• choosing,  engineering,  hard,  life science,  med school

    You better lose yourself to the music, the moment you want it, you better never let it go…

    August 1, 2008

    Hey askastudent,I am in a bad situation right now…

    I am a first year student and I am gonna start life science from September. I have heard a lot about life science that it is very hard to survive. I was aiming for MD but I have realized how hard it is to get there and if i am not able to get into MD after 4 years of life science(which is gonna kill me), there isn’t many options other than going into research or becoming a teacher/professor. The thing that came to my mind was that, I would rather spend 4 years in engineering and get a bright future (high earnings), then do 4 years in BSc and still be v.low compared to engineering. I have even realized that doctor might not be the profession i want. After having thought a lot, I considered going
    for Engineering(TrackOne), but the main problem that i am having is that i don’t have Gr12 Physics and I can’t even take it in summer school bcuz its too late.

    I have 2 options that I have to decide from now –

    1 – Go back to high school and take Gr12 Physics(SPH4U) in night school i suppose till january and then wait for september. It is gonna be free, VERY easy, will start from next year engineering anyhow, I can work and earn some money etc.

    2. Continue with Life Science for this year and take BIO150Y1 (necassary), CHM138H,139H (necassary) and PHY131H,132H (to get admission in engineering next year i would have to take this physics course), and 1 more course that would be the easiest of all science courses. This option is v.costly compared to the 1st one, v.difficult as well, but I would have gone through all the difficulty faced in first year when i start engineering next year, so it would give me a head start in engineering next year and hopefully I wont be one of the many people who drop out of engineering. I would have gained experience on how to survive in university. I would even have 1 year of life science attached to my record which could be useful i guess. I would have explored all the career options that I could possibly get into. I would even know if MD is the correct options for me or not.

    What would u suggest – Spend 4 years in Engineering or in Life Science?

    I know I put more emphasis on the 2nd option but i’m considering both options equally (which is why im terribly confused). So, which option would be better and logical – going back to high school and do engineering next year or start life science and switch to engineering next year?

    If I choose my second option, which courses would you suggest that i should take?

    Awaiting you reply.

    Regards,
    Ali

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  • commerce,  life science,  med school,  phys ed

    When I grow up I wanna be a doctor and a businessman and a physiotherapist and a princess!

    July 30, 2008

    hey aska. is it possible to take classes and/or dual major across faculties? So can a life science student dual major or take classes with kinisieology or commerce? oh and have you heard any good things about the physical education and health program? I was planning on maybe doing that instead of the traditional life science premed route. Do people get into med school from that program and is it hard to keep up a high gpa?? thanks

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  • courses,  failing,  med school

    you’ll have to wait for Armageddon…

    July 24, 2008

    Hey, i read your site and saw some info about getting rid of a course
    completely from the academic record
    i really slacked during my first year for this one particular course and
    failed it.. by like.. 3 marks..
    anyway if i were to get that deleted from my record, my gpa would go up an
    entire point.. 1.9 to 2.9.. i calculated it
    so.. i was wondering if there might be a chance that i could get this one
    course deleted? it would do wonders for my uni career if it was possible
    thnx in advance!

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  • courses,  med school

    instructors that edit your work and courses without grades- yup, that’s UofT for ya!

    July 23, 2008

    I’m not the best at writing essays and I figure taking one of those writing courses would really help me out in the future. I’m thinking about taking INI103H1 Writing Essays (formerly INI200Y1). Is that course any good? Or
    will my marks just suffer? I have to keep up a 3.5 GPA so will this course work to level my GPA or will it just lower it tremendously? Also, is there a lot of work involved?

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  • med school,  subject POST

    CGPA is A-OK!

    June 4, 2008

    Hi Askastudent!
    I have a question about academic probation and subjectPOST…
    I just finishe first year with a GPA less than 1.50…so I guess I’m on probation. BUT after summer courses, I will have a GPA of 1.55. Is that enough to be in good standing in sept 2008?
    And since I will still have less than 4 credits after summer, I won’t have a subjectpost in sept…does that mean I will continue as a first year student? and won’t be able to enroll in 200 level courses?
    Thanks for your time!

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  • failing,  grades,  med school

    Hop on Pop

    May 28, 2008

    I have a question regarding Academic Probation. I thought you needed a sessional GPA of 1.6 to be ok, not 1.7? Am I mistaking this for the other campuses (UTSC, UTM)?

    Also, is it possible to have your suspension removed? I know it’s a long shot, so I was just wondering if it has ever been done before and if so what are the circumstances?

    How lenient are TAs in bumping up your mark a couple of points?

    Thanks!

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  • courses,  med school

    Regrets? For Me? Never.

    May 21, 2008

    Hi aska~
    I have a question about posts~ on the calender it says “to obtain standing…no more than six courses may be 100-series’. What will happen if I take more than 6 100-series course? Because now i’m choosing my posts and i took 5 science courses in the first year. But now i totally regret it and I want to study statistics and east asian studies, and each one requires a first year course. If I take those courses I would have taken 7 100-courses….so what should I do? thanks a lot!

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  • international relations,  med school,  trinity college

    I Fear the Unknown

    May 19, 2008

    Hello aska!
    Sorry to interrupt your studying, especially now that it’s exam season and whatnot, but I really need your help! I’m a grade 12 student and I’ve received an acceptance from Trinity.However, all I’ve heard about it are negative things, and I feel kind of discouraged. Is it really THAT bad?

    Additionally, I’m interested in applying for the Major or Specialist International Relations program and it says that all I need is a GPA of 3.0 if I’m not mistaken.

    Given the competition though, I doubt that it’s a realistic mark to actually be admitted to the program. What mark do I truly need to actually get in?

    It means a lot to me, because I can’t seem to make up my mind on where to go!

    Thank you for your time, I really, really appreciate it! 🙂

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  • engineering,  grades,  med school

    for the engineers suffering with depression

    January 30, 2008

    uh so I just completed my first term in chemical engineering. I generally like
    to work my ass off in my calm, mellow, concentrated way till I get high off of
    whatever it is I am studying but despite this I was unable to achieve Dean’s
    honour list. I am so fucking depressed. Also I really really really want to go
    to grad school. Are they gonna care if I didn’t achieve my full potential in my
    very first term in university? Sometimes I just feel like dropping out to
    chemistry or philosophy or something.

    spill whatever you know that may be useful in this situation.

    much thanks and love.

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