u/EducationalSink4474

▲ 1 r/yale

pre-med courses question

hey everyone! i'll be attending yale as a chem major on the premed track next year, and i'm super excited! i have a few questions about the courses i'm taking and my 4-year premed plan.

my goal is to take the MCAT in september of junior year, which would enable me to have one more shot at it in the spring. (i realize this is quite an ambitious goal haha, but i find setting an earlier goal will allow me to be more flexible in case something throws a wrench in my plans). i plan on taking freshman orgo, and since im a chem major, i'll take inorganic chem later down the line (so i don't need to worry about the gen chem requirements).

my current plan is to take freshman orgo 1 and 2 in my 1st and 2nd semester, and get some other premed prereqs out of the way 1st year (english, biostats, and maybe calc or psych). however, i didn't want to take gen bio during first semester since i feel like i may get burnt out due to the difficulty of keeping up with 2 heavy science based classes.

i was wondering if i could start the gen bio track in spring, when i'm more acclimated to yale. this would allow me to finish the gen bio track in fall of my sophomore year and take biochem in spring of my sophomore year (i also wonder: is biochem offered during spring?). i also plan on taking physics 1/2 during my sophomore year, which i've heard is better to do with gen bio as its not as intensive as orgo (please correct me if im wrong). i'm also curious about the professors; will i be able to get good profs for all these classes based on the semesters i'm thinking?

idk if this helps, but i've had prior experience in all these classes except orgo and physics 2 in high school.

let me know what y'all think of this plan. again, i do realize that my MCAT goal may be on the ambitious side, but if i can start general bio in the spring i think i'll be okay. or, let me know if i'll be okay taking the MCAT in january instead (and retake in april-ish, if needed). the goal is not to take a gap year haha. i'd love any yale-specific premed advice, esp from those who took freshman orgo, since i'm a little overwhelmed with the prereqs. thanks again!

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u/EducationalSink4474 — 4 days ago
▲ 7 r/yale

i know someone just posted about this, but does anyone have any ideas on how to appeal financial aid as someone with a high FAFSA SAI? since my SAI was so high they didn't offer me any aid initially. i sent them an appeal through the website, and i told them about how we have to pay for our grandparents abroad, but i dont really know what to do if they don't take that. no other school gave me need based aid honestly... and i already committed to yale. while my parents can pay for it, they would have to significantly change their current life to manage.

like there's gotta be some reason, or some way, that I can get a little bit of money off. even getting the bill down from $100k/year to $90k would be helpful.

im also a bit confused on how yale calculates financial aid, like when you own properties and stuff. is there anything i can tell them about this that would make them more willing to give me a little bit more money?

lastly, do merit based scholarships i gather during college help as someone who receives no aid from yale itself?

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u/EducationalSink4474 — 21 days ago