University Of Calgary Percentage Grade And Bhsc Question

[BeADocSomeday]

?

[peachaso]

Hi guys!

 

I have been accepted to transfer into BHSc program(Biomedical Sciences stream). I transferred from Guelph to Calgary. I heard the program is rather difficult but it is worth it at the end. Do you guys have any advice for me?

 

I was also wondering about how I can purchase previous tests and exams for my courses, if anyone could tell me that would be great!

 

I know U of C gives out letter grades but is there anyway I can ask the registrar to give me percentage grades on my courses? I am planning to apply to UBC medicine after third year. It is my dream med school

 

Thank you and Have a great day!

 

What year are you entering in?

 

Usually professors will provide a few practice exams for free. I am not sure if you can access ones that they don't give you since oftentimes professors will not actually give back old tests, just let you view them at a certain time and location.

 

UBC has an equivalency chart for converting letter grades to percentages. You aren't going to get percentages on your transcript from UofC. If I remember correctly, A+ -> 95 and A -> 87 so usually you will lose a few percentage points after converting, but I think it balances out since the percentage distributions are slightly higher at UofC.

 

Hope that helps.

[BeADocSomeday]

I am going into second year!

 

I managed to find Orgo Chem stuff, but I can't find anything for MDSC 341 and 308.

 

I was also wondering where you can buy CHEM 351 previous labs, I tried to look, its hard to find.

 

At Guelph, the senior students either gave them or sold them!

 

Thanks!

[mitchb]

You won't find any previous exams for medsci courses-- and 308 is mostly paper-based anyway. The only course I've ever had where past exams are easily accessible is ochem. For some other courses, profs will post a single practice test for you to go over. Have fun in BHSc It was my major up until last week and I really enjoyed it.

[BeADocSomeday]

Is BHSc a lot better than General bio degree(CMMB), I was thinking of doing a CMMB degree because it didn't seem difficult to get the marks I want (because in some courses you only need to get a 90+ to get an A+). I heard BHSc at Calgary is rather different

 

Do a lot of people make it into med school from Biomedical sciences?

 

Are the courses hard compared to normal bio courses at Ucalgary?

 

Do a lot of people get good marks in MDSC courses? What is the average like?

 

and What % grade do I need to get an A+ in MDSC 308, 341 and 351? And

 

Is it easy to get a 4.00 in BHSc program?(that's what I heard about McMaster Health sci!)

[MrDrCaptGuy]

Is BHSc a lot better than General bio degree(CMMB), I was thinking of doing a CMMB degree because it didn't seem difficult to get the marks I want (because in some courses you only need to get a 90+ to get an A+). I heard BHSc at Calgary is rather different

 

Do a lot of people make it into med school from Biomedical sciences?

 

Are the courses hard compared to normal bio courses at Ucalgary?

 

Do a lot of people get good marks in MDSC courses? What is the average like?

 

and What % grade do I need to get an A+ in MDSC 308, 341 and 351? And

 

Is it easy to get a 4.00 in BHSc program?(that's what I heard about McMaster Health sci!)

 

No it's not "a lot better" although for whatever reason a lot of premeds/high school kids share this misconception. A+s require a lot of work regardless of what course you are in. If it's a CMMB course with a 90%=A+, then it's probably a pretty tough course. MDSC courses are very difficult to get an A+ in because they set their scale at A=90-96.9 and A+= 97%+. So if UBC is your goal, maybe a bio sci degree is in your best interest because all of your A's will still only count as an 87% (fun fact, Alberta A's are only a 3.9 in Ontario too... we get shafted quite a bit, but at the same time we have 200+ in province seats so I guess it balances out).

 

A decent number of BHSc students do eventually make it into med because a lot of BHSc students work very hard and have med as a goal from the start. That being said, BHSc does not guarantee you med, as nothing guarantees that. 4.0s are possible in any program if you plan your courses right and work hard. BHSc has some easier courses (MDSC 351/408) and some harder ones (341/part of 308), but you'll find that in any program. Averages are likely higher but thats likely because of who the program selects for (people who don't settle for Bs).

Do what you think you fill find more enjoyable. BHSc is pretty flexible in terms of finding courses you enjoy, but if you really like CMMB type courses, go for that. I know people in both programs who have made it in, but its more of a testament of who they are vs what they took.

[BeADocSomeday]

So If I want a higher GPA to be able to apply to Other provinces(Ontario, BC), I should go for CMMB? and If I want the research experience, I should stay in Biomed. But I am really interested in both. I think I am more interested in CMMB, I find the molecular and cell biology to be more interesting and its what I am better at. But I am afraid that I won't get the research experience of biomedical sciences.

[soporific]

So If I want a higher GPA to be able to apply to Other provinces(Ontario, BC), I should go for CMMB? and If I want the research experience, I should stay in Biomed. But I am really interested in both. I think I am more interested in CMMB, I find the molecular and cell biology to be more interesting and its what I am better at. But I am afraid that I won't get the research experience of biomedical sciences.

 

There's not much difference in terms of research experience if you choose to take CMMB 507/528/530. Also I don't think a CMMB degree is any easier than BHSc, there are some extremely tough professors/courses you have to take..

[BeADocSomeday]

I do know that they are both very difficult, but if I take CMMB classes, I can actually attempt getting A+ to get 4.0 in Ontario and 95% at UBC med school. With MDSC classes, 97+ counts as an A+ which is very difficult to achieve. I just want to see which major and courses I have a better chance of achieving A+

[MrDrCaptGuy]

A 3.9 wont hold you back for Ontario. An 87% won't necessarily hold you back either, but a 95% helps a lot more than a 4.0.

If you truly want to go to UBC, I think CMMB makes a bit more sense. You can check out the CMMB course outlines online:

http://www.bio.ucalgary.ca/undergrad/Outlines/CMMB.html

[bikekp]

I got completely shafted for UBC this year, but go into an Ontario school. I found BHSc in Calgary waaaay easier than Guelph (but I did second year in Guelph). My gpa went up substantially in terms of 4.0 scale, but when converted to UBC percentage, I lost 7% from my actual GPA. UBC was my dream school since I was about 10 years old, but as BC resident I still didn't get an interview. Had I stayed in Guelph I might have, but for me it wasn't meant to be I guess. I would say though that the research opportunities for BHSc students and the support are like nothing I ever found at Guelph and have yet to see at other schools. I would trade what I got from that for an acceptance at UBC, and has really set me up for some incredible opportunities to work with the head of Neurology at UofA during the summers off at NOSM.