WOW.....I am scared now but thanks a lot for letting me know what I am getting into....I'll definitly go to student services and ask them for more volunteer stuff....and I'll definitly look at the website you recommended.....are there any study tips out there that might help me get the precentage I might be looking for? Cuz I am getting a 88 -89 in highschool so who knows what might happen to my grades in Uni.? :( Also what other careers would I be looking at if I didnt get into Medicine? What if after 1st eyar I didnt want to go for Medicine like some of you said. what other alternatives do I have? WIll I need to take differnt coursese? Or will the courses I have be enough? I knw this a lot of information I am asking for and thank you all for your inputs...apprciate it

Originally Posted by vman93

WOW.....I am scared now but thanks a lot for letting me know what I am getting into....I'll definitly go to student services and ask them for more volunteer stuff....and I'll definitly look at the website you recommended.....are there any study tips out there that might help me get the precentage I might be looking for? Cuz I am getting a 88 -89 in highschool so who knows what might happen to my grades in Uni.? :( Also what other careers would I be looking at if I didnt get into Medicine? What if after 1st eyar I didnt want to go for Medicine like some of you said. what other alternatives do I have? WIll I need to take differnt coursese? Or will the courses I have be enough? I knw this a lot of information I am asking for and thank you all for your inputs...apprciate it

There are so many career options, the best thing to do is to talk to an academic advisor or the science careers and services office.

If you want to do really well in university you'll have to buckle down and take it seriously. People always say that you can expect your marks to drop X amount of percent. But it's not because university is hundreds of times harder than highschool. Learning is learning. I found first year to be easy in terms of material, testing was pretty hard but nothing I haven't seen in highschool. The major reason why my mark dropped was because I didn't take it seriously. I stayed up late almost every night to hang out with my floormates, played games, partied and DC++ was a huge time killer.

How do I know that my grade drop was due to what I just said, well this year I took school a lot more seriously in order to up my grades. The material is A LOT harder and seems to go by MUCH faster than in first year. There is a lot more to memorize/learn in less amount of times not to mention a lot more tests. But I'm doing much better than in first year. I haven't completely demolished my social life though. I just found a good balance that works for me.

But definitively go talk to an academic advisor and the science careers and services office. They will be able to answer all your questions about careers and requirements as well as transferring.

Thanks ....I'll keep that in mind for sure....adn is it a good thing to make a study group ? will it help me or will it just be a waste of time?

Originally Posted by vman93

Thanks ....I'll keep that in mind for sure....adn is it a good thing to make a study group ? will it help me or will it just be a waste of time?

Depends on how you learn. I study best on my own because I usually study faster than my friends do. So when we study together I feel bored and restless because I just want to move on. However, we always get together a day or two before the test or exam and go through everything. Since we already studied, we only go over the things we aren't sure of. We also go over the things we already know but really quickly, it's just to keep it fresh in our heads and to "drill" it in. It's also good to explain things to other people, even if they aren't taking the same course. Because if you can explain it then you definitively know it.

Thank you for your information. It says that you are an Honours Molecular Biology and Genetics student. What does the honours mean? Is it a differnt course? HOw do you like the Molecular Biology courses? What do they teach you in that?

Honors means your program is 4 years instead of 3 (which is just bachelors degree).
With respect to other options..the possibilities are endless. Alternative Medicine (chiropractor, naturopath, nutritionist, etc), Physiotherapy, Research, Lab Technician, Pharmacy, Optometry, Clinical Psychologist, Speech Pathologist, just to name a few.
Doing well in university, or at least at mac, isn't impossible to accomplish. The biggest change is the amount of material learned per week. In highschool, you complete a chapter about every 3 weeks. In university, it's a chapter a week. The lecture pace is must faster. Like jeremy said, It's about keeping focus and prioritizing. It's very easy to get distracted with rez parties, relationships, tv shows..whatever. It's also very easy to get discouraged and to want to give up. Especially when you're stressed out. And it does get quite stressful at times. There will be weeks where you may have 2-3 labs, 1-2 midterms, and assignments due. During these times it is essential to persevere and keep going, even when every other inch of you is begging you to give up. A good support system is crucial during these stressful times. Sometimes you need a boost or encouragement from one of your friends. Another BIG change is the independence and responsibility. You will no longer have teachers going out of their way to make sure you get help or constantly reminding you to do your work. It's all up to you now. If you need help, the resources are all there; it's up to you to take advantage of them. Lol, I could go on and on, but I'm basically telling all the things I SHOULD have done in first and second year.

Originally Posted by vman93

Thank you for your information. It says that you are an Honours Molecular Biology and Genetics student. What does the honours mean? Is it a differnt course? HOw do you like the Molecular Biology courses? What do they teach you in that?

So far the courses I'm taking are still pretty general, a lot of other programs also take it. It becomes a lot more specific in third and fourth year when your courses are actually from the molecular bio and genetics department.

In third year there's a lot of courses that are based on genetics. If you really want to know the specific courses then visit the undergrad calendar and go to the program.

ALright thank you
mmm...what kind of volunteer activities should I be doing or any type of activity? When applying would they a certificate or something or is my word for it going to be enough (even though that is less likely).

Typically, people do volunteer placements in hospitals/health centers since obviously you have the opportunity to observe many health care professionals, patients and to see if you enjoy that type of environment.

But really, any volunteer activity is good as long as you enjoy it and you keep up with it once you've graduated high school and enter university.

Well, I am sure they would need some type of verification that you did do volunteer work, but I think that would come in the form of a reference letter of some sort and it depends on the med school. But that's a bit far away from now and you shouldn't worry about that.

Thank you so much...but my Dad is still worried if I will get into a Medical School after undergrad..so he wants me to check out some universities and have no idea where to look for some information.

Originally Posted by Mz.Morra13

And now, I'm transferring into Honors Life Sci but eventually applying for nursing!

Are you applying to the Accelerated Nursing at Mac? I'm going to be going into that come September.

On topic: The link posted already (http://www.ouac.on.ca/omsas/) of Med schools in Ontario is likely to be the best you'll find. It gives links to the sites of all the schools in Ontario, has FAQs, etc. If that doesn't have what you're looking for, maybe you could be more specific?

Andrew - Can I ask what your GPA was? I really want to get in for Sept 2011 but I need to do really well 3rd year lol

I still don't have all my marks released, so I'm not 100% on it, lol. I'm guessing it will end up around a 10 though. Vicki Lewis, the admissions coordinator, told me that they accepted people with the minimum marks last year though, so I think a lot of emphasis is placed on the supplementary application. She was really helpful in answering my questions, ([email protected]) , she'll probably be able to give you the best info. I can answer as best I can though Good luck!

Ha I already met with her! She wasn't so nice to me though :( sad. I met with another faculty member too but yeah I guess they do take the supplementary application into consideration..so I should get on that! When did you get your acceptance? Congrats btw

Thanks! I got it just this week, and was extremely excited. You've got plenty of time to work on your supplementary, so no worries. The due date for this year wasn't until reading week.