Is the NEU course a summer course or a fall semester course?
Edited to add that based on a couple of posts on reddit it appears to be a few weeks of summer prep and will provide a review of the first few weeks of the general chemistry course.
Depending on how you are feeling, you might want to compare that to the modern states curriculum and see which is a better fit for what you need. (Or take both!) /warmly
I’ll probably take the NEU course first and then see if I need to supplement it with the modernstates course. /warmly, appreciative
No, of course not. Modernstates is self study material, nothing official.
You are going to be shocked at how fast and challenging science and math at NEU will be. Please, set yourself up for success. Sure, do the NEU review class, but also do the year of chem, precalc, and calc with modernstates over the summer.
I will do that! That was my plan already. /warmly
I think that’s a good plan.
Northeastern might also have a math/calculus placement but that might not be offered for your major.
I’ll ask my premed advisor about that- I’ll probably do the asking at orientation. But that’s good to keep in mind. /warmly
update- so I’ll be taking Chem in the spring… so I’ll do the ramp up chem (and hopefully it’ll still be in handy by the spring semester)- and it seems like I’ll take Foundations of Biology + lab this semester (aka fall semester)- but I’ll know more when the CSSH [college of social sciences and humanities] advising office gets back to me. In the meantime, i’m still doing that modernstates precalc prep class, and the Ramp Up Chemistry prep course, although I’m considering whether or not to do the modernstates biology prep as well, since it seems like Bio will be on my class list this semester. /thoughtful
EDIT: also according to the “plan of study” for English majors, first semester would consist of ENG 1000 (not enrolled yet, but think like… seminar on english major careers and stuff??), ENG 1400 (enrolled/pre-registered, it’s my intro to lit studies class), ENG 1111 (First-year writing seminar, also enrolled/pre-registered), a foreign language class, so the Intermediate French 1 class, in my case, and an elective- which will likely end up being that Foundations of Bio class (currently enrolled in it, until I meet with my advisor but I’m assuming it’ll stay on my class list since I’ll likely end up taking it) so I can start covering pre-med requirements ground. So… a relatively chill courseload compared to the Bio/Eng combined major. /happily
Second semester looks like: EESH 2000 (that’s co-op development class, essentially. weird, but cool.), Either ENG 1160 or ENG 1410, but I would prefer 1160 (it’s intro to rhetoric which is cooler than 1410, which is intro to research on writing)- then there’s ENG 1700 OR ENG 1701, Global Literatures 1 and 2, respectively. I would do the first, (1700), so. Then there’s another foreign language class, so either Intermediate French 2 or Advanced French 1, either one is fine, I’ll see how first semester happens with that language course. And lastly- elective. In my case, I was told Gen Chem would fill this elective, along with its’ lab + recitation. So… that seems to be my first year schedule all in all, but there will likely be some modifications. /thoughtful
more updates to come 
18 hours each semester seems like the standard Northeastern load as most classes are 4 hours instead of 3.
Foreign language requirements for your degree have only 1 intermediate level class. Anything more is up to you.
I see. I do want to pursue a French minor (if not now, at least at some point during college, so I’ll try to speak to my advisor about it soon. /thoughtfully
This sounds a bit better, but you really should do Chem before Bio. Don’t even bother looking ahead to second semester right now - you can worry about that after your first semester is off to a good start, with good grades in the first set of exams.
If you can get through the modernstates Chem course online this summer, you should be in good shape to take Chem in the fall, even their intensive one semester Chem. The reason that I would recommend doing Chem instead of Bio this first semester is two-fold. One is that since you need to also do two semesters of Orgo, and maybe also Biochem, it’s better to get started on the Chem first. The other is that I think that you need to find out whether the premed path is feasible for you, and I think that more potential premeds have their “I have to face reality” moment from the Chem prereqs than the Bio prereq. If this is going to be the case, the earlier you find that out, the better, because it gives you more time in college to revamp your major and career goals. And if you do great in Chem early on, it allows you to move on to the second year of Chem earlier in your 4 years at college. Also, you need some Chem for Bio, but you don’t need some Bio for Chem.
Ramp Up Chem prep is Northeastern’s get ready for college chem class, right? But with this current plan you wouldn’t do Chem until 6 months after the Ramp Up, not the best idea. Another reason to do the Chem first. I urge you to also do the modernstates Chem this summer. It’s a full year of college Chem, rather than just the first few weeks of Northeastern’s Chem class.
If you agree with leaving Bio for later on, then you wouldn’t need to do modernstates Bio this summer, you could do it over winter break. Or you could continue on with Orgo, and do Orgo with modernstates over the break to prepare. The beauty of continuing straight from Gen Chem to Orgo is that you won’t have forgotten your Gen Chem in between. I totally agree with your doing the modernstates preCalc this summer.
Co-op is really not of much use to premeds, but if you are going to do it, your best option would probably be research, especially since you’ve already started on that path, have a spot in a lab from your high school research. If your hearing and sight are good enough to do medical scribing, that is extremely valuable prep for med school, looks great on applications, plus you learn a lot. Check out Scribe America - they supply scribes for Boston Children’s and Beth Israel, among other places. Or you might be able to get in as a scribe for the genetics department at Boston Children’s, where you already have a relationship, if they use them.
