amount of science classes a semester?

Pre-Med & Medical School Pre-Med Topics
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<p>As an Astrophysics major I would take four or five upper division Physics and Astronomy classes per semester and had a 3.65 Science GPA. The material was harder than the pre-med courses but except for one Astronomy course, where I had to spend a number of nights in the university observatory, they did not have lab components so there was enough time to get the studying done. The labs for the pre-med courses are huge consumers of time and leave you physically exhausted.</p>

<p>You do not really have to finish all the pre-med courses before you take the MCAT. I took the MCAT before I took any organic chemistry and still got a 31. Even if I had taken organic chemistry before the MCAT I do not think it would have helped me much since I did not learn very much in those courses. I barely got Cs in them but fortunately had already been accepted by MCP-Hahnemann, now Drexel, by the time I took them. I was able to get an A in a graduate course in Solid State Physics but Organic Chemistry was just baffling to me.</p>

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<p>^The problem is that pre-meds barely can afford 3.65 Science GPA/31, They will not give you many choices in terms of Med. Schools acceptances. Many pre-meds feel that they cannot afford these, so most do not take five upper division science classes in the same semester. Also most are taking many upper division science classes beyond pre-med requirements. Those Animal Physiology, Anatomy (some Med. School start requiring this one), cell Bio, genetics, and yes, Orgo are usually very helpful for MCAT and none are walk in a park. And most are taking way beyond those that I have listed. And yes, agree, some labs are cruelling with extremely time consuming reports and they all have separate (from lecture class) exams, which sometime are more difficult than lecture exams. Although pre-meds are aiming at 3.6+/30+, most keep in mind higher numbers. Congrats on acceptances! With this type of load you should be very proud for accomplishing your ultimate goal!</p>

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<p>^ I am a practicing physician now after doing my residency in Nuclear Medicine. It seems that the applicant pool for medical school has become even more self-selected than when I applied to medical school in 1996. That year there were about 50,000 applicants for about 16,000 positions compared to 2010 when there were about 42,000 applicants for over 18,000 positions. While these figures indicate admission to medical school should have become less competitive it actually seems that higher GPAs and MCAT scores are needed to be a viable candidate now than in 1996. The average MCAT score of accepted students at the medical school I went to which is now Drexel was 29 when I applied but the past year it was about 31 and I think this trend is typical of all medical schools, not just Drexel. So you are correct when you say that the numbers that got me accepted in 1996 might not be sufficient to get me accepted if I was applying now. </p>

<p>If I had to take four upper division Biochemistry courses in one semester I doubt that I would even pass them, let alone get a 3.65 Science GPA. More quantitative subjects like Physics and Astronomy are just much easier for me to understand than subjects like organic or biochemistry.</p>

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<p>^Yes. Orgo is more memorization according to my D. it is easier for her also, when there is more math. She has to work very hard in others, but is good at making adjustments. I have no personal experience, but I have no skill at memorizing anything, I am glad my job does not require it, and it is getting harder with age, although analytical type of skills seem to be improving. </p>

<p>Well, be careful what you are signing up if Med. School is a goal. Sorry, have to brag, just learned that D. made Summa Cum Laude. just a warm feeling, no differences, since she has been accepted to few Med. Schools. She was very careful and responsible with her schedules, but she has wide range of interests and has been involved in a lot of EC’s, including unrelated minor.</p>

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<p>What do all these things like D mean?
Is there a page that has a general meaning of these abbreviations?
I know EC means extra curricular…</p>

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<p>D or S are commonly used by parents referring to their daughters or sons.</p>

<p>D1 or D2, for example, distinguish among one’s children, so as to avoid confusion if multiple are mentioned. So you don’t get posts saying “Your daughchter wants an MD, I thought she was an art freak?” when one in fact has/had/will have multiple children in college.</p>

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<p>Added AICE: Advance International Certificate of Education (AICE) from University of Cambridge International Examinations (an international high school degree standard, comparable to IB)</p>

