergrad.

In order to do an UD microbio class, they usually require the completion of LS 1-4 or at least 2-3. If there were any LS course you could have skipped, it would be LS 1 (much of the important stuff discussed in LS 1 is discussed in LS 4). The material in LS 3 will be on the MCAT (more than LS 1 material). I would not skip LS 3. It's really not that bad.

 

[Long Dong]

i'm a ucla student, and from what i know, every major except for psychobio (and of course non-science majors) require you to take LS1-4.

I was a psychobio major and when I went to UCLA it was required.

I was a UCLA undergrad.
The material in LS 3 will be on the MCAT (more than LS 1 material). I would not skip LS 3. It's really not that bad.

Yeap it is a big no no to skip LS3 it is big on the mcat and very big on step 1 boards. Just take it, it isn't that bad but very interesting the secret of life (biology) became clear to me after this class (dna/protiens).

 

[eight sat up]

.

 

[BloodySurgeon]

Im a psych major. I taught myself molecular bio (as I pretty much did the whole LS series, crappy teachers) and I already took the mcat. I missed out on a couple of really great teachers this year, and the teachers for spring are horrible . Also I'm gonna be in Israel this summer, so I really dun wanna worry about a hard LS class. The material isn't bad at all, but I've learn that in ucla you could know the material back and forth and fail a class while not knowing a single thing but memorize all the lecture notes/book and get a 100% (thats UC education for you).

Don't ask how I did ls 4 w/o ls 3 but I did it and I did it in the reverse order your suppose to do it . I also have another question... do med school consider psych statistics as statistics? I've taken a calculus class but med school needs two math classes and statistics is recommended with many schools.

 

[ponybreeder4]

are you talking about 100A?

i actually have the same questions...since my major requires math 3c...which is also statistics...as well as 100A..another form of statistics...do i still have to take stats 10?

btw psychobio major does require the entire ls series..

 

[evandavidson]

Im a psych major. I taught myself molecular bio (as I pretty much did the whole LS series, crappy teachers) and I already took the mcat. I missed out on a couple of really great teachers this year, and the teachers for spring are horrible . Also I'm gonna be in Israel this summer, so I really dun wanna worry about a hard LS class. The material isn't bad at all, but I've learn that in ucla you could know the material back and forth and fail a class while not knowing a single thing but memorize all the lecture notes/book and get a 100% (thats UC education for you).

Don't ask how I did ls 4 w/o ls 3 but I did it and I did it in the reverse order your suppose to do it . I also have another question... do med school consider psych statistics as statistics? I've taken a calculus class but med school needs two math classes and statistics is recommended with many schools.

If your MCAT BS section score is fine, than you can always wait for next year or skip it. Keep in mind, some schools require a microbio class (ie. USC). You really shouldn't worry about failing the class, especially if you were able to self-teach. While the LS lower division curve is pretty harsh, very few people fail the classes, save for missing work/exams. If you can regurgitate the class work in a somewhat coherent fashion, you will at least get a B. Please don't succumb to the prevailing mantra on these boards that a B is equivalent to an F.

My other piece of advise is that LS 3 includes a lab portion. Most schools require bio lab.

My LS 3 experience was kinda lame. The first professor had a really thinck accent, but once I learned to understand him, I found him to actually be a good lecturer. The second professor in the class was much more articulate. However, he promised a half-multiple choice, half-essay final. It turned out to be all essay

 

[west nile]

The material isn't bad at all, but I've learn that in ucla you could know the material back and forth and fail a class while not knowing a single thing but memorize all the lecture notes/book and get a 100% (thats UC education for you).

Don't ask how I did ls 4 w/o ls 3 but I did it and I did it in the reverse order your suppose to do it . I also have another question... do med school consider psych statistics as statistics? I've taken a calculus class but med school needs two math classes and statistics is recommended with many schools.

you really don't need any LS3 for LS4, so while you might have taken it "out of order" it doesn't matter.
and about the whole memorization thing, maybe Psych was like that for you, but Phy sci is anything but straight memorization, so I think that broad UC statement is false.

