<p>I really need some general advice. I am a rising sophomore at UNC-Chapel Hill and would like to apply to their Public Health BS/MPH program and later medical school. My course load is as follows:
- Organic Chemistry I
- Intro to Judaism
- Nutrition 240 (a prereq for the public health school)
- Anatomy Lab Intern (1 credit)
- Japanese 101
I ended my sophomore year with a overall 3.6 GPA and 3.3 science GPA. I was not very involved Freshman year (I was apart of 2 clubs and did a few hours of volunteering). Right now I am doing an 8 week summer pre-health student program.
My first question is about my coursework. I got Calc I and Bio I AP credit. Since I took A&P last spring and I am just concerned about not taking a math course in college. Calc II at Chapel hill is the most failed course so I do not want to take that class. Should I take stats even if I do not need it for anything? Also, besides volunteering at the hospital, what can I do to add more substance to my future medical school application. My final question is about getting an A in upper level science courses. Right now, I am stuck in the B+ range. In Chem 101/102 and A&P I got 88-89%s. If you are, or know, successful students, how do you study for these classes? Thank you in advance.</p>
<p>Only a few med schools ( e.g. Harvard, WashU, JHU) require a second semster of calc so you don’t need to take calc 2 unless you want to. </p>
<p>Stats, however, is a very useful course and is required or recommended by some medical schools. (Check MSAR for the current requirements.) You may need stats if you plan on doing lab research and/or a senior research thesis. Stats will also be useful in med school since you will have stats as part of your first and second year coursework. And stats questions are included on the USMLE.</p>
<p>Activities–have you done any physician shadowing? What about clinical or lab research? Non-medical community service? Even working a minimum wage job could be useful since it will give you work experience for your CV.</p>