UCLA Premed Questions

I am currently a senior in high school and I am applying to UCLA. I intend to major in a life science and I am also planning to apply to medical school. However, I have read many statements about how hard UCLA life sciences courses for undergraduates are and that they could really hurt your GPA. I understand that medical schools require a strong GPA and will not cut slack if you attend a rigorous undergraduate school. That being said, I am thinking about attending Santa Monica College for my first two years and I was wondering if the premed classes at SMC would count towards the GPA that medical schools would receive. I also would like to know if I would have a better chance to get a higher GPA if I took pre-med classes at SMC and transferred to UCLA after two years rather than risk my GPA at a very competitive school like UCLA. Any advice is appreciated!

Are you instate for Calif?

If you are instate and you go to SMC for two years, those classes will count for med school apps at all med schools that accept CC credits.

HOwever, by going to a CC first, you should avoid taking all prereqs there…and you will likely have to take a gap year to apply to med school.

You are right about the competitive nature of pre-med in UCLA (my daughter who is a Regent scholar, in there, still has a rather tough time!). However, escaping the completion via a CC, would not hide from those who decide on your medical application either!

Well of course it’s all relative. I was not a Regents Scholar, and I had a great time and graduated with many significant honors. Rigor at UCLA shouldn’t scare you. You’ll need the confidence to succeed through college, even if the first two years are cakewalk at a CC. After that, scoring well on the MCAT, and doing well on the Boards (once you’re actually in medical school) are whole other stories. Think about what will prepare you better to succeed beyond the first two years of GPA calculations.

You know that you will have a higher GPA if you go to a CC such as Santa Monica. So do medical schools. Think about it…

Consequently xfer premeds are often advised to take further classes in the areas such as chem and bio to demonstrate to med schools their ability. Most kids find a class such as organic chemistry plenty difficult. It will only get harder when you take the follow on class with all the chem majors. If, instead, you wait to take organic chemistry when you’re at UCLA then the CC dodge didn’t really buy you much

Different kids have different opportunities, so I don’t think premed rereq’s at Santa Monica will be held against you, if you transfer to UCLA in the med school admissions game. But isn’t it harder to transfer to UCLA than get in as a freshman? And that’s pretty hard to begin with.