So my major/degree program is Health Sciences. Bio 1 is included in the curriculum however, Bio 2 is not. This is probably because we have to take “Microbiology for health professionals,” upper level anatomy, and upper level physiology. Included in our upper level electives are Biochem, Genetics, General Microbiology.
If and when the time comes I plan on applying to various medical schools across the country; basically as many applications as I can afford. My question for you guys: Due to the broad spectrum of schools is it pretty much a given that I have to take Bio 2 specifically to be safe? I’m having trouble understanding the fulfillment of this requirement.
You would probably benefit the most from looking at the specific schools you are going to apply to and asking them.
Thanks Rhonda but unfortunately I don’t have specific schools.
Really the only way to find out for sure is to start e-mailing schools. I think you may find some schools will accept it and some will not but you won’t find that information on their web page because they’ll all say 1 full year of Biology required.
I had a similar question regarding english composition. Some schools require a year of english composition which most people will already have… but for my engineering degree, writing was broken out into one quarter of english comp and two quarters of technical writing. I don’t know yet where I’ll be applying, so I just started e-mailing a bunch of schools to find out for sure. Most admissions offices seemed to be pretty responsive to e-mails.
In a word: yes.
Take Bio 2.
Schools will and should get picky about prereqs. A single semester course such as “microbio for health professionals” could at best, be considered a general microbiology course or, at worst, a micro course for nursing, allied health, etc and not be counted towards any prereq. And with medical school applications on the rise, you want to avoid being declined for what amounts to a “technical” violation of the admissions requirements. Even if you check with a school this year, 3 years from now when you apply, competition may be more intense and more pressure to decline students on adcoms. Taking Bio II will not add to your application but it prevents that risk. And from a risk analysis, the probability of the risk is low to moderate but the potential impact is high. Therefore, take the course.
Btw, schools are really beginning to vary in required and recommended course for math, organic, biochem, and other advanced courses. You can check individual school’s websites for specifics or you can refer to one of the below which standardized summaries for medical schools
AAMC’s Medical School Admissions Requirements (which you can find for a few bucks cheaper on Amazon)
http://www.aamc.org/students/applying/msa r.htm
AACOM Osteopathic Medical College Information Book (which available as a free download)
http://www.aacom.org/resources/bookstore/c ib/Pages…
I figured the answer was take Bio 2. I accounted in my preplanning for having to take that course. I just wanted those who are smarter then me and who’ve been there to maybe bail me out of an extra $600 spent lol. $600 is well worth the security of proper prereqs for a broad range of schools. Thanks guys.
Additionally, the MCAT is based on intro bio (e.g. Bio 1 and Bio 2), not the advanced bio classes, fwiw.
Re: MSAR 2011-2012 on Amazon. They don’t have any in stock and it’s been my experience that by the time they do, it’s too late to be very useful. It’s easy and fast to buy directly through aamc.org.
Cheers,
Judy