About to finish college with a 2.3 GPA, can this mess even be fixed now?

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BarcelonaFan2

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Most of my years college have been riddled with:

1. Overbearing immigrant parents who decided what major I will be in college and made my decisions for me when college started, I was a wimp for not standing up to them but I eventually did. Parental pressure and since they paid for my education I felt this need to please them. Probably the biggest setback but the one I have handled towards the end of college almost completely. After years of fighting I have this resolved and worked out to where it is a non-factor but man did it leave a beatdown on my transcript, I am beating myself up right now for not doing something about it sooner. Thought they knew what they were doing, I was dead wrong.

2. Lots of depression due to the above, mind was not focused on academics.

3. Transferring to a new and tougher school where the C's I was getting at my old and easier university (close to home) turned into D's in upper level science classes. Took one upper level science class, got a D in it, took it again, and got a D in it (it was cell biology). Happier here now and doing better because I am away from home. Basically at my older university I had around a 3.0 GPA or so but at my new university I will be finishing with a 2.3 GPA.

I have read stories of guys making it in with GPAs that were low like 3.1 low but not as low as mines. Only a year ago did I develop an interest in dentistry but the problem is that my parents wanted to push me to go to med school because it is "more prestigious".

I've finally got my mind together, grades are picking up, and I feel better mentally now. Finally after years of college I have found out what made my grades so low and am confident that I can do better now but I wonder if this mess can even be fixed.

I just feel like if it was a 2.7 or 2.8 there would be hope but a 2.3 from my current university college, it's like I feel hopeless....

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That GPA isn't going to help you. From what I've seen, you're best chances might be to pursue a post bacc. degree, but you have to do really well. That would give you a fresh start and a way to show that you can earn a good GPA. Along those lines, if you do really well on the DAT it shows that you can perform well.
Not to sound condescending, but having minority status will also help, if you choose to use it to your advantage.
 
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That GPA isn't going to help you. From what I've seen, you're best chances might be to pursue a post bacc. degree, but you have to do really well. That would give you a fresh start and a way to show that you can earn a good GPA. Along those lines, if you do really well on the DAT it shows that you can perform well.
Not to sound condescending, but having minority status will also help, if you choose to use it to your advantage.
Minority status does not help if you're Asian, which is pretty clear that is OP's race.
 
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No and your academic background is too weak to pursue any health professional schools. To be frank, the blame lies with you rather than your parents. Your parents were nice enough to pay for your college education and you couldn't even put effort into studying and now blame your academic failure on your parents.

Even if you can somehow change your study habits drastically and get 4.0 in postbac, which seems doubtful at best, there's a good chance you won't be considered due to your extremely low GPA. Save your money and time and go look for a job with your degree unless you know you can get all As in postbac, 22+ on DAT, and still face a lot of rejections.
 
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do a masters get a 4.0 (getting into a masters program might be hard though, maybe consider finding the dean of a program and explaining your situation to him) orrrrr do a post-bacc THEN a masters.
 
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Decide now if dentistry is for you.

Unless you retake the classes you did horrible in, then take a post bacc program with all A's, and get a high DAT score,you stand no chance.

A masters is out of the question due to the gpa.
 
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I am assuming you have about 120 hours. In order to bring your GPA to at least a 3.0, you can take 17 hours each semester for 3 years. By the end of your 3rd year of postbach, you should be at a 3.1 if you consistently make a 4.0.

You will be applying after your second year of postbach, and continue making good grades just in case you need to apply again.
 
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Its possible with a post-bac, but its not likely given your history. I would advice you to jump ship (science) and go pursue something else. If you stick to science maybe pursue some kind of health care technologist field.
 
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Decide now if dentistry is for you.

Unless you retake the classes you did horrible in, then take a post bacc program with all A's, and get a high DAT score,you stand no chance.

A masters is out of the question due to the gpa.

I don't know if I can make All A's in Post Bacc but I know I am a much better student now who knows what he wants to do for his career. Certainly won't make anything lower than a B for sure.

So far my trends have been:

Started at weaker university with mostly B's and C's, some A's in non-science courses.
As soon as I hit Orgo, made my first D, retook it and made a C. GPA was swimming around the low 3's at this point due to strong grades in other non-science courses.

Transferred to stronger university to get away from parents (who also made my life hell at home which made it tough for me to appropriately study) and be out on my own.

