I'm going into Life Sciences in September, and have matched up the requirements for Level I Life Science and Biochemistry Level II, as thats what I want to do.
How competitive is Biochemistry? I know the minimum is a 6.0 or something, but does anyone know the average of applicants that actually get in? Is admission based solely on marks?

My second question is regarding PSYCH 1XX3. It's not a requirement for Biochem, but it is for a lot of other programs. If I don't get into Biochem, then I wouldn't have a large amount of programs to choose from because I'm not taking PSYCH 1XX3 if I don't need to. Is PSYCH 1XX3 a course worth taking if I won't be needing it? Is Biochem such a competitive program that I should definitely take it because of the number of students that are excepted?

Any answers to these questions would be helpful.
Also, I tried calling the Assoc. Dean of Science to ask for help with conditional offers for taking PSYCH 1XX3 in Level II, but the lines have been busy for days.

Originally Posted by jenpower

I'm going into Life Sciences in September, and have matched up the requirements for Level I Life Science and Biochemistry Level II, as thats what I want to do.
How competitive is Biochemistry? I know the minimum is a 6.0 or something, but does anyone know the average of applicants that actually get in? Is admission based solely on marks?

My second question is regarding PSYCH 1XX3. It's not a requirement for Biochem, but it is for a lot of other programs. If I don't get into Biochem, then I wouldn't have a large amount of programs to choose from because I'm not taking PSYCH 1XX3 if I don't need to. Is PSYCH 1XX3 a course worth taking if I won't be needing it? Is Biochem such a competitive program that I should definitely take it because of the number of students that are excepted?

Any answers to these questions would be helpful.
Also, I tried calling the Assoc. Dean of Science to ask for help with conditional offers for taking PSYCH 1XX3 in Level II, but the lines have been busy for days.

Yes, entry is solely based on your marks.
It is somewhat competitive I suppose, but if you do well you shouldn't have a problem getting in. That being said, I would take psych 1xx3, it's not a very difficult course if you put in effort and will open up more possibilities if you decide later on this year you don't like/want to go into biochem, for example.
Excepted = accepted*

If you have the course room I would take psych 1xx3, that way you really don't have to worry about anything - if you get into biochem you get in, and if not, then you have lots of backups to choose from.

Adding on to what Kamran said, you can always take Psych 1XX3 in the summer if you really want to keep your options open and to have a back-up program just in case .

The cutoff for this year biochem core was 8.0
specializations are higher
this year biochem cutoff was one of the lowest cutoff for 2nd year so it's was easy to get into

Yup.. I agree entirely with the post above.
As long as you work hard during the year, you should be able to get in. Keep in mind that if all fails, you could always choose to minor in Biochemistry, since you have a strong interest in that area.

Btw, I always find it easier to get in contact with the associate dean of science office around 10:30am on weekdays.

Originally Posted by ~*Sara*~

Adding on to what Kamran said, you can always take Psych 1XX3 in the summer if you really want to keep your options open and to have a back-up program just in case .

Can you take it online or would I have to come back to Hamilton? Seeing as I probably won't be living there in the summer.

Originally Posted by jenpower

Can you take it online or would I have to come back to Hamilton? Seeing as I probably won't be living there in the summer.

you can take it online at UofT...thats what i did a couple years ago!

You can take it online if another university offers the equivalent. You can check these equivalents here: http://www.science.mcmaster. ca/ass...lop2/equiv.php And then look at the website of different schools to see if any of them offer it online!

Haven't taken Psych 1XX3 and ended up in Biochem this following year.

Originally Posted by Watoko

Haven't taken Psych 1XX3 and ended up in Biochem this following year.

The OP meant that in case she isn't accepted to Biochem, several other 2nd year programs require Psych 1XX3.

Originally Posted by Watoko

Haven't taken Psych 1XX3 and ended up in Biochem this following year.

What was your CA? Do you know how many people were accepted?

Originally Posted by jenpower

What was your CA? Do you know how many people were accepted?

I think someone said the cutoff was 8 this year.

I remember getting information about approximately how many people are accepted from the level II program fair, but I don't remember it exactly. So I'm going to take a guess here it was something like 20 for biotech, 40 for biomed and 60 for core program? I'm pretty sure the relative amounts are right though.

Do you have to take biotech/biomed 2nd year for their respective co-ops, or can you take core biochem and apply for either of the co-ops?

Originally Posted by jenpower

Do you have to take biotech/biomed 2nd year for their respective co-ops, or can you take core biochem and apply for either of the co-ops?

Biochem is about the same for all the streams in second year. You can take any Biochem stream in second year and apply for the Biomed/Biotech Co-op at the end of second year as long as you fulfill the requirements:

Completion of any Level II Honours Biochemistry program, including completion of BIOLOGY 2B03 and SCIENCE 2C00 (See Program Note 3 above.)It's the same for both programs.
More info: http://registrar.mcmaster.ca /CALEN...12/pg1517.html

Originally Posted by jenpower

I'm going into Life Sciences in September, and have matched up the requirements for Level I Life Science and Biochemistry Level II, as thats what I want to do.
How competitive is Biochemistry? I know the minimum is a 6.0 or something, but does anyone know the average of applicants that actually get in? Is admission based solely on marks?

My second question is regarding PSYCH 1XX3. It's not a requirement for Biochem, but it is for a lot of other programs. If I don't get into Biochem, then I wouldn't have a large amount of programs to choose from because I'm not taking PSYCH 1XX3 if I don't need to. Is PSYCH 1XX3 a course worth taking if I won't be needing it? Is Biochem such a competitive program that I should definitely take it because of the number of students that are excepted?

Any answers to these questions would be helpful.
Also, I tried calling the Assoc. Dean of Science to ask for help with conditional offers for taking PSYCH 1XX3 in Level II, but the lines have been busy for days.

What are your back-up programs in case you don't get into biochem? I would recommend taking psych 1XX3. It's an easier course than 1X03 IMO because they don't try to trick you as much with the MC questions and it was more biology based, which I liked. Also, some of the material overlaps with material from Bio 1A03 so that was an added bonus. And last year, because they needed so many more experimetrix volunteers, they made the final exam worth 8% less, which gave us a lot more leeway in case we didn't do well on the final. The only annoying thing about the course might be the group research paper, but if you get a good group, you should be fine.