Am I screwed??

[Thebigpig]

I'm 30, BS in IDS with cognates in psych and religion gpa 3.0 from Liberty University Online
No real science courses to speak of - they are 10 years old.
I've been working on my bachelors off and on since 2011.
Life happened......
Would I do better to get another BS from an actual university that's worth something or do a DIY post bacc?
I need all my sciences.
In my AA I have lots of Ws and and a few Fs with retakes that were Cs
I'm no longer in the unsafe situation I was in back then but I'm afraid the damage has been done to get into MD school.
My husband is 5 years from retiring from the military - so my goal is to be applying for 2020.
I have medical experience but I've been out of the field and a sahm for the last 5 years.
I have no ECs to speak of unless they want to hear about my mommy play groups and breastfeeding peer counseling
I'm considering phlebotomy for experience and working on shadowing.
I'm capable of the marathon....I'm just nervous I'm having delusions of grandeur.
Thanks for the advice!

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[Warderino92]

@Goro would known better than I, but I would think that a purely online BS might be a issue. Although if you take all your pre reqs in person that might change things? Not really sure in this case but I do know that from here on out there need to work on making a 4.0 the whole way through your post bac work in order to bring the GPA up as much as you can.

 

[cabinbuilder]

You need to take some science courses with labs and see how you do. Don't need another bachelor's - just the pre-req's in a DIY post-bacc. DO schools will look at you as long as your overall application is good. Get some current medical shadowing. See what the life is like. All is not lost. Your story is not unique.

 

[Thebigpig]

@Goro would known better than I, but I would think that a purely online BS might be a issue. Although if you take all your pre reqs in person that might change things? Not really sure in this case but I do know that from here on out there need to work on making a 4.0 the whole way through your post bac work in order to bring the GPA up as much as you can.

Some schools won't accept the online bachelors, but my school is accredited so most should...from what I've been reading.
I hope so at least.
I'll be compiling a list of schools here soon and checking that out.
Thanks for the input.
Think any MD schools would look at me?
I know that DO will as they seem to favor students who have reinvented themselves.

 

[cabinbuilder]

Don't get hung up on MD. What are you looking to do? IR, Neurosurg, Oncology?

True story just happened to me this week. I went for a personal consultation with a big wig plastic surgeon 3 hours from where I live. The guy went to Yale of all places (I did not know this before hand) . Way out of my league. Anyhow, I gave him my card since I work urgent care. He looked at my card (it says Dr. CB, DO). He says to me, "Would it be okay if I sent patient's to you for wound checks since I get a lot of clients from that town so they don't have to drive so far?" Dang....... Sure, NP.

Just remember that in the end we are all doctors, we are all colleagues. It's not about the degree, it's about how good a doctor you strive to be.

 

[Thebigpig]

Don't get hung up on MD. What are you looking to do? IR, Neurosurg, Oncology?

True story just happened to me this week. I went for a personal consultation with a big wig plastic surgeon 3 hours from where I live. The guy went to Yale of all places (I did not know this before hand) . Way out of my league. Anyhow, I gave him my card since I work urgent care. He looked at my card (it says Dr. CB, DO). He says to me, "Would it be okay if I sent patient's to you for wound checks since I get a lot of clients from that town so they don't have to drive so far?" Dang....... Sure, NP.

Just remember that in the end we are all doctors, we are all colleagues. It's not about the degree, it's about how good a doctor you strive to be.

I guess I should have added my desired specialty, it's Radiology. I've read a lot of conflicting information about the merger and where DOs get matched.
I have no desire to do family practice. I have looked into a few others but I'd like to shadow them first.
My past medical experience was in family practice and urology, and I know those are not for me.
I'm really not hung up on MD unless that's my only option to get into rad.
Thanks for all the insight! I really appreciate it.

 

[cabinbuilder]

Lots of DO radiologists. Just know radiology starts as second year resident so you will end up doing an intern year somewhere first. Of course there are specialties within radiology too: Specialty imaging: MRI, echo, etc. And there is Interventional Radiology doing stents in the brain, renal arteries, etc. Burning tumors in organs through the vascular system. CT guided biopsies, etc.

What student need to understand is the no one forces you to apply to a residency. You apply to the residency of your choice. With that being said, with the more competitive specialties, your overall package needs to be good because there is always the risk of unmatching and you need to have a plan B in place.

 

[DrMikeP]

I'm 30, BS in IDS with cognates in psych and religion gpa 3.0 from Liberty University Online
No real science courses to speak of - they are 10 years old.
I've been working on my bachelors off and on since 2011.
Life happened......
Would I do better to get another BS from an actual university that's worth something or do a DIY post bacc?
I need all my sciences.
In my AA I have lots of Ws and and a few Fs with retakes that were Cs
I'm no longer in the unsafe situation I was in back then but I'm afraid the damage has been done to get into MD school.
My husband is 5 years from retiring from the military - so my goal is to be applying for 2020.
I have medical experience but I've been out of the field and a sahm for the last 5 years.
I have no ECs to speak of unless they want to hear about my mommy play groups and breastfeeding peer counseling
I'm considering phlebotomy for experience and working on shadowing.
I'm capable of the marathon....I'm just nervous I'm having delusions of grandeur.
Thanks for the advice!

