Your thoughts on community college

[ofheranatomy]

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I am seriously considering pursuing a pre-med path. I go to community college right now because it's cheaper and I was wondering what everyone's thoughts were on taking my classes here vs. a 4 year. My school offers all of them (organic chemistry, biology, physics, etc) but I'm worried that the grades I receive here won't look as good. Please let me know your thoughts on this.

 

[spicedmanna]

I am seriously considering pursuing a pre-med path. I go to community college right now because it's cheaper and I was wondering what everyone's thoughts were on taking my classes here vs. a 4 year. My school offers all of them (organic chemistry, biology, physics, etc) but I'm worried that the grades I receive here won't look as good. Please let me know your thoughts on this.

The jury is still out on that one. There is mixed opinions about the perception of CC grades. Here's what I think: if CC is your ONLY option, then I guess you don't have any choice; run with it and do your best what you have in front of you. However, if there is a way to transfer into a 4-year university, I'd highly recommend doing that, even if you have to borrow money. Your 4-year state university should suffice, which should help reduce your cost of attendence. If you are going to go that route, then I'd recommend taking the bulk of your premedical prerequisites at the 4-year institution.

 

[gman33]

If possible, I'd try to go to a 4 year school soon. Some will say it doesn't matter, but it certainly will only improve your application by completing the bulk of your coursework at a 4 year school. Even if it costs you another $20k, that's nothing compared to the $200k+ you will spend on med school.

 

[DownstateMD]

The University of Illinois at Chicago doesn't mind,
http://www.uic.edu/depts/mcam/admissions/prereqs.shtml

 

[tm96]

From my experience with community college and the 4 years university are these:
1) Class size are much smaller at community college
2) You have more one on one time with the instructor
At 4 years university:
1) Big lecture hall class
I feel that I'd be better prepare for the MCAT with the prerequisite courses at the community college than at the university. Just my opinion.

 

[J ROD]

When I went back to school to complete my prereqs (I have two previous degrees), I had to pay out of pocket so I went to the CC to get the credits. Plus, they offered more classes at night.

From my experience and what I advise others below me, I say go to the CC for the first two years to save money and get a solid foundation with personal attention. I had around 25 in most classes and only 10-15 in Organic. I got to know my professors and they taught I think very well. Now granted, the CC I went to has a very good reputation among our professional schools. Then, back it up when you finish getting your four year degree. You have to maintain or increase your GPA here. Most important!!!

Personally, I made all A's in the prereqs and decided to do pharm school first before heading to med school. I have a 3.94 in pharm school. I think I proved my case.

Lastly, of course, you need to have a competitive MCAT score. I am still working on that one in between pharm semesters.

This should clear up any thoughts about you are trying to take "easier" classes.

 

[JShineDoc]

I didnt read any of the above posts but I'll put my two cents in. I went to a cc and have now been accepted to several medschools. One important thing... dont take any of the hard sciences at a cc, wait til you get to a university. Get the english, humanities, and random electives done at cc. I'd contact a admissions counselor at a school you may be interested in and ask which courses you should put off til uni.

 

[otldoc]

I took Bio I & II, G-Chem I & II, Trig & Pre-Cal, Eng Comp I & II, Sociology, Psychology, and etc at a CC and transfered to 4year UG took Orgo I & II,Physics I&II, Calc I,II, & III, Analytical Chem, Genetics, Biochem I&II, P-Chem, Honors Research, Cell Bio, Molecular Bio, ...
And will be attending a Med school near my home in Aug.
Maintain ~ >3.6 gpa and make sure you can get all the credit transfer to the UG from CC and you'll be fine.

I have to say I'd enjoyed studying at the CC for the smaller class, professor student interaction.

Good Luck!

 

[Monkeyguts]

I One important thing... dont take any of the hard sciences at a cc, wait til you get to a university. G

Garbage, I took plenty of my hard science courses at a CC and will be an MD in 5 months. I was accepted to plenty of medschools and I don't think my community college experience vs. four year university experience came up once let alone questioning why I took General Chemistry and Biology at a community college.

Just do your best wherever you go and don't worry about what the adcoms will think. Don't rush to spend a bunch of extra money on your education because "it's a drop in the bucket" compared to medschool debt. That excuse comes up a lot and in the end can cost a considerable amount.

