UofT students: How do you find time for EC's?

[mechanics]

My schedule for this semester:

MAT137 (calculus).

MAT223 (linear algebra I)

PHY151 (physics)

CHM151 (chemistry)

CSC108 (intro to programming).

 

The workload is...crazy. All I do aside from the gym and sleep is problem sets and assigned readings. I didn't even bother to take BIO for this semester due to fulfilling the requirements for my major by the end of the year. I know many UofT students have a similar schedule, so how do you make time for EC's while keeping up with all of your classes?

[Curi0user]

I work at a hospital with another volunteer from UofT, he tells me he does this inbetween classes! LOL intense. But so lucky cos the campus is downtown and so are alot of hospitals. Unlike york. boo.

[McMarauder]

My schedule for this semester:

MAT137 (calculus).

MAT223 (linear algebra I)

PHY151 (physics)

CHM151 (chemistry)

CSC108 (intro to programming).

 

The workload is...crazy. All I do aside from the gym and sleep is problem sets and assigned readings. I didn't even bother to take BIO for this semester due to fulfilling the requirements for my major by the end of the year. I know many UofT students have a similar schedule, so how do you make time for EC's while keeping up with all of your classes?

 

:eek:

 

Most UofT Life science students do not take such advanced courses like you are. They take MAT135, BIO120, PHY131+132, CHM139+138 combo and probably PSY100. Are you in bioinformatics?

[mechanics]

:eek:

 

Most UofT Life science students do not take such advanced courses like you are. They take MAT135, BIO120, PHY131+132, CHM139+138 combo and probably PSY100. Are you in bioinformatics?

 

Physics specialist and math major. The classes are all interesting, but the workload is just impossible...

[McMarauder]

Most first years don't really volunteer anyway because they're still trying to figure out what they can handle and academics usually take the front seat. I had friends in Physics and Math at UofT that found time to get involved but they were always dead tired. It'll be tough, but it's doable.

[mechanics]

I really hope that in the future the type of degree one takes is as important as GPA. I mean, really, what's more impressive: an A+ in psychology, or an A- in theoretical physics or electrical engineering. I know what I'd say.

 

Yeah, I don't plan to apply to Canadian schools since they rarely, if ever, take the difficulty of the degree or classes into consideration. From my understanding of admissions, a dance major with a 4.0 from a small liberal arts school will likely be chosen over a chemical engineering major with a 3.8 from UofT, given if everything else is equal.

[McMarauder]

^^ there are a few schools that will consider difficulty of program. They're listed somewhere on the forum.

[mechanics]

Most first years don't really volunteer anyway because they're still trying to figure out what they can handle and academics usually take the front seat. I had friends in Physics and Math at UofT that found time to get involved but they were always dead tired. It'll be tough, but it's doable.

GPA wise, do you think they did well? Did most end up in graduate schools?

 

I've heard very very bad things of upper year physics and math classes in terms of average. I was planning on doing a math specialist (skipping 157 straight to 257 and doing 240 in the summer), but now I am not sure. I've heard that MAT257 is one of the most difficult courses in all of UofT.

[McMarauder]

one of them was my "mentor" from UC when I was in first year. She ended up doing grad school at Mac. However, when I was in First Year Learning Community, we had a guest speaker that had completed the Math specialist at UofT and got into medicine with a 3.4. He said it was because he did something different that got him into medicine. This was back in 2005 though.

 

I think math and physics are the types of programs at any school where most students just want the degree, and don't worry so much about marks, just because they're so hard.

 

I understand that you're taking something that really interests you, but at the same time, it might not take you where you want to be.

[drkwhy]

^That's true. Very true. But....Physics specialists are so wicked!

 

Physicists make good money too so even if the individual decides they don't want to go into medicine, they have a good back-up........

 

Howeverrrrrrrrrrr focus primarily on the grades. The frequent saying on this forum that I've read countless times is: 'GPA is king'.

 

I'm using that as an excuse not to do anything besides, school, eating, and staring out my window for hours on end thinking about which car I should buy when I'm finished school.....pathetic, I know...

[ArchEnemy]

The workload is...crazy. All I do aside from the gym and sleep is problem sets and assigned readings. I didn't even bother to take BIO for this semester due to fulfilling the requirements for my major by the end of the year. I know many UofT students have a similar schedule, so how do you make time for EC's while keeping up with all of your classes?

 

You need to get used to it in first year, and subsequently you will get better at time management. But still don't expect to be a superstar where you can be the president/executive of a few clubs + volunteer + research + good grades. This may be possible elsewhere, but very unlikely at UTSG.

