Degree Plan – BS Math Major at Excelsior

[NAP]

I am very pleased that I got this opportunity to study these subjects, since it has been a dream of mine for a long time. I studied for almost one year and it went really well; I am sure it helped that I enjoyed learning the topics. I am still very excited about my good results – score 580, 69th percentile, 12 lower-level and 12 upper-level credits earned!

Note: This was the last chance to take the GRE for credit at Excelsior College. If you are interested, be sure to check with Charter Oak State College (COSC) and Empire State College. They may still give credit for these exams. COSC has not reviewed the Biochemistry GRE. It is not known whether they will give credit for this particular exam. Also, some of the credit awarded for this exam may duplicate other credit in similar subjects, such as the Biology, Chemistry, or Natural Science CLEPs. (Despite this, I am glad I took the Chemistry and Biology CLEPs first. Having seen some of the words and concepts before did help me, but even the “Intro” books I used for the GRE were so much deeper and with a new vocabulary on the same topics.)

I read about 10 books and 5 websites. It helped me to start with the basics and build from there. It also helped to review the material with each new book and get a different perspective on the same processes from each new author. I was happy that most of the books had been published recently. I liked all of them and learned a lot.

I was well prepared for reaching 80th percentile (my goal for full credit) on the real test. I had learned the concepts well; I had also done lots of review and memorization of the processes.


Books:

Molecular & Cell Biology for Dummies - Amazon.com: Molecular and Cell Biology For Dummies (9780470430668): Rene Fester Kratz PhD: Books

Genetics for Dummies - Amazon.com: Genetics For Dummies (For Dummies (Math & Science)) (9780470551745): Tara Rodden Robinson: Books

Biochemistry for Dummies - Amazon.com: Biochemistry For Dummies (9780470194287): John T. Moore, Richard Langley: Books

Molecular Biology Made Simple & Fun - Amazon.com: Molecular Biology made simple and fun, 4th edition (9781889899091): David P. Clark, Lonnie D. Russell: Books

Biochemistry I and II – Cliff’s Notes free online – Biochemistry I - CliffsNotes
(I have printed so much of this site that I should have bought these books, too.)

Lippincott’s Illustrated Review of Biochemistry and companion website -
Amazon.com: Lippincott's Illustrated Reviews: Biochemistry (Lippincott's Illustrated Reviews Series) (9781608314126): Richard A. Harvey PhD, Denise R. Ferrier: Books

Lippincott’s Illustrated Review of Cell and Molecular Biology and companion website -
Amazon.com: Lippincott's Illustrated Reviews: Cell and Molecular Biology (Lippincott's Illustrated Reviews Series) (9780781792103): Nalini Chandar, Susan Viselli: Books
This is a brand new book, which was written by teachers who use the LIR Biochemistry book. I think they have done a great job covering different material. I am glad I have both books. It explained a lot of things that I struggled with in the earlier books.

BIOS Instant Notes in Molecular Biology - Amazon.com: BIOS Instant Notes in Molecular Biology (9780415351676): Phil Turner, Alexander McLennan, Andy Bates, Michael White: Books
(I only had time to read a few parts of this book.)


Websites:

GRE Subject Test forum - GRE Subject Tests

After reading about them, there is something about seeing the animations of these concepts that is really helpful:

DNA Structure - DNA Structure - Contents page

Genetics with virtual labs - Learn.Genetics™

Howard Hughes Medical Institute Biointeractive - HHMI's BioInteractive - Animations
The sections I like are Animations, Click & Learn, and Virtual Labs.

Boyer – Concepts in Biochemistry 3rd edition 2006 – Boyer: Concepts in Biochemistry, 3rd Edition - Student Companion Site

Boyer – Concepts in Biochemistry 2nd edition 2002 - Welcome to Interactive Concepts in Biochemistry

Lehninger - Principles of Biochemistry 4th edition – Lehninger Principles of Biochemistry

Lehninger - Principles of Biochemistry 5th edition – Lehninger, Principles of Biochemistry, Fifth Edition

There are 2 website editions for each textbook. The versions have many similarities, but a few differences.


Practice Tests:

REA GRE Biochemistry Test study guide - Amazon.com: GRE Biochemistry, Cell and Molecular Biology with TestWare (REA): Second edition (REA Test Preps) (9780738608341): Thomas E. Smith, Marguerite Wilton Coomes: Books
This is the only study guide available for the Biochemistry GRE. It is not highly rated in reviews, but I learned a lot from the material covered, charts, and practice tests.

ETS – official Subject GRE website - GRE Subject Tests: About the GRE Subject Tests
If you might take this test in the future, keep checking the official site for new practice tests to download. Three official practice tests have been released for the Biochemistry GRE so far. The older versions can be found at the GRE forum (see link in section above).

With all of this study, I was able to get 70-80th percentile on the GRE practice tests. (I had studied a long time – 5 or 6 months – and learned a lot – 7th book – before I started to see some questions I knew on the practice tests.)

To get 80th percentile on the real test, I needed a few more things. I needed to manage my nerves and time better on the real test. I needed a little bit more vocabulary. (I was unfamiliar with 2 or 3 words and did not know if they made an actual difference in the correct answer to the question.) I needed more practice with applying my knowledge quickly to different scenarios. (A large number of questions are asked in a short amount of time.) I also needed more understanding of lab experiments.

Overall, I am very proud of myself for doing so well with this task. I know that others can do it, too. I hope this information will be helpful to someone.