 

[ArchiMed]

When I decided to go back to school I signed up at a community college to take classes...A couple of people mentioned that I might want to make sure that schools don't look down on taking classes at a CC, so I called the universities I was interested in attending for med school and lo and behold they all said (4 schools) that while it is possible to get in after taking pre-reqs at a cc, they are weighed differently then taking the courses at a university. If it comes down to two students with the same gpa, e.c.s, mcat they will pick the student from the university....I immediately dropped the classes and signed up for a post-bacc program at a university....why make an already difficult process even more difficult (that was my thinking at least)
....moral of the story: call the admissions offices at the schools you are interested in and ask them, they will give you the best advice

good luck!

 

[UMMS FMD]

I went back and did my prereqs 8 years after graduating from college and am graduating from med school this May from a top 10 medical school. Due to finances and my ability to get the classes I needed, I ended up attending a local CC. I know there are some schools out there with an anti-CC bias but I think the "quality" of your grade will be reflected in your MCAT score. If you grasped the material and achieved a good mark on the MCAT, does it matter where you learned it? You've obviously mastered the subject matter.

I don't say this to brag, only to give an example that I don't think it matters where you learn the material as long as you learn it. If you go to a 4 year school but classes are so impacted you can't get in, it doesn't help you achieve your goal.

Hope that helps!

 

[PB2464]

I took Gen Chem and Bio at a CC approx 10 years ago. I'm now retaking the "expired" pre-reqs at a 4 yr university.
I chose to retake the courses since it's been so long, to help prepare for the MCAT, and because I originally took them at a CC.
Let's just say I'm learning more this time around. I'm not sure if it's because the classes are more challenging now or if I'm just a better student.
Anyway, due what is most convenient for you.

 

[prettyslick]

I took Gen Chem and Bio at a CC approx 10 years ago. I'm now retaking the "expired" pre-reqs at a 4 yr university.
I chose to retake the courses since it's been so long, to help prepare for the MCAT, and because I originally took them at a CC.
Let's just say I'm learning more this time around. I'm not sure if it's because the classes are more challenging now or if I'm just a better student.
Anyway, due what is most convenient for you.

"expired" ?? how long are pre reqs valid for??

 

[hermit]

"expired" ?? how long are pre reqs valid for??

Depends on the school.

 

[digitlnoize]

I am seriously considering pursuing a pre-med path. I go to community college right now because it's cheaper and I was wondering what everyone's thoughts were on taking my classes here vs. a 4 year. My school offers all of them (organic chemistry, biology, physics, etc) but I'm worried that the grades I receive here won't look as good. Please let me know your thoughts on this.

Ok. Here's my thoughts on CC's. I went to a CC and got my A.S. degree before transferring to a 4 year. While I don't feel that any med school has applied to has looked down on my coursework at CC...let me digress here for a moment:

I took Bio I, II and Gen Chem I, II at CC. Also my other gen ed requirements. Most med schools will not look down on CC grades AS LONG as your grades DO NOT drop when you transfer to a 4 year (most people's do!).

Ok. That said and done, there are larger problems with CC's than med school. #1: While I had some good teachers, the quality of teachers at CC is lower. There are good ones, but generally speaking...not as good.

#2: This is my biggest problem: Transfering sucks. I've had to fight tooth and nail with my school to get my classes to count for anything. Be prepared to have to retake things anyway. Advisors on a whole really suck at both colleges and know little about transfering. Don't trust them or the things they say. Get everything in writing. EVERYTHING. Check with their superiors. I had two advisors tell me that I didn't need to retake certain classes only to find out in my LAST semester that I did or I wouldn't graduate. I only found this out by doing lots of leg work MYSELF and going WAY over their heads while doing my graduation paperwork.

#3: I don't feel like CC's provide a student with the proper "atmosphere". I'm not talking about clubs, and crap. I'm talking about the feeling that you're in school, on your way, making it happen, gettin' 'er done...whatever you wanna call it. I feel that universities are much better at making students successful. The path to a degree is simpler, straighter, and you'll have to take less credits and deal with less BS in the end.

This has just been my experience. CC certainly is cheaper. However, the Fin Aid departments (at least at my CC, suck). I have paid less at my 4 year than I ever pain at CC thanks to grants and scholarships. Some people like it fine. I did fine at my CC and it hasn't really HURT me...

It's just been a pain in the butt. Just my 2 cents.

 

[Nasem]

this has been a topic of interest for me...

