<p>Ok so let me clear one thing up. I am currently a second semester freshman, so for me to go to med school right after UG, I have to do everything in 2 years. I was told that biochemistry will be a part of the 2015 MCAT. So its not even possible for me to take chem 1, 2, orgo 1, 2, and biochemistry in 4 semesters. </p>
<p>@Kdogg yeah I really didnt think my semesters were as easy as everyone is making it out to be. i kept 1st semester senior year light since i figure that is when most of the interviews will be.
also i dont want to take stat and psych over the summer because those are supposed to be my easy classes. that defeats the purpose of trying to spread out my science courses</p>
<p>But taking non science classes over the summer would look more favorably then the latter. I thought the purpose of taking summer classes was to stay on track to graduate in four years.</p>
<p>the purpose of taking summer courses is to give me a little bit more time to take all the stuff I need for my MCAT. I was looking at all the subjects required for the 2015 mcat and the only way i would be able to get those done in time is to get my prereqs out of the way.</p>
<p>at my school, the summer courses arent watered down version of the regular classes. using a little bit of rational thought, if i take only entry level courses during the summer and i do well in the higher level classes during the semester; you could probably infer that the lower level classes adequately prepared me. I trust my advisor on her advice on me taking 3 summer classes</p>
<p>It doesn’t matter that the courses aren’t watered down. The point is that it will suggest to Adcoms that you can only do well in those kinds of courses if you take them either alone or maybe with one other class.</p>
<p>Med schools want people who seem to be able to swallow water from a fire hose…without sputtering.</p>
<p>Isn’t there some sort of system for med schools knowing whether summer school classes are legit? This summer I am taking bio and chem and ill be in lectures 4 hours a day 5 days a week. That’s harder than what I am doing now. I just don’t believe that my advisor would set me up for failure like that.</p>
<p>Also you guys make it sound like I’m taking all summer classes. I have plenty of other opportunities to prove myself as a student</p>
<p>No, there isn’t any way for adcomms (except perhaps at your in-state public med schools who are most familiar with your college) to know which classes are “legit” and which aren’t.</p>
<p>Frankly adcomm members don’t have the time or resources (or interest) to familiarize themselves with every single college in the US and Canada. Except for a few individuals who are full time administrators (like Dean of Admissions), most members of the adcomm are full time faculty members who only work on the adcomm for a year or five at a time. As a volunteer in addition to their other duties.</p>
<p>Well the summer terms will take a bit over a half of my summer so that gives me a summer and a half to do some ECs. Also I’m lucky enough to have parents that make it so I never have to worry about workin in college and I have a car in college so I am sure I can make up for some lost hours whenever I’m free during the school year.</p>
<p>Actually it works out similar in number of classes to other schools. My daughter’s public uni required 120 credits to graduate with most classes worth 3 or 4 credits. If you assumed 4 credits that’s 30 classes and 40 for 3 credit ones. The average of the two would be 35 classes. My son’s are mostly 1 credit which equates to 36 classes. ;)</p>
<p>I do not think the course load of Kdog’s S is light. The 1.5 unit foreign language is intense. The orgo II is a “let’s-compete-who-can-put-in-more-study-hours” class. Cell bio could be a “let-everybody-have-some-taste-of-sleep-starvation-every-monday-night” class, and its textbook could be as dense and dry as an encyclopedia.</p>
<p>Well, nothing is cut in stone and everybody need to see what they personally need to accomplish the goal. Just to give you a prospective looking back. All of my D’s pre-med friends went to Med. School rignt after UG, no gap year. More so, one of them has graduated Summa Cum Laude in 3.5 years. All were involved in ECs during school year and most had minor(s) and one of them had triple majors. None of them were taking summer classes.
If you want to take summer classe, go ahead, do whatever. But looking back, you will be sorry that you did not enjoy your summers when you had your chances. For the rest of your life, you will not have summers off after UG. Even that one summer that Med. School student have after first year, most of them are using for research or some other ECs.<br>
Again, do whatever you feel will work for you. Not sure, why are you asking us here though.</p>
<p>Is the expectation that people are taking 5 classes a semester which average 3 credits a class (1 credit in kdog’s son’s case)? </p>
<p>I wonder how the ivies like Brown and Yale manage it when they ask for 32 or 36 classes respectively which means one can graduate from Brown in 3 years. They are suggesting 4 classes is full load.</p>
I thought the purpose of taking summer classes was to stay on track to graduate in four years.</p>