<p>Hi guys!
So I wanted input from others on what I should do. I have been admitted to UCSD-a school that I am definitely happy (not thrilled) to attend. However, I don't receive financial so the expected yearly cost will be $28,000 a year. My parents have agreed to pay half and I have to take out loans for the other half. My question is will being $45,000 in debt be worth it when I have plans to go to medical school?
I currently have about 40 semester credits at a community college and could easily finish up the required courses for my major (neuroscience) in a year. I need only 8 courses to finish up my IGETC.
So I am presented with two options. My question is do you think going to community college will hurt my chances of getting into medical school and do you think the upper division classes at UC's will be too much to handle as in the rigor armed with a community college lower division education?
Sorry for such a long message! Thanks for those who reply!
P.S. If I do attend community college I will apply to transfer for Fall 2012.
Thank you!</p>
<p>Could going straight to UCSD and graduating in less than 4 years (12 quarters) be another option to cut costs? You may want to ask on the pre-med forum about how community college is looked at by medical schools.</p>
<p>@ucbalumnus: I think with my ge requirements, I am definitely determined to graduate within three years and will be able to do so. I think what it boils down to is whether or not I should go to UCSD for three years or go to community college for a year and a UC for two as a transfer student.</p>
<p>You know, graduating in 3 years might not be the best idea in terms of med school admissions. People intending to go straight thru to med school start the process junior year, including taking the MCAT in the spring of their junior year. If you go thru in 3 you won’t even have completed your 2nd year of college before you’re taking the most important test you’ll ever take. </p>
<p>Not only that, you will have one less year to do the type of things that bolster your app such as volunteer work in a medical setting (an unofficial reqm’t for admission, BTW) and working in a lab. And rushing to finish in 3 will compress the time you have to take the math and science classes that you need for admission. All in all, rushing thru college in 3 years is probably not the best approach if you want to maximize your odds of getting into med school; it is a good approach to minimize college expenses, however. </p>
<p>There is an excellent online handbook at Amherst I recommend you read to get an understanding of the process [Amherst</a> College Guide for Premedical Students](<a href=“http://www3.amherst.edu/~sageorge/guide1.html]Amherst”>Amherst College Guide for Premedical Students) And they offer this advice:
To finish in 3 years and major in neuroscience seems bound to break this. But of course in the end you decide what is best for you…</p>