unsure if two classes i took count towards science gpa?

[orangeblossom]

in my school's curriculum they have the term "Natural Sciences" in the title, but the content matter does not in any way match up with what AMCAS considers the natural sciences:

Natural & Physical
Sciences (NPSC)
 Agriculture
 Animal & Avian
Sciences
 Forestry
 Geography
 Geology
 Horticulture
 Landscape
Architecture
 Meteorology
 Natural Resources
 Oceanography
 Environmental
Science & Polic

The two courses I took were taught by a Chem and Physics professor, and there was a separate lab portion to both courses. Do they count towards my science gpa?

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[mauberley]

in my school's curriculum they have the term "Natural Sciences" in the title, but the content matter does not in any way match up with what AMCAS considers the natural sciences:

Natural & Physical
Sciences (NPSC)
 Agriculture
 Animal & Avian
Sciences
 Forestry
 Geography
 Geology
 Horticulture
 Landscape
Architecture
 Meteorology
 Natural Resources
 Oceanography
 Environmental
Science & Polic

The two courses I took were taught by a Chem and Physics professor, and there was a separate lab portion to both courses. Do they count towards my science gpa?

What's the description of the courses in question?

 

[theseeker4]

in my school's curriculum they have the term "Natural Sciences" in the title, but the content matter does not in any way match up with what AMCAS considers the natural sciences:

Natural & Physical
Sciences (NPSC)
 Agriculture
 Animal & Avian
Sciences
 Forestry
 Geography
 Geology
 Horticulture
 Landscape
Architecture
 Meteorology
 Natural Resources
 Oceanography
 Environmental
Science & Polic

The two courses I took were taught by a Chem and Physics professor, and there was a separate lab portion to both courses. Do they count towards my science gpa?

What are the classes you took? What was their focus? If they primarily focused on biology, chemistry, physics, or math, I would list them as that. If not, you could try to list them as such anyway, but it isn't honest and they could easily reject your claim.

I listed a pharmacology class I took as biology because the majority of it was about anatomy, cell biology and biochemistry, and AMCAS accepted my designation.

 

[orangeblossom]

im looking at the syllabus right now (and before i enter this coursework into my amcas application, i'll of course verify with the prof that the current syllabus is the syllabus i had during college)

the topics covered include:
-the chemistry of carbon
-making macromolecules
-the unusual properties of water
-molecules and ions in solution
-DNA/genetic information
-amino acids
-structure of protein
-enzymes as catalysts, how drugs are designed re: enzymes

The course taught by the physics prof covered astronomy:
-stars, white dwarfs, neutron stars, supernovae, black holes
-structures of the universe (galaxies etc)
-expansion of universe
-big bang theory
-"ordinary" matter, dark matter
-then at the end of the semester we briefly (emphasis) talked about relativity

 

[theseeker4]

im looking at the syllabus right now (and before i enter this coursework into my amcas application, i'll of course verify with the prof that the current syllabus is the syllabus i had during college)

the topics covered include:
-the chemistry of carbon
-making macromolecules
-the unusual properties of water
-molecules and ions in solution
-DNA/genetic information
-amino acids
-structure of protein
-enzymes as catalysts, how drugs are designed re: enzymes

The course taught by the physics prof covered astronomy:
-stars, white dwarfs, neutron stars, supernovae, black holes
-structures of the universe (galaxies etc)
-expansion of universe
-big bang theory
-"ordinary" matter, dark matter
-then at the end of the semester we briefly (emphasis) talked about relativity

First one sounds like you could definitely call it chemistry.
Second one, unless it focused a lot more on physics than you made it sound, would have to be call astronomy, so not in BCPM.

 

[EBTrailRunner]

First one sounds like you could definitely call it chemistry.
Second one, unless it focused a lot more on physics than you made it sound, would have to be call astronomy, so not in BCPM.

Astronomy does fall under BCPM per the AAMC's website.

 

[Cambino]

in my school's curriculum they have the term "Natural Sciences" in the title, but the content matter does not in any way match up with what AMCAS considers the natural sciences:

Natural & Physical
Sciences (NPSC)
 Agriculture
 Animal & Avian
Sciences
 Forestry
 Geography
 Geology
 Horticulture
 Landscape
Architecture
 Meteorology
 Natural Resources
 Oceanography
 Environmental
Science & Polic

The two courses I took were taught by a Chem and Physics professor, and there was a separate lab portion to both courses. Do they count towards my science gpa?