Had a tough time adjusting and GPA took heavy hits, lots of D's in upper level science classes.

Here I am now about to finish at this university with a 2.3 GPA.
 
Also guys, thanks for the real talk and giving constructive criticism about my awful situation. I had issues going on at home and in my life which made getting an education and doing well in upper level sciences an extremely difficult task for me. At times I felt like withdrawing classes I was failing only to have my parents have the strong hand and stop that from happening. I take full responsibility for not being proactive and standing up to them and I am paying quite the price for it now. Even though I have a much clearer mind and am in a better place mentally to where I was when I was living with my parents in college, I know that a lot of doors are closed to me because of my GPA and I fully accept that.

With that said though, even though I am more confident now, I don't know if I can pull exactly a 4.0 from this point on. All I can say is that I am a much better student now, doing better at the more difficult university, and I have learned from all of my mistakes.

It seem as though the damage done is to the point where it is not going to be repaired so I will consider other options.

Thank you everyone for taking this time to objectively evaluate my situation and give me realistic advice.
 
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I don't know if I can make All A's in Post Bacc but I know I am a much better student now who knows what he wants to do for his career. Certainly won't make anything lower than a B for sure.

So far my trends have been:

Started at weaker university with mostly B's and C's, some A's in non-science courses.
As soon as I hit Orgo, made my first D, retook it and made a C. GPA was swimming around the low 3's at this point due to strong grades in other non-science courses.

Transferred to stronger university to get away from parents (who also made my life hell at home which made it tough for me to appropriately study) and be out on my own.

Had a tough time adjusting and GPA took heavy hits, lots of D's in upper level science classes.

Here I am now about to finish at this university with a 2.3 GPA.

Ok, real talk. If you don't make straight As in postbac after your undergraduate debacle, you got no shot at dental school. So, be honest now, did you study for exams at all in your undergraduate? Because if you actually studied and ended up with a 2.3 GPA, there's very little chance you will make 4.0 in postbac even if you study 40+ hours a week excluding the time spent in class.
 
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Its possible with a post-bac, but its not likely given your history. I would advice you to jump ship (science) and go pursue something else. If you stick to science maybe pursue some kind of health care technologist field.

The OP finally made up his mind to pursue dentistry and all you can suggest is pursue other health field? Jeez...

It CAN be done but as most people suggested your chance of getting accepted at this point is slim. You want to show upper trend with your grades. Do post bac. And kill it. I had sub 2.5 gpa out of college. Did post bac and got masters. My gpa since college was close to 4.0. I got alots of questions about my undergrad gpa in the interview but i got noticed by many schools. I got accepted to dental school and will be attending this fall.

Plan out your future and talk to local dental school admission staff. they are often willing to give you advice.
 
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Ok, real talk. If you don't make straight As in postbac after your undergraduate debacle, you got no shot at dental school. So, be honest now, did you study for exams at all in your undergraduate? Because if you actually studied and ended up with a 2.3 GPA, there's very little chance you will make 4.0 in postbac even if you study 40+ hours a week excluding the time spent in class.

Well, I had some mental health issues to where I would procrastinate and even if I tried to study days in advance, I could not focus. Saw an expert this past summer and worked with him through those, I was able to pull high grades in upper level science classes since then. Even then though, I don't think a 4.0 is doable for me because that means perfection, I could get higher than 3.5 or maybe even earn a 3.75 but a 4.0, IMO, knowing myself, is probably not gonna happen for me. Just being honest about myself here.
 
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I'm getting frustrated reading this. Here is some tough love. You need to stop making excuses because honestly people on this forum don't care, and dental schools certainly don't care. First the issue was living at home with mean parents that made grades suffer, then it became moving to a private school that was now too hard.

You can still get in, but it will be a long road. You won't get into even a decent masters program right now. You need a formal/informal postbacc followed by a masters, plus a good DAT. You are looking at 3-4 more years of a full time course load. Is it worth it to you?

And look, i had a family member almost pass away two weeks before my final exams in grad school. But you can't feel sorry for yourself because there are tons of qualified applicants ready to take your spot.

Good luck.
 
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The OP finally made up his mind to pursue dentistry and all you can suggest is pursue other health field? Jeez...

