hi so im an upcoming freshman at ucsd and im exempt from chem 6a-c because of ap credit. i dont want to take the chem 6 honors series because i heard it was killer. i am considering going to grad school for biochem, and i know that some grad schools dont accept ap credit. since i need one year of general chem, i am considering retaking the chem 6 seires for no units/credits. if i do decide to retake the chem 6 series, will grad schools give me credit for taking the class even if ucsd does not because i am already exempt from chem 6?
If you are planning to get your PhD or masters in biochemistry, they typically don’t require specific prerequisite courses (although, of course, you have to check with the specific programs). Usually, they require that you just demonstrate readiness for graduate-level coursework in your field, rather than a specific set of coursework.
It’s a different story if you are thinking of going to a professional school, like medical school, or a professional master’s program, but for graduate school in biochemistry, this shouldn’t be that much of an issue.
That being said, yes, you can retake the CHEM6 series for no credit. It would still be listed on your transcript with your grade in this course, and it should satisfy schools that require it as a prerequisite course. But of course, every school is different so it’s best to check with them individually to be sure.
Thank you! The reason I’m asking is I dont have a specific grad school in mind, and I was just wondering what the policy was in general. I’m still not completely sure if I want to retake the Chem 6 series. However, I’m a little wary about the honors series because I heard it involves a lot of physics and advanced math skills. I did take physics and Calc AB in high school though. I also might want to apply to med school. Which Chem class would you recommend I take?
I mean it just depends on what you want. I got AP credit for the CHEM 6 series, and I just skipped into organic chemistry. So I’m not a lot of help with the differences in the gen chem series.
For most PhD or master’s programs, skipping general chemistry will not be an issue. Every medical school is different. Some accept AP credit, some don’t, some accept AP credit only for certain courses. The majority will allow you to take a higher level course to substitute for a prerequisite, so if you are going to be taking other chemistry classes for your major, then you might not need to retake general chemistry. There’s no general rule. You really have to check each school.
If you really want to cover all of your bases, then you could retake the CHEM 6 series, but the downside is that it would be an extra class you have to take (because you won’t get credit for it, so you still need to take additional classes so that you stay on track for graduation). No one else can really make that decision for you. You could take the honors chemistry series if you want to receive credit for it. I never took it so I don’t know how easy or hard it is, but you could start with CHEM 6AH and then drop it if you decide that it’s too much work. If you did well enough to skip the CHEM 6 series, then I would think it should be manageable, and if you are really thinking about medical school, then difficult coursework shouldn’t deter you.
Okay. I was leaning towards taking the Honors series, but I was contemplating if it would be better to just take the easier course to get a better grade. I know how much med schools care about your science gpa. If I do decide to take Chem 6AH, should I hold back on buying the book until I’m sure if I want to stay?
If you’re thinking of potentially dropping the class, I wouldn’t buy the book for it until you are sure you need it (though, that’s my general advice even if you aren’t thinking about dropping the class). The library has course textbooks on reserve (which you can check out for 3 hour periods or overnight if you check it out within 3 hours of the library closing), and you can see if the textbook for CHEM 6AH is there. That way you could borrow the book from the library if you find that you need the book but you still aren’t sure if you’re going to stick with the class.