Who has taken summer classes?

[AlleyKat]

I just signed up for my first pre-req class a few days ago. I'm absurdly excited for it to start! My question is, could anyone who has taken these condensed summer courses give me some advice on what to expect? I havn't taken a science class since high school (non-trad, B.A. in psych) so I'm a little nervous about jumping into a course that crams a semester's worth of information into 4 weeks. It's General Chem I, it will be meeting M-F from 8-12:30, and is the same class that pre-med, pre-vet students take during a regular semester. I'm hoping to take Chem II the four weeks following that. Am I going to hate my life during these 8 weeks? lol. I know time management will be super important but beyond that I'm basically clueless as to what to expect and if I will be incredibly overwhelmed by getting started this way

Thanks!

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[LivestockDoc]

I'm in the same boat (except this isn't my first pre-req). I'll be taking Organic this summer. A full year of O Chem plus labs in 8 weeks. Terrifying! But the professor only teaches in summer, and has very high marks on the student eval's, so I'm keeping my fingers crossed.

Good luck to you! It's definitely do-able. I think it depends on the quality of instruction, and how much time you have outside of class to study.

 

[StayingHopeful]

I took both Physics and Organic Chem over summers, and while it was no fun, it made it so that I wouldn't have to double up on sciences, leaving time for me to work too (and get hours). I would say that what you can expect depends on the school, because I took Physics at a big state school in CA, and Organic at my undergrad school in GA, and the workload was very different. Both were doable, but I know Organic Chem made it very very hard to do anything else. I think that the summer courses I took were 6 weeks per semester, but with 4 weeks you will probably have an exam a week. Just be ready for a very intense few weeks, but I think it was easier to focus on it since that was all I really did for those few weeks. I did better in the courses that I probably would have during the year with a lot of other things going on, but it was TOUGH. Just my experience.

 

[tpad40]

I took Orgo and Orgo Lab last summer in a short intensive program and I *loved* it. It really helped that I had an amazing teacher, bnut the intesnity of the course really suited me! And I HATED Orgo my first attempt!

Basically I ate/slept/breathed orgo for 8 weeks. I was also trying to balance working Fri/Sat overnights and 8 hour shift Sunday PM. Then going to class basically 8-4 M-F while also trying to keep up with a long-distance job, horses, etc. Needless to say it was an extremely busy summer!

The intensity of it made it really hard to fall behind, if that makes sense. I never missed class (except for being late the occaisional Monday when I just could not physically transition from overnight mode to 8 am!). I tried to review what we'd gone over that day at night and I would make flash cards. Then the next day would build right on that! In normal semester you might have 4 days between lectures (my Orgo only met Tue/Thurs) so the material is not alwasy as fresh!

I hope you have a good experience, good luck!

 

[1CellNtheSea]

I took summer courses every summer I was in undergrad. It really helped to alleviate the intensity of taking tons of hard science classes at once or allows you to focus on "more important" classes. I got some of my pre-reqs like history and english out of the way so I could concentrate on my chems. I also took physics one summer so I would have time to cram in all the misc schools' pre-reqs. Summer courses are definitely do-able and total time-savers but you have to stay on top of things. The pace is obviously very fast but don't let the idea of that scare you. Plenty of people do it all the time. You obviously have the drive to do well so I'm sure you will!

 

[gone2dogs]

I took biochem as a 4 week class last summer. I would say it actually wasn't that intense, and maybe even disappointing in its lack of rigor. With that said, there is probably much less variability in what should be in a chem I course, so you are probably looking at a ton of work, but doable!

This summer I will be taking a number of online courses... histology, genetics, and maybe cell bio. 2 of them are self paced and one is on a schedule, so hopefully I'll be able to fit it all in along with lots of vet experience!

 

[Caninerepro]

Livestockdoc you will be glad you took o chem during the summer, he is much better. Wow, this will be the first time in 3 years I haven't taken summer courses! Cool. Summer classes are the way to go, you can take a few classes, focus on them and get them out of the way. Just don't overload yourself, maybe one hard and an easy or two at a time, or 2 hard and nothing else,. Say goodbye to your summer though!

 

[sunnex3]

yup, i'm taking physics + lab this summer too! (just the first half though) i don't think i could stand taking classes the entire summer. plus i have to balance a full time job at the same time though, in addition to spending time with my wonderful family

however, i am a little wary about taking a course like physics, which was terrible for me in high school and which i haven't taken since, in a matter of 4 weeks! there's probably going to be an exam every week!