It CAN be done but as most people suggested your chance of getting accepted at this point is slim. You want to show upper trend with your grades. Do post bac. And kill it. I had sub 2.5 gpa out of college. Did post bac and got masters. My gpa since college was close to 4.0. I got alots of questions about my undergrad gpa in the interview but i got noticed by many schools. I got accepted to dental school and will be attending this fall.

Plan out your future and talk to local dental school admission staff. they are often willing to give you advice.

First of all, congratulations on your success, I am happy to hear of stories such as yours.

No need to stick up for me, I welcome ALL advice whether it is optimistic or pessimistic. I know that I have done some serious damage to my GPA which at this point is an uphill battle AT BEST to get in anywhere.

I am just looking for pathways to improve. Might even try to delay graduation and increase GPA a bit to give myself a better shot.
 
I'm getting frustrated reading this. Here is some tough love. You need to stop making excuses because honestly people on this forum don't care, and dental schools certainly don't care. First the issue was living at home with mean parents that made grades suffer, then it became moving to a private school that was now too hard.

You can still get in, but it will be a long road. You won't get into even a decent masters program right now. You need a formal/informal postbacc followed by a masters, plus a good DAT. You are looking at 3-4 more years of a full time course load. Is it worth it to you?

And look, i had a family member almost pass away two weeks before my final exams in grad school. But you can't feel sorry for yourself because there are tons of qualified applicants ready to take your spot.

Good luck.

I learned in college that a lot of how I was raised and the thing I went through caught up with me when I was on my own. I could have certainly done a lot better and made much better decisions but the past is just that, the past. Sorry for your loss but glad to hear about you doing well.

Thanks for laying out the path for me, I want to get an idea of what it will take and it seems like nothing short of 3 years of college after college + SMP + high DAT will help me. Even then, there is a pretty good chance I don't get in anywhere.

One thing I do know is that I am certain I won't pull a 4.0 GPA but I will be able to get in the higher 3s and am a much better student now.
 
Well, I had some mental health issues to where I would procrastinate and even if I tried to study days in advance, I could not focus. Saw an expert this past summer and worked with him through those, I was able to pull high grades in upper level science classes since then. Even then though, I don't think a 4.0 is doable for me because that means perfection, I could get higher than 3.5 or maybe even earn a 3.75 but a 4.0, IMO, knowing myself, is probably not gonna happen for me. Just being honest about myself here.

If you can't get 3.9+/4.0, it's waste of money and time for you since your GPA is so low. You are going to need to pursue another career that only cares that you got a 4 year degree.
 
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If you can't get 3.9+/4.0, it's waste of money and time for you since your GPA is so low. You are going to need to pursue another career that only cares that you got a 4 year degree.

Any suggestions on what that might be if I want to work in the health care field?

I was open to PA and Pharmacy school as well or maybe doing the DO route a few months back but for some reason, after having done the research, the dental field is what interests me.
 
Any suggestions on what that might be if I want to work in the health care field?

I was open to PA and Pharmacy school as well or maybe doing the DO route a few months back but for some reason, after having done the research, the dental field is what interests me.

Your GPA is too low for any professional school. For some reason, you seem to think that you still have a lot of options even with your low GPA. If you really want to work in dental field, you might be able to become dental assistant. As I said, with your GPA, you are only going to be able to work in field in which they only care about the fact that you have a degree and don't care what your GPA is. You need to wake up and accept the fact that your career perspectives are very limited now and it will be hard for you to find a job that pays well.
 
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Your GPA is too low for any professional school. For some reason, you seem to think that you still have a lot of options even with your low GPA. If you really want to work in dental field, you might be able to become dental assistant. As I said, with your GPA, you are only going to be able to work in field in which they only care about the fact that you have a degree and don't care what your GPA is. You need to wake up and accept the fact that your career perspectives are very limited now and it will be hard for you to find a job that pays well.

No doubt it'll be hard but I am willing to put in the work. As for paying well, I am not so focused on the money as much as the field itself. If that was the case I would try to go the DO route and then eventually crack the higher tier medical professions like surgeon but I don't want to do that. Thanks for the candid advice though.
 
No doubt it'll be hard but I am willing to put in the work. As for paying well, I am not so focused on the money as much as the field itself. If that was the case I would try to go the DO route and then eventually crack the higher tier medical professions like surgeon but I don't want to do that. Thanks for the candid advice though.

