KP asked 4 years ago
Hi,
i would like to know if Anatomy 403 and physiol 201 can be taken together. I know that both are taught by med school professors or non undergrad professors, so would like to find out more about these classes to help me decide on what is best.
thank you for your response in advance!
Lindsay answered 4 years ago
Hi KP,
I don’t foresee you running into any issues taking ANATOMY 403 or PHYSIOL 201 on their own or together. In fact, the University of Michigan’s Newnan Pre-Health advising team mentions both classes in their list of suggested courses for Pre-Meds. The site I am referencing can be found here.
In terms of the courses being taught by non-LSA faculty… This may be true, but this doesn’t mean LSA students can’t take the course. (Hopefully my assumption about you being in LSA is correct).
The LSA Course Guide states that those who take PHYSIOL 201 will earn 4 credits that go towards NS (natural science) and BS (Bachelors Science). The only barrier I see between you and PHYSIOL 201 is the requirement to be at least a sophomore. As long as you are not any incoming freshmen this year, and you are excited to take PHYSIOL 201, I would say go for it!
If you take and complete ANATOMY 403, you will be awarded 5 non-LSA credits. This means that those 5 credits can go towards you 120 credit requirement to graduate, but those 5 credits will NOT go towards the 100 LSA credits you need in order to graduate. Make sense? Thus, there shouldn’t be any technical reasons why you cannot take this course if you want to take it and your schedule allows for it.
Physiology is tested somewhat on the MCAT, which is why it can be beneficial to take some type of physiology course before your exam. On the other hand, most medical schools do not require a physiology course as a pre-requisite to applying.
In contrast to physiology, anatomy is not tested on the MCAT and is not required by most medical schools. Anatomy is often a heavy topic focus for 1st years in medical school though, so it can be helpful to have seen the material once before through formal instruction.
I hope this was helpful! If you have more questions, feel free to stop by at our drop-in advising hours this Fall. Keep an eye out for our times and locations at our Advising Hours tab, if you are interested.
Best,
Lindsay (Co-President)
Kiran answered 4 years ago
Hi KP,
In terms of work load, ANATOMY 403 is quite a lot especially if you’re not in kines bc you have to memorize a bunch and the class is pretty fast-paced. Same goes with time commitment — I had to spend a lot of time just orienting myself and figuring out how to study best when you have to memorize all the bones in the body or something like that. It’s definitely worth every one of those 5 credits. that being said, I thought it was a great class, and I’ve already used the slides from ANATOMY 403 to study for my med school classes now.
All in all, I’d be careful of not overloading yourself too much, so pair ANATOMY 403 with easier classes if possible.
Best,
Kiran (PMH Alumni)
Pooja answered 4 years ago
Hi KP!
Another quick note: ANATOMY 403 is usually held from 10-12 PM while PHYSIOL 201 is 12:30-2. When I took PHYSIOL 201, there were a couple students (often those in the kinesiology school who were required to take both for their major) who complained about the very long days on M, W, and F because both courses are very heavy on material and memorization. If you want to take both of these courses together, I would make sure the rest of your schedule is a little bit lighter for the semester.
Best wishes,
Pooja (Co-President)