I am almost done with all my chemistry pre-reqs (doing them at MSU), however, I have heard some HORROR stories of the professors teaching biology in my school..... one of the professors (by the way, this quote was taken directly from a TA of this professor): "not everyone is cut to make it into medical school or biology, my job is to MAKE sure I weed out those who feel like they have a chance"

to me, this sounds like a trap, this professor doesn't care about your success, he just wants to "week folks out", I know some people are thinking he is doing the right thing by weeding out, but honestly, its soooo discouraging to be in a class where the professors main mission is to push people off the track....I talked to a few 3.6+ GPA-students who normally get nothing below 3.5, said they had to study 3-4 hrs EVERY day just to squeeze by a 3.0 in this class....

I am seriously thinking of taking my biology I and II at a CC or a different university, my undergrad GPA is low as-is and I can't afford anything less than a 3.5 in my post-bacc

 

[digitlnoize]

I am seriously thinking of taking my biology I and II at a CC or a different university, my undergrad GPA is low as-is and I can't afford anything less than a 3.5 in my post-bacc

There are similar teachers at my 4 year school. Here's the problem:

If your school has an attached medical school (and even if it doesn't) these teachers' classes are often known as the "weed out" classes. Now, teachers don't show up on your transcripts so if it's something like Gen Bio where there are a billion different teachers, then just take it from someone else (www.ratemyprofessor.com). That being said, a LOR from this person would likely go farther at med schools in the area.

It is usually not advised to take classes at CC AFTER you have started at your 4 year. This makes it seem like you were looking for an easy out, which is usually the case. It's a little different if you start at CC for financial reasons.

I purposefully took Orgo from the "hard teacher" (she used to on the adcom at my university's med school). I worked REALLY hard and got an A in both semesters...and a LOR from her. I also TA'd for her the next year.

One final point (this is important):

I promise, every class in med school will be WAAAAY harder than this Bio class you want to avoid. Don't be afraid of some hard work.

 

[prettyslick]

Depends on the school.

Well, most schools take pre-reqs up till how many years?

 

[Nasem]

digitlnoize ~
I totally agree with you, Takine the course at my university is more sound, however, since I finished all my chemistries (general and orgos) and did/doing really well in them(@ my university), I figured I might be able to get away with 2 courses at CC..... esspecially since my universities biology offering ALWAYS conflict with my job (I mean, im pretty sure I can work something out with my boss to accomodate a flexible schedule, but it is a pretty good execuse lol)

Anyways, I dunno, whatever I decide on, it will take place during the summer, oh geez, a 7 week course in biology is going to = murder (CC or university)

 

[digitlnoize]

Anyways, I dunno, whatever I decide on, it will take place during the summer, oh geez, a 7 week course in biology is going to = murder (CC or university)

I should also mention that I took 2 semesters of General Bio at CC in one summer. It was alot of info in a VERY short amount of time. The teacher for my 1st semester was very good and kicked our butts. 2nd semester...not so much.

No one has said a word about it at my interviews. And, I agree that having other classes at your 4 year that are good help. It won't hurt you but so much anyways...but with the way competitive admissions are...every bit helps!

Make TRIPLE sure that the class at CC will transfer as the correct biology class at your 4 year. GET IT IN WRITING. Both from your advisor (preferable more than one, and the head of the biology departent) and from the University directly. Most schools have some type of "Transfer Guide" online where they show the course numbers. Save anything you have that says, "This CC Course transfers as This Univ. Course."
Can you tell this has been a pain in my a$$?

 

[Nasem]

Can you tell this has been a pain in my a$$?

lmao, Yes I can

and thank you for the heads up... here is what I found

http://www.lcc.edu/~admiss/general/incoming_credits/msu.htm

If you notice, LCC and MSU are like 15 minutes away from each other, at MSU, the class name is BS110, at LCC it is BIOL 128

so I think, based on this list, I should be OK, if not, LCC can kiss my butt, i'll have no choice but to take it at MSU

 

[Blade28]

One final point (this is important):

I promise, every class in med school will be WAAAAY harder than this Bio class you want to avoid. Don't be afraid of some hard work.

👍 👍 So true.

 

[Nasem]

Make TRIPLE sure that the class at CC will transfer as the correct biology class at your 4 year. GET IT IN WRITING. Both from your advisor (preferable more than one, and the head of the biology departent) and from the University directly. Most schools have some type of "Transfer Guide" online where they show the course numbers. Save anything you have that says, "This CC Course transfers as This Univ. Course."

digitlnoize,
you got me thinking about this...
are you saying that a course taken at a CC MUST transfer to the medical school you are applying to? or only to the current undergrad university?