DO is just as hard to get into dentistry, I'm not sure where your delusion comes from. For every professional school, you are going to need to what people told you needed to do to pursue dentistry. You basically screwed around for 5 years and now your career options are ****ed unless you are willing to put A LOT of money and time into fixing it. Besides, you already said that you don't want to do what you needed to do for dentistry since it would be too hard.
 
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DO is just as hard to get into dentistry, I'm not sure where your delusion comes from. For every professional school, you are going to need to what people told you needed to do to pursue dentistry. You basically screwed around for 5 years and now your future is ****ed unless you are willing to put a lot of money and time into fixing it.

I didn't screw around for 5 years, I had serious issues that needed some outside help to be fixed and I delayed time fixing them. DO does grade replacement and I talked to people on the pre-med forum who told me to go to that career path. As much as I have respected your posts throughout this entire thread I think you need to understand that I made it clear I had a lot of problems going into college that needed to be fixed. I made the mistake of not getting them fixed and my GPA paid the price for it but during those years, I was not out drinking, partying, and living the frat bro lifestyle, I was depressed and helpless, dealing with overbearing parents who wouldn't let me make my own decisions that could have helped me. When I finally took the action of doing something about it, things improved.
 
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No doubt it'll be hard but I am willing to put in the work. As for paying well, I am not so focused on the money as much as the field itself. If that was the case I would try to go the DO route and then eventually crack the higher tier medical professions like surgeon but I don't want to do that. Thanks for the candid advice though.

I feel like this whole thread is just going in circle here.

Ok. OP, you want to know with your current situation, can you still enter dental school or in the health care field in general.

The general consensus is yes, but it will be very difficult and requires a lot of works. This mean doing a post bacc/master and getting 4.0 for a few more years.

Then you said you want to put in the work to get there, but you already know that you wont get a 4.0 in post bacc. You are just contradicting yourself at this point. IF you are truly like dentistry and want to get into health care, this is your only option. Putting in the work here mean studying your ass off, no social life, and do whatever it is for the next 3 years to get the GPA you need. "I know I can't get a 4.0" is not a legitimate excuse here. Others have been in the same shoes as you are, and they were able to pull it off, so its not an impossible thing, and you can to.

What I'm sensing here if that you don't actually want to do the works because you feel it's too much and you just want alternate/easier solution to your problems. Well here's the punchline: there's no shortcuts. You already got your answers, its up to you to actually want to get into dentistry or not.
 
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I didn't screw around for 5 years, I had serious issues that needed some outside help to be fixed and I delayed time fixing them. DO does grade replacement and I talked to people on the pre-med forum who told me to go to that career path. As much as I have respected your posts throughout this entire thread I think you need to understand that I made it clear I had a lot of problems going into college that needed to be fixed. I made the mistake of not getting them fixed and my GPA paid the price for it but during those years, I was not out drinking, partying, and living the frat bro lifestyle, I was depressed and helpless.

So, what makes you think your study habits would have suddenly changed? Unlike a lot of people who screwed up in the beginning of college, you are still not showing significant improvement in grades. You need to be realistic and acknowledge your limits in your academic ability before you decide to spend another tens of thousands of dollars and more time studying. Are you basically saying that you are emo, it's your parents' fault, you moped around your house with screwed up sleep schedule, played video games/watch tv, and not study? Because that's what that sounds like to me.

If you are 100% committed to basically repeating your college and work your ass off this time, go for it. At least you can say you tried even if it doesn't work out.
 
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So, what makes you think your study habits would have suddenly changed? Unlike a lot of people who screwed up in the beginning of college, you are still not showing significant improvement in grades. You need to be realistic and acknowledge your limits in your academic ability before you decide to spend another tens of thousands of dollars and more time studying. Are you basically saying you are emo, it's your parents' fault, and you moped around your house, played video games and, not study? Because that's what that sounds like to me.

If you are 100% committed to basically repeating your college and work your ass off this time, go for it. At least you can say you tried even if it doesn't work out.

Well, what I am saying is that I was constantly fighting with my parents to where that issue became the central focus of my life over my grades. I would be studying and my dad would come into my room and criticize me for drinking coffee while I study, saying things like "we didn't do this back in my home country, you're picking up all the bad habits of these American kids, how are you going to get anywhere in life drinking coffee while you study?". Then rather than me focusing on my academics, I was arguing the day before the test with my old man and that led to a lot of issues in my life. Most kids probably didn't have to deal with this type of issue, it was a unique one for sure. Stuff like being pushed into being a physics major when I wanted to decide the major for myself and then threatened to be cut off and sent back to the home country if I don't obey their rules.