 

[hung]

call ucla med school and see what they think. if you have to take it, do ls3 during summer to get it over with quickly.

 

[hung]

are you talking about 100A?

i actually have the same questions...since my major requires math 3c...which is also statistics...as well as 100A..another form of statistics...do i still have to take stats 10?

btw psychobio major does require the entire ls series..

Generally, stats 10 isn't required, but recommended. Stats 10 is cake if you take it with davis. If you can take it, take it. It is an easy A with fairly minimal work. Also Biostats 100A is easy too. You need a year of math for med school. Why not take stats?

 

[BloodySurgeon]

Generally, stats 10 isn't required, but recommended. Stats 10 is cake if you take it with davis. If you can take it, take it. It is an easy A with fairly minimal work. Also Biostats 100A is easy too. You need a year of math for med school. Why not take stats?

thx... I guess it won't be a bad idea to take stat 10. I already know the material from psych so doing it again wont be so bad. Also, if it can boost my overall and science gpa.

 

[paranoid_eyes]

take ls 3, it's fun....

 

[SoCalGirl]

take ls 3, it's fun....

If you get good TAs, LS 1-4 shouldn't be that bad. I had TAs for LS 2 and 3 that didn't really know the material well so that sucked. The LS 2 TA graded so freakin' harshly too, took off points for every little thing.

 

[xrevision]

If you take an easy class on the semester system, like stats do they just go more in depth because they have more time? Or is it the same material spread over a longer time, making it even easier?

 

[BloodySurgeon]

If you take an easy class on the semester system, like stats do they just go more in depth because they have more time? Or is it the same material spread over a longer time, making it even easier?

I think its the same thing... in semester classes, your classes are more spread out, you usually have time to relax before the test, you can actually not worry about a final or a midterm right after you just took one for the class. In quarter system you usually got a midterm every 3 weeks with papers and assignments in between. Now if you signed up for 4 classes, when do you think you can take a break from studying? Very rarely, while in a semester you only have to worry about it when it comes near by. Also, you usually get finals back to back and/or on the same day.

*EDIT: But usually for series, quarter system school gotta take more classes. Like bio for example. Most ppl have Bio I and Bio II. We hafta take LS 1, LS 2, LS 3, and LS 4. This does not mean we don't go into detail. I think we go into more detail with more stress. That is why UC blows in tests. Because they cover so much random info, ur test is 70% memorize and 30% apply.

 

[paranoid_eyes]

The LS 2 TA graded so freakin' harshly too, took off points for every little thing.

omg, i completely agree with you. the LS TA's (especially for LS2 for some reason) have it in against us. they're prolly just mad cause they didn't get into med school (jk)

 

[SoCalGirl]

omg, i completely agree with you. the LS TA's (especially for LS2 for some reason) have it in against us. they're prolly just mad cause they didn't get into med school (jk)

Seriously! Dude, I turned in my lab report literally like 3 or 4 min. after class had started and my LS 2 TA took off 1 late point!! WTF??? She was this really short, hyper girl, who basically shredded every assignment ever turned in to her. Maybe we had the same TA.

 

[BloodySurgeon]

I think I turned in a 20 page lab report for the photosynthesis lab one time. Well I had a long stream of numbers... .56, .43, .23, .23, .12,.... but one of the I put the decimal one slot over like 2.3 . Now I referred to this number countless times and I use .23 not 2.3 and he took 2 points off out of 20!! Total jerk. I also had no lab partner throughout the class cuz my partner bailed out on me while others had 2 ppl or even 3 ppl in a group. Actually a friend of mine did a similar lab in another school and turned in my paper and got a perfect score. Their TA actually wrote a comment on his paper how well made it was. My TA gave me a B+ on that paper

 

[SoCalGirl]

2 points off for that is completely ridiculous. I swear, the LS 2 TA's are out of control.