<p>Useful abbreviations pertinent to college planning process
LAC - liberal arts college
COA - Cost of Attendance (Direct billable expenses tuition, fees room & board plus Indirect expenses, books, supplies, personal expenses, travel, computer)
FA - Financial aid
FAO - Financial Aid Officer
RAR - Regional Admissions Representive
WL - Wait List
RA - Rolling Admissions (non-binding)
ED-Early Decision (binding)
ED, EDII - two different deadlines for schools which have them; usually around Nov 1 for ED1, Jan ? for ED2
EA-Early Action (non-binding)
SCEA-Single Choice Early Action (non-binding but applicant can apply to only one early school)
FAFSA-Free Application for Federal Student Aid - the form for fin. aid
CSS Profile - the form you fill out for aid in addition to FAFSA
URM-under-represented minority
AA - Affirmative action
ADCOM- Admissions Committee
BWRK - Bright, well-rounded kid
NMF- National Merit Finalist
NMSF -National Merit Semifinalist
EFC - Estimated Family Contribution
FM - Federal Methodology
IM - Institutional Methodology, varies (also Instant Messaging)
ECs - Extra curricular activities, like volunteer activities or school clubs
Stats - a student’s GPA, test scores, curriculum and extracurriculars
ACT - standardized test that tests academic knowledge
SAT - Reasoning Test developed by College Board
SAT II - Standardized Achievement Test in specific subjects
GC - guidance counselor
OOS - Out of state
APUSH - Advanced Placement, United States History
HS - high school
PG - post graduate (HS + an additional year of school before college)
GTO - Guaranteed Transfer Option (into UC after community college)
IB - International Baccaulaureate
AICE - Advance International Certificate of Education (AICE) from University of Cambridge International Examinations (an international high school degree standard, comparable to IB)
AMC - American Mathematics Competitions
AIME - American Invitational Mathematics Examination
USAMO - United States of America Mathematics Olympiad
PA - Peer Assessment</p>

<p>Colleges
HYP - Harvard/Yale/Princeton
Little Three = Amherst, Wesleyan, Williams
HBCU-historically black colleges/universities
AWS - Amherst, Williams, Swarthmore meaning specifically those three or a stand-in for most selective LACS
WASP - Williams, Amherst, Swarthmore, Pomona (originally White Anglo Saxon Protestant)
CSU- California State university system
CUNY- City University of New York system
SUNY- State University of New York system
UNC - University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
U of C - University of Chicago
SU - Syracuse University (but also Seattle U)
JHU - Johns Hopkins University
CMU - Carnegie Mellon U
NYU - New York U
SDSU - San Diego State University
SMU - Southern Methodist U
UCB - University of California, Berkleley, also known as “Cal”
UCLA - University of Calif, Los Angeles
UCR - University of Calif, Riverside
UCSD - University of Calif. San Diego
UCSB - University of Calif, Santa Barbara
UCSC - University of California, Santa Cruz
UCD - University of California, Davis
UCI – University of California, Irvine
UCSF – University of California, San Francisco (has no undergrad programs)
UCM - University of California Merced (opening next year)
USD - University of San Diego (but also University of South Dakota)
WUSTL - Washington U - St. Louis
The Seven Sisters(all girls schools):
(most of the co ed now) were the female equivalent: Smith, Mt. Holyoke, Wellesley, Barnard, Bryn Mawr, Vassar, and Radcliff.
Ivy League: Harvard, Yale, Princeton, (lower ivies UPenn, Brown, Dartmouth, Cornell
PLME - Program in Liberal Medical Education
TASP - Telluride Association Summer Program
WPI - Worcester (WHUS-ter) Polytechnic Institute (MA)
RPI - Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute (Troy, NY)
RIT - Rochester Institute of Technology (NY)</p>

<p>General computer-speak Abbreviations
CC College Confidential (also Community College)
OP - original post(er)
OT = off topic
lol = Laughing out loud
Mod or Mods – the forum moderators.
aka – also known as
DD- Dear Daughter
DS- Dear Son
DS1, DS2 - First dear son, second dear son
IMO- In my opinion
IMHO - In my humble opinion
BTW - by the way
BUMP - bring up my post
D - Daughter
S - Son
DD / DS - Dear or Darling Daughter/Son
DH or DW (darling husband/wife)
SIL/BIL - Sister/Brother in Law
FWIW - For what it’s worth
YMMV = your mileage may vary
ROFL - Rolling on the floor
SES - Socioeconomic status
GF/BF - girl friend / boy friend
OTOH - On the other hand
jk -just kidding
idk - I don’t know
TTFM - Too tough for me
PLOS - Parent Looking Over Shoulder (POS - Parents over shoulder)
TTFN - Tata for now
nvm - Never mind
IIRC - If I recall correctly
■■■ - F<em>@% my life
IRL - In real life
*
*</em></p>