My school does not offer credit for their physics labs, so in order to fulfill the 8 hour minimum that most med schools require before matriculation, I would need to go all the way to physics 3 (9 hours of physics). I know that it is bad to assume you will not do well in a course before it even begins, but I also know my strengths and weaknesses as a student. I just would not feel comfortable taking physics three. One option is to commute to a community college about ten minutes away and take physics there, where they offer physic with credit for the lab (four hours). In that scenario, I would only need physics one and two. I know that some med schools will generally frown upon those community college credits. What do you guys think? Am I being a baby?
Taking a core pre-med requirement at college that isn’t your own-- especially taking it at a community college while you’re also enrolled at your home college --is going to raise eyebrows and possibly a red flag
@WayOutWestMom I figured that would be the case. I guess I should just gear up to take physics 3.
You should double check with your school. Brown does not give credit for labs and we still only need to take physics 1/2 because the courses have labs even if they aren’t extra credits.
Is it Waves and Optics you are trying to avoid?
IIRC, often medical schools don’t require a specific number of credits to fulfill an admission requirement. This is because the number of credits assigned by each undergrad varies widely. As IWBB points out, not all schools count labs as a separate credits.
More often, you’ll see requirements listed as 1 full year/2 semesters/3 quarters.
Your physics classes needs to cover these topics:
@JustOne Dad For courses offered at a semester based school–waves and optics is usually covered in physics 2.
Physics 3 is often introduction to modern physics (concepts in quantum mechanics and relativity).