Chemistry in undergrad?

[psych_phd]

Hi everyone. I'm only a sophomore right now, but I already know that I want to apply to graduate school for health psychology in the future. I'm thinking about taking general chemistry, but I'm kind of scared that I'm not going to do well in the course. Would taking more science courses in undergrad help me get into graduate school, or does it really not matter?

[soc_psych]

This is just my opinion, based on my own experience, so keep that in mind, but...

-Taking more science courses won't hurt, but I doubt they would help all that much

-If you don't do well, it might hurt your application (a C or D amidst a transcript of all A's and B's doesn't look great, though probably won't impact your gpa too much)

-The best thing you can do to help you application is get really good quality research experience. Working in more labs does not always equal better. If you can get in good with one professor, do some independent research, present a poster at a conference, etc., that's going to be best.

-If you really want to take courses to help boost your application, consider some advanced statistics classes.

This is assuming you want to attend a research oriented program. If you're more focused on the counseling aspect, this may not be the right advice.

Hope this helps!

[psych_phd]

Thanks, soc_psych! Your advice is very helpful!