I mean, why is it important to have it carry over to your undergrad university? does AACOMAS require you to have the CC credits transfered to a 4-year university before submitting the application?

Another question: When you fill out the AACOMAS application, do you treat your CC just like any other university....example, In my case, I have attending 2 universities so far (university of detroit mercy & MSU), obviously I'll be listing both of them with what courses I took blah blah blah..... but do you treat a CC just like you would a university?

 

[digitlnoize]

digitlnoize,
you got me thinking about this...
are you saying that a course taken at a CC MUST transfer to the medical school you are applying to? or only to the current undergrad university?

I mean, why is it important to have it carry over to your undergrad university? does AACOMAS require you to have the CC credits transfered to a 4-year university before submitting the application?

Another question: When you fill out the AACOMAS application, do you treat your CC just like any other university....example, In my case, I have attending 2 universities so far (university of detroit mercy & MSU), obviously I'll be listing both of them with what courses I took blah blah blah..... but do you treat a CC just like you would a university?

A course taken at a CC must transfer to your undergrad institution, IF you want it to count towards your degree there. If it's just for med school pre-reqs, (say you're an English major) then make certain the med schools you are interested in will count this class as Bio I and II and you don't have to transfer it.

If it transfers to your University as Bio I and II then all med schools will accept it too (although they might think slightly odd things).

The problem arises when the University has multiple Bio classes. At mine, we have General Biology (for non-Bio majors) and "Real Bio" (I don't remember the actual name) for Bio majors. You wanna take "real bio".

The app services require you to list ALL courses attempted at ALL institutions. Seperately. So, yes, you would list your CC courses as another institution on your app.

 

[jlittlej]

I've said it many times before. I've taken courses at Stanford, Berkeley, mid-range public and mid-range private universities and community colleges. Common threads:

Private schools: Good teachers, small classes, serious grade inflation.
Public schools: Big classes, mediocre teachers with lots of TAs, harsh curves.
Community colleges: Good teachers (save Physics I), small classes, harsh curves but with easier competition.

I know there are serious exceptions to the notion that private schools all have grade inflation - maybe Swarthmore, U of Chicago, others. Related - I worked in my school's law school admissions office while in undergrad. They pay lip service to taking institutional grade inflation and difficulty into account just like they say they consider the difficulty of an undergraduate curriculum (for instance, an engineering major) in admission decisions. But said considerations in no way make up for the actual differences, IMHO. If I was 18 again and knew I wanted to go to med school, I would take an academic scholarship to a decent private college in a good climate rather than trying to pull off mostly As in a very hard pre-med courseload at a school like Berkeley. Whether this is an attitude and too easy preparation for med school that would come back to haunt me in med school is something I could worry about in med school...

 

[digitlnoize]

I agree that the quality of teachers varies widely. I haven't been very happy with most of my profs at either CC or university. While there have been a few great ones...those few really make you realize how HORRIBLE the crappy ones are.

 

[hollywoodfl]

I agree that the quality of teachers varies widely. I haven't been very happy with most of my profs at either CC or university. While there have been a few great ones...those few really make you realize how HORRIBLE the crappy ones are.

Like you say, this seems to be the case at both universities and junior colleges. It can be very frustrating to try to discover who the good profs are when you are not full time and not communicating regularly with other students.

 

[digitlnoize]

True that. That's why I: a) make friends. Even just a few. They know people, who know people... and b) use RATEMYPROFESSOR.COM...it's spectacular.

 

[hollywoodfl]

True that. That's why I: a) make friends. Even just a few. They know people, who know people... and b) use RATEMYPROFESSOR.COM...it's spectacular.

thanks for the website heads up - I needed it.

 

[jlittlej]

Ratemyprofessor.com is a great resource. After I found about it last fall, I looked up all (maybe 20) of the 35 professors I could remember and found the vast majority of their reviews to be fair. Hard professors who taught well got a near-five (of five) average for teaching even if they received a two for difficulty. Easy teachers who might give out a lot of As but lead classes the provide poor MCAT or PCAT or DAT or whatever prep get labeled as such.

 

[spazzz]

make sure you learn the stuff at CC. from my experience it's a lot easier to get an A and learn nothing there than at a regular university

 

[Nasem]

ya know, this is what I don't agree with this...

Learning is the responsibility of the student, it has nothing to do with what the professor provides...

the professor has 1 primary objective and that is to "lead" you to learning a subject, yes I do agree that some prfessors are "good" (students can underestand thier english) and some professors are "bad" (you just don't know what theyr saying, why theyr saying it, just makes you wanna sleep)..... but the learning process is the students responsibility.