 

I know many students with good grades (>3.9), but very few of them are actively involved in club activities. Many UofT students do some research in their upper years (ROP299Y/399/499, which convenient counts as a credit) and take 4.0 other credits on the side + volunteer (4-6hrs), and that's it.

 

That's probably one of the reasons why there aren't quite as many UofT students making it into med schools after 4years despite its sheer numbers. Their resumes just aren't quite impressive enough, hence many take a year off to beef it up before applying and finally getting in.

 

Good luck! The struggle begins here

[ArchEnemy]

Yeah, I don't plan to apply to Canadian schools since they rarely, if ever, take the difficulty of the degree or classes into consideration. From my understanding of admissions, a dance major with a 4.0 from a small liberal arts school will likely be chosen over a chemical engineering major with a 3.8 from UofT, given if everything else is equal.

 

Sooo true, as long as you can pull off a decent MCAT score.

 

This whole system of not taking into consideration the rigours of your program is breeding a whole new population of doctor-wannabes who take the underwater basket weaving courses to get a high GPA (not that I don't either). It kinda irks me, but hey, that's the way the game is, so play by the rules and play smart

[anon1234]

You need to get used to it in first year, and subsequently you will get better at time management. But still don't expect to be a superstar where you can be the president/executive of a few clubs + volunteer + research + good grades. This may be possible elsewhere, but very unlikely at UTSG.

 

I know many students with good grades (>3.9), but very few of them are actively involved in club activities. Many UofT students do some research in their upper years (ROP299Y/399/499, which convenient counts as a credit) and take 4.0 other credits on the side + volunteer (4-6hrs), and that's it.

 

That's probably one of the reasons why there aren't quite as many UofT students making it into med schools after 4years despite its sheer numbers. Their resumes just aren't quite impressive enough, hence many take a year off to beef it up before applying and finally getting in.

 

Good luck! The struggle begins here

 

i went to U of T for undergrad. i do agree it's insane to handle your ECs with a full course load. basically, you can do it if you have no life. my social interaction was only with people in my clubs. i was an exec for some clubs, had a job, and was maintaining a full course load. it was definitely a struggle, but it can be done. you just have to be smart with your ECs. for me, my ECs were my "fun time" to hang out with friends, socialize, and other than that i would just study.

[McMarauder]

 

That's probably one of the reasons why there aren't quite as many UofT students making it into med schools after 4years despite its sheer numbers. Their resumes just aren't quite impressive enough, hence many take a year off to beef it up before applying and finally getting in.

 

 

I've always wondered if this was true. I do know a quite a few former BIOMERS and personal friends that got in after 4th year and even some that got in after 3rd. Do you have sources for that?

 

edit: FYI, the vast majority of them were enrolled in the "easier" subject Posts.

[ArchEnemy]

I've always wondered if this was true. I do know a quite a few former BIOMERS and personal friends that got in after 4th year and even some that got in after 3rd. Do you have sources for that?

 

edit: FYI, the vast majority of them were enrolled in the "easier" subject Posts.

 

No matter how ridiculous your subject post is, it still doesn't change the fact that you are at UTSG

 

You can't really find "sources" for such informal stuff. It's mostly hearsay. But with that said, many upper year UTSG students I spoke to are quite confident of their GPA and MCAT scores, but not so confident of their ECs.

[McMarauder]

No matter how ridiculous your subject post is, it still doesn't change the fact that you are at UTSG

 

I don't really know you mean by this. The subject post you choose will affect the marks you receive, the amount of time you have to put into your studies and how much time you can dedicate to other activities. I highly doubt someone in EEB behaviour studies as much as someone in BCH, IMM, MGY,and thus has more time for other activities.

 

I used EEB behaviour as an example because my friend, to this day, tells me "had I not switched out of BCH and into EEB, I would not have gotten into Law school".

 

Mechanics: You may be at UTSG, but there are easier paths that you can take. I would look into those, especially if medicine is your end goal.

[ArchEnemy]

I don't really know you mean by this. The subject post you choose will affect the marks you receive, the amount of time you have to put into your studies and how much time you can dedicate to other activities. I highly doubt someone in EEB behaviour studies as much as someone in BCH, IMM, MGY,and thus has more time for other activities.

 

I used EEB behaviour as an example because my friend, to this day, tells me "had I not switched out of BCH and into EEB, I would not have gotten into Law school".

 

I mean that there are some courses at UTSG which you will not be able to avoid if you wish to apply for Med/Dent schools, such as CHM220/247, BIO240/241, PHY131/132. These courses are by far not easy.

