As I read more about it on the forum, I am more confused. I am planning to take couple of Courses in Community College this summer. I am doing these courses in CC because, 1) I can complete more AP exams 2) I can fit more AP courses at High School 3) I am completing pre-requisites, so I can do more advanced courses at High School 4) Might look good on applications for selective summer programs, all of which hopefully lead to better profile for Selective college admissions. You can probably disagree on some of the above.
But my questions are below
A) What are the maximum credits I can get at CC during high school? I heard that if you cross 5 courses, the selective colleges think that you are now a ‘transfer’ student. Does this limit future admission options for selective colleges
B) If I am planning to take Pre-Med route, and say I happen to do Biology, Physics, Chem at CC, will Medical Colleges ‘frown’ upon doing the foundation requirements at CC?. My thinking is that I will do more advanced courses at College, so will this hurt or help?
C) Do grades from CC carry over? If I get a B, does it look bad? if I get A, is it looked with a ‘meh’ ? I am OK redoing the course at College if that’s what Medical Colleges want. Is there a way to ‘wipe’ out CC grades?
D) I am really confused. Is it worth going through the trouble of doing courses in CC for the long term? I can’t really see 7 years out from where I am now.
a) I don’t know. This is a question you should ask admissions officers at the school you’re planning on applying to.
b) Doing intro level coursework at the CC level won’t help or hurt you so long as you take upper level coursework in the same area areas at your 4 year. Note that if you take intro physics at a CC, you will end up taking 2 semesters of upper level physics coursework (modern physics, thermodynamics, statistical mechanics, quantum mechanics, etc.) at the 4 year college. Think carefully about whether or not you want to do this.
c) Your CC-while-in high-school credits are reported on your college transcript. You are also required to send a transcript to AMCAS* for any college level credits earned in high school. Your CC credits will not be included in GPA calculation at your undergrad; however, they will be included in all GPA calculation by AMCAS when you go to apply for med school. So if your CC grades are weak, they will hurt you med school application.
There is no way to erase CC grades. Every college course you ever enrolled in (even if you didn’t earn a grade or withdrew) must be reported when applying to med school and transcripts must be sent. Retakes do not erase an earlier grade, even if your college allows it. AMCAS requires that both the original grade and the retake must be reported. Failure to do so is considered making a fraudulent statement/fraudulent application and will get get you permanently black-balled from all med schools.
It’s considered “GPA padding” if you retake a course you have a passing grade in. (Passing = C or better) Medical school adcomms don’t like GPA padding.
d) My advice: don’t exhaust yourself in high school. Unless you have some very clear & compelling reason to take so many AP and CC credits, don’t. There’s no advantage in finishing college early when it comes to med school admissions. (In fact, it could actually hurt your chances.) Med school admissions are a marathon, not a sprint. It’s a very long slog that requires more than just excellent academics.
*AMCAS is the central processing agency that handles most (all except TX) MD school admission applications.
I can partly answer A. The above poster pretty much got the rest.
No matter how many credits you earn, you will still be considered a freshman as long as you’re taking the CC courses BEFORE earning your high school diploma. And this applies even if you earn an Associate’s degree while in high school. As for the maximum number of credits, it varies by school. But usually it’s around 18.
Thank you so much for both responses.