Math Courses...Which ones should I take

Ivysaur
Tue, 01 Mar 2011 19:48:03 +0000

Hello all. So I am going to be a premed Biology Major and have all ready taken AP Calculus BC and recieved a 5 (not to mention I had the highest grade in the class, which was full of seniors heading to MIT - just saying, I can handle math). I want to obviously maintain a very high GPA of 3.8+, but also want to take mostly math and science courses. My freshman schedule will probably look like this (I’m planning on taking the MCAT late summer after sophomore year, so I’m cramming):

Writing Seminar (By the way…do I need a full year of writing seminars or just one semester?)/Evolutionary Biology
Fundamentals of Physics I/Fundamentals of Physics II (Calculus-based)
General Chemistry/Inorganic Chemistry
Math Course

Just to give you a feel for how difficult the other courses are: I took AP Chemistry and expect a 5, and I took AP Physics C: Mechanics and expect a 5. So I’m pretty well-grounded in those.

Now, my dilemmna is whether I should
a) Take Calc I and II (which I have a great grounding in all ready)
b) take linear algebra w/ applications/calc III
or
c) take linear algebra/multivariable calculus

My main concern is: how much harder is linear algebra than linear algebra w/ applications, and how much harder is multivariable than calc III?

I love math, but given my demanding schedule, would it be worth it, and, given my credentials, etc., do you think I could pull off A- or above in those?

Thanks all in advance!

P.S. I’m not going to be majoring in a particularly quantitative subfield of biology (probably animal physiology or neuro), but Med schools still like to see the extra math background. (I will definitely take biostats as well)