I recently found out that I didn't get into H Bio w/ Physiology which is what I wanted so I am left with three choices. I was wondering if anyone had advice as to which would be ideal: I want to take the one that will be most interesting but where getting high marks will not be too hard. Basically, I am writing the MCAT next summer so I want my GPA to be really high this year (first year was only 3.2). I am leaning away from Origins because I need to take either physics or astronomy and physics is what killed my average this year. And so I am undecided between H Bio or Biopsych. Biopsych seems much harder and there isn`t as much flexibility in terms of electives and inferential stats in third year seems pretty daunting...Any help??

I would recommend honours bio. I think its easier to keep your GPA high with this program because you have more room for ELECTIVES. For electives you can pick subjects you are good at to increase your GPA.

Look at the required courses for each program and see if the courses interest you. Take the program which has the courses that INTEREST you the most. Utlimately, it will be easier to study for courses you're interested in (and get high marks) vs. taking random easy courses that you don't have a lot of interest in.

Take electives in subjects you love and I'm sure your marks will be fabulous!!
Rate your courses from first year one 2 scales: easiness and interest.
Hopefully there are some courses you found both easy and interesting. Maybe this can give you an idea of what types of courses to take in second year.

Final message: Play on your Strengths

Yeah I was leaning towards Hon Bio mainly because I can take anatomy and physiology courses as electives as opposed to mandatory psychology courses (which still sound interesting but not so much so for me ). Also, I am wondering if I take courses that mirror the physio program, can I then later apply to get into physio third year? And would this mean I would have to take an extra year or not (since I will have completed the mandatory courses)?

Originally Posted by oxelhs

Yeah I was leaning towards Hon Bio mainly because I can take anatomy and physiology courses as electives as opposed to mandatory psychology courses (which still sound interesting but not so much so for me ). Also, I am wondering if I take courses that mirror the physio program, can I then later apply to get into physio third year? And would this mean I would have to take an extra year or not (since I will have completed the mandatory courses)?

Yes, you can shadow the physio program and re-apply in second year. No, you will not be one year behind because all the required second year physio courses are open to everyone (Bio 2F03, 2A03, 2B03, 2C03, Orgo1/2, Stats 2B03) - so you would be able to enroll in them.
However, I would recommend only shadowing the program if you were going to take the above courses anyways. I wouldn't go out of my way to take some courses just to satisfy the requirements. What if you force yourself to take some of the courses that you're not too thrilled about and recieve bad/mediocre marks in them - that could hurt your GPA?

If your main priority is attaining a high GPA, go into a program where the required courses thrill you and where you have a lot of room for electives your're excited about (to increase your GPA).

Don't go into physio just because it sounds cool. You can take most physio courses as an honours bio student as well (Bio 2A03, Bio 3UU3, Bio 3U03, Bio 3XL3). The one you miss out on is Bio 3ZZ3 which is a seminar/research course about current topics in environmental physiology.

Why not get the best of both worlds; taking physio courses and taking lots of electives you like to get a high GPA.

tl;dr If you want to keep a high GPA, go into the program in which the required courses are ones you are really excited about taking (and not just taking because they are required)