Good chances with DO. Take your required sciences at a Brick & Mortar University and see how you do. After the first year and making A's do some volunteer work in a medical setting and see how you like it.

Good luck!

 

[deleted480308]

And grades >shadowing/volunteering

Don't go silly on the EC hours and let your grades drop. Grades trump all that mess

 

[Ho0v-man]

I did most of my psych major online because it worked better with my crazy work schedule. I just did the actual med school pre reqs at a real school, but even half of those were at community college. I had zero problems applying and getting plenty of interviews. The MCAT is the great equalizer in all of that stuff. Although I only applied DO.


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[phabejsam]

I'm 30, BS in IDS with cognates in psych and religion gpa 3.0 from Liberty University Online
No real science courses to speak of - they are 10 years old.
I've been working on my bachelors off and on since 2011.
Life happened......
Would I do better to get another BS from an actual university that's worth something or do a DIY post bacc?
I need all my sciences.
In my AA I have lots of Ws and and a few Fs with retakes that were Cs
I'm no longer in the unsafe situation I was in back then but I'm afraid the damage has been done to get into MD school.
My husband is 5 years from retiring from the military - so my goal is to be applying for 2020.
I have medical experience but I've been out of the field and a sahm for the last 5 years.
I have no ECs to speak of unless they want to hear about my mommy play groups and breastfeeding peer counseling
I'm considering phlebotomy for experience and working on shadowing.
I'm capable of the marathon....I'm just nervous I'm having delusions of grandeur.
Thanks for the advice!

damn u r like me. i am also nontrad. looking for advice right now

 

[DrMikeP]

And grades >shadowing/volunteering

Don't go silly on the EC hours and let your grades drop. Grades trump all that mess

I say grades and MCAT are more like:

MCAT>Grades>>>>>>>> (everything else) at most schools. At some schools grades can weight a bit more than MCAT, but a weakness in either is not good! Of course that is also assuming you meet the minimum requirements.

 

[esob]

MCAT will likely be considered over GPA but not at all schools. For instance, I was looking at grade distributions on my.edu today in preparation for spring registration and it can be really easy for two students with grossly dissimilar intelligence and work ethics to get the same sGPA, or even for the better student to get a worse sGPA. About 1 out of every 4 hard science profs has an "A" distribution approaching 50%, while most are around 20% with the real hard @@@'s being 5 - 10 %. You could, assuming you picked the right profs, be barely in the top 50% of your class and walk away with straight A's. Conversely, you could be in the top 25% of your class and walk away with straight B's just by picking the "wrong" profs.

The MCAT can be the great equalizer. The guy with straight A's will likely score in the 50th percentile on the MCAT while the girl with straight B's might end up significantly higher, perhaps the 75th percentile. This of course is just my opinion, but it is one I have noticed is shared by many here on SDN so take it for what it's worth.

 

[mrjbb]

Good chances with DO. Take your required sciences at a Brick & Mortar University and see how you do. After the first year and making A's do some volunteer work in a medical setting and see how you like it.

Good luck!

Probably shouldn't be a problem for a good amount of DO schools if you took some prereqs online as well such as the UNE route. The online stigma is starting to dwindle down as the Internet has continued to advance and there are many well qualified applicants that do not have the time to sit in a brick and mortar school. Many of us have extremely hectic schedules.

Score well on the mcat and do the best to your ability on the hard sciences wherever you take them and you may be alright.

 

[libertyyne]

You need to take some science courses with labs and see how you do. Don't need another bachelor's - just the pre-req's in a DIY post-bacc. DO schools will look at you as long as your overall application is good. Get some current medical shadowing. See what the life is like. All is not lost. Your story is not unique.

Liberty also has a DO school. May be a match ? Call them and ask.

 

[DrMikeP]

Probably shouldn't be a problem for a good amount of DO schools if you took some prereqs online as well such as the UNE route. The online stigma is starting to dwindle down as the Internet has continued to advance and there are many well qualified applicants that do not have the time to sit in a brick and mortar school. Many of us have extremely hectic schedules.

Score well on the mcat and do the best to your ability on the hard sciences wherever you take them and you may be alright.

Before you take required courses online it is always best to check on specific requirements of med programs you are most interested in attending. If the top schools you want to attend prefer B&M then you are putting yourself at a huge disadvantage out the gate by going further online.

60% of applicants don't get in (I'm guessing it's even worse for this coming cycle), so do everything possible to make yourself as competitive as possible. Everyone has an idea when they go back that they will make straight A's and a 520 MCAT, but that rarely ever happens, so do your best and whenever possible stack the deck in your favor. So save your weaknesses for when you can't do anything about them. e.g. You get a 501 MCAT and you end up with B's your last 3 classes all the month before the cycle starts.

 

[mrjbb]

Before you take required courses online it is always best to check on specific requirements of med programs you are most interested in attending. If the top schools you want to attend prefer B&M then you are putting yourself at a huge disadvantage out the gate by going further online.

