<p>Would this be stupid? Will colleges look down upon a low score even if I retake it later on and get a higher score?</p>
<p>DO most people take the MCAT more than once?</p>
<p>I'd have to take AP credits for AP chem, bio, bc calc, and physics to do this (assuming I get 5's which i think is very realistic). DO I still ahve to take the inorganic chem lab? I'm not sure.</p>
<p>basically, my freshman year if I go to my state school would be just MCAT prep with:
-orgo with lab I
-english I
-cell bio
-freshman seminar (core requirement)
-statistics</p>
<p>-orgo with lab II
-english II
-Human Physiology
-physiology
-genetics</p>
<p>To be honest with you, if you take that schedule freshman year you will more than likely not do well. In my experience AP courses do not even come close to the rigor of college weed-out course such as gen. chem and introductory biology. There's no rush to take the MCAT...I would advise following the general premed sequence. If you look up the data on the AAMC website you will see that most people that retake the MCAT do not do much better than their previous testing.</p>
<p>Taking the MCAT multiple times is not a good idea - one time, one great score is what you ought to be shooting for. Medical schools will not give you a pass on a bad previous MCAT score because all scores are taken into account. If you have any doubts that you'll be ready, don't take it.</p>
<p>Taking the MCAT that early is an incredibly bad idea. First of all, this isn't the SAT's. You're supposed to take it once, not take it as many times as you can until you get a high score. Furthermore, your MCAT score is only valid for 3 years. This means that if you end up having to take a year off after college, your MCAT score won't be valid and you'll have to retake it.</p>
<p>Remember many medical programs will not accept AP credits or if they do you have to take additional years of lab science courses. Slow down and take a deep breath. Do some research on what medical schools are looking for. Read the medical school forum here and absorb what everyone is saying.</p>
<p>I just realized that my proposed schedule has 2 of the same calss "physiology" and "human physiology".</p>
<p>Here's what it would be with credits next to it (I am not 100% sure on some of these credit numbers):
-orgo with lab I 4
-english I 3
-cell bio 3
-freshman seminar (core requirement) 3
TOTAL: 13 credits</p>
<p>-orgo with lab II 4
-english II 3
-physiology 3
-genetics 3
-statistics 3
TOTAL:13 credits
How is this schedule hard? I thought 15 credits/semester is usual. I'm below that average.</p>
<p>Remember, that this is prep for the MCAT, not meeting med school requirements. I'll be taking higher level versions of my AP courses to meet those requirements.</p>
<p>1) You don't want to take the MCAT more than once. It looks bad. Taking it twice is acceptable, but should be avoided at all costs. Taking it three times is worse, and up until the switch over to computer, you used to have to get special permission from the AAMC in order to take it a 4th time. But just because you now can certainly doesn't mean you'd ever want to, or that admissions committees are going to be thrilled to see that you did.</p>
<p>2) As NCG said, MCAT scores do have a statute of limitations of only 3 years. If you take a gap year, don't graduate on time, or (most likely) get rejected on your first application cycle, you'll have to take it again. Which as we've already discussed is not good.</p>
<p>Taking organic chemistry without experience in college classes will almost guarantee low grades. You won't have a solid study habit down, where to turn for help, etc. Not getting the best possible grades (i.e. calc 1 or 2, general chemistry) will bite you in the ass later on.</p>
<p>You should also consider the possibility of disliking pre-med. I'm sure a substantial number of freshman enter wanting to become MD's, but a large percentage of them are weeded out for a good reason (this is probably the case at your university as well). You will regret spending all those hours preparing for the MCAT if you decide later on that you don't want to be pre-med.</p>
<p>Well, calc I and II I'd get credit for with BC calc, but I'm guessing you meant the equivalent AP for those classes. I have yet to take BC calc but I am very good at math. AP Chem I finished this year at the top of my class (top 100 on Newsweek).</p>