 

[evandavidson]

Eh, two points here and there isn't bad...as long as they grade consistently from person to person. All the LS grades are normalized anyway. The LS series just tends to give out fewer A's than Chem or Physics.

 

[hung]

Eh, two points here and there isn't bad...as long as they grade consistently from person to person. All the LS grades are normalized anyway. The LS series just tends to give out fewer A's than Chem or Physics.

I agree about the normalizing per section. There is some fairness to the madness. But if you guys think the LS TAs can be tough, wait until you guys take Chem 153L. I lucked out and got a great TA (David Tsao, highly recommended).

 

[chaldobruin]

I think I turned in a 20 page lab report for the photosynthesis lab one time. Well I had a long stream of numbers... .56, .43, .23, .23, .12,.... but one of the I put the decimal one slot over like 2.3 . Now I referred to this number countless times and I use .23 not 2.3 and he took 2 points off out of 20!! Total jerk. I also had no lab partner throughout the class cuz my partner bailed out on me while others had 2 ppl or even 3 ppl in a group. Actually a friend of mine did a similar lab in another school and turned in my paper and got a perfect score. Their TA actually wrote a comment on his paper how well made it was. My TA gave me a B+ on that paper

That is absolutely horrible. I have some horror stories from the LS series but that takes the cake. UCLA is SO darn competitive in the pre-med sciences, the TA's do anything they can to create separation. It sucks. Thats what we get for attending the University with the highest amount of med school apps in the country.

 

[Pewl]

That is absolutely horrible. I have some horror stories from the LS series but that takes the cake. UCLA is SO darn competitive in the pre-med sciences, the TA's do anything they can to create separation. It sucks. Thats what we get for attending the University with the highest amount of med school apps in the country.

Heh I was at UCLA for undergrad as a psychobio major as well. There are a lot of jacka$ses around.

 

[bacalaca]

I was a UCLA undergrad.

In order to do an UD microbio class, they usually require the completion of LS 1-4 or at least 2-3. If there were any LS course you could have skipped, it would be LS 1 (much of the important stuff discussed in LS 1 is discussed in LS 4). The material in LS 3 will be on the MCAT (more than LS 1 material). I would not skip LS 3. It's really not that bad.

yay for mimg! LS1 was basically useless, also my prof was the lead singer of Bad Religion(Greg Graffin), no joke, and he thought that one of the main differences between prokaryotes and eukaryotes was that prokaryotes had single stranded dna, and eukaryotes had double stranded dna..............sigh.

 

[SoCalGirl]

Heh I was at UCLA for undergrad as a psychobio major as well. There are a lot of jacka$ses around.

So true!

Did anyone have Lin for LS 3? That was a nightmare!

 

[bacalaca]

So true!

Did anyone have Lin for LS 3? That was a nightmare!

dude chentao lin was great, all multiple choice tests. and his accent made the class fun

 

[paranoid_eyes]

So true!

Did anyone have Lin for LS 3? That was a nightmare!

Lin is a nice guy. but he is relentless. he will throw it all at you, every detail, every fact, every damn experiment in the book. He even uses a different book than the other LS3 professors (he uses the book that upper div molbio students use ).

 

[UCLAbrewin]

Ouch, people! I used to be an LS TA and we are not THAT bad. C'mon now!

 

[Questions]

Seems like 3 quarters = year of bio...??


I'm not a science major so I have only taken LS 2,3,4.. Must I take LS 1? I've been getting conflicting answers..

 

[kaliphornia]

i applied this year and i did not have to take LS1 at all. just ls2-4 and that counts as one year of biology. i am a poli sci major and i've been accepted to medical school with my pre-reqs. go take a fun class! =) you can take mcd bio 30 or 40 and they are pretty easy and very interesting. and they count for your sci gpa.