Over the weekend, I went home and attended one of my friend's birthday parties. There were a lot of high school seniors there who asked a lot of questions on the college application process and med school. So, here are a few things you should know about applying to college:
1. The Essay
I know a lot of people say this, but write about something you are passionate about because it shows. Also, write your essay as if you're talking to a person or writing in a diary. The better the words flow, the more your personality shows through. Another thing, try to write about something unique, a topic that not everyone talks about. Do you have any experiences that helped shape who you are today? Or do you have a special talent that helped you grow, or a special person in your life perhaps that really impacted you? In all, I think the adcoms want to see why they should pick you above the others. So give them a reason to. : )
2. SAT SAT SAT
Throughout my years of high school, people told me test scores aren't everything- that colleges will look for well roundedness just as importantly as test scores. I don't think this is quite true. My opinion is: If your scores don't make their cut, then they won't seriously look at anything else. Moral of the story: SAT/ACT scores are critical. Getting around 1900 and above should be good for UCs, as long as you have extra currics to back you up. While 2200 and above is needed for top tier schools, such as private schools and Ivies. As far as ACTs go, you can think of a 31 as around a 2100. I believe for top tier schools, you need to get around 31~32 and above.
3. Extra Currics
Lets say the adcoms have a pile of applicants with similar test scores. The next thing they will most likely look at is your extra currics (apart from your essay which is, in my opinion, the most crucial part of any application). Once again, they probably want to see what sets you apart from the other applicants. If you have a passion, like juggling, pursue it- write your essay on it ; ). Although, here's something I believe is ironic: make sure you're at least up to par with the other applicants. Meaning, if all the pre-med bio major applicants did volunteering or research, make sure you also have similar activities listed on your application since those activities seem to be pretty standard for bio premed majors.
If you have any further questions about the application process, the essays, or being premed in general, feel free to shoot me an email or comment : )
-K
Monday, October 18, 2010
Thursday, October 14, 2010
On Weeder Classes
The one myth that really scared me coming into college was the notorious "weeder classes". These classes included chemistry, biology, and physics I believe. Basically, all the classes all the intended pre-meds sign up for. Unfortunately, being a pre med myself, I will be taking said classes and praying against all hope that I do remotely well in them (meaning, don't fall below a B). Right now, I'm taking chem 1A at berkeley, one of the weeder classes at cal. And so far, it's winning. The second chem midterm that I mentioned in my last post was absolutely ridiculous. I think one girl cried during the test it was so hard. However, the test difficulty varies by year. And since this year seems to be the hard year, next year should be easier, at least that's what the practice test trends are- easy-hard-easy-hard.
We'll see how bio and physics go.
-K
We'll see how bio and physics go.
-K
Wednesday, October 13, 2010
On Being a Pre-Med at Berkeley
I am a first year student at Cal and an intended Integrative Biology major and of course- I'm premed. Here's a bit of background info:
I attended a somewhat competitive public high school in CA, graduating at the top of my class with around a 4.7-4.8 gpa (took 12 AP classes). Throughout high school, I followed the typical formula to get into a good college with med school in mind. So I volunteered, conducted research, did a lot of extracurriculars, and got good grades. However, my SAT/ACT scores fell a bit short with 2100/31 respectively. For those of you still in high school, remember that even though extra currics and gpa are very important for college admissions (especially for UCs), without a good SAT/ACT score, it's very difficult to get into a prestigious private school- such as Ivies (I got waitlisted at some Ivies and private schools). So, with the schools I got accepted into, I was torn between going to UCLA and UC Berkeley (since both schools offered great financial aid). As a premed bound student, I had the same dilemma that many premeds face when considering between UCLA and Cal. For a while, I was set on going to UCLA, mainly because they had a med school on campus, making it easier to get volunteering and clinical exposure. Also, Berkeley is notorious for extreme grade deflation, and that scared me -- a lot. On the other hand, Berkeley is seen as a more "prestigious" school by the general public (although some UCLA-ers might disagree : ) and med schools recognize the difficulty cal students face trying to attain a good gpa (or so they say : ). After writing and re-writing my pro/con list for both schools, I decided to visit UCLA (i've already visited berkeley). Needless to say, I didn't like it very much. Sure, it was beautiful, but Berkeley's culture and historic feel felt more "right" to me. So, it was decided. I was going to go to UC Berkeley.
When I started school in late August, I enrolled in Chem 1A (gen chem), Math 16A (first semester calc I believe?), Scandinavian lit (although changed to Anthro 2AC - don't believe people when they say scan. lit is supposed to be the easiest english class because it was in no way shape or form, easy), and Psych 2 (psych for non-majors). A lot of my friends wondered why I was taking such "easy" classes after taking it tough in high school. My answer: Because I'm pre-med.
