post-bacc bio class help !!

[pilotony]

I have registered for bio1 in queens college in new york. the problems is I'm also working full time tues-sun 5-1am, classes at tuesday 9:15-1:30, thur 12:15-1:30. I can't afford to get anything lower than b+. the class material requires to read 40-60 pgs of notes & text per week... is it possible, I'm thinking about dropping the classs, quit work next year, start taking all the classes in sep 05...what you think guys

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[efex101]

I guess it depends on how bad you want it...but that does seems somewhat difficult with your schedule. Although the weekends may be when you can study a lot. If you start work at five pm and the class is out at at 1:30 that gives you a couple of hours...per day.

 

[njbmd]

I have registered for bio1 in queens college in new york. the problems is I'm also working full time tues-sun 5-1am, classes at tuesday 9:15-1:30, thur 12:15-1:30. I can't afford to get anything lower than b+. the class material requires to read 40-60 pgs of notes & text per week... is it possible, I'm thinking about dropping the classs, quit work next year, start taking all the classes in sep 05...what you think guys

Hi there,
Unless you are sure of your abilities, you need to allow 2 hours of study for every hour that you spend in class. Remember too, that reading is not the same as studying. If you can't have a reasonable study schedule, then you might be better off postponing your coursework. On the other hand, if you work is not that demanding and you have lots of downtime, you can get some studying done on the job and still have enough time to master your coursework.

It is far better to take your time and get good grades than do damage control. You do not want to be in a position where you are explaining poor performance because you "had to work full-time". If you HAVE to work, then take a less demanding course load get a less demanding job. Since the former is easier, opt for making sure that you have plenty of study time to prepare for your exams. If you are in a position that you can quit your job or work less, then take your most demanding courses when you are working less hours.

The problem with being a non-traditional student is that you probably have other obligations (life, mortgage, job, family) that the traditional students do not have. You are still being judged by pretty much the same standards as the traditional students so you have to present the highest GPA and MCAT scores that you can muster. The only way to allow for this is to allow plenty of time to do well in your classes. A year or two's delay is not going to make much difference if you have a very high GPA to show for it. Rushing through and getting Cs isn't going to help you much.

Take your time; set an optimal study schedule and do well. In the long run, you will reap the rewards of your investment.

njbmd