60% of applicants don't get in (I'm guessing it's even worse for this coming cycle), so do everything possible to make yourself as competitive as possible. Everyone has an idea when they go back that they will make straight A's and a 520 MCAT, but that rarely ever happens, so do your best and whenever possible stack the deck in your favor. So save your weaknesses for when you can't do anything about them. e.g. You get a 501 MCAT and you end up with B's your last 3 classes all the month before the cycle starts.

With this I agree. I reckon most top programs will not accept online prereqs. If you decide to go that route I'd also call or email every school on my list and ask them. There's a somewhat comprehensive list here (http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/schools-accepting-online-prerequisites.986194/) of both MD and DO schools that accept online prereqs. They're expensive though.

However, just because a school views this method of course delivery acceptable, doesn't always mean they accept many students that have taken online prereqs.

 

[Goro]

ACGME Rads is very DO-friendly.

I guess I should have added my desired specialty, it's Radiology. I've read a lot of conflicting information about the merger and where DOs get matched.
I have no desire to do family practice. I have looked into a few others but I'd like to shadow them first.
My past medical experience was in family practice and urology, and I know those are not for me.
I'm really not hung up on MD unless that's my only option to get into rad.
Thanks for all the insight! I really appreciate it.

 

[Thebigpig]

With this I agree. I reckon most top programs will not accept online prereqs. If you decide to go that route I'd also call or email every school on my list and ask them. There's a somewhat comprehensive list here (http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/schools-accepting-online-prerequisites.986194/) of both MD and DO schools that accept online prereqs. They're expensive though.

However, just because a school views this method of course delivery acceptable, doesn't always mean they accept many students that have taken online prereqs.

By prereqs are you meaning the sciences and necessary core classes or the general bachelors?
My AA was done in person and I have no sciences to speak of (Bio 1, foundational Chem, and a&p 1 that will need to be retaken- all taken in person)
Only my core religion and upper psych cognates were all online.
I think that's part of why I'm confused and wondering who will look at me.

 

[Thebigpig]

Liberty also has a DO school. May be a match ? Call them and ask.

They are funded by a tobacco company and my religious views would be frowned upon. They aren't fond of divorcees and negative life experiences turned positive. I almost got dropped from one of my religion courses due to a paper I wrote about my past....
If that's my only option ok - but it won't be genuine or authentic - as I'll have to pretend I'm someone I'm not.

 

[libertyyne]

They are funded by a tobacco company and my religious views would be frowned upon. They aren't fond of divorcees and negative life experiences turned positive. I almost got dropped from one of my religion courses due to a paper I wrote about my past....
If that's my only option ok - but it won't be genuine or authentic - as I'll have to pretend I'm someone I'm not.

I am sorry, I made an assumption that your religious leanings were inline with the school's since you attended there. Get an amazing MCAT score! Take science classes with lab complete pre-reqs could be at comm college and apply to a broad swath of DO schools.

 

[libertyyne]

ACGME Rads is very DO-friendly.

Is there an IR pathway?

 

[Thebigpig]

I am sorry, I made an assumption that your religious leanings were inline with the school's since you attended there. Get an amazing MCAT score! Take science classes with lab complete pre-reqs could be at comm college and apply to a broad swath of DO schools.

They are, just a more relaxed version than what they tolerate/prefer/desire....
No hard feelings. I'd make the same assumption.

 

[DrMikeP]

By prereqs are you meaning the sciences and necessary core classes or the general bachelors?
My AA was done in person and I have no sciences to speak of (Bio 1, foundational Chem, and a&p 1 that will need to be retaken- all taken in person)
Only my core religion and upper psych cognates were all online.
I think that's part of why I'm confused and wondering who will look at me.

Most DOs will look at you if you do well in req sci and MCAT. Some MD might. Lots depends on how you do between now and app time. Good luck

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[DoctorLane]

I'm 30, BS in IDS with cognates in psych and religion gpa 3.0 from Liberty University Online
No real science courses to speak of - they are 10 years old.
I've been working on my bachelors off and on since 2011.
Life happened......
Would I do better to get another BS from an actual university that's worth something or do a DIY post bacc?
I need all my sciences.
In my AA I have lots of Ws and and a few Fs with retakes that were Cs
I'm no longer in the unsafe situation I was in back then but I'm afraid the damage has been done to get into MD school.
My husband is 5 years from retiring from the military - so my goal is to be applying for 2020.
I have medical experience but I've been out of the field and a sahm for the last 5 years.
I have no ECs to speak of unless they want to hear about my mommy play groups and breastfeeding peer counseling
I'm considering phlebotomy for experience and working on shadowing.
I'm capable of the marathon....I'm just nervous I'm having delusions of grandeur.
Thanks for the advice!

An in-person Post Bac program will resolve the low GPA and the science course requirements for most medical schools. As far as the University that you acquired the degree from, as long as it is an accredited University, it counts. The only issue I foresee is that many of the Medical Schools require a year of English and a year of Mathematics (Calc and Stats), which must be taken in-person at an accredited University.

Speaking from experience, I had to jump through a lot of hoops myself and I believe this should answer your questions. I am also a nontraditional (the epitome, actually), so feel free to ask me any further questions.

Best of luck with the process!