I see. (no pun intended.) /warmly
The only reason I was told that I would be taking chem in the fall is due to the fact that most/all non-science premeds at Northeastern take CHEM 1161 in the spring as told to me by a College of Science Chem teacher. Could it be possible for me to do the gen Bio this fall, do the modernstates prep course for it this summer so I’m prepared, and then over winter break do the modernstates chem course to bounce off what I did with Ramp Up Chem for NEU? I also know they won’t take down the ramp up chemistry course from my Canvas dashboard, so I can always use it as a resource. That being said, i’ll have to talk to my advisor about this, and I’m also unsure of where Calc will fit in, but I may have to take it as a summer class next summer since my spring schedule seems decently full. /thoughtful
I’m not going to chime in with this thread but with one thing and it sounds like you will.
When you get to class, sit up front, introduce yourself to your teachers and go to the first office hours - especially in the classes important to your future.
Too many wait til the first test, halfway through the semester and bomb and have lots of reasons why. The test wasn’t what we studied, the teacher stinks, I ran out of time.
As a pre med it sounds like you can’t fall behind. So be proactive, not reactive.
My kids were too shy or intimidated to approach and both had to withdraw from a class their first semester. So don’t wait.
With your AP scores, placement results, and rigor level coming in from HS (not overly), you potentially will get your butt kicked as top students do.
But you obviously have a drive and ambition that will suit you well. And that few have.
Make sure you show it up front and not after so it’s not too late.
You want to be the teacher’s pet - very quickly. They want you to succeed. So take advantage. Plus student tutoring is always helpful.
Yup- I always introduce myself on the first day (I have to anyways due to teaching them how to use my FM/microphone system with my hearing aids)- and I will sometimes even come in early to introduce myself. I tend to show up for office hours quite often, so I plan on doing that in college, too. And I have preferential seating as an accommodation- I HAVE to sit in front due to my hearing and vision needs. /warmly
Also I learned very early on that due to my disabilities, few will take me seriously and looking like a kid doesn’t help, so I have to fight for myself. Hence why there’s a drive. /honest
Thanks for the advice, though! I was planning on doing all of that anyways. /grinning
Chem 1161 is the same one semester Chem class that they had recommended originally that you take in the fall. It is the one that you take Chem, lab, and recitation together, 1161/2/3. It’s just that they’re now telling you to take it in the spring, not the fall. But it’s the same exact class.
I took a look at NEU’s chem classes. Only 1161 (Chem for science majors) or 1151 (Chem for Engineers) qualify you to take Organic. So 1161 it is, for you.
The reason to take the Chem this fall is that if you crash and burn in it, even with the ramp up and having just done the full year modernstates class online, you need to know that early on so that you can re-evaluate your career goals and your major. Lots of people can do the required year of Bio for med school. Not as many can do the chem and physics, and lots cannot manage the organic chem. So the sooner you get to, and pass these milestones (Chem 1161/2/3 in the fall, and Orgo 2311 in the spring), the better. You can take the Bio later on, especially since you need a little bit of Chem for Bio, even though it’s not a prereq for Bio.
I would not worry about mapping out your major or your minor now, or even your spring semester. Please, take an easy rest of your load for this first semester. Take the Chem, going into it as well-prepared as possible, and let it be your moment of truth for whether or not you can move ahead with premed. Take the French as an easy class, plus it fulfills your language requirement. Take the required freshman writing class. And take something easy that gives you joy - if the intro to lit class would do that, then great. If music, or art, or anything else would do it better, and it fulfills a gen ed, take that. Don’t worry about an English major. If you can get away without taking the “English majors overview” class, don’t even take that. Right now, your “major” is getting an A in that first premed class, Chem 1161.
That is four classes, plus a lab. That is plenty for your first semester. You’ll be taking a relatively light load, since you say the French will be easy for you, and that you’re very good at English, and you love it. Don’t worry about majors or minors yet. Don’t worry about coop yet. Your biggest concern is premed. You want to be a doctor more than anything else, so focus on doing well in that Chem class - you want to absolutely maximize your chances of getting an A in that!
Thank you for the advice!! /warmly
As for the English major as a whole, I would like to throw in the fact that I love it immensely- they told my folks I had hyperlexia (the ability to read before/at the age of two)- I had an incredibly advanced vocabulary and I still do- and I’ve always had As to A+s in English classes, all throughout my education. I love it so much I’m even writing a novel… and hoping to publish it- just not for awhile, at least. But TLDR; English is definitely what makes me happy. /sheepish, then warmly
But yeah, I’ll try to not worry too much and just focus on first semester. /warmly
And I’ll speak to my advisor(s) and see how I can get Chem in the fall, and move Bio to the spring. /warmly
You do you but I would have been completely put off by studying for the courses in the break before each semester.
That makes sense, but I feel like it might work for me. I’ll test it out first semester and see how it goes. /thoughtful
it’s the 
northeastern sending me on a goose chase for my major change for me but seriously I’ve been calling between multiple departments, and finally they said they’ll get back to me with next steps in the next 3 days. /whew
also this is mostly me just playfully bantering/complaining about them. no actual hate because I love the school. <3 /warmly, clarifying
also they have the link for course registration but I guess we’ll be doing that at orientation, so I’m not going to mess with it until I’m with my CSSH advisor. /sheepishly
I’m sure you already know this, but you almost certainly don’t have to change your major officially right away. You should be able to just take the courses you want for your intended major and change it later on, so don’t stress too much! /warmly