<p>First I would like to apologize for all the threads I have been making in this last week.</p>
<p>So today, I had an appointment with my premed advisor and she gave me a few courses of option with how to go about my future. Now if you have read my other thread, you would know that I changed majors one full year into college. This kind of sucks since I did not get ANY science classes done. My adviser gave me the option of summer school.</p>
<p>I asked "I thought med schools don't like summer schools on transcripts."</p>
<p>She said that is typical because schools cut down on their syllabus and make their curriculum easy. She said that is not the case at my school because at my school they just compress the schedule down from a 15 week to 5 week period. I looked at the registration and she wasn't kidding. I would spend 2 hours in class 5 days a week per class. Its so bad that I am going to seriously have my work cut out for me to take bio and chem 1 in one summer term.</p>
<p>Now given these circumstances, how big of a deal is it that I am going to summer school.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that I am only taking biology 1,2 and chem 1. I am a bio major so I will be taking a lot more higher level biology classes and I will also be taking chem 2, organic chem 1, and organic chem 2. So I am taking the lowest level courses in the summer and I will be taking the higher ones regular, so as long as I do well in my higher ones then that would prove the rigor of the lower ones.</p>
<p>What is your background (bio, chem). These classes are going to move fast. If you get behind you are toast. Doing two lab courses simultaneously in the summer is going to be tough. </p>
<p>As for how it will look, it’s not optimal, but it’s not really a big deal to have summer courses on your transcript. It’s not going to be a deal breaker.</p>
<p>It will be pretty tough but i managed to plan it in a way that is manageable. My school does not have a biology 1 lab, instead they made the biology 2 lab twice as long. So my first term I will take bio and chem 1 without labs. Due to an overlap in schedules, I will not take the chem lab which might actually be a blessing in disguise. So just 2 lecture classes is the first term.
The second term will be just bio II w/ lab which in itself will be pretty tough. Another blessing in disguise, I wont be able to take the chem 1 lab again.
So basically with each chemistry I do, I will always be one lab behind which I am not sure how big of a deal that is but from what I heard, they are like completely different courses anyways.</p>
<p>^ It sounds like you have thought this out. I’ve been doing things people have advised me not to do for many years, 
, with no deleterious effects. So carry on, and best of luck.</p>
<p>Thanks. I realized I just strayed from my question of whether med schools will care much vs if I can handle it</p>
<p>your pre-med advisor knows your school best. I would ask not if the class is watered down but if she has seen that summer classes at your school are not seen as a negative. Whether or not the class is easier isn’t really the issue. The issue is whether med schools know/treat them as equals to regular semester classes.</p>
<p>I would also keep in mind that many of your peers will not be spending the summer doing courses and will instead be doing full time internships/jobs/volunteering/research/shadowing. Make sure you’re finding a way to keep up with that as well.</p>
<p>Why you want to take your chances with summer pre-req classes. Why to create additional stress and worry about it all the time? Just take them during school year like others do. Many, many change their major, this should not be a concern. Many pre-meds (actually, most around my D. in UG) are having combo of major(s)/minor(s) and might change/drop one/several at some point of time. This is not important and should not be any concern at all. I repeat, I would not take pre-reqs in a summer even if you were advised to do so. That is if you are asking here. Otherwise, do whatever, it is your decision.</p>
<p>I don’t understand why you say this, whats your reasoning. Also I was advised to do this because the 2015 mcat has courses that I won’t be able to take without these summer courses.</p>
<p>Here are some thoughts for you:</p>
<p>1) We are all a bunch of strangers on the internet. We don’t know each other nor do we know you. We don’t even know what school you go to. However, we collectively have a nice bit of experience with med school admissions; looking over the posters on this thread, you’ve got 2 current med students, an applicant, and mom of a current med student. </p>
<p>2) In general, taking classes over the summer is not advised because a) they’re perceived to be easier since they’re usually shorter and do not include the most competitive students b) you’re not juggling a full courseload, which is allegedly something med schools care about c) you’re not able to use your summers for things you can’t do during the year (eg full time employment or volunteering or shadowing or research…). I personally think C is the most important aspect. </p>
<p>3) While 2 is generally true, it isn’t true in all circumstances/for all students. One of the above posters, for example, has mentioned that they tend not to follow the general advice given here and up to this point it hasn’t mattered. You certainly may be one of those exceptions. </p>
<p>4) IWBB makes a good point–you need to find out from your premed advisor if the med schools you’re particularly interested in know about the supposed rigor of your school’s summer courses. Say you currently go to your state’s flagship, and you’re set on staying there for med school. It’s surely conceivable that the med school knows what’s going on at the UG, so they might not really care if you take summer classes. On the other hand, elite private schools may have no idea how your school works, and they might get annoyed that you’re taking important prereqs over the summer. But does that really matter? If you don’t want to go there anyway, who cares.</p>
<p>Ultimately, it’s up to you. Good luck!</p>
<p>I was wondering about what my advisor said. If I am taking the lowest level courses in the summer and if they were genuinely hard then it should reflect on my upper level courses. Is that a perspective I can expect medical schools to take? Also I would spend a little more than half my summer to get ECs done but wouldnt that would be a lot better than having holes in my mcat knowledge</p>