Look, I wasn't raised like your typical American kid who was allowed to make his own decisions, I wanted to be independent but my parents made life very rough for me which put me at a severe disadvantage in college. I was suffering from depression and a lot of other issues because of it. I had issues with being near my parents who made things difficult for me by constantly fighting while I was trying to study. Now I am away and I feel that I am a much better student than I was years ago, I have finally reached my real potential.

As for upward trends, I got around a 3.5 GPA last semester while taking 3 upper level sciences so I feel that now I can handle it better.
 
I guess I have to be real with myself here, knowing that I have just hit my stride and given how tough Post-Bacc programs can probably be, I know I might get a couple of B's along the way there. Guess the circumstances I was born into and raised in did not want me to go into professional school or become a dentist and my passion came a bit too late. A 4.0 is not going to be a realistic possibility for me in post-bacc, I mean how can a guy who just hit his stride in college get that high of a GPA after it? I have no idea but I know a 4.0 is just not doable for me, a 3.75 or a 3.8 definitely is though.

My GPA is going to haunt me for a lifetime, that I do know, and I am paying that price for being a spineless ***** that didn't take action and stick up for himself. It is something that will also haunt me for many years down the road. The awful undergrad record of mines has taught me a lot of key life lessons and hopefully I can apply them to whatever field I do end up in.

Thanks for taking this time to help me out everyone but from the way it looks right now, I don't think this mess can be fixed, should've taken action sooner rather than letting it get this bad.

To anyone in here reading this who is early in college and struggling, take ACTION NOW. You don't want to end up in my situation!
 
I assume that you were working your ass off to get straight As in your last few semesters since you are serious about pursuing professional school, but you could only get 3.5 in the last semester with your real potential since you needed to have been working your ass off to improve your GPA once you got your head straight. If you haven't worked your ass off, then you still haven't got your head straight and aren't yet ready to really buckle down and work your ass off to repair your education.

If you tried your best, you are going to need to work way harder if you don't want to waste a lot of money and time and still end up where you are now.

Make up your mind and it was your choice to study at home rather than at the library. Your parents sound fine, if they don't want you drinking coffee, then don't drink when they are around? Why would you argue with your parents about something so stupid? You need to stop putting blame on other people and take responsibility and grow up.
 
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As you already know, dental school for you is a long shot. there's no other way to put it and it's awesome that you understand that. Is it doable? Yes. But you'll be investing so much time (years and years), lots of money for post bacc/masters, years without income assuming you won't be working, and feelings of doubt because who is to say you would get in? A person with perfect stats, EC, etc still has a possibility of being rejected.

So, here is a good option (I think) that you should look into. You say you want to remain in the healthcare field and your options are not all that limited. If business or management interests you at all then I would consider looking into a master's program in healthcare management. You may need to do a year's worth of classes to boost the gpa, but not all programs have the highest gpa criteria. This in my opinion is a great field and also has great pay as you will see if you research healthcare management. Another great thing is that you won't need 4.0 after 4.0 semesters, but keep up what you are doing with a 3.5+ gpa and you should be fine.

Good luck to you
 
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I assume that you were working your ass off to get straight As in your last few semesters since you are serious about pursuing professional school, but you could only get 3.5 in the last semester with your real potential since you needed to have been working your ass off to improve your GPA once you got your head straight. If you haven't worked your ass off, then you still haven't got your head straight and aren't yet ready to really buckle down and work your ass off to repair your education.

If you tried your best, you are going to need to work way harder if you don't want to waste a lot of money and time and still end up where you are now.

Make up your mind and it was your choice to study at home rather than at the library. Your parents sound fine, if they don't want you drinking coffee, then don't drink when they are around? Why would you argue with your parents about something so stupid? You need to stop putting blame on other people and take responsibility and grow up.

as sad as it sounds, when college started I didn't exacctly have that choice.
 
The reason you are getting such negative responses here is because you have so many excuses. Everyone with a low GPA has or had a million excuses, myself included. Once you take responsibility and just say "my GPA sucks and it's my fault. What next?" People will respect you more and try to help. And like was said earlier, if your dad yells at you when you study then go to the library. You shouldn't let petty arguments ruin your grades at the age of 20 something.

