Health Sciences at uOttawa...

[osmosis]

hey,

 

i was just wondering if anyone here is studying in the health sceinces program at uOttawa? can you make a general comment on the degree of difficulty of the program?

 

i noticed that their were quite a few names on the dean's honor roll for the faculty. i was just wondering what kind of gpa is required to be placed on the honor roll?

 

thanks.

 

sorry, i just realized this should be in the pre-med section. i apologize for this mistake.

 

p.s. the reason i ask is b/c i am thinking of applying to the program to boost my gpa.

[MilSarah]

hey,

 

i was just wondering if anyone here is studying in the health sceinces program at uOttawa? can you make a general comment on the degree of difficulty of the program?

 

i noticed that their were quite a few names on the dean's honor roll for the faculty. i was just wondering what kind of gpa is required to be placed on the honor roll?

 

thanks.

 

sorry, i just realized this should be in the pre-med section. i apologize for this mistake.

 

p.s. the reason i ask is b/c i am thinking of applying to the program to boost my gpa.

 

I did my second undergrad in the health sciences program at uOttawa (French). My first degree was in arts, so I really needed to get my pre-med classes done. I found the HSS classes to be really easy. However, the premed sciences classes were challenging to me (Organic Chemistry, Biology, Biochemistry) ...

 

You need to have a 8.5 GPA average to be on the Dean's list. It's fairly easy with the HSS classes.

 

Hope this helps! Let me know if you have any more questions!

[thatonekid]

A lot of people I currently work with are graduates of the HSS program. The information in my post is second hand, but from what they told me, it was a fairly easy program and they really enjoyed it. There are standard challenging courses at every school (mainly organic chemistry) but as for your degree of difficulty question, I would say that they found it was medium (not hard, but you still had to put in the effort to get the A+s).

[osmosis]

A lot of people I currently work with are graduates of the HSS program. The information in my post is second hand, but from what they told me, it was a fairly easy program and they really enjoyed it. There are standard challenging courses at every school (mainly organic chemistry) but as for your degree of difficulty question, I would say that they found it was medium (not hard, but you still had to put in the effort to get the A+s).

 

thanks.

 

what kind of average does 8.5/10 translate to, is that an -A/B+?

[thatonekid]

thanks.

 

what kind of average does 8.5/10 translate to, is that an -A/B+?

8 = A-

9 = A

 

So 8.5 = A-/A = 84.5%

[AKY]

I would recommend going for Health Science if you wanted a 'well-rounded program' while still taking all of the prerequisite sciences.. We get to take fun stuff like Anatomy, Psychology, Sociology, etc =) The HSS specific courses are also relatively easy as well.

 

Honestly, the few people I know in other programs such as biomed, etc, who are shooting for med said that they wish they had gone for HSS.

 

Certain subjects you really need to put in the work for, but these are usually your prerequisite science courses like Cell Bio and Chemistry, so you should be making sure you know the stuff anyways. Most of the other subjects you can literally get away with studying all of the material two days before each midterm/final and come away with an A/A+. I have gotten A+'s, and A's with the study two night before method, ( except for that Cell Bio course. )

 

I wouldn't recommend this if you actually want to learn though since I hardly remember anything I learned last year... At a certain point you realize you are in school for only so long so might as well actually take advantage of your education and work hard at it =)

[osmosis]

I would recommend going for Health Science if you wanted a 'well-rounded program' while still taking all of the prerequisite sciences.. We get to take fun stuff like Anatomy, Psychology, Sociology, etc =) The HSS specific courses are also relatively easy as well.

 

Honestly, the few people I know in other programs such as biomed, etc, who are shooting for med said that they wish they had gone for HSS.

 

Certain subjects you really need to put in the work for, but these are usually your prerequisite science courses like Cell Bio and Chemistry, so you should be making sure you know the stuff anyways. Most of the other subjects you can literally get away with studying all of the material two days before each midterm/final and come away with an A/A+. I have gotten A+'s, and A's with the study two night before method, ( except for that Cell Bio course. )

 

I wouldn't recommend this if you actually want to learn though since I hardly remember anything I learned last year... At a certain point you realize you are in school for only so long so might as well actually take advantage of your education and work hard at it =)

 

thanks.

 

i was just wondering, how many people in the health sci program shoot for med and are succesful at getting in at uOttawa?

[LostLamb]

thanks.

 

i was just wondering, how many people in the health sci program shoot for med and are succesful at getting in at uOttawa?

 

Lots.

(10 char)

[osmosis]

Lots.

