I am wondering if I should take basic sociology and pyschology as preparation for the MCAT. I actually took these courses during the mid 90’s at a junior college and did well in them. I also received an AA degree in Sociology.
But with time, my memory of the material has faded considerably. I realize that medical schools don’t yet require these courses as prerequisites, but I read on website (US News) that this may change in the future.
Any thoughts on this?
Also, can I take these courses online or should I do so in person? Would medical schools look down on online courses?
If you can do the MCAT without them, why not try for that instead of spending the $$ on them? That’s probably what I’d do, or wish I had done. I took psych as a just-in-case, but it was pretty much money down the drain. I could’ve learned the MCAT material on my own and none of the medical schools I’m aiming for right now require it.
If you’re not applying for another cycle or two, then maybe so you’re not stuck a requirement short. But I’d check with your target schools first to see if they’re in talks to up requirements in the near future.
Since there’s no lab component, I wonder if this is a case where online classes wouldn’t be looked down on.
If you’ve already taken the classes and don’t want to take them again, I think your best bet would be to get a commercial prep book for your study needs. Your efforts will be more focused on the testable material, and you won’t have to sort through what is important/unimportant on your own. There are full 2015 prep book sets available for sale online that are less than the cost of an undergrad textbook…
From what little research I did with the new MSAR, some schools are planning to add prereqs to include the new testable material. However, others have not added them (yet?) while some have actually gotten rid of any specified prereqs.
Schools treat online courses differently, especially for prereqs. Your best bet on this concern will be to research the schools to which you want to apply and let the research answer your question. I did it backwards (took the online prereq classes, including labs, then researched where I could apply) but didn’t have any real issues coming up with a viable list of schools. Feel free to PM me/read some of my previous posts if you want more info on my specific path. There are more schools now accepting online courses than there were even just the previous cycle. An admissions director told me that, all things aside, it was important for me to show academic recency since my undergrad was completed 10 years prior to my application.
Thanks for your suggestions on taking sociology and psychology courses. As far as recency of science courses, my most recent science courses (all upper division) are from Fall 2011. I spent part of that year and 2012, doing public health work and ethnographic field research, so I did not officially graduate until Spring 2013 with a biochemistry degree.