You are far from the first person on this forum with controlling parents from another country.
 
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An idea, what if I tried to delay graduation? I still have to take a summer class as my last class but what if I took extra science classes and padded my resume up a bit? I have a 2.3 GPA at my current university but around a 3.1 at my old one (just checked it), not sure how it will work out. I also have around 60 credit hrs at my current university after this semester as well.
 
As you already know, dental school for you is a long shot. there's no other way to put it and it's awesome that you understand that. Is it doable? Yes. But you'll be investing so much time (years and years), lots of money for post bacc/masters, years without income assuming you won't be working, and feelings of doubt because who is to say you would get in? A person with perfect stats, EC, etc still has a possibility of being rejected.

So, here is a good option (I think) that you should look into. You say you want to remain in the healthcare field and your options are not all that limited. If business or management interests you at all then I would consider looking into a master's program in healthcare management. You may need to do a year's worth of classes to boost the gpa, but not all programs have the highest gpa criteria. This in my opinion is a great field and also has great pay as you will see if you research healthcare management. Another great thing is that you won't need 4.0 after 4.0 semesters, but keep up what you are doing with a 3.5+ gpa and you should be fine.

Good luck to you

Regarding the healthcare administration/management, wouldn't the OP need to have prior business or work experience in hospitals in order to even get accepted to those programs?
 
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Regarding the healthcare administration/management, wouldn't the OP need to have prior business or work experience in hospitals in order to even get accepted to those programs?
A lot of these masters programs do require work experience, but not all. Where I went to undergrad in Texas there is a special MBA for Health Organization Management that does not require any previous work experience. Just taking the GRE is required. I spoke with the admissions faculty and a business degree isn't even required. Some of the med school students are earning their MBA in HOM during the summers in med school without ever taking any previous business classes. Might be hard to find a program like this wherever OP lives, but maybe not. OP might think this is the worst idea ever, but it's definitely a great option to remain within the healthcare field.
 
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An idea, what if I tried to delay graduation? I still have to take a summer class as my last class but what if I took extra science classes and padded my resume up a bit? I have a 2.3 GPA at my current university but around a 3.1 at my old one (just checked it), not sure how it will work out. I also have around 60 credit hrs at my current university after this semester as well.

Wait... are you saying you have a 3.1 at your old college, and a 2.3 at your new college after only 60 credit hours? If that's the case, your aggregate GPA is like 2.8 and a year or two of post-bacc/Masters at your new school will definitely bring you up.
 
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Wait... are you saying you have a 3.1 at your old college, and a 2.3 at your new college after only 60 credit hours? If that's the case, your aggregate GPA is like 2.8 and a year or two of post-bacc/Masters at your new school will definitely bring you up.

That seems like what the OP is saying. If that is the case, I think he/she has a great shot at an upward trend to get him above a 3.0.
 
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Wait... are you saying you have a 3.1 at your old college, and a 2.3 at your new college after only 60 credit hours? If that's the case, your aggregate GPA is like 2.8 and a year or two of post-bacc/Masters at your new school will definitely bring you up.

GPA at old university (which was easier in terms of academics) = 3.1, had 1 D in my time there. This was after 80 credit hours.

Current GPA at new university = 2.2 or so (confident I will graduate with at least a 2.3 though since I have A's in all my classes this semester), will have 60 credit hours after this semester. Problem is that I have like 3 D's on my transcript in upper level science classes here, repeated one class and still made a D in it so that makes it 4 Ds.
 
GPA at old university (which was easier in terms of academics) = 3.1, had 1 D in my time there. This was after 80 credit hours.

Current GPA at new university = 2.2 or so (confident I will graduate with at least a 2.3 though since I have A's in all my classes this semester), will have 60 credit hours after this semester. Problem is that I have like 3 D's on my transcript in upper level science classes here, repeated one class and still made a D in it so that makes it 4 Ds.

Plug all your grades from the new college into a GPA calculator, and then add another ~30-40 hours worth of grades equal to a 3.6 (is that reasonable?) and see what your grade comes out as.
 
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GPA at old university (which was easier in terms of academics) = 3.1, had 1 D in my time there. This was after 80 credit hours.