Yes - both are BCPM.

 

[sector9]

im looking at the syllabus right now (and before i enter this coursework into my amcas application, i'll of course verify with the prof that the current syllabus is the syllabus i had during college)

You don't need to do that. The thing that matters is the syllabus from when you took the class.

Did the majority of the class cover BCPM topics? If so, then put it down as BCPM on your application. If AMCAS changes it, then it can be useful to have a copy of the syllabus from when you took the class when you make your rebuttal.

I thought that one of my classes taught through the psychology dept. should be BCPM so that's how I put it down on AMCAS and it wasn't changed.

One caveat is that just because a class includes a topic doesn't mean that you can call it BCPM. It's supposed to be the majority of the course content

 

[theseeker4]

Astronomy does fall under BCPM per the AAMC's website.

Wow, don't know where I got the idea that it wasn't. They both count then

 

[235788]

What are the courses called? It doesn't matter if its science or not subject matter if the course name doesn't match (example: pharmacology doesn't count).

ex: Biol 110 : Biology of Shampoo, etc

 

[IMSingular]

First one sounds like you could definitely call it chemistry.
Second one, unless it focused a lot more on physics than you made it sound, would have to be call astronomy, so not in BCPM.

Well. I will call it astrophysics, and consider that as physics.

 

[dreamweaver1988]

in my school's curriculum they have the term "Natural Sciences" in the title, but the content matter does not in any way match up with what AMCAS considers the natural sciences:

Natural & Physical
Sciences (NPSC)
 Agriculture
 Animal & Avian
Sciences
 Forestry
 Geography
 Geology
 Horticulture
 Landscape
Architecture
 Meteorology
 Natural Resources
 Oceanography
 Environmental
Science & Polic

The two courses I took were taught by a Chem and Physics professor, and there was a separate lab portion to both courses. Do they count towards my science gpa?

IMPORTANT: The topics you listed above are NOT included in your BCPM (science) GPA. Oceanography is not BCPM. Geology is not BCPM. Et cetera.

Natural/Physical Sciences is a category used by AAMC and AMCAS but it is not related to BCPM (although I really which it was; that would be a huge GPA boost).

Now, depending on the actual content of your classes, they might fall into BCPM despite not having the "right" course heading. But just to be clear, geography is not BCPM. Biogeography...maybe, idk...

Check out page 40 of this PDF:

https://www.aamc.org/students/download/131750/data/2012amcasinstructionmanual.pdf

 

[sector9]

IMPORTANT: The topics you listed above are NOT included in your BCPM (science) GPA. Oceanography is not BCPM. Geology is not BCPM. Et cetera.

Isn't that the point of the list? He/She was listing the courses that are part of AMCAS's description of the non-BCPM category "Natural and Physical Sciences"

None of those are BCPM. The point was to say that his courses don't fit into any of those categories despite being in his/her college's Natural Sciences department

 

[Hoya2009]

Do your grades in those courses lift your BCPM GPA?
If yes, list them, if no, don't. Worst case, AMCAS people will change it when they verify your transcript to what they wanted anyway, best case is you get a little grade boost on paper. There isn't a penalty for listing something "wrong"
Also, I mistakenly listed a philosophy course as physics since they are close on the pull down and they let it go (oops). Do what' best for your GPA calculation and hope it goes through.

 

[varsityblue]

im looking at the syllabus right now (and before i enter this coursework into my amcas application, i'll of course verify with the prof that the current syllabus is the syllabus i had during college)

the topics covered include:
-the chemistry of carbon
-making macromolecules
-the unusual properties of water
-molecules and ions in solution
-DNA/genetic information
-amino acids
-structure of protein
-enzymes as catalysts, how drugs are designed re: enzymes

The course taught by the physics prof covered astronomy:
-stars, white dwarfs, neutron stars, supernovae, black holes
-structures of the universe (galaxies etc)
-expansion of universe
-big bang theory
-"ordinary" matter, dark matter
-then at the end of the semester we briefly (emphasis) talked about relativity

In my view, the first one sounds like a chemistry/biochemistry credit and the second sounds like an introductory astronomy course.