Question about math requirements for med schools

Pre-Med & Medical School Pre-Med Topics
1

<p>Okay, so I was signing up for classes and asking my advisor about math requirements for med schools. My advisor told me that taking a whole year of calc was unnecessary, as no med schools required as such. Also, he said that my AP calc AB credit would be accepted by all med schools, and I wouldn’t even need to take calculus. I sat glumly knowing I would have to advise myself, since I remembered the Bryn Mawr table on this matter, and knew this “advice” wasn’t correct. My question is, should I take two semesters of calc (I plan on only taking calc I and stats…is this sufficient for most med schools, and top med schools)? I know Harvard is a school that requires 2 semesters, but are there any others? Do med schools like to see calc I and calc II (esp. the big boys like hopkins, ucsf, etc), or is it an inconsequential detail that wouldn’t really matter when applying to med schools (I‘d prefer only taking calc I and stats)? And should I accept or decline the ap calc credit…or do med schools want/prefer to see calc taken at college? I know the UC med schools don’t accept it…are there any others? Will I really limit myself to which schools I can and can’t apply to later on if I accept it?</p>

<p>Also, I’m thinking about minoring in Spanish (bio/neuroscience is my major). Would this be something that can make a med school application stand out or provide an edge, or is it something that med schools wouldn’t give a poo about? I’m indifferent to minoring in Spanish, but would def do it if it would provide a significant advantage later on.</p>

2

<p>Anyone.....?</p>

3

<p>lol karl...i'm going to be honest, but if you become the first person to get into a top 10 med school from this forum, you should make sure you make continual donations to this institution lol =-D</p>

4

<p>Dear Karl,</p>

<p>Though most schools do not require a full year of calculus, it is certainly wise to have that on your transcript because that way you will have your options open when it comes to choosing medical schools. As far as the spanish minor goes, it is definately a plus as foreign languages are good assets to have no matter what field you go into. For example, at the UCLA school of medicine, they "strongly" recommend that you have some spanish fluency. Good luck.</p>

5

<p>thank you chingy
and there are ppl on here who go to top med schools...although that wasn't the primary concern in my question</p>

6

<p>it isn't hard. take one calc course and one stat course and ur fine. if you really like calc, take another calc course. most schools don't require a full year of calc, so if you are really bad at it, and you school's calc classes are really hard, then that C in calc just isn't worth it.</p>

<p>as for spanish, you don't need a spanish minor. Just take a few spanish courses, or better yet, go spend a few weeks in south america so you can both learn spanish (first hand) and get a lot of great volunteering experiences. The spanish being "strongly recommended" means you should be able to hold a conversation in spanish. If you can do that, then ur fine.</p>