(10 char)

 

so, it's synonymous with any other health sci program across the country. pretty much a med school feeder.

[mcortel]

Hi osmosis,

 

You mentioned that your primary objective in choosing the HSS program would be to boost your GPA - in this, it will surely meet your expectations. In my humble opinion, if you want a more well-rounded, in-depth, or critical education you should consider a different program however. You could marry both approaches. As an example, many of my peers did their undergrads in other programs and took HSS classes in addition to their normal course-loads to boost their GPA (eg. graduates from the Biochem degree, Physiology, and Economics taking seven to eight courses... even in their thesis Honour's year).

 

I think that its structure and course topics in HSS give you an introduction of a good range of important topics, and grant you with many electives to choose from (outside of faculty). Moreover, in your last years there are some very interesting courses that you can decide to enroll in (International Health, and Special Topics in particular).

 

Having said that, I reiterate that in my opinion the program is not for everyone. I think that if you want a more academic, demanding, or university-caliber experience you should look at programs that will give you just that in areas that are of interest to you.

 

Best wishes,

 

(As an aside, I graduated from the Physiology program, but as courses that didn't count towards my degree - for limitation reasons - I took a great number of them with HSS)

[osmosis]

Hi osmosis,

 

You mentioned that your primary objective in choosing the HSS program would be to boost your GPA - in this, it will surely meet your expectations. In my humble opinion, if you want a more well-rounded, in-depth, or critical education you should consider a different program however. You could marry both approaches. As an example, many of my peers did their undergrads in other programs and took HSS classes in addition to their normal course-loads to boost their GPA (eg. graduates from the Biochem degree, Physiology, and Economics taking seven to eight courses... even in their thesis Honour's year).

 

I think that its structure and course topics in HSS give you an introduction of a good range of important topics, and grant you with many electives to choose from (outside of faculty). Moreover, in your last years there are some very interesting courses that you can decide to enroll in (International Health, and Special Topics in particular).

 

Having said that, I reiterate that in my opinion the program is not for everyone. I think that if you want a more academic, demanding, or university-caliber experience you should look at programs that will give you just that in areas that are of interest to you.

 

Best wishes,

 

(As an aside, I graduated from the Physiology program, but as courses that didn't count towards my degree - for limitation reasons - I took a great number of them with HSS)

 

thank you for this information. it is much appreciated.

 

i was just wondering what kind of high school average or GPA is required to be accepted to the health sciences program?

[AKY]

I did focus on the grades part, but mcortel made a good point so I'd like to round out what I said before.

 

I think the HSS courses provide a wonderful basis for a 'doctor-to-be'.. We did determinants of health last semester and got to do a hands on project in the community, we had to take ethics in health care (it was philosophy of healthcare course) which provided a great basis for understanding ethical issues, and this year we are taking Communication in Healthcare, another excellent course, and also History of HC, and Disease... All of these courses really provide a holistic education that I think would be very beneficial for a potential medical student or even a doctor.. I am not trying to say that the hard sciences don't prepare you enough, just that they prepare you for a different aspect and they do not focus as much attention on the social,ethical, and healthcare issues.. You will certainly most likely have a broader and better base of scientific knowledge in biology, physics, chemistry, by the time you graduate I would imagine in a pure science program..

 

Health Science programs are minefields for medical schools because they are preparing students to better meet the qualifications in the 21st century physician who is supposed to be well rounded, good communicator, etc. (Not that any other person can't have any of these qualities)

[JasmineW]

Does anyone have any statistical information about the average GPA of graduating students from the HSS program at Ottawa University?

I'm also curious about how many students in the program are actually trying to get into Med School - and what is the success rate? (I realize this question has already been asked...anything more specific?)

thanks!

[Medicine_PEI]

Hi,although I do not know anything about the HSS program, Im guessing you are interested in how many people from the program get into Ottawa and with what type of GPA. Well first off, every has different GPAs, but depending on where you are from, it is your residency that determines (for uOttawa) your GPA cutoff. If you graduate and meet the GPA cutoff then you will be most likely granted an interview. The interview is typically 90-100% of the admission criteria. So, the program has little to do with any success rate. As to how many students go on, Im not really sure how that affects your application, but I'm sure the number fluctuates year to year. I hope this answers your question, but this information is accessible across this and uOttawa's website.

 

 

Does anyone have any statistical information about the average GPA of graduating students from the HSS program at Ottawa University?

I'm also curious about how many students in the program are actually trying to get into Med School - and what is the success rate? (I realize this question has already been asked...anything more specific?)

thanks!