<p>I was told pre-med courses at UCLA are very competitive. Are they a lot tougher than those at UCSD? I know it is difficult to answer accurately but anyone out there has any knowledge and want to share, it is greatly appreciated.</p>
<p>UCLA has the largest population of premeds of any US university, keep that in mind. It isn't necessarily a good thing.</p>
<p>And yes they would be tougher at UCLA/Cal than at UCSD/Davis/Irvine</p>
<p>at uci and ucsd you have to take the full 6 quarter sequence of ochem and gchem
at ucla you take something called the 14 series, which ends with elimination reactions, which are taught in the first quarter of ochem at uci and ucsd. at uci and ucsd, you must also take the bio sequence in a specific order, and certain bio classes are offered once a year. uci and ucsd bio/premed programs are basically designed to weed people out.</p>
<p>School will be tough regardless. I don't think anyone has taken both series at the two schools so it's not a very likely scenario that you'll get a good answer. UCSD is definitely a great school, and so is UCLA. Definitely look at research opportunities to see if you can get those easier at one school over another. You're going to have to work super hard at either school anyways... so why worry about which is slightly easier/harder? Everywhere there will be competition.</p>
<p>go look at the midterms and finals for the UCI series, then look at the midterms and finals for the UCLA series. The answer is there. irvine is light years more difficult
go to ucla</p>
<p>Hello Dasherwinator,</p>
<pre><code> UCD has same policy as UCLA or it pretty much the same as UCI and UCSD? Also, are you saying that UCI/UCSD are tougher than UCLA for Premed?
</code></pre>
<p>depends what you define as "tough". irvine and sd's midterms and finals are astronomically harder than la, but thats because they also go through a hell of a lot more material.</p>
<p>however, i know that uci and ucsd classes are curved, which can help. from what people have told me, ucla classes arent really curved. this can make things harder if the professor is difficult, however , from what i have seen, they really arent difficult at ucla in the ochem classes.</p>
<p>either way, if you get into ucla, go there. uci and ucsd make you take a bunch of stupid labs, and you cant take bio classes off the normal sequence. you will have more freedom at ucla to finish earlier than normal.</p>
<p>^um, most of the lower division core biology classes here are curved. </p>
<p>with the exception of the LS series (you have to take 2, 3, and 4 in sequence. 1 can be taken anytime. some of the LS classes also require chemistry classes to be taken as prerequisites also) and physics (that can be taken in whatever order you'd like, but most do take it from 6A-6C because some concepts are recycled from the previous classes), chemistry and math are required to take in-sequence. physics classes have required labs which you sign up for at the same time that you sign up for the class. chemistry has 2 labs which should be ideally taken after or at the same time as its companion class (i.e. 14BL taken about the time you take 14B, 14CL taken about the same time you take 14C). </p>
<p>to get more information about the requisites for these classes, go look up what your major requirements are at UCLA, and go to UCLA</a> Registrar's Office Home to see the schedule of classes. see which series have prereqs, and you can also get an idea of how long itll take to finish your major (given about 3-4 classes per quarter). </p>
<p>i think it's a distortion to say that UCI/UCSD is "astronomically" or "light years" more difficult than UCLA's pre-med classes. I'd say take what Deuces said above with consideration; at either school, there will be professors who will be harder and professors who are easier. you still have to work hard to get them grades. </p>
<p>there are things more important than the perceived/imagined difficulty at each university. campus life, variety of research opportunities, tutoring services, volunteer opportunities, clinical medicine organizations, etc. look for something to differentiate you from the GPA/MCAT scores that a lot of qualified people will have.</p>
<p>No. It is not a distortion to say this. Compare the scope of material, and difficulty of the midterms, which are online.</p>
<p>Lol. you're full of fail dude, professors change all the time, and so do the difficulty of tests UCLA midterms aren't very easily accessible online now. There will be different classes that cover different ranges of material. You'll have to take labs everywhere you go, and they'll be tough to get into, tough to schedule and sometimes downright annoying. Go with where you will be happy in that environment - whether you think the social scene is important, the campus, etc. Definitely keep an eye on how good the alumni network is, although UC's are notoriously weaker than say... USC, the ivy leagues, Stanford etc.</p>
<p>I think you are lacking in skills of basic comprehension.
The syllabus of the 14 series includes a coverage of general e1/e2 at the very end of organic chemistry, REGARDLESS OF PROFESSOR.</p>
<p>At UCI and UCSD, you are REQUIRED to take an entire YEAR of organic chemistry, which includes E1 and E2 reactions as like one of the most basic things you'll ever learn in the whole series. We do it our first quarter of ochem, you guys do it you second (and final) quarter of ochem.</p>
<p>in other words, to the original poster, if you have a choice, dont go to uci/ucsd. its boring, and they make you take a **** load of unnecessary classes, and you have to take all the bio classes during certain quarters, or else you will fall behind until the next year (lower div bio classes are offered once a year, and you MUST take them in order)</p>
<p>^while that may be true, keep in mind that most medical schools still require you to do a year of organic chemistry with lab. in the end, whether UCLA major requirements stipulate 2 quarters of ochem vs. 3 quarters of ochem for UCI/UCSD is moot.</p>
<p>If you're considering UCI/UCSD/UCLA for a possible pre-med career, you still have to take one year of organic chemistry at either school. if you look at it from that viewpoint, the breadth of material covered should be similar, while the difficulty of a year of ochem at UCI/UCLA is arguable. my opinion still stands that the difficulty at either school doesn't vary a whole lot, and that the campus life/opportunities at each school should make up a great part of your decision to attend either school.</p>
<p>Looking at UCI's syllabus, the Chem 51ABC follows the material of Chem30ABC here.</p>
<p>exactly. thats why i hate it and i wish we had the 14 series, and it is also why i wish i went to la instead of irvine when i had the choice.</p>
<p>I am thinking of going with UCD. Please let me know your thoughts on UCD related to UCI/UCSD</p>
<p>Thank you so much for your comments. They are really appreciated.
Just one more question. UCLA only offers 2 quarters of general chem and 2 quarters of O. Chem., but most of medical schools requires 1 year of G. Chem., and 1 year of O. Chem. I know UCLA graduates are admitted to US medical school everywhere. I wonder if med schools consider 4 quarters of Chem(14A-D) from UCLA meet their requirements or UCLA students have to add something else to meet 2 years of chemistry. Please reply if you know the answer. Thanks</p>
<p>You have labs as well Xuan - and those classes are listed separately. 14A 14B 14BL - 14C/D & 14CL/DL. Or 20A/B 20BL; 30ABC 30AL/BL/CL. 14 series is for noobs. You can only take that series if you're a life science major - if you're physical science (chem, biochem, etc.) or engineering you take the 20 & 30 series. Also, some majors will have you switch to the 30 series once you're out of the 14 general chem series.</p>
<p>Are you saying that 4 quarters 14A-D and 2 quarters of Labs meet 2 years of Chem requirements?</p>
<p>Crazymed, UCD is a good school for pre-med. I know a lot of doctors who went to UCD for undergraduate.</p>