Current GPA at new university = 2.2 or so (confident I will graduate with at least a 2.3 though since I have A's in all my classes this semester), will have 60 credit hours after this semester. Problem is that I have like 3 D's on my transcript in upper level science classes here, repeated one class and still made a D in it so that makes it 4 Ds.
I'm sorry you are in this situation OP. But your story is just not gonna fly with adcoms who see non-trad's coming from situations that are infinitely more traumatic/compelling; if anything, they will see a young person who lacks maturity. On top of that, you don't strike me as even slightly interested in being a physician. In fact you strike me as someone who has still not learned how to be their own person with their own passions; no offense. I suggest you join the workforce, get away from your parents, and see what kind of person you grow into. If you still want to look into a higher education after all that, professional school will be waiting for you.

Cheers
 
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I agree wholeheartedly with ZedsDed. After reading through this thread and your responses, it seems that you are going into medicine because that's what your parents said you have to do. Trust me, I get it, I grew up with immigrant parents too. My choices were doctor, dentist, engineer, or shame and dishonor on me, the family, and the cow. So naturally, I did what anyone would do... went a different career path to spite them and told them that I'd move back home (edit for clarification: back to the home country) if they tried to stop me. Turned out that they didn't want me living in Eastern Europe after all. Of course, after I already had a completely different career, I realized that I hated it and that I should have done dentistry all along. But when I wound up going to dental school, it was on my own terms, not theirs.

In conclusion, grow a spine plz. You're in your 20s. Believe it or not, there is nothing your parents can do to you that will be worse than forcing you into a life you don't want. What's going to happen if you stand up to them? They'll cut you off? So get a job. They'll throw you out of the house? Get a roommate and an apartment. They'll stop speaking to you? Big deal, if it lasts then to hell with them, but most likely it won't last long.
 
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No you don't see it, I actually shadowed dentists and found out what they do, did this for months and realized that is what I want to do. My parents are not THAT lenient, they wouldn't even let me be a DO because they think that it is an "insult" to the family name so forget pharmacy, PA, and dentistry lol. To them, it is either MD or bust, but I don't want to go to med school (not like I could get in anyways), I want to go to dental school. After months of reading on the topic and what dentists do and having done work shadowing, this is what I liked the most out of all the health professions.
 
Well in that case, stop making excuses for yourself and do what needs to be done. It's not that you cannot make a 4.0 in a post-bac. It's that you are choosing to believe that you cannot. Anything is possible with enough effort and motivation. If you can't get the 4.0 post-bac, then the problem is that you don't want it bad enough. Either that, or you're not capable of doing well academically, which opens up a whole new can of worms as to whether you should even be going to dental school.
 
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No you don't see it, I actually shadowed dentists and found out what they do, did this for months and realized that is what I want to do. My parents are not THAT lenient, they wouldn't even let me be a DO because they think that it is an "insult" to the family name so forget pharmacy, PA, and dentistry lol. To them, it is either MD or bust, but I don't want to go to med school (not like I could get in anyways), I want to go to dental school. After months of reading on the topic and what dentists do and having done work shadowing, this is what I liked the most out of all the health professions.
In that case I wish you the best op (seriously.) Sack up and break the news to your parents. Best of luck to you
 
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In that case I wish you the best op (seriously.) Sack up and break the news to your parents. Best of luck to you

Already did a few months ago, they told me how I was a disappointment to the family name and tried to convince me out of being a dentist. Said things like "they only make 150k at best, you want THAT kind of job?".

I mean what I say, I have everything resolved with my parents, they've learned to accept my decisions. They can no longer boss me around and tell me how to run my life, I grew a pair and worked all that out, my grades have been better for it.

Biggest issue on this thread was, I fear it might be far too late for me to actually get into dental school.
 
Already did a few months ago, they told me how I was a disappointment to the family name and tried to convince me out of being a dentist. Said things like "they only make 150k at best, you want THAT kind of job?".

I mean what I say, I have everything resolved with my parents, they've learned to accept my decisions. They can no longer boss me around and tell me how to run my life, I grew a pair and worked all that out, my grades have been better for it.

Biggest issue on this thread was, I fear it might be far too late for me to actually get into dental school.
Let's take it in turn. It is going to be rough but here is what your need to do...
DISCLAIMER:
-Do not take any one person's advice as gospel, including mine.
-This path is going to require a 3.7+ average from here on out; if you cannot do that you should find another career. Dental school will crush you if you cannot pull A's as an undergrad. Seriously ask yourself if this is possible, not everyone's talents lie in academics. Assuming it is possible...

