Guys, I really need to boost my BCPM GPA. Are there any easy science courses that I can take? I’ve taken calc and stats so I’m out of luck on math :’( … I’ve heard that anatomy is nice, but I’ll take that senior year. Any other good science classes to recommend?
Can you count stuff like geology? Astronomy? Often a lot of memorization, but into classes aren’t too math intensive.
I dont think they count @intparent
Research for credit can pump up your sGPA pretty nicely. I know for neuro you can do 2 hours each semester for your first two semesters, 3 hours a semester for your next two semesters, and up to 4 hours a semester if you do honors thesis. You also can do a 1 hour “independent reading” course with your research mentor up to two times. If you choose the right mentor (someone chill and who wants to help out students) and do a good job, all of these should be automatic As. So combined, you can get up to 20 hours of BCPM 4.0 dumped into your sGPA.
Looking back, the only BCPM class I remember that was straight up easy was psych stats in peabody, but you mentioned you already did math so that’s out. Integrative neuroscience is also a nice chill easy course, but it’s offered spring semester for graduating seniors only (I doubt that’s your grade level but if it is I’d take it). Some bio/neuro upper levels aren’t too bad, like you’ll still have to do work but you can actually get an A and they aren’t trying to wreck you like bio/orgo and stuff. Of these, I remember “neurobiology of behavior” and “the visual system” being ok. Also the “special topics” classes were ok if the professor was nice (check ratemyprof).
@fdgjfg : They can’t take that neuro 201 class? hat looks like it will count while also not raising the eyebrows of medical schools and it looks really easy if the instructor is the same. What did you think about that course if you took it?
Also, In think at every school there is this class called evolutionary biology lol. Rarely is it ever hard. Even when the professors try to make it more math based or less memorization intensive, the concepts are just so simple that it shouldn’t take a ridiculous amount of effort to make an A.
Neuro 201 (intro neuro, don’t know what the number is in the new system) is easy, forgot to mention that one.
Evolution is supposedly somewhat hard, I don’t know that many people that took it so I have bad sample size though.
Socialogy? D found that to be pretty straight forward. Her opinion now is that on RMP, as long as the rating is 3 and above, it is a go!
@fdgjfg : I’m going to give a hint of when some bio majors start saying evolution is “hard”…include more than a basic level of algebra (just something slightly complex-actually I think this is the style of VU, more math concepts integrated) or deviates from a course that is descriptive in nature where students learn terms and definitions and more towards a research/data analysis (like the one I took, and you had to read primary lit. every week and eventually present it. I’m sure that annoyed many, but that kind of is what “science” is, so integrating real science/the process of it into a course is probably the most appropriate way to teach when possible) centered evolution course.
Both scenarios create a deviation from “normal” biology classes so some start saying it is hard. It doesn’t take much with a lot of biology majors sadly. And this goes for those at top schools top schools as well. If the status quo is detailed oriented and regurgitation and they got used to and started doing well with that, then no matter how simple underlying concepts, expect complaints when something more is demanded. Evolution is still basic regardless of its delivery. It is also one of those courses that has a stigma/expectation of being a traditional biology course (rote memorization) way while also having easier concepts than others (It is sort of how most biochemistry courses have an “expectation” of being rote memorization except at the beginning of the course. While it is expected to still be “hard”, it is viewed as harder when later parts of the course deviate from the expectations of memorizing metabolic pathways and structures in them and instead focuses on research or more serious applications that cannot be easily memorized. Pop culture even shows it as a course full of these giant “roadmaps” of metabolic pathways to be memorized so that is what is in students’ heads when they sign up). So it tends to catch folks off guard when it is even a little different from expectations.
@SincererLove : You mean the “overall quality” rating right. The ease rating thing still places more difficult instructors at higher numbers out of 5. I don’t know if raters are supposed to do that, but it is clear they still do. I usually view a course as easy when the difficulty rating is below 3.3 (okay maybe 3.2) and has minimum 10 ratings. Also, I think they want something going towards the science GPA.