Taking Prerequisites in community college

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Hello. I posted under someone else's thread a few days ago about a bio minor. To refresh your memories, or for those who aren't aware of my situation, I am junior and a sociology major at UCI. I was thinking about getting a minor in bio (to complete a few of the pre-reqs), but from the looks of all your responses, I may decide to take a different route.

I was thinking about just completing my degree for sociology, since it's difficult to change majors, and to NOT minor in bio. Instead, I'll just do the pre-reqs at a community college WHILE doing my soc. work at UCI. I'm not sure, but am I allowed to do this? If so, is it frowned upon to take it at a community college? I was just thinking I'd save more money this way.

Please respond with your suggestions, answers, and any stories from experience if you took the community college route for pre reqs. THANKS!!
:luck:
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trickydonna said:
I was thinking about just completing my degree for sociology, since it's difficult to change majors, and to NOT minor in bio. Instead, I'll just do the pre-reqs at a community college WHILE doing my soc. work at UCI. I'm not sure, but am I allowed to do this? If so, is it frowned upon to take it at a community college? I was just thinking I'd save more money this way.
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That is a bad idea. It looks like you're just skipping out on the "hard classes" via community college. It's one thing to take community college classes AFTER or BEFORE you enter a university. WHILE attending a university, it looks bad. Your reasons for it might be reasonable, but it won't look that way in an adcoms' eyes.

But in the end, you are allowed to do it.

I don't get why you'd save money from it. If you are in a uni, couldn't you take as much classes as you want? If you took additional classes at a cc, you need to pay for them. Am I missing something here?
 
Hmm I see. That's what I was thinking too.

My fin. aid at UCI is really bad. I figure I would still qualify for fee waiver at CC? I qualified in the past.
 
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I don't think taking classes at a CC while taking classes at a 4-year is a blanket bad thing to do. I took at least one class each semester my middle two years, simply because the university wouldn't allow me to enroll for more than 18 credits. And it never came up in interviews, but if it did, I'd wager you could spin it in your favor for showing that you can handle the heavy load and manage your time.

tl;dr version: Take max credits at Uni, bonus classes at CC.
 
trickydonna said:
Hmm I see. That's what I was thinking too.

My fin. aid at UCI is really bad. I figure I would still qualify for fee waiver at CC? I qualified in the past.
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You will have to possess a compelling reason to do so.

Taking your pre reqs at a CC is not inherently bad (I did). However, if you have already attended a 4 yr university - The ADCOM will question why you didn't take the courses at the same university.
 
aboveliquidice said:
You will have to possess a compelling reason to do so.

Taking your pre reqs at a CC is not inherently bad (I did). However, if you have already attended a 4 yr university - The ADCOM will question why you didn't take the courses at the same university.
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Wow, really? I hear this thing about it being bad to take classes at a cc. I have a BS from a university, but taking pharm pre reqs at a cc because i don't want to pay double just bc it's a university, and I was called for interviews at the 2 schools that i applied. And I know several people that were accepted that took classes at a cc and didn't even have a BS. Maybe schools are different, maybe it just so happens that my two particular schools don't care...? Anyway, like I said i've taken classes at a university and now at a college, and at least for me the quality of education is a lot better than what i had in FIU, the professors are better, they are more available and teach better...just my personal experience, I guess everything is relative
 
if they want you to take classes at a 4 year, they would say so.
(like oregon state requiring anatomy and physiology to be taken at a 4 year.)

also some schools like boston ma. also wants 4 year credits.
 
So i graduated in 2005 with a bs in chemistry and math but along the way never took intro to stat, a & p, or microbiology. Now I'm just trying to switch gear and want to apply next year. Could I just take these at a cc instead of having to horiffically over pay at a 4 year institution for these basic intro courses? The savings would be incredible, almost $1000 per course. I really don't see why you couldn't if you could meet a lot of these prereqs with an ap course in high school.
 
It is possible to use CC credits to apply to pharmacy school but each pharmacy school has its own unique sets of rules regarding this issue.

Some schools don't allow science courses taken at a CC but others do. My advice for you is to find schools you're interested in applying to and read their matriculation rules regarding CC science credits.
 
I took 5 pre-reqs at a CC. Others have taken most of their pre-reqs after completing their bachelor's degree. Like you said, most people will not put down thousands of dollars for these courses.
 
I took 5 pre-reqs at a CC. Others have taken most of their pre-reqs after completing their bachelor's degree. Like you said, most people will not put down thousands of dollars for these courses.
 
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crazybob said:
:laugh:

To the OP: check with the schools to see which CC courses are acceptable.
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Stupid questions, but what does OP mean?

I did just that and most pharmacy schools told me taking pre-reqs at CC will not affect your chances of admittance. I really think its all relative. Poor grades at a CC are BAD.
 
novawildcat said:
So i graduated in 2005 with a bs in chemistry and math but along the way never took intro to stat, a & p, or microbiology. Now I'm just trying to switch gear and want to apply next year. Could I just take these at a cc instead of having to horiffically over pay at a 4 year institution for these basic intro courses? The savings would be incredible, almost $1000 per course. I really don't see why you couldn't if you could meet a lot of these prereqs with an ap course in high school.
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YES! :) I can finally answer this w/ no hesitation. I have tons of classes from a local CC...as I wasn't sure what I wanted to do/changed majors several times/paying for college on my own...

