Here I will give you some very important anatomy tips!
Going into the medical field requires a long-detailed plan that most sixteen- to seventeen-year-old kids cannot even fathom to put together without some help. I wish I had someone other than my mother to give me some helpful anatomy tips as to what courses I should tackle before entering even college.
Most high schools only go into basic or honors biology, basic or honors chemistry, and basic or honors physics. Junior year and senior year had the more advanced AP Biology, AP Chemistry, and AP Physics. I highly recommend taking AP Biology as the highest priority, followed by AP Chemistry, and if you have time after AP Physics. Premed in college is a lot easier when you have a good background in AP Bio or AP Chem. As you will take general biology and general chemistry in freshman and sophomore year.
Having a firm grasp on the major sciences is always a plus especially in your first year of college. Classes on average are easier in the first year of college compared to classes in your third and fourth year (like organic chemistry or biochemistry). It is best to get the highest grades you can in order to buff up your GPA. I got a C in physics! If you don’t do well in a hard class like I did, I was still able to have an overall GPA of 3.7.
The biggest problem!
The biggest problem I have with modern day high school sciences is that they are not teaching certain courses that would be beneficial in both premed. For example, the first time an anatomy elective was offered in my high school was in my senior year. Unfortunately because I was taking both AP bio and honors physics in the same year, I had no time to take anatomy. Anatomy is very confusing by itself because it is essentially in a different language. Latin makes up a large proportion of understanding the subject. Unfortunately, I took Spanish in high school (even though I love the ability to comprehend and speak Spanish fluently).
Knowing all the different roots and prefixes of things helps in learning everything that makes up our body. This includes the name of bones, muscles, nerves, veins, and arteries. Fortunately, there was an Anatomy class I took during my final year of premed which made Anatomy in medical school a lot easier. If you can take Anatomy and if you have extra time take a Latin class also. This will make your first year of medical school go a lot smoother. Another extra benefit would be to actually observe a cadaver or organs if your college allows it. As you will be tested on identifying essentially anything from the body as part of your anatomy exams. Everybody is different with a few variations of blood vessels, muscle distribution, and fat distribution. A head start in Anatomy will alleviate any stressors right before your first cut into a cadaver.