codliveroil said:
My guesses are as follows,
PS: Inorganic Chemistry OR Physical Chemistry.
I know it's just a guess, but I have to say, no effing way. I have taken both of these, and they couldn't have less to do with the MCAT. My courses in astronomy had more to do with the MCAT than either of these, since there was a VR passage about astronomy.
A lot of people mistakenly equate inorganic chem with general chem. there are totally different. Inorganic chem is a lot of specialized mathematics for symmetry, obscure spectra techniques, and quantum mechanics. Way beyond the scope of the PS.
Likewise for P-chem. Lots of differential equations, thermodynamics, and quantum mechanics. Not even close to relevant.
If there were one advanced course that I think had a lot to offer in terms of the PS section, I'd say it was fluid mechanics. But if you're philosophy major, you probably wouldn't even be likely to take the prereqs. Instead, i would just say that you should try to get the most you can out of gen chem and physics--particularly in the lab. Don't just half-ass the labs and try to get a good grade solely, but instead try to focus on understanding the experimental designs, the analytical techniques, and the principles behind interpretting the data. Having a solid ability to relate scientific principle to experimental design/results is probably the most important part of the MCAT after reading comprehension.
Also, a lot of people make the mistake of blowing off the VR section because it's easy. In fact, the easiness only works against you, since it makes the curve far more competitive than the PS--single mistakes make much bigger differences on the VR. The MCAT is not an obstacle--your peers are the obstacle and the MCAT is the trial. Your raw score means nothing; only your acheivement relative to other test takers matters.