If you took an "easy" organic professor, good for you, thats a "easy" 4.0 which, I dunno about you guys, but I would MUCH rather take a 4.0 in orgo than a 3.0 with a "hard" professors..... I'll take the MCAT some time later and self-learn the stuff my "easy" professor missed....

The way I think of this is (and some will not agree with me), high GPAs (if it was an art major or a nuclear engineering major) will give you an easier time getting into med school..... not "halfway decent GPAs with hard professors"

The GPA vs MCAT are 2 COMPLETELY different battles, don't fight them both at the same time, meaning, don't go around looking for a "hard" professor so he/she can prepare you for the MCAT with the end result of you not getting that precious 4.0 or 3.5

One final think, I've had over 150+ credits of college work (undergrad + postbacc), I have NEVER had an "easy" professor that was actually crappy..... Meaning, the professor teaches you everthing you need to know in regards to the course (physics, math, chemistry, blah blah blah), but the MAIN difference I notice between a hard vs. easy professors are the exams..... the easy professors make exams "easy" and the hard professors make exams hard as hell, to the point where the highest grade out of 30 students is like a 55 or 60%, yes that was my physcis professor, the guy was a feaking genious (got his PhD in physics at the age of 20 or 21, he was nuts, and so were his exams).....but at the end of the course, I managed a B (which I know was curved, cause there is no way my 30s and 40s% got me to an average of 85%)

 

[digitlnoize]

ya know, this is what I don't agree with this...

Learning is the responsibility of the student, it has nothing to do with what the professor provides...

the professor has 1 primary objective and that is to "lead" you to learning a subject, yes I do agree that some prfessors are "good" (students can underestand thier english) and some professors are "bad" (you just don't know what theyr saying, why theyr saying it, just makes you wanna sleep)..... but the learning process is the students responsibility.

If you took an "easy" organic professor, good for you, thats a "easy" 4.0 which, I dunno about you guys, but I would MUCH rather take a 4.0 in orgo than a 3.0 with a "hard" professors..... I'll take the MCAT some time later and self-learn the stuff my "easy" professor missed....

The way I think of this is (and some will not agree with me), high GPAs (if it was an art major or a nuclear engineering major) will give you an easier time getting into med school..... not "halfway decent GPAs with hard professors"

The GPA vs MCAT are 2 COMPLETELY different battles, don't fight them both at the same time, meaning, don't go around looking for a "hard" professor so he/she can prepare you for the MCAT with the end result of you not getting that precious 4.0 or 3.5

One final think, I've had over 150+ credits of college work (undergrad + postbacc), I have NEVER had an "easy" professor that was actually crappy..... Meaning, the professor teaches you everthing you need to know in regards to the course (physics, math, chemistry, blah blah blah), but the MAIN difference I notice between a hard vs. easy professors are the exams..... the easy professors make exams "easy" and the hard professors make exams hard as hell, to the point where the highest grade out of 30 students is like a 55 or 60%, yes that was my physcis professor, the guy was a feaking genious (got his PhD in physics at the age of 20 or 21, he was nuts, and so were his exams).....but at the end of the course, I managed a B (which I know was curved, cause there is no way my 30s and 40s% got me to an average of 85%)

I really don't like to seperate my professors by "hard" or "easy". I prefer the terms "good" and "bad". I've had many easy courses (Genetics comes to mind) that were taught REALLY poorly. On the other hand, my Orgo class was very hard but was taught well.

I agree that a profs job is to lead the students through the material but who would you rather have leading you:

1. A deaf, dumb, and blind sherpa with one leg and no arms...

or

2. A Special Ops Soldier with GPS and Satellite Communications.

I really feel like many of my teachers have been #1. That, to me, makes the class infinitely harder. If a teacher is truly good at leading your through the material, and IF you study well, then it doesn't really matter how hard the tests are...you ace 'em anyway, because you were given the tools to do that.

The worst combination is a "hard" teacher who cannot teach. I had one last semester for my "Plant" class. She insisted on teaching us basic concepts in a random manner using advanced research examples only. And, she couldn't speak English. I still have nightmares. Very hard class. MUCH harder than if I'd had a teacher that wasn't ADD.

My philosophy has been to find out who the good teachers are, and not shy away from a fight. In most cases, I'll take the good teacher who is harder over the horrible teacher that is considered easy. That being said, sometimes easy is just THE way to go...