 

[david594]

I've done a handful of summer class and generally been pretty pleased with the pace of them. You do move pretty quick through the material, but if its the only course your taking it also makes it fairly easy to focus on the material. I also think its a huge plus scheduling wise when you can get a whole series out of the way during a summer.

So I guess if its practical for you to take some summer courses I highly highly recommend it. I also think its worth looking into any courses offered during a winter term if your school offers them. I was able to get stats out of the way during the month of my winter break which was really nice and was prepared to do the same for communication if I hadn't gotten into OSU.

 

[canis13]

i'll be doing physics + lab for 9 weeks this summer to fulfill the physics requirement. definitely not looking forward to the 20 hours a week of physics (especially b/c i'm not a math person and did NOT enjoy calculus this past fall), but i gotta do it, otherwise it'll just be another pre-req that i'll have to do after graduation. will probably end up taking o-chem the summer after i graduate (next summer) as well.

 

[sunnex3]

would it be OK for me to take physics I this summer and II next summer? i'm just worried i might forget some material, but i don't know if anything from physics I carries over into II. at least in chemistry, there's isn't much overlap. i'm just asking because i'm taking I this summer and want to wait to take II till next summer so my whole summer isn't completely taken over by physics...

 

[twelvetigers]

They're pretty damn different (mechanics in physics I, circuits and electrical stuff in physics II) so I think you would probably fine taking them a bit apart. The only similarity I experienced was test format and memorizing formulas, but that may not even be true for you - different teachers can test in very different ways.

Anyway, double check that your physics I and II are divided in a similar manner. If so, I wouldn't worry about having them a year apart.

 

[ZooNose]

AlleyKat - Since you havn't taken science classes in awhile, the condensed summer session might be really good for you. Yes, sitting in class for that long will be tiring, and you will definitely have lots of problems to do every night for homework (if your class was anything like mine ...). But you will be able to fully immerse yourself in the subject without other classes competing for your time, and if you aren't going to have an afternoon job, you can spend that time really learning the material thoroughly. In the long run, this immersion will probably make the material easier to learn. Good luck!!

 

[absvet]

I agree - I took gen chem a few summers ago and it worked really well for me. It was longer, maybe 12 weeks, but it was so nice to take one class at a time and not have to focus on too many other academic things. I read somewhere that some professional schools don't like you to have TOO many summer courses though, because they are often easier, as the prof simply CAN'T squeeze in as much work as they would during a whole year.

 

[david594]

I agree - I took gen chem a few summers ago and it worked really well for me. It was longer, maybe 12 weeks, but it was so nice to take one class at a time and not have to focus on too many other academic things. I read somewhere that some professional schools don't like you to have TOO many summer courses though, because they are often easier, as the prof simply CAN'T squeeze in as much work as they would during a whole year.

The aversion to summer classes is not that the faculty cant "squeeze in as much work" but more that it allows a student to really spread out their work load thus not really demonstrating their ability to excel under a very heavy course load.

Getting an A in orgo during the summer when you are taking no others classes is less impressive than getting an A in orgo when you also have to balance its work with Bio, Genetics, and Microbio.

One wants to demonstrate their ability to succeed under a heavy course load in order to show that they will be able to handle the course load during veterinary school.

 

[AlleyKat]

Thanks for all the advice everyone!

Zoonose- I liked the point you made about these condensed summer classes actually being a better way to get back into the swing of these science courses, since I'll only be taking one at a time. Hopefully that will make me feel more prepared for a full schedule in the fall. I feel less nervous now!

David, I had completely forgotten about winter break courses until you mentioned it. I think i will try to do that, since it looks like I may end up having to take another English class depending on where I apply...I'll definitely want to get that out of the way as FAST as possible


I dont anticipate having that much going on other than a PT job in the afternoons, so I guess i'll just eat,sleep, breath Chemistry for 8 weeks. Strangely, I'm still ridiculously excited

 

[turnbackhelly]

Alley Kay, your situation sounds exactly like mine a year ago. I also have a BA in Psych, and I began the long road of prereqs last summer - starting with Gen Chem! I took 5 weeks of Gen Chem I, immediately followed by 5 weeks of Gen Chem II. I hadn't taken any "hard" science since high school (5 years ago), and at first the thought of 10 weeks of chemistry was daunting, but it went by REALLY quickly, I definitely learned the material well, and I even enjoyed it. I was also working 20 hrs/wk at the time. As many others have said, taking one summer course at a time gives you the chance to focus all of your time and energy on one thing. At the school where I'm currently doing my prereqs, summer professors say "One day of summer classes equals one week of classes during a regular semester." I found this to be true for the most part, at least at my institution, just to put things into perspective. As long as you go to class every day and stay on top of everything, you should be fine!