oh no! orgo or biochem

[drj2b]

i recently was notified that my school could offer me a spot in organic chem (I + II with labs), only have a few days to decide!

now my dilemma.....which would be more beneficial in terms of strengthening my app...

repeating orgo ( i took it about a decade ago, horrible mark) or doing biochem I?

any advice most appreciated!

thx.

[bigguy]

Dr. J,
It's a waste of your time to repeat prereqs. that you've already taken; and I don't believe it will really strengthen your application anyway. Saba is looking for students with a reasonable background in the sciences, an overall good (not outstanding) academic history, demonstrable motivation and a plan to enter and finish the program, and a clear plan on how they're going to pay for that.

I've been accepted into the Saba with no physics, no MCAT, and a couple C's in chemistry.

My advice is to apply ASAP for the term you want to enter. Put your entire application including the letters of recommendation in the same mailing, it'll speed the process tremendously. You should be able to get an acceptance or denial within about a month; if you're denied, at that point you can ask them what they'd like you to work on in order to be successful when you reapply.

Assuming you have a g.p.a. close to 3.0, all of the prereqs., some interesting life experience, some outstanding letters of recommendation from an employer or professor, an ability to communicate your desire and plan to attend Saba in your phone interview, and a concrete demonstration that you can pay for it (this is probably they're biggest consideration honestly), you should have no problem getting accepted.

If you absolutely feel that you must do something to improve your application, I'd work on doing well on the MCAT. A reasonable MCAT score would pull much more weight with the admissions committee than some subjective grade in a repeated undergraduate course. The MCAT is a test of your basic knowledge of the sciences; but more importantly, it's an assessment of your analytical skills. People with good analytical skills can learn and do anything. An average MCAT score (or better) would indicate to the committee that you have an acceptable working knowledge of the sciences, paired with reasonable analytical and comprehension skills.

But honestly, my advice to anyone reading this post is, apply now because you can always reapply. You're going to be spending so much of your time and material resources to attend medical school, why waste it now taking stupid undergraduate courses? The application is like a job interview; it's all about the "spin" you put on it. Be prepared to highlight your accomplishments, and to explain away any deficits.

Good luck!

Bigguy

[ResearchingGuy]

I'm not a Biochemist, but - if you feel comfortable with your chemistry knowledge in general -I think Biochem would be more helpful in your med school classes than Organic. Being familiar with the concepts of pathways, co-factors etc. will give you a bit more of a head start than being able to name alkanes, alkenes, alkynes etc..

The key is to make sure that you are comfortable with general nomenclature etc. so that you don't freak when you see a benzene ring or someone refers to an amine or a carbonyl.


Best of Luck!

[drj2b]

wow, thx for the info guys!

makes alot of sense. i thnk i'll forget about the orgo and take biochem.

umm, maybe you could offer some advice on my other post....biochem labs or no labs!!

[OLD_DOG]

This could be a question for licensed docs out there (ie.Teratos), but are you sure organic I + Biochem I is cool with the state medical licensing
boards? I heard that most of them require the med school prereqs including both orgo I and orgo II. (I think that only physics they DO NOT require). Better you find out, better safe than sorry.