I applied to 8 schools, and got interview invites at 5 so far, and already an acceptance (and a waitlist). I cancelled 2..and will the rest except the ones in MI!

I got invites from accredited ones w/ tons of history like Mercer... as well as new ones like Lipscomb.

GOOD LUCK! :) Save the money...looking back, I'm glad I did! :D
 
Passion4Sci said:
Poor grades anywhere are bad. That's just IMO I guess, since a lot of people seem content with 2.9s.
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I agree. I was referring to the relative difficulties of University level work compared to CC. It looks much worse to do poorly at a CC is what im trying to say lol. No one likes bad grades, and to be content with a 2.9 is silly to me.
 
Every class I've taken was at a CC, and I have no Bachelor's. Every school I've applied to, I've at least received an interview. I went from being worried about getting in at all, to getting accepted and turning down interviews.

I'm not sure how many more years you will be able to do this, however. I'm sure requirements will get harder, as does everything, over time. Overpopulation for the win!
 
That just depends on how well you do. My pharmacy school's associate dean says the committee frowns upon community colleges but then again, people from there do in fact get in...
Besides, PCAT scores and extracurriculars count just as much, so don't worry too much
 
Has anyone taken some of their pre-reqs for pharmacy schoool at a community college over the summer and still gotten in??

My school is to expensive to take the summer classes there so will the addmissions people care to much??

Has anyone had experience with this?
 
uugirl77 said:
Has anyone taken some of their pre-reqs for pharmacy schoool at a community college over the summer and still gotten in??
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Just take out "over the summer", and yes, emphatically yes.

My school is to expensive to take the summer classes there so will the addmissions people care to much??
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Highly doubt it. Just don't get anything less than an A.

Has anyone had experience with this?
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Yep, you're not the first nor the last.
 
ok great thanks. Just for an 4hour class its 1,500 just for a summer class is that not riducolous
 
uugirl77 said:
ok great thanks. Just for an 4hour class its 1,500 just for a summer class is that not riducolous
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I totally understand.

My wife is finishing her last quarter at UC Davis right now and she wanted to take a class in French over the summer to brush up on it, and the 15-unit (Covers both summer session I and II) class was $3,300, and naturally not covered by her scholarship (Summer).
 
I took psychology, composition, and anatomy and physiology I/II during the summer at my community college before I started at my four year college.

As of yet, I have not received any questions from any of the schools I have applied to. You might want to view the requirements to the schools you are applying to because some do not accept community college credits. However, I'm also certain that there are applicants without a bachelors degree who have only taken the pre-reqs at a community college and gained accepted into pharmacy school.
 
uugirl77 said:
Has anyone taken some of their pre-reqs for pharmacy schoool at a community college over the summer and still gotten in??

My school is to expensive to take the summer classes there so will the addmissions people care to much??

Has anyone had experience with this?
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i took 6-7 classes worth of credits at community colleges and the ironic thing is that in the core classes (physiology, gen bio, o-chem), most of the students were pre-dental, optometry, med, pharm, etc. and most of the classes were graded on curves. so i really think the "taking the easy way out" junk is inflated... too some degree I think the admissions committees realize this.

i will contend that my general bio 2 class at a community college was harder than what I would have taken in the UC system.
 
ok yea I go to a 4year private institution and i may apply for pharmacy school the next cycle so I want to make sure I have everything done.
 
I'm following what you're doing this summer. I am going to take a few gen ed at a CC instead of taking them at my uni. They'll count toward a 4 year degree and not cost near as much. THis has allowed me to fill up my fall/spring term with pure science.
 
uugirl77 said:
ok yea I go to a 4year private institution and i may apply for pharmacy school the next cycle so I want to make sure I have everything done.
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May I ask what do you mean by "next cycle"? sorry if I sound slow... But really curious when exactly is it? :rolleyes:
 
o either for the class of 2011 or 2012 one of those lol
 
Again, I'll be the voice from the other side and state that where I come from, pre-reqs at a CC do not count for the majority of pharmacy schools I have applied at.

You really need to check in your particular area and contact schools you are applying to. In some areas of the country, classes at a CC are okay as they are close or the same to a 4 year universities course. In other areas, like mine, they are nowhere near the rigor of a uni course and many schools are aware of that.
 
I got my associates at a community college before transferring to a university. The classes were about the same difficulty, if not harder. Plus I got accepted to pharmacy school.
 
Taurus1971 said:
I got my associates at a community college before transferring to a university. The classes were about the same difficulty, if not harder. Plus I got accepted to pharmacy school.
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it all depends on what school you go to, which is what Phathead was getting at.

Some regions, like NY, TX and CA have really tough CCs that pride themselves on a quality education. Other regions not so much in my experience.
 
pharm B said:
Yeah, I've attended two CC's: one in VA and one in TX. The VA school was a joke. Easy A's across the board.