1.) Calculate what you need to do to get your GPA over a 3.0; if you cannot do that you have problems. Spend at least ten hours on the postbacc forum. In particular, read DrMidlife's posts. Learn what needs to be done.
2.) Spend this summer doing the afore mentioned research, and volunteering in a clinical setting. Continue the volunteering for the next couple years.
3.) Sign up next year for classes at a community college. Sign up for two hard science classes the first semester; ace both of them. Next semester sign up for 3-4 science classes and do the same. Apply during this year to a postbacc program. Whether that program will be one or two years depends on how many units you need to get over a 3.0.
5.) Ace the postbacc (3.7+). This is absolutely essential, if you cannot do this you are done. Get some research in and publications if possible. Apply towards the end of your program to an SMP (if you don't know what that is go back to step one and add 5 hours.)
6.) Ace the SMP (3.7+). Again, if you screw up here you have screwed yourself out of dental school forever. Finish the program (adcoms will want to see the outcome of your SMP) and apply to dental school.
6.) Take a gap year, volunteer, do more research if you can, and go to interviews.
7.) Go to dental school!!!

Good luck
 
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Follow ZedDed suggestions, it is very on point.

Ignore the other comments as they are not constructive and criticize you more.

I have been in your shoes. Vietnamese parents. Immigrant to US in middle school. My parents are the best beast in controlling. However, I have a very thick mentality and I always do things my ways and never listen to anyone (which got me into a lot of troubles before, but for this, it actually helped me). I have been actually pushed to apply to DO school (again not competitive for MD due to ESL and low verbal) and got 5 interviews, however, when you are at the end of line, you are weighing your options and know what you want. I did not attend any interviews and this blew fire by my family.. I dont like medicine simply cuz it is not my choice. Since then, my parents did not talk to me and I used my senior year at uci to switch gear to dental. My parents, during the 4 years, were more than ridiculous and not even supporting. However, I had a thick dont-give-a-**** mentality so I was not affected much. It makes me feel bad for an hour or so then I play league of legend.

The reason I told you this because many people i know, my close friends, CRASH and BURN like you did because of the ridiculous parents. Their mentality is not strong so this stresses them out. I am glad you figure out what you like now. However, take in the plans the previous posters mention to help and aide u.

WORST CASE SCENARIO: u got 3.7 post bach and SMP, do okay on DAT, just apply. Work on ur ec. in the end you dont get in, you still can be proud you finally did something you like and work your plan. Even though you dont get in and move into workforce later in life, you also know that always follow urself but not others so your life is not controlled by others.
 
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I'm not going to take sides but there's a really good chance your parents do not understand. You can't blame em though. Their life compared to yours is completely different and each has their own stress. However, they are your parents and they love you despite what you may think. I think you can dig yourself out of this hole if you believe in yourself. I don't know you personally, but I believe you can overcome it. Your cumulative GPA is probably around a 2.8 or 2.7. If you still have quite a lot of bio classes to take, you may not have to do an SMP. However, your post bac classes will have to be at least 2 years of full course work. Do well in your post bac classes and kick the living crap out of the DAT.

Let's say you do graduate from dental school. You are then a dentist qualified to treat patients. You can make a difference in people's lives. Eventually, your parents will see that you have a great career and you are living up to the family name by serving others. They will be proud of you for it. Use that to motivate you.
 
Guys, he has a 2.3 over 60 credit hours and a 3.1 in his other college. This is easily fixable with a year or two of 3.6+...
 
Do well in 1 or 2 yrs post bac.
Do well on DAT.
you'll be fine!
 
Guys, he has a 2.3 over 60 credit hours and a 3.1 in his other college. This is easily fixable with a year or two of 3.6+...
A year with an A- average, bringing his cGPA barely over a 3.0, for a student with his academic record is not an "easy fix." Even then, his chances are long, instead of astronomical. It's doable, if he has the gumption, but you shouldn't fool him into thinking it'll be easy.
 
A year with an A- average, bringing his cGPA barely over a 3.0, for a student with his academic record is not an "easy fix." Even then, his chances are long, instead of astronomical. It's doable, if he has the gumption, but you shouldn't fool him into thinking it'll be easy.

Sometimes, a little hope is just what he needs.
 
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