What classes should I *NOT* take together?

[Zazetsumei]

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I'm in an interesting position were I'm done with my first year of college and the only prereq I have is Chem 1 and Bio 1. I was really misguided about the ideal timeline of PreMed (e.g. when to take the MCAT, when to apply, etc)🙁. So I'm having to cram lots of prereq's into the next year or year and a half. I've pretty much resigned to the idea that I will have to take a gap year.

My question is:

Over this next year and a half, which classes should I avoid taking in the same semester?

I need:
Orgo 1 & 2
Phys 1 & 2
Chem 2
Bio 2
Biochem
And some advanced bio courses.

Thank you everybody for your time and help!!

 

[235788]

I found physics and gen chem the hardest of the pre-reqs (ochem was over-hyped IMO), so I was happy to no have taken them together. I would have been f'ed if I did.

 

[Ismet]

I took Physics and Gen Chem together and then Bio and Ochem together. I'm more of a math-oriented person so the phys/gen chem together wasn't bad, but if you're more of a bio person, it might be hell. You're already going to have the summer break between your semesters of gen chem and bio, so you should definitely do Gen Chem 2 and Bio 2 in the Fall. Here's what I suggest if you don't want to take a gap year (just my 2 cents):

Fall 2012: Gen Chem 2 and Bio 2
Spring 2013: Orgo 1 and Physics 1
Fall 2013: Orgo 2 and Physics 2
Spring 2014: Biochem/maybe upper level bio/study for MCAT

I took biochem and an upper level neuro course the semester I was studying for the MCAT. It does take some time management, but I found having biochem fresh in my mind was really helpful on the MCAT. Of course, if you choose to do a gap year (which is perfectly fine and very common) you can space everything out more and wait to take the MCAT. You could also take either Orgo 2 or Physics 2 over Summer 2013 and make an easier junior year.

 

[investing101]

I only have 4 full semesters left in undergrad and have yet to take prereq's. I was thinking of taking

general chemistry
physics
biology

on the same semester how hard will it get?

 

[Ismet]

I only have 4 full semesters left in undergrad and have yet to take prereq's. I was thinking of taking

general chemistry
physics
biology

on the same semester how hard will it get?

It might not be too bad if you have already established excellent study skills and time management. I certainly wouldn't have attempted that. Physics demands a lot of time if you are not familiar with it or aren't comfortable with physics concepts. If you have 4 full semesters, you can easily just double in your prereqs, not triple (aka Gen Chem and Bio one year, Physics and Ochem the next year)

 

[Ashley1989]

I'm thinking about taking ochem, trig based physics and spanish (three quarters for all the classes) next year then studying for the MCAT over the summer and applying the following June. Will ochem and physics together be too hard? I've heard mixed responses

 

[investing101]

It might not be too bad if you have already established excellent study skills and time management. I certainly wouldn't have attempted that. Physics demands a lot of time if you are not familiar with it or aren't comfortable with physics concepts. If you have 4 full semesters, you can easily just double in your prereqs, not triple (aka Gen Chem and Bio one year, Physics and Ochem the next year)

Isn't wise to take these classes before attempting the mcat? If I double up that would mean that I would be taking 2 science classes in the fall of senior year.

 

[Ismet]

Isn't wise to take these classes before attempting the mcat? If I double up that would mean that I would be taking 2 science classes in the fall of senior year.

Yes, you should take these classes before taking the MCAT. When are you planning on taking it? It's really not advisable to load up on 3 pre-reqs - yes you very well might be able to handle them and do well (and I know people who did it and got A's), but you also put yourself at risk of overloading and hurting your sGPA.

 

[Koosalagoosagoo]

I took biology, chemistry, and calculus all together this year and it wasn't that bad. It would get a little rough sometimes since every test fell on the same week or even day. Next fall I will be taking physics and OChem together, something my adviser didn't recommend but o well...

 

[investing101]

I took biology, chemistry, and calculus all together this year and it wasn't that bad. It would get a little rough sometimes since every test fell on the same week or even day. Next fall I will be taking physics and OChem together, something my adviser didn't recommend but o well...

Yeah , I got to triple up if I am to have at least one semester to meet requirements to take the Mcat.

 

[Spjutster]

I don't know about your background, but if you've taken calculus courses (even in high school) and you did well then physics might not be too bad. I took ochem II, physics II, and biochem I all in the same semester. It wasn't too bad. I studied more than I had most other semesters, but wasn't too overwhelmed. The only thing I hated was having three labs that semester because it ate up a lot of time.

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[zeppelinpage4]

Most pre-meds at my school take Bio and Gen Chem together, then they take Physics and Organic together.
Though difficulty can vary a lot school by school, most of us managed taking Organic and Physics simultaneously at my college (it's expected from most pre-meds here). It was definitely hard, and my grades weren't amazing, but we managed to do well overall. Just be prepared to study a lot, and put the time in if you do it.

 

[Jarudy]

Do not take calc, bio and gen chem together, terrible freshman year with athletics.....

 

[911 Turbo]

Most pre-meds at my school take Bio and Gen Chem together, then they take Physics and Organic together.
Though difficulty can vary a lot school by school, most of us managed taking Organic and Physics simultaneously at my college (it's expected from most pre-meds here). It was definitely hard, and my grades weren't amazing, but we managed to do well overall. Just be prepared to study a lot, and put the time in if you do it.

Yep... here too.

 

[1cor1311]

I'm in an interesting position were I'm done with my first year of college and the only prereq I have is Chem 1 and Bio 1. I was really misguided about the ideal timeline of PreMed (e.g. when to take the MCAT, when to apply, etc)🙁. So I'm having to cram lots of prereq's into the next year or year and a half. I've pretty much resigned to the idea that I will have to take a gap year.

My question is:

Over this next year and a half, which classes should I avoid taking in the same semester?

I need:
Orgo 1 & 2
Phys 1 & 2
Chem 2
Bio 2
Biochem
And some advanced bio courses.

Thank you everybody for your time and help!!

Definitely avoid multiple labs!. So many people forget that you have to take labs at the same time for these classes and that will kill your time for studying! Like the rest of the peeps are saying, only 2 of these at a time, + a breadth or + another course with no lab attached. good luck

 

[Koosalagoosagoo]

Do not take calc, bio and gen chem together, terrible freshman year with athletics.....

I did it but I am not an athlete

 

[Quaero]

I wouldn't do biochem and orgo together. You may want to know some orgo before taking biochem. Physics and bio make sense on their own.

 

[At0mic]

Bio and orgo was a good combination for me (it's what most students do at my school as well) and I didn't feel overworked. Take orgo before biochem...I'm taking biochem right now and orgo does come up a lot.

I wouldn't do physics and orgo at the same time. Physics and gen chem, though, are doable. 👍