<p>I meant that those are easy courses that will quite possibly be the easiest ways to pad your BCPM GPA with. I had BC Calc credit as well, but I chose to forgo it and take calc courses freshman year.</p>
<p>By the way, what do you mean you still have to take BC calc? Are you a rising senior in high school?</p>
<p>I wouldn't say that about BC Calc though. Everybody I've ever met says it's equal to the college course. The AP chem is equivalent to the general chem at my state school according to people who took both classes.</p>
<p>Okay, this might be a stupid question, but i'm asking anyway. Please people, don't take too big a bite out of me. </p>
<p>I keep reading about AP's being poor/fair prep for college level courses and taking orgo without other college science prep being a bad idea. However, D did accept all the AP credit earned in HS, took upper level classes her 1st year (including both orgo semesters and the lab) and did exceptionally well. In fact, she'll be an orgo grader and a bio TA for Fall 2007.</p>
<p>Is this an exception to the "rule", fairly common, or beginner's luck?</p>
<p>maysixxmom, your kid continues to be the exception to most rules, including this one. I don't think there is anything common or lucky about it. She is simply an exceptional student. But, as she is a Rice/Baylor program participant it's safe to say that the majority of pre-med freshman might not have fared quite as well as she did. </p>
<p>It's still great advice for most students , including my own: "Don't use your AP's in your core science courses. Take the courses in sequence, ace them, impress the prof's who'll be writing your rec's, and then take the MCAT." Since yoyr D has no MCAT or acceptance to worry about, well ....maybe it's different. She doesn't have quite the same anxieties. </p>
<p>She does, however, plan to study for and take the MCAT. It's recommended if you're looking for financial assistance. She also can't stand not knowing what her score would have been had she not taken it.</p>
<p>Next semester brings biochem and the dreaded (for her) required physics. We'll see how she fares through those as Rice/Baylor does have a GPA requirement. </p>
<p>For the record, I only wondered about her situation because she's our only and I don't have any comparisons. </p>
<p>I'd say biochem is much harder than the required physics. Somebody I know took biochem and got a C in it, but he has a 4.0 non-science GPA and a 3.8 BCPM GPA.</p>
<p>Whether AP classes are adequate preparation obviously depends on the individual, the HS in which the AP class was taken, and the college one attends. However, I've found that generally they are not equivalent because college science courses are much harder than HS ap courses (I'm sure most will agree with me). So while the material is the same, the rigor is not.</p>
<p>I took bioap at one of the best public HS in the Bay Area. The teacher was probably regarded as the best teacher in the entire school. Got an A in the class. 5 on the AP test easily. But when I sat in on a Bio 101 lecture at Cornell I was just blown away. Not even close. Needless to say, I forfeited my AP credit and retook intro bio.</p>
<p>
[quote]
We'll see how she fares through those as Rice/Baylor does have a GPA requirement.
[/quote]
She'll do fine. And at least she knows the number. LOL. The rest have to assume for them it's as close to a 4.0 as possible. (And even that may not do it at many schools.)
[quote]
It's recommended if you're looking for financial assistance.
[/quote]
What kind of financial assistance would be dependent on the MCAT score? Are you speaking of a medical school scholarship at BCM? Which one and is it open to the general applicant pool? (I'm not up to speed on my research yet.;))</p>
<p>As to the taking of the MCAT without it being required for program admittees , I know some schools have a rule that if you do take it, you have to score a set number or higher. I'm sure y'all know what her program requires but for others reading along, I thought I would throw that in. </p>
<p>BTW we have a family friend who is rising 2nd year at BCM and was Baylor/Baylor dual admittee. He loves it. Absolutely loves it. I can't wait to visit him and have a look around.</p>
<p>And further BTW maysixxmom,
[quote]
For the record, I only wondered about her situation because she's our only and I don't have any comparisons.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>don't sweat it. I wonder about everything, and worry about most things. Heck, I invent crap to worry about. Look at my thread on e-MCAT practice test results. ;)</p>