advice re: organic chemistry

[s]

Hi everyone - I'd appreciate any thoughts you might have.

Do you think it is worth it to take organic chemistry just so that I can apply to Ottawa and Western? I've already written my MCATs and fulfilled the requirements for the other schools without it.

I'm a pretty average applicant - decent grades, standard extracurriculars, etc, but nothing standout.

Thanks!

[UWOMED2005]

Try taking it in the summer. Depending on the school you're attending, it can be a REALLY tough course that can have serious consequences on the GPA. I know when I took it at Dal, the class average was about a "D". . . the midterm median marks were 36% and 47% for the second half of the course. I know it's one of the lower marks on my transcript. Then again, I know some people in my class actually enjoyed it or did really well. . . so it can vary by personality, institution, or teacher.

If you are worried about it's effect on your GPA, if you take it in the summer, the mark you get won't impact your GPA - most of the med schools DON'T count the marks in your summer courses towards GPA (coop is an exception.) They do this so people won't artificially boost their GPA by focussing on summer courses to boost their GPAs. But they do allow summer classes to complete prerequisites.

[s]

Thanks for your comments, UWOMED2005!

I'm actually not worried about the grades at all - I'm fairly sure I can get an A or an A+ - it's not that hard a course at my school. I can't take it during the summer because I'm working in another city, unfortunately.

It's mostly that I'd rather take a fun course (language, philosophy, history ... ) - but I'm worried that I should really be opening my options to apply to as many schools as possible. ????

[TimmyMax]

Hey,

Just to throw in my two cents- I'd highly recommend taking Organic b/c if nothing else, it'll open more doors for you in terms of the med schools you can apply to. Ontario med school competition is tough enough as it is, and it's even tougher when the only schools you can apply to are limited to Mac, etc., which gets ~3000 apps already! Simply put, the more schools you apply to, the better your chances of getting in, so I'd strongly recommend going for it!

Best of luck!
Tim

[JSS02]

If it lets you apply to two more schools and doesn't hurt your GPA, then you should definitely take the course...