Jochi1543 Posted August 16, 2006 Report Share Posted August 16, 2006 I guess it's more of a general question rather than "should I do a second degree to fix my grades and get into med." I had to apply to the BS in biochemistry program at the university here, since it was the only way to be able to take biochemistry classes, which more and more schools seem to require every year - they don't let people who are not in the biochem program register for biochemistry courses. Anyway, I didn't really intend on taking anything other than organic chem and biochemistry, but I just got my admissions package in the mail and it included a program planning guide...I'm only 17 courses away from completing the degree. Well, technically, 20 courses away, because they don't issue you a degree unless you've taken 20 courses at their school. Considering that relatively small number of courses left, and the fact that courses are pretty cheap - so I can afford them on my own without loans - I'm actually thinking about going ahead and working on getting the actual degree....What do you think? Would you recommend it? Considering that once I take those pesky orgo and biochem courses, I will only have 13 science classes left and 3 general ones, it seems kind of silly to just not finish it. The only annoying part is that a lot of the science courses required for the degree are during the day, and I have a full-time job. My boss already approved my lunch-break MWF orgo course (the lab is evenings, after work), but I only started there recently and don't feel 100% comfortable asking for more flexibility in my schedule - for example, there are 2 more courses I could take on T-Th, which are 1.5 hours long. What do you think? Should I go for it and ask the boss if he'll let me take more than course, or just forget it? I don't really intend on some sort of major research career, but I do think a good number of the classes in the degree are interesting. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p0tus Posted August 16, 2006 Report Share Posted August 16, 2006 Hey, There are quite a few things to consider. How are your 1st degree marks? if they are above 3.5, going through another undergraduate degree may not be worthwhile. Most schools look at your entire undergraduate record, so scoring high on that 2nd degree will probably not make a significant impact on your CGPA. Are the courses you mention half or full ones? because as I understand it, you need 20 full courses to complete a degree, which takes 4 years. Is this 2nd degree part of your back up plan? completing it simply for interest sake may not be financially feasible as you have to spend much time, money and effort. If it is indeed part of a back up plan, you could consider it more seriously. How is your job coming along? if it's secure it may serve your interests to be on good terms with the boss and not abuse the priviledges he's already given you. I remember you mentioning that your writing the MCAT this week. Good luck with that! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted August 16, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 16, 2006 Sorry, I should've clarified - 20 half courses, so that's 2 years' worth. My job is all good, but we are a regional office that's part of a global company....the number of managers at our office is rather limited. I can only think of 2 positions I could be advancing into - the other few are very technology-oriented - we are a manufacturing plant - and I just don't have the necessary background, or desire, to work in the production area, and then there's my boss' job, Vice President of Manufacturing - but I obviously don't yet have the education/experience to potentially fill his position. My boss is aware of my aspirations to go to med and he's very supportive generally - always tells me how smart I am despite all these moronic mistakes I make on a daily basis, etc. I didn't hide that during the interview, and pretty much everyone in the office knows about it. My first degree GPA is 3.51. I had a solid 3rd year, with about 3.85, and a good 4th year with about the same average, but I only took 3 courses each semester instead the 4 my school considers the "average load" due to illness. So, now a lot of Canadian schools look at my undergrad record as if I never even had a 4th year - apparently, a medical condition doesn't qualify as a "special circumstance" as far as adcoms go (can you tell I'm bitter? ). But then again, it doesn't really matter, because I wouldn't be taking more than 3 courses a semester while completing this BS in biochem either, so it's not gonna fix the full-time/non full-time issue. So, in short, I could pull up my GPA for schools that look at your entire record, but as far as schools that only look at full-time years, it wouldn't do anything. This degree wouldn't really be a part of my back-up plan....I guess my back-up plan would be to continue in the general office/management direction, whether at my current company or elsewhere, but then again, things change. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
p0tus Posted August 17, 2006 Report Share Posted August 17, 2006 Hey Jochi, I guess you can go ahead and enroll in the degree program if you can fit it into your work schedule. Make sure you don't overburden yourself as you don't want to suffer a mental breakdown on the way! If you get into meds next year you can simply discontinue it since it's not a graduate program. Personally, I don't think a 2nd degree offers a significant benefit if your grades are already high. But it's an individual thing I guess. Good luck with whatever choice you make! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leviathan Posted August 17, 2006 Report Share Posted August 17, 2006 I can only think of 2 positions I could be advancing into - the other few are very technology-oriented - we are a manufacturing plant Gee Jochi, what is it that you manufacture at this plant? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jochi1543 Posted August 17, 2006 Author Report Share Posted August 17, 2006 Gee Jochi, what is it that you manufacture at this plant? Hey, I'd tell, but then it'd be too easy to stalk me, lol. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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