Questions about classes

[753698]

I've been reading through the classes to take on many dental school websites, and a lot of them state that to be competitive you should have advanced science courses such as
Anatomy, Physiology, Genetics, Histoloy, Evolution etc...
I was wondering if other upper level science classes also count such as Mammology, or plant biology, animal biology etc.
And as for Microbiology, does it matter if it is an intro 100 level class or does it have to be 200+. My school offers both and the 100 level is a bit easier to get an A so I was thinking of taking that for GPA purposes, since I'll have hard science classes anyway. Plus the intro Biochem class at my schools is a 450 whereas the more advanced one is 354. Its weird
Is it also fine to take Gen Chem 2 and Orgo 2 over the summer at another 4 year closer to home(This university won't be as highly ranked as my main university). Chem is really a bad weed out at my school and there's almost no chance for me to get an A even if the prof handed me the exact test a week before...

And do AP credits count for pre reqs such as Psych or English. I have AP credits for Psych and at my school we can skip composition 1 if we got above a 32 on the ACT. Would Dental schools still want me to take these classes?

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[Badgers2]

All those upper level science courses are recommended because they 1.) Show that you can handle the rigors of upper level courses and 2.) Because they are subjects that you will be taking in your first couple years of dental school. So, Mammalogy may be able to show your ability to do well in science courses and boost your sGPA, but it might not help you material wise in dental school (I think? Not really familiar with the topics covered in a mammalogy course).

For microbiology, it doesn't matter what level you take with regards to completing the prerequisite. I received an interview form Michigan (which requires microbio) this cycle with a 100 level class. Who knows though, maybe taking a 300 level course would help me out more come acceptance time.

I also took second semester Gen Chem over the summer at an easier 4 year university closer to home and haven't gotten questioned on it. I don't think it really matters.

I believe that AP credits really just depend on the school. You'd have to contact them to clarify what their policy is on it unless someone else has a more informative answer to this part.

 

[artist2022]

Some dental schools, such as Tufts, do not accept AP credits in lieu of college courses. If you want to apply to those programs, then you must take those classes at a 4-year university.

Be careful of what you advise- Tufts doesn't accept CC credit, but will accept AP credit if you take upper division courses. Of the schools I researched about, Howard and Rutgers don't accept AP credit. Western does, but not for its science pre-reqs.

 

[doc toothache]

2015 Community College/Advanced Placement and DS Admission

 

[753698]

2015 Community College/Advanced Placement and DS Admission

Thanks for the link. I'm actually probably gonna end up taking these classes again anyway. Its no biggie
As for the Community College, if I do take courses outside of my university, I would go it at another 4 year university over summer. I won't do them at a CC.

What are your guys' opinion on the upper level science classes though. My major is IB(integrative biology) so all the upper courses are biology but they are different bio topics than MCB(molecular cell biology). Do all these upper level bio courses still count for dental school even if they aren't "advanced cell biology" or something. IB focuses more on broad topics. Would a course in Ithycology(fish biology) still be counted as an advanced bio course?