Undergrad Courses that seem to make first year of med school easier (slightly?)

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WATERINTOWINE

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1) I already have bio chem 1, should I take Biochem 2 or Cell Bio this semester?
(I am taking Physiological Psych)

2) In general are there non-pre req courses that med school students commonly believe helped (or would have helped) to take beforehand? And which ones would be best, Immunology, Histo, Gen Phys, others?

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Anything in undergrad is playing in the kiddie pool compared to med school. That said, I wish I would have had anatomy, just to get the vocabulary down and figure out some sort of memorization technique. And my classmates who have backgrounds in neuro seem to do well (at least in the tough neuro blocks, I suppose).
 
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Anatomy would be a help as it takes an enormous load off of your first year. But honestly even then it'll be minor.

Nothing will really prepare you enough for medical school. Do take Biochemistry however. A course in physiology if you're completely clueless about the fact that organs are made up of cells or other really basic things might help too ( Personally I think my relatively good background in physiology was helpful in knowing how to study and learn physiology).
 
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I think anatomy, physiology, and, maybe, biochem would be helpful. Not essential, but helpful.
 
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Honestly, I don't ever see one single class being harder than my cell-physiology course I took last semester. It was a graduate level biology course at my university and since I am a 6th year senior I have to take something while I take the other classes I lacked (Math and a few labs). I have heard from NUMEROUS people that anatomy would help, although I took it years ago. I also heard neuro in med school is supposedly the hardest block in a few of the systems-based med schools I have been to, so that would be nice I would suppose. I am taking Virology, Prokaryote Biology, Immunology, and a few other fun classes this last semester. I only need one class to graduate, but due to the required 12 credit hours to get my full amount of funding I am choosing to take some more sciences to keep me up to speed and on my toes. Now, I also heard that medical schools isn't so much a program filled with extremely hard classes as much as it is a program that is filled with a TON of work. So, what I take from it is Busy work > difficult work. Whether it is true or not I guess I will know in a few short months! Best of luck!
 
1) I already have bio chem 1, should I take Biochem 2 or Cell Bio this semester?
(I am taking Physiological Psych)

2) In general are there non-pre req courses that med school students commonly believe helped (or would have helped) to take beforehand? And which ones would be best, Immunology, Histo, Gen Phys, others?
I've taken immunology, pharmacology, and endocrinology as an undergrad. They were all helpful in that you knew the terms. and helps you get up to speed. But seriously, don't think it'll be an advantage. Perhaps 1 or 2 of 18-20 lectures it would help.

All those classes you listed will "help" you. But they won't give you some advantage. Take what interests you.
 
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I've been taking the UNECOM Medical Biochemistry class and I think it may be the most difficult undergrad class I've taken. I hope it helps for med school. The amount of memorization to fully understand each pathway and the connections between which enzyme affects which molecule is pretty rough IMHO. Also really difficult trying to remember what activates and what inhibits what between all the different pathways involved in glycolysis, glycogenolysis, gluconeogenesis, protein digestion, PEP, lipid digestion, ketone synthesis, cholesterol/lipid/TG transport.... I can't even recall some of the pathways I learned from the first half of the class. haha

I imagine med school is going to be even more difficult in terms of memorization?
 
none will help so take ceramics... it'll get your mind off the impending doom
 
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Anatomy for SURE.

Neuro if you can.

Biochem to a degree.

I would put it in that order. Yes, undergrad courses are only a shadow of what med school courses are like, but think of them as a preview. Having some exposure is beter then none at all.

At my school, those who had never taken Anatomy before had a harder time then those who had. The same with Biochem, just some food for thought!
 
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Take Anatomy, Physiology, and Biochemistry in the same semester while working full-time...that would probably be the best prep.
 
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Anatomy (regret not taking this),
Physiology
Biochemistry (!)
Neuroscience (!)
Genetics (was so good to be seeing the concepts a second time)

Neuroscience probably helped the mostly, surprisingly.

Physics helps with physiology, so try to have a good grasp on the principles. I crushed the lung and heart sections because of it.
 
We covered everything I learned in undergrad biochem in 1 week when I was a 1st years. I guess cell metabolism would help to take?
 
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Medical microbiology.....Really Fun. Got to play in the lab with E.Coli, Pseudomonas, and all the fun pathogens. Plus you learn them over a semester. Probobly only eligible to those in my major, which was biomedical laboratory sciences

Hematology: Very useful, again probobly only for BML majors though....
 
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