Why is Harvard Extension open enrollment?

[LooKing4Ward]

I may be wrong but isn't Harvard Extension open enrollment? Being such a prestigous school I'm suprised the program doesn't have a long checklist of criterias. Would having "Harvard" Extension make you look better or are you just another continuing education student with continuing education courses/credits?

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[playthatfunky]

Read up on the website its a very solid explanation. Basically it's open enrollment but it's extremely difficult and if you do really well then you will be sponsored and you'll have a really good shot at getting into medical school. From everyone I've talked to the classes are no joke.

 

[Blisterpeanuts]

I may be wrong but isn't Harvard Extension open enrollment? Being such a prestigous school I'm suprised the program doesn't have a long checklist of criterias. Would having "Harvard" Extension make you look better or are you just another continuing education student with continuing education courses/credits?

Schools that know HES know it's a good program. Some others might not like the "extension night school" sound of it but in fact the courses are the same high academic standards as the College. It's open enrollment just like all Harvard Extension courses; you pay your $800 and take the course. It's also a very good price compared to many other such programs. However you have to do well and score a competitive MCAT (30+) in most cases to be sponsored by HES. Being sponsored is good; they help you out a lot. But it's no free ride; you will work your tail off and your classmates are very high caliber. However they don't curve grades downward, so in theory 100% of a class could get an A.

 

[LooKing4Ward]

I did briefly review the website after hearing what some SDN'ers had to say . From what I have gathered, it sounds like a tough environment. Yeah, I thought some (adcomms) might point and laugh at the "Extension" bit and wondered if they might be thinking the same thing that having "Harvard" in there was a just ploy used by the school for marketing purposes (and there's nothing wrong with that) and by students to get an edge on applications when in fact it is just another run of the mill extension/continuing ed program. I'm not saying anything good or bad just wondering if it crosses anybody elses minds.

Not grading on a curve is this environment, is that a good or bad thing? I realize the good, but where can this go wrong (besides yourself screwing things up).

The nightmare, I'm a 2.5 cum GPA, 2.17 science GPA (that includes the BCPM, biochem, and other upper science courses). On the website it says "those with undergraduate GPAs below 3.0 must also score 30 or higher on the MCAT to be sponsored. They should understand that, even with sponsorship, their odds of acceptance to medical school are low" ... I'm hoping they mean dream schools. What do others thinks? If someone in my situation can do very well in this program won't some med schools at least bat their eyelashes at me and one will eventually accept. Or is this just a lost cause even with excellet grades from a program liks this (with other excellent factors)

Just wondering. I'm interseted in this program namely because of the open enrollment and if I can do good the better. Many of the post-bac and SMP programs I have looked at I don't meet the qualifications.

 

[microgin]

I did briefly review the website after hearing what some SDN'ers had to say . From what I have gathered, it sounds like a tough environment. Yeah, I thought some (adcomms) might point and laugh at the "Extension" bit and wondered if they might be thinking the same thing that having "Harvard" in there was a just ploy used by the school for marketing to get as many students enrolled as much as possible (profits ... and there's nothing wrong with that) and by students to get an edge on applications when in fact it is just another run of the mill extension/continuing ed program. I'm not saying anything good or bad about it just wondering if it crosses anybody elses minds.

Not grading on a curve is this environment, is that a good or bad thing? I realize the good, but where can this go wrong (besides yourself screwing things up).

The nightmare, I'm a 2.5 cum GPA, 2.17 science GPA (that includes the BCPM, biochem, and other upper science courses). On the website it says "those with undergraduate GPAs below 3.0 must also score 30 or higher on the MCAT to be sponsored. They should understand that, even with sponsorship, their odds of acceptance to medical school are low" ... I'm hoping they mean dream schools. What do others thinks? If someone in my situation can do very well in this program won't some med schools at least bat their eyelashes at me and eventually accept. Or is this just a lost cause even with excellet grades from a program liks this (and other excellent factors)

Just wondering.

I'm a big believer in school being what you make of it. If you get good grades at HES, I don't honestly think that med schools will look down on the fact that it is the "Extension" school. From what I've heard from a friend in the program, the course rigor and expectations far exceed that of any regular four-year colleges that I'm familiar with anyhow.

As far as your particular situation goes, you have to be realistic and know that your GPA (both cumulative and more strikingly, your BCPM) are far below average for most U.S. allopathic medical schools. Even if you were to retake all of your pre-req classes and throw in a couple of upper-level sciences, and get "A's" in all, your GPA will still most likely be below average. That is not to say that all is lost. Many an applicant has been able to overcome a sub-par undergraduate GPA by showing an upward trend in current coursework, and more importantly, by rocking out on the MCAT. Realize that the MCAT is testing your Gen Bio, Gen Chem, Orgo, and Physics knowledge, so if you aren't quite up to snuff in those areas (as evidenced by your course grades), you really want to work on those areas before you even attempt it.

Other options you may want to consider are U.S. osteopathic schools and Carribean med schools, which look for different qualities/stats in their applicants.

 

[LooKing4Ward]

Yeah, the reality bites. It's hard to think that you are basically doing the pre-req's all over again and if you do well with grades (and every other area) you should be good as any other app but that's the reality.