One more thing: My "Hard" orgo teacher was doing research for a book she is working on that uses PBL in Orgo. Her data at my school found that her class (which is considered "brutal") has the highest class average grade, AND the highest retention rate (as measured by a non-graded test given at the beginning of Orgo II), AND the highest average on the ACS exam. Now who's the best teacher. 🙂

To attempt to stay on topic: At CC you have a much more limited choice. There were 2 bio profs at mine, one for each semester. The first semester prof was pretty tough (Learn the FULL Krebs cycle, in detail). The second semester was a joke (the intestines are in the "gut"...not kidding). Never since have I had such a difference between 2 teachers. I had to work my butt off in one semester, then sleep through the second. My CC Gen Chem teachers were both pretty good. My CC History teacher: Awesome. Best history teacher ever. He'd just tell the stories. From memory. It was like sitting around the campfire or something

 

[hollywoodfl]

Learning is the responsibility of the student, it has nothing to do with what the professor provides...

the professor has 1 primary objective and that is to "lead" you to learning a subject, yes I do agree that some prfessors are "good" (students can underestand thier english) and some professors are "bad" (you just don't know what theyr saying, why theyr saying it, just makes you wanna sleep)..... but the learning process is the students responsibility.

Agreed - There is a burden on both the profs and the students. I went to a school where very few people got A's and now that is biting me in the rear end to some degree. I believe only two students have gotten 4.0's in the last 25 years at my alma mater. I learned a whole lot there, but I did poorly GPA-wise. Some of that was my fault and some of that was the culture of the school. I loved almost all the profs I had there. Since then, I have encountered a wide range of teaching ability.

I have had profs that barely teach anything or get annoyed when questions are asked. That puts a greater burden on the students who are learning. I would put them in the bad prof category. The worst profs are the ones who are dumb and who try to make up for their poor skills by having ridiculously difficult tests.

The best ones are the smart ones who encourage discussion, push beyond the text and have dynamic exams that truly test students' knowledge.

I particularly like it when profs have very difficult exams that they give a study guide to ahead of time, where the study guide has many many questions, that if you know all them, you will get an A. In that environment, the study guides have always crystallized the course content for me.

 

[hollywoodfl]

One more thing: My "Hard" orgo teacher was doing research for a book she is working on that uses PBL in Orgo. Her data at my school found that her class (which is considered "brutal") has the highest class average grade, AND the highest retention rate (as measured by a non-graded test given at the beginning of Orgo II), AND the highest average on the ACS exam. Now who's the best teacher. 🙂

I love teachers like that.

 

[MtnGntx]

I picked up a few pre-reqs at a CC... I would have to argue that everything really depends on the school you are attending. In the lon run, the CC where I took classes had a better Med School placement record than the State University up the street... particularly with respect to biology majors. I hand picked the courses I took at this CC so as to maximize my educational experience... great teachers, small class size, etc. The fact that I took these pre-reqs at a CC never came up in interviews.

 

[SgtDoc]

I have taken a lot of courses at my local CCs, online, and wherever I could. being active duty military meant I worked 11 hours a day and went to class at night. Now that I am at a 4 year school, I think I was actually getting a better education at my CCs. Smaller classes for one thing. Plus a lot of my CC instructors worked taught at 4 year schools (UCSD,USD) so we were getting the same education for much less. Hopefully it all works out, I guess I'll find out this summer when I take the MCATs!

 

[MaximusD]

There are similar teachers at my 4 year school. Here's the problem:

If your school has an attached medical school (and even if it doesn't) these teachers' classes are often known as the "weed out" classes. Now, teachers don't show up on your transcripts so if it's something like Gen Bio where there are a billion different teachers, then just take it from someone else (www.ratemyprofessor.com). That being said, a LOR from this person would likely go farther at med schools in the area.

It is usually not advised to take classes at CC AFTER you have started at your 4 year. This makes it seem like you were looking for an easy out, which is usually the case. It's a little different if you start at CC for financial reasons.

I purposefully took Orgo from the "hard teacher" (she used to on the adcom at my university's med school). I worked REALLY hard and got an A in both semesters...and a LOR from her. I also TA'd for her the next year.

One final point (this is important):

I promise, every class in med school will be WAAAAY harder than this Bio class you want to avoid. Don't be afraid of some hard work.

I disagree. Medical school classes aren't very hard. Lots of time and memorization, but not conceptually difficult for the most part. There are a few exceptions, but definitely not the rule.

It's when I spend that valuable time on SDN that the grades suffer 🙁