Dear Reader 15

kim said...

Hi K,
I have a few scheduling questions as well:
-as an IB Major, I'm recommended to take CHEM 3A/L and Math 16B or BIO 1B spring semester. would it be wise to take Chem and bio together, or put one off for Fall 2012? (if so, which one?)
-is it a good idea to take difficult courses, like physics 8A, in the summer? Would that affect my standing when applying to med school?
-I took and got a 5 on the AP English Lit class, which makes me exempt from R1A and R1B requirements, but I heard that med schools require some college writing. Should I take one semester or two? and do you have any recommendations for good english classes? (I'm a strong writer, but I don't want a heavy workload in that area)
Thanks!

Dear Kim,

-Both Chem 3A/L and Bio 1B are not that bad material wise so it shouldn't be a problem if you want to take them together. However, those two classes, when taken together, are going to take up a lot of time since there's lab for both. So if you're really good with time management and think you can take both simultaneously, then I would say go for it (once again, material for those classes aren't very dense- although Chem 3A might depend on who you have as a professor). But if that's not the case, then I would recommend taking Chem 3A and math 16B in the spring and taking Bio 1B or Bio 1A in the fall (some people take chem 3A in the fall instead of spring semester since then they can take chem 3A and chem 3B with pederson, and take their bio first instead). 

-Some difficult classes are even more difficult in the summer. But I've heard that physics is supposed to be easier in the summer, so I guess it wouldn't hurt to take it over the summer (just make sure you check up on the teachers and make sure they'll be good/easy) :) That would not affect your standing when applying to medical school :) 

-(most) Med schools require you to take two semesters of college writing, so to be on the safe side, I  recommend taking two semesters of some kind of english, even if you passed out of them :) As for good english classes to take... I heard that any 'cultural' writing class is typically easier, such as German Literature, French literature, etc. However, I tried taking a scandinavian literature course and had to drop it because it was so bad hahaha. But it largely depends on the GSI you get- since GSIs will be teaching the class. So when picking an english class, just make sure the topic of the class is one that interests you (check the topics before you sign up on telebears, otherwise, it'll be a pain to try and switch english classes once classes have started). The general consensus seems to be: don't take English R1A/B or Comp. Lit R1A/B since they tend to be harder- although, i'm taking english R1B right now and it's not bad at all :) 

I hope this helps somewhat! Good luck with spring semester! :) 

-K