Sometimes I wonder how much you have to prove. I see some do post-bac then smp (taking some med courses) and fulfill other factors and still have a hard time getting in, and you're spending longer years on this then the traditional path.

 

[microgin]

Yeah, the reality bites. It's hard to think that you are basically doing the pre-req's all over again and if you do well with grades (and every other area) you should be good as any other app but that's the reality.

Sometimes I wonder how much you have to prove. I see some do post-bac then smp and still no go, and you're spending longer years on this then the traditional path.

Don't quote me on this, as I'm not an expert on the ins and outs of osteopathic schools, but I think they calculate the GPA differently. For allopathic med schools, say you originally took Gen Chem and got a D. Then you retook it in a post-bac program and got an A. Allopathic schools would see both grades and they would both be averaged into your GPA. I thought I either read or heard somewhere that Osteopathic schools only look at the higher grade from the two attempts, which is then counted in your GPA. Again, I don't know too much about osteopathic schools, but I'm sure another SDNer will jump in here to either confirm or refute my claim.

 

[DD214_DOC]

HES isn't really Harvard, right? I mean you can't put, "Harvard University" on your applications.

 

[DD214_DOC]

HES isn't really Harvard, right? I mean you can't put, "Harvard University" on your applications.

 

[microgin]

HES isn't really Harvard, right? I mean you can't put, "Harvard University" on your applications.

A question so good, it just had to be asked twice

I would imagine that someone from HES would put just that on their applications... Harvard Extension School. You should know that the classes at HES are taught by the same faculty and with the same rigor as those of the "famous" (again) "Harvard University", so an "A" in Physics at HES would equal an "A" in Physics at Harvard University in my book.

 

[markboonya]

Don't quote me on this, as I'm not an expert on the ins and outs of osteopathic schools, but I think they calculate the GPA differently. For allopathic med schools, say you originally took Gen Chem and got a D. Then you retook it in a post-bac program and got an A. Allopathic schools would see both grades and they would both be averaged into your GPA. I thought I either read or heard somewhere that Osteopathic schools only look at the higher grade from the two attempts, which is then counted in your GPA. Again, I don't know too much about osteopathic schools, but I'm sure another SDNer will jump in here to either confirm or refute my claim.

true that

 

[StanSmith]

Don't quote me on this, as I'm not an expert on the ins and outs of osteopathic schools, but I think they calculate the GPA differently. For allopathic med schools, say you originally took Gen Chem and got a D. Then you retook it in a post-bac program and got an A. Allopathic schools would see both grades and they would both be averaged into your GPA. I thought I either read or heard somewhere that Osteopathic schools only look at the higher grade from the two attempts, which is then counted in your GPA. Again, I don't know too much about osteopathic schools, but I'm sure another SDNer will jump in here to either confirm or refute my claim.

I thought that it was the most recent grade you got not the higher of the two.

 

[ltrain]

A question so good, it just had to be asked twice

I would imagine that someone from HES would put just that on their applications... Harvard Extension School. You should know that the classes at HES are taught by the same faculty and with the same rigor as those of the "famous" (again) "Harvard University", so an "A" in Physics at HES would equal an "A" in Physics at Harvard University in my book.

fyi, this is not true across the board (the same professors as the college). a lot of the profs at hes are post-docs at the college or phds who work in industry, etc. that said, i have found the quality of instruction to be completely satisfactory.

also, hes advertises on the T. the college does not.

 

[Sundarban1]

Bio and Physics are taught by Harvard College professors. Chem is taught by a post-doc, but he is really awesome. The head TF for chemistry teaches Organic Chemistry at the college. Right, Ochem is taught by 2 PhDs in industry. I've heard that it is structured pretty well also, but the professors are relatively new.

 

[riceman04]

I'm a big believer in school being what you make of it. If you get good grades at HES, I don't honestly think that med schools will look down on the fact that it is the "Extension" school. From what I've heard from a friend in the program, the course rigor and expectations far exceed that of any regular four-year colleges that I'm familiar with anyhow.

As far as your particular situation goes, you have to be realistic and know that your GPA (both cumulative and more strikingly, your BCPM) are far below average for most U.S. allopathic medical schools. Even if you were to retake all of your pre-req classes and throw in a couple of upper-level sciences, and get "A's" in all, your GPA will still most likely be below average. That is not to say that all is lost. Many an applicant has been able to overcome a sub-par undergraduate GPA by showing an upward trend in current coursework, and more importantly, by rocking out on the MCAT. Realize that the MCAT is testing your Gen Bio, Gen Chem, Orgo, and Physics knowledge, so if you aren't quite up to snuff in those areas (as evidenced by your course grades), you really want to work on those areas before you even attempt it.

Other options you may want to consider are U.S. osteopathic schools and Carribean med schools, which look for different qualities/stats in their applicants.

You are right about that....I know UCLA has a similar program...so does Penn! I think adcoms assume that people are taking these classes b/c they can still work when classes follow a night schedule.

 

[NRAI2001]

You are right about that....I know UCLA has a similar program...so does Penn! I think adcoms assume that people are taking these classes b/c they can still work when classes follow a night schedule.

Is HES and the UCLA program for people who didn't take the prereqs/ retaking prereqs or can you also take upperdivision bio courses also?