B science (advanced) or B science for highest GPA? (1 Viewer)

[unapplicable]

Hi. I am tossing up between B science (advanced) or B science as the undergrad, and I intend on applying for graduate Med so my aim is to do the undergrad that will maximise my GPA.

Since science(advanced) is obviously a more challenging course, does that mean that I would get a higher GPA doing B science?

I went to the Usyd info day and asked heaps of lecturers and students but about half of them advised me to do B science to maximise my GPA, while the other half said that B science(advanced) may work to my advantage in that by doing that little bit of extra work, I can score myself some easy marks.
Also, I rang the Usyd student advice thing and one of the people said there was some sort of scaling involved when calculating the GPA, since getting 50% in B science(advanced) is harder than getting 50% in B science. :mad1::mad1:

I am so unsure about which degree I would obtain the highest GPA, and yes I enjoy ALL science subjects equally so I can't decide based on "what I enjoy". I got ATAR of 98.95...I might be able to do ok in B science(advanced) but I don't want to do a harder degree if it means my GPA will be lower than if I had chosen B science. I do like the sound of getting "easy marks" in B science(advanced) but I'm not sure if I'm capable.

Please tell me what you think I should do. Thanks.

 

[Trebla]

Advanced units are SCALED against normal units of study and as a result there are more Ds and HDs in advanced units in "reward" for taking something more challenging. So basically, if you're good enough you should definitely go for BSc(adv).

 

[unapplicable]

ok thanks

 

[2ndtimeround]

Which degree you choose ultimately does not matter since it is the marks in individual units of study that are used to calculate your GPA. Similarly, the BSc and BSc(Adv) are pretty much the same degree, the major difference being you have to complete a certain number of 'advanced' units - which, by the way, you could complete in the BSc anyway.

On the point of scaling, it may be worth noting that ALL USyd junior units are scaled no matter which course or faculty you may belong to, and as a current USyd Science student, trust me, its useful. But yes, the increased difficulty of the advanced units is taken into account when calculating marks - usually by giving both 'normal' and 'advanced' students several identical questions in the end of semester exams and comparing performance.

I hope this helps.

 

[scroates]

for graduate medicine GPA is not as important as a good GAMSAT or interview score. A GPA>5.5 should be fine.