<p>Are you trying to finish in less than 4 all together or 4 including year abroad. Friend of daughter took credit into college (very selective) and finished science/premed credits plus several medical mission and is now spending jr year abroad. She took MCATs end of last summer since it would be a year before she would be back. So it is possible to do some different things. BUT be sure and check what you do abroad. Schools sometimes only take courses abroad for elective credit and you probably don’t need 30 hours of elective credit which means you may not get to use all the credits you earn abroad for a degree. Also depending on what year in HS you take AP or IB classes, some colleges strongly encourage you not to try and exempt science because you might not have foundation for next class.</p>