Guest U of T Posted July 9, 2002 Report Share Posted July 9, 2002 I'm addressing the U of T people here. I am heading into my forth year of undergrad at U of T and would like to maintain if not improve my GPA so that it looks better on my dentistry application. Have any of you taken a course or heard of a course that was a definite GPA-BOOSTER?? Preferably science-oriented. Nothing like first year Swahili or along those lines....It never hurts to ask! I have two electives, and I want to make the most of them. How about, ANA300Y? (Anatomy) ZOO___? (Zoology) BIO351Y? (Introductory Virology) ANA301H? (Embryology) JLM349H? (Molecular Genetics) Much THANKS people! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ralph Posted July 11, 2002 Report Share Posted July 11, 2002 I've heard that ANA300Y is good... but JLM349H is a killer... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dexterity Posted July 17, 2002 Report Share Posted July 17, 2002 I've heard the embryology course is good to take.. same for JLM...killer PCL201H I've heard is also easy... anyone else with help? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest dr funk Posted July 17, 2002 Report Share Posted July 17, 2002 i wouldn't say jlm is a KILLER. some people get killed, yes, and it can be a lot of work. but if you're familiar with reading scientific journals, then its not so bad. and it also depends on what TA you're lucky (or unlucky) enough to draw. but i don't think anyone would VOLUNTARILY choose to take JLM.. there's quite a bit of reading to do, and the final exam they added for the first time last year is kind of a hit or miss kind of thing. sometimes its hard to know exactly what they're asking for on the test and final exam. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest piglet Posted July 19, 2002 Report Share Posted July 19, 2002 I'll have to agree with dr funk. While JLM does have a bad reputation, I didn't find it too bad. Keep in mind, the course is constantly changing from year to year. Its like an experiment, and the students are the guinea pigs (or rats if you prefer). This past year a final exam was used to evaluate the students (this was never done before). Rumours are about that next year there will be no special topics section. You probably dont know what that is, but check the JLM website for details. The point is that even if previous students found it to be a killer course, it will most probably change by next year. Its a useful course to take. You will learn how to read and understand those scientific journals. And i'm talking really understand it. Its a very useful skill. As for boosting GPA, taking this course for that purpose is a risky venture. While you COULD do well, its really a hit or miss kinda thing. You could study for weeks and still fail your exam. It was 3 essay questions. Some parts of the course are quite easy, and some quite confusing. Basically most of the class fell between 70-80% for a final mark even tho the class average for the final exam was 50%, and 50% of the students taking the course actually failed the final exam (the distribution was made public). So goodluck with JLM, if your TA is a prick in your first tutorial, change immediately! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest U of T Posted July 19, 2002 Report Share Posted July 19, 2002 how would you know if your TA "was a prick" on the first tutorial? TA doesn't review lecture material? TA doesn't take up questions?... TA doesn't..... let me know cuz I've come to understand that success in JLM is partly based on a good TA... Last year JLM: was there a particular day/section with a TA that was really good? Thanks a bunch!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest piglet Posted July 19, 2002 Report Share Posted July 19, 2002 I was more or less kidding about the prick thing. But I would recommend changing your TA if you dont like their teaching style. It varies. Some TAs will be strict in the sense that they expect you to understand EVERYTHING in the papers. They may ask you very very specific questions that you really have no clue about how to answer about something that was mentionned in one line of a journal, but not explained in that paper. Some people may prefer TAs like that as they may feel that you can learn more from them. I would say that a big difference in TAs is what they expect from the students. Do they expect you to know your stuff inside out before class? or maybe they'll expect that you'll just try to understand it yourself, but realize that they'll need to help you. Some of the JLM tutors are laid back and really easy going. They dont really care that you didn't do the reading, and they just want to finish class early so they can get out too. This is only what I've heard from my friends in other tutorials. So really, it depends what kind of teaching style you prefer. Some operate strictly by the book, others are very casual about it. You will probably get a good idea which your TA is after the first tutorial. You'll have to read a paper. Then talk to people in other tutorials to get a sense of what other TAs expected or the atmosphere in which they conducted the class. Is your TA easy to approach (you will probably have to ask him/her questions throughout the term). Stuff like that. Sorry, but I would prefer not to name names in regards to rumors of good/bad TAs. But good luck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest U of T as well Posted July 20, 2002 Report Share Posted July 20, 2002 it seems that you have successfully treaded past the high waters at U of T....hehe do you know of/heard of courses that you would consider "GPA-boosters"...obviously with the "max. six 1st-year courses rule at U of T", I as a 4th year student have to select from 200s and above... i don't think selecting courses away from your program may help. for example, if you were in biochem, selecting say economics because ppl have said that its easy may not be a good idea. if you've taken mainly science courses in the past, i think looking for a basic science course would be more sensible. agree? THX Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest piglet Posted July 20, 2002 Report Share Posted July 20, 2002 Successfully? Survived would be more appropriate. I'm also completing my last year of undergrad this September. I must warn you tho, I haven't personally taken any science "gpa boosters". Do they exist? As forementionned, PCL201 has a good rep, as does ANA300 and ANA301 (however I'm not sure if thats because its an easy course, its interesting, or it has an excellent prof - maybe a little of all 3?). I think its hard to find courses in "basic science" that you will be allowed to take after completing higher level sciences. Did you consider research? There is the possibility to get high marks and a 4th year credit doing this. Since you've asked specifically for courses in which you can use your science background, I'll share with you a little secret. Look for courses in non life science departments such as geology maybe where the principles of the course material are based on OAC chemistry/physics. I have none to list you off the top of my head. But consider this, in the anti calendar some courses have comments such as "students found that this course was too difficult without a general science background". Also, courses which list few prerequisites have the possibility of being easier (or maybe not). Its kinda like you'd think that if it only has CHM137 as a prereq, and you've taken CHM2xx, and CHM3xx, then maybe you will find that course easier due to possible overlap? Speaking of overlap, I've heard that some nutrition courses overlap a bit with biochemistry? But again, I didn't take nutrition, so I dont know if its easy. (I'm scared of giving you bad advice) Has anyone actually taken these courses? What is the class average like? I like to hear bitter stories about the classes. Then I can pick the lesser of the evils Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest inga Posted July 23, 2002 Report Share Posted July 23, 2002 Hey guys, The course to go for at UofT is Bot251 or 250 (dont remember the number exactly). Unless they introduced major changes - this is the one for your GPA boosting needs... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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