 

And look, your friend switched career paths after all

[McMarauder]

And look, your friend switched career paths after all

 

:confused: what's with the attitude? calm down. Law was her path all along. Just like with medicine, you can take anything to get into law.

 

I've taken CHM220/247 and BIO250 (before they split it into 240 and 241). Yes the CHMs are ridiculous, but BIO240/241/250 is just memorization and regurgitation. Out of my classes in 2nd year, BIO250 and BCH210 had the highest class avg, B-.

[shikimate]

Just my thought. I know quite a few people that got into med school this year (Yale, Duke, UWO, UT, Queens), and when I talk to them it seems they found UTSG challenging, yet rewarding. The point here is that don't let few hard complainers distort the perceived difficulty of getting into med school from UofT. Some complain because they aren't competitive, and they speak out loud. That's fine, just remember that the competitive people are often those that don't complain.

 

The population at UTSG is large, and of course there will be the top top notch students. But I felt I learned a lot from them. I learned how to study efficiently, how to organize your time efficiently, and most important, how to make friends with the elite, not enemies. To that end I felt I owe them for teaching me how to be a competent and professional student. I believe a lot of times the problem lies in the attitude of high school students. The narrow scope of 100 or so friends of their high school graduating class gives them a false sense of competency.

 

And as a last point, let the statistics speak for themselves. The biggest supplier of year 1 med students aren't "liberal art colleges" that offer dance degrees. The majority of my colleagues are science students from big, competitive universities. They are from life science, and even from engineering. People keep saying UTSG is bad for premed, yet UTSG keeps churning out brilliant people that get into various medical schools, including some of the most prestigious in Canada and USA.

 

Don't become stagnant wondering why someone is better than you, learn, understand and appreciate why someone is better than you. And hopefully, one day you will be them. The medical profession is full of extremely bright people. It's the best environment for those who are willing to be life long adapters and learners.

 

just my thoughts. I welcome your opinions.

[drkwhy]

^Beautifully said.

[mechanics]

^That's true. Very true. But....Physics specialists are so wicked!

 

Physicists make good money too so even if the individual decides they don't want to go into medicine, they have a good back-up........

 

Physicists don't earn much. Most could barely top 60K unless they are in academia.

 

Unless you're getting your information from payscale or some other website, which lump "medical physicists" which is more engineering than physics. Besides, salary doesn't matter much to me.

[mechanics]

Anyways, I just planned my schedule for next year:

MAT257 (Analysis II)

MAT267 (advanced ordinary differential equations)

PHY224 (practical physics I)

PHY254 (classical mechanics)

PHY256 (quantum physics I)

 

Some of these classes are rumored to be the most difficult classes in all of UofT. Any opinions? I know medical schools can rarely care about classes and an A+ in a basket weaving class will probably be favored over an A in quantum physics I.

[ArchEnemy]

Law was her path all along.

 

If that is true, my apologies! I happen to know many students aspiring to become doctors at matriculation, but ended up in a different profession after their GPAs got destroyed at UTSG; hence the infamous nickname on "Dream-Dasher" on SA forums.

 

OP, one of my closer friends switched to Waterloo after taking MAT257 Good luck with that! No idea about the rest.

[mechanics]

OP, one of my closer friends switched to Waterloo after taking MAT257 Good luck with that! No idea about the rest.

 

Did they switch out just because of one class? If they did well in MAT157, then they should have at least got by in 257.

[McMarauder]

If that is true, my apologies! I happen to know many students aspiring to become doctors at matriculation, but ended up in a different profession after their GPAs got destroyed at UTSG; hence the infamous nickname on "Dream-Dasher" on SA forums.

 

No worries. Just to point out, the median GPA accepted into UofT law, where my friend got in, is 3.85. Which is quite high if you ask me. Chances are if your gpa is too low for med, it's probably too low for Law.

 

The way I see it is, if you really want something that bad, you'll find a way to get to that goal. Those people who decided to change career paths obviously did not want medicine enough because there are other paths that they could have taken. There's nothing wrong with that, I mean not EVERYONE who gets into university can become a doctor. Could you imagine everyone in BIO150 going into medicine?

 

A bad first year and even a bad second year doesn't mean GAME OVER. It's very demotivating (I've been there) but if they really wanted medicine (or whatever profession) they could have changed programs, they could have transferred to one of the 2 "easier" universities in the city, or they could have started to haul ass instead of complaining. Letting something like your first year GPA change your career demonstrates a lack of desire in the first place. If there's a will, there's a way. If there's no will, there's no way.