Difference of A&P I and A&P II?

Nursing Students Pre-Nursing

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Specializes in None as of yet.

Quick question for you ladies who have taken both A&P's. I start A & P I today and I'm curious as to what the difference is in these A&P classes. Is A &P II more involved??

Thanks! :rolleyes:

Look at the course descriptions in your college catalog. Some schools might divide the material into two semesters, others might emphasize anatomy in the first semester and physiology in the second semester, while others may still use another approach. All up to the school that you attend. Another source for this info is the instructor that teaches the courses.

For me A&P I consisted of a biology review, histology of the different tissue types, the integumentary system, bones, muscles, and nerves. A&P II is where we got into all the other systems and how everything worked together. I actually enjoyed A&P II much more than I.

Specializes in None as of yet.

Ohhh ok. Thank you! I just looked it up, here's what it says for A&P I:

"This course is designed to give a student of any health or medical science a thorough background in anatomy and physiology. Current in-depth information is presented on the structure and function of human cells, tissues, and organ systems, including the skin, skeletal, muscular, nervous and sensory systems. Laboratory work augments lecture topics and includes exercises in microcopy, the study of fresh and preserved specimens, and exercises in human physiology. Prerequisite: Successful completion of high school biology or BIOL041; successful completion of high school chemistry or CHEM043 is recommended."

And here's A&P II's description:

"A continuation of Human Anatomy and Physiology I. This course includes current, in-depth information of the structure and function of the endocrine, digestive, respiratory, blood, cardiovascular, lymphatic, urinary, and reproductive systems. Laboratory work augments lecture topics and includes exercises in microscopy, the study of fresh and preserved specimens, and physiological meadsurements on the human body. Prerequisite: C or better in BIOL110."

Specializes in Infusion.

So you'll be looking at the function on hormones - where they are produced and what they act upon. You'll find the endocrine system is intertwined with all of the other systems in one way or another. You'll need to understand blood gases and how the body compensates for rising/lowered pH in the blood. This stuff was really fascinating to me.

It sounds like your school just splits up the different systems into 2 semesters. We have 3 quarters worth of A&P and just split it up 3 ways. You'll find that the earlier information will really help you to understand the systems you learn about later.

Took both and earned A's. Will be starting nursing school in the fall. Not a lady so I don't feel qualified to answer.

Specializes in Neuroscience.

A&P II is just a continuation from I. You finish the rest of the body and the major systems -- there's simply too much to fit in one class so they made it two. I thought it (II) was easier because II is more interesting body system-wise. Bones & Muscles from I are pretty dry, but I loved the Circulatory & Genetics from II.

I've taken both and at my school A&P1 covered the first half of all the systems ((Integumentary...respiratory...etc.)) and A&PII Covered the other half of the systems in which wasn't covered in A&P1, I had the same teacher for both.

I recently finished A&P 1 & 2 and the major difference I found was that A&P 1 was a lot more memorization and A&P 2 was more comprehension. You can't get away with memorization in A&P 2 like you can with A&P 1. If you don't understand how everything ties together then you'll have a really hard time. Stay determined and you'll do fine :)

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