Everyone claims the Texas CC I attend is highly-rated, but I don't know where to find those ratings. ;). I will say the classes can be tough.
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There are not real "ratings", not in the sense of US News. It is just anecdotal, of course...
 
pharm B said:
Yeah, I've attended two CC's: one in VA and one in TX. The VA school was a joke. Easy A's across the board.

Everyone claims the Texas CC I attend is highly-rated, but I don't know where to find those ratings. ;). I will say the classes can be tough.
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Community College Week magazine has rankings of the top 100 AA granting institutions in the country from 2003-2009.

A lot of them are in Florida... I actually took summer classes at the #2 4-year junior college (ranked below University of Phoenix?) and it was definitely not as hard as the university I attended, but a lot better than the lower ranked CC I've taken classes at. I think it's all relative based on the actual course you take, professor you get, determination of the other students in the class (if you're graded based on a curve), etc.

I took a class that the average score was SO low... and it really wasn't that hard to pass the exams without a curve. I ended up with over 100% because the curve was so high.

And just yesterday I got my first microbiology exam returned with a 120% grade... that would never happen at my undergrad.
 
Have anyone heard about CCs in Chicago? are they in low quality or not? I see most of pharm schools in Illinois say they accept credits from CCs though. But I'm not sure if students with CCs credits can actually get in.. :confused:
 
UyenRita said:
Have anyone heard about CCs in Chicago? are they in low quality or not? I see most of pharm schools in Illinois say they accept credits from CCs though. But I'm not sure if students with CCs credits can actually get in.. :confused:
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I'm from the northern suburbs of Chicago, and I took two courses over the summer at the local community college (College of Lake County). I've already had two interviews, still waiting to hear on the other ones. The classes were totally fine. Kind of easy since I took physics I and speech, and I had already taken physics before. You just need to make sure that the classes you take count towards whatever you schools you apply to.
I know that some schools don't accept certain online courses, especially sciences, so be sure to look into that.
Otherwise, there is really no harm in taking a few courses at a community college. I'm currently in my fourth class right now in order to finish the pre-reqs by this Spring. Just make sure everything else on your application is strong, and you shouldn't run into any problems.
 
Passion4Sci said:
And what are these rankings based on?
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I was waiting for... "Citations or GTFO!" LOL

I totally agree the rankings are flawed, but my point was that even the "top ranked" ones are not really that awesome depending on the class and other relative factors. I did mention that I saw a difference between the 'higher ranked' school and the 'lower' one, but I think that is because the first school grants bachelor's degrees and the other is a strict 2 year school.

I'm sure there are 4 year schools that can be 'easier' too... just depends who you ask, personal bias, etc.

I am totally biased because I busted b*lls at a 4 year school and was never given the kind of extra credit, grade forgiveness, insane curves, etc that I see happening at different schools but I'm ready to admit that up front.
 
UyenRita said:
Have anyone heard about CCs in Chicago? are they in low quality or not? I see most of pharm schools in Illinois say they accept credits from CCs though. But I'm not sure if students with CCs credits can actually get in.. :confused:
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keep in mind that you probably will be applying to schools outside of Illinois
 
hello,

i finished my BA in sociology at a four year university, but i couldn't really do much with a sociology degree. therefore, i decided to go back to school and pursue my pharm degree.

i didn't take any core prerequisite classes such as biology, general chem, organic chem, physics, etc....

i'm thinking..should i take all these core prerequisite classes at a community college? will pharm schools look down on me if i take these classes at a community college?
 
e_phn said:
hello,

i finished my BA in sociology at a four year university, but i couldn't really do much with a sociology degree. therefore, i decided to go back to school and pursue my pharm degree.

i didn't take any core prerequisite classes such as biology, general chem, organic chem, physics, etc....

i'm thinking..should i take all these core prerequisite classes at a community college? will pharm schools look down on me if i take these classes at a community college?
Click to expand...
The short answer: yes.
The long answer: yes.
 
WHen i was in pre-pharmac..i did not know anything ..i always think that they prefer taking classes at university but i was wrong. They only look at ya GPA....good GPA= no problem ..as long as u can get all A at CC
 
Moved to pre-pharm due to subject matter.

As for the answer, you'll get varying opinions. My guess is it depends on the school. My personal experience is that, at least in CA, it probably doesn't matter. Most of my prereqs were done at CC. My CC GPA was a 3.93, my cumulative GPA was 3.49.
 
Depends n the area of the country you're in. In my area, CCs are nothing more than for people who flunked out of uni or couldn't get into a uni. They are not a substitute for a 4 year uni by any means for pre-pharm.

In other areas, namely Texas and Cali, CCs are not a detriment at all to you
 
I moved from university to community college. I still got into pharmacy school. Don't listen to people who are trying to scare you. ALL the schools care about is the GPA and test scores. Don't freak out about prestige.
 
I know some pharm schools require upper level science courses (A&P, micro, biochem) to be taken at a four year university and not a cc
 
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