A lot of people say not to go into a science major if you are looking to go into medical school since it helps you stand out from the rest of the applicants. However, premed prereqs are hard enough as it is. And you want to add more classes to an already difficult load? That didn't sit well with me. Juggling premed prereqs with a full schedule of classes for your major will be challenging.
I chose Integrative Biology because I always wanted to be a bio major that focused more on macro scale bio rather than micro scale, such as molecular cell biology, and I was fortunate to have my classes for my major overlap my premed prereqs. Problem solved? .. Not quite.
You see, I did well in high school. I didn't think AP classes were very difficult and I assumed that college classes would be similar to my AP classes.... Wrong.... Oh so very wrong...
I had my chemistry midterm a few weeks ago and I completely failed it. I knew the material going into the midterm and felt pretty good about it afterwards. So somewhere in between, disaster struck. For the next few days I went through phases of wanting to drop chem or drop out of school and become a hermit... slightly drastic right? But that's how I felt. I thought to myself "How can I do better on my other midterms if I knew everything on this midterm and still failed it?" So for the next few weeks, I've been getting help anywhere and any time I could, dropping in and out of office hours periodically.
Here's some advice to incoming students at Cal or any other college: DO NOT GIVE UP. A few bombed tests or even a not-so-stellar freshman gpa will not kill your chances at med school (believe me, I researched this for hours : ).
I think I've written enough for my first post. Here's a piece of irony for you.. I have to take my second chemistry midterm today in about 4 hours. Time for some last minute cramming : )
Wish me luck!
-K
I attended a somewhat competitive public high school in CA, graduating at the top of my class with around a 4.7-4.8 gpa (took 12 AP classes). Throughout high school, I followed the typical formula to get into a good college with med school in mind. So I volunteered, conducted research, did a lot of extracurriculars, and got good grades. However, my SAT/ACT scores fell a bit short with 2100/31 respectively. For those of you still in high school, remember that even though extra currics and gpa are very important for college admissions (especially for UCs), without a good SAT/ACT score, it's very difficult to get into a prestigious private school- such as Ivies (I got waitlisted at some Ivies and private schools). So, with the schools I got accepted into, I was torn between going to UCLA and UC Berkeley (since both schools offered great financial aid). As a premed bound student, I had the same dilemma that many premeds face when considering between UCLA and Cal. For a while, I was set on going to UCLA, mainly because they had a med school on campus, making it easier to get volunteering and clinical exposure. Also, Berkeley is notorious for extreme grade deflation, and that scared me -- a lot. On the other hand, Berkeley is seen as a more "prestigious" school by the general public (although some UCLA-ers might disagree : ) and med schools recognize the difficulty cal students face trying to attain a good gpa (or so they say : ). After writing and re-writing my pro/con list for both schools, I decided to visit UCLA (i've already visited berkeley). Needless to say, I didn't like it very much. Sure, it was beautiful, but Berkeley's culture and historic feel felt more "right" to me. So, it was decided. I was going to go to UC Berkeley.
When I started school in late August, I enrolled in Chem 1A (gen chem), Math 16A (first semester calc I believe?), Scandinavian lit (although changed to Anthro 2AC - don't believe people when they say scan. lit is supposed to be the easiest english class because it was in no way shape or form, easy), and Psych 2 (psych for non-majors). A lot of my friends wondered why I was taking such "easy" classes after taking it tough in high school. My answer: Because I'm pre-med.
A lot of people say not to go into a science major if you are looking to go into medical school since it helps you stand out from the rest of the applicants. However, premed prereqs are hard enough as it is. And you want to add more classes to an already difficult load? That didn't sit well with me. Juggling premed prereqs with a full schedule of classes for your major will be challenging.
I chose Integrative Biology because I always wanted to be a bio major that focused more on macro scale bio rather than micro scale, such as molecular cell biology, and I was fortunate to have my classes for my major overlap my premed prereqs. Problem solved? .. Not quite.
You see, I did well in high school. I didn't think AP classes were very difficult and I assumed that college classes would be similar to my AP classes.... Wrong.... Oh so very wrong...
I had my chemistry midterm a few weeks ago and I completely failed it. I knew the material going into the midterm and felt pretty good about it afterwards. So somewhere in between, disaster struck. For the next few days I went through phases of wanting to drop chem or drop out of school and become a hermit... slightly drastic right? But that's how I felt. I thought to myself "How can I do better on my other midterms if I knew everything on this midterm and still failed it?" So for the next few weeks, I've been getting help anywhere and any time I could, dropping in and out of office hours periodically.
Here's some advice to incoming students at Cal or any other college: DO NOT GIVE UP. A few bombed tests or even a not-so-stellar freshman gpa will not kill your chances at med school (believe me, I researched this for hours : ).
I think I've written enough for my first post. Here's a piece of irony for you.. I have to take my second chemistry midterm today in about 4 hours. Time for some last minute cramming : )
Wish me luck!
-K
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)