Grad school pre-reqs

[Bork]

I'm thinking about going back to grad school in the next 2-3 years, but I'm going to have to take a few pre-reqs, because I didn't take all the necessary classes when I got my BS. I'm not really sure how to go about getting signed up for those classes. Will I have to re-enroll in college for them to count, or can I just sign up for classes and take them for credit? If I take them at a community college, will they hold the same weight as they would if I go back to the school I did my undergrad degree at? Or, are prereqs something I need to take through the school I want to go to? If that's the case, do I just start applying for grad school, with the agreement that I'll do the prereqs there when I'm accepted?


Once again, I find myself really wishing that "Life" had been a class offered in high school or college...

[Sonic#]

You can usually ask the office of a department that you'd like to go to. Usually they'll have a pretty good idea of what they want, at least as regards how you fulfill requirements (community college or university).

As far as actually taking those pre-reqs, I know that you can apply to take classes at a college without them going towards your degree. (They may call it "non-degree" or "special standing.") At my university, the rules for application are not as stringent as those for a regular student, but they are required to obtain the permission of a professor in order to take the class, and they pay by the class (or by the credit hour) for the courses.

[rowan]

It depends a bit on where you're applying as to whether or not community college credits will be acceptable (mostly since community colleges vary greatly in their quality). One thing you can try to do is see if there are any "transferable" credits. At least here (I don't even know how many places have things) you can look up and see if certain credits will transfer from various places. So you could probably get an idea by looking to see if their undergrad program would accept those credits as transfer.

As long as you know the material though I think it will be all right. I don't think it's necessary at all to take those courses through the specific school you're going to grad school, since many people do not get their bachelor and higher degrees from the same schools.

PM me if you need some detailed help sorting things out though the next week and a half are going to be crazy busy with the end of the semester for me.

[kelsa]

Email or call the program and ask! Or check on gradcafe for any insight, they're lovely there.