Hi, sorry to annoy you all with one of these posts.
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Another one of those what are my chances thread
- Thread starter jsh
- Start date
Always to remember to never give up. Which schools did you apply to? Schools also look at GPA trend to see if you did better in the later years as compared to freshman year. Most schools now have a 2.75 GPA cutoff but no minimum for the standardized tests. I have heard students have gotten in with worse grades than yours but they also have high test scores so it offsets the GPA.
I know there are members on here who got interviews and acceptances without taking the standardized tests but their GPAs are very high so the admissions committee believes that they would do well on the test anyways. There are always exceptions though.
Don't lose hope. I'm sure they are recieving more applications now so it might take longer. I believe that you will at least get interviews since your GPA is acceptable. If weeks pass by, apply to more schools. However, I think you should prepare for the GRE, get a score (>55 percentile) and submit the scores to the schools and see what happens. A good score can offset the GPA. If you bombed a class such as less than a C-, you should retake that course. If you look at various colleges/institutions around your area, you might find one that fits your schedule. Podiatric medical schools average your grades.
As for your extra-curriculars, it's great. Research and volunteering shows that you want to help others. I regret that I didn't have much long-term research experience through undergrade other than the thesis. Have you shadowed a podiatrist yet? Apparently, the schools found the letter of recommendations to be very important. Try to find a science faculty member to write you a great recommendation showing how you exceled in the professor's course.
Though stats is important, your interview, extra-curriculars, LORs, and personal statement are also very important.
My point is that you shouldn't give up. It is still early in the process and seats are not filled up. If you do descent on the GRE, you will get in if all the non-academic areas are okay. You might want to apply to more schools too.
As for what makes a bad candidate, it can be a variety a reasons. Mainly a bad candidate would lack in multiple areas such as bad LORs, no volunteer experience, horrible personal statement. Your GPA alone would not make you a bad candidate because it's really not that bad. If you had a 1.9, schools might think you that you're lazy.
A good candidate on paper could also become a bad candidate if the interview goes wrong as well. Don't sweat it, don't lose hope and good luck!
Note: This is the SDN website so people here do not represent the majority of the applicants. The members here are generally more pro-active and more serious because afterall, they took the time to sign up for the site, read what others have to say and expand their knowledge base.
I know there are members on here who got interviews and acceptances without taking the standardized tests but their GPAs are very high so the admissions committee believes that they would do well on the test anyways. There are always exceptions though.
Don't lose hope. I'm sure they are recieving more applications now so it might take longer. I believe that you will at least get interviews since your GPA is acceptable. If weeks pass by, apply to more schools. However, I think you should prepare for the GRE, get a score (>55 percentile) and submit the scores to the schools and see what happens. A good score can offset the GPA. If you bombed a class such as less than a C-, you should retake that course. If you look at various colleges/institutions around your area, you might find one that fits your schedule. Podiatric medical schools average your grades.
As for your extra-curriculars, it's great. Research and volunteering shows that you want to help others. I regret that I didn't have much long-term research experience through undergrade other than the thesis. Have you shadowed a podiatrist yet? Apparently, the schools found the letter of recommendations to be very important. Try to find a science faculty member to write you a great recommendation showing how you exceled in the professor's course.
Though stats is important, your interview, extra-curriculars, LORs, and personal statement are also very important.
My point is that you shouldn't give up. It is still early in the process and seats are not filled up. If you do descent on the GRE, you will get in if all the non-academic areas are okay. You might want to apply to more schools too.
As for what makes a bad candidate, it can be a variety a reasons. Mainly a bad candidate would lack in multiple areas such as bad LORs, no volunteer experience, horrible personal statement. Your GPA alone would not make you a bad candidate because it's really not that bad. If you had a 1.9, schools might think you that you're lazy.
A good candidate on paper could also become a bad candidate if the interview goes wrong as well. Don't sweat it, don't lose hope and good luck!
Note: This is the SDN website so people here do not represent the majority of the applicants. The members here are generally more pro-active and more serious because afterall, they took the time to sign up for the site, read what others have to say and expand their knowledge base.
W
whiskers
I'm going to be "real" with you.
For starters, you didn't seem very interested in your previous training (education) in biology. If you were, you'd have put in more effort, right?
Having said that, you now, in my opinion, have to demonstrate "what's changed" and why the interest in podiatry.
Speaking for myself, I'm getting tired of the profession "recruiting" those who couldn't get into medical school and suddenly having an "unreal" interest in podiatry. In my opinion, it makes us look bad to our medical peers....
When you said,
"I know what it takes to get into school (good grades, scores, etc), but what makes an applicant not a good candidate? or even not be granted an interview?"
I will agree with that, but there is something missing.... hard work.
You are going to have to demonstrate that you are going to work as hard as you can so that you don't embarrass #1 the profession #2 your school on the boards and #3 yourself.
I encourage you to honestly evaluate your motivations and your dedication to this before you take another step.
Why? Because if you aren't interested and aren't going to bust your rear, leave the seat for someone who will.
It's a long road so take it step by step, if you've really grown-up since undergrad, I encourage you to take that first adult step, face rejection and at least apply.
For starters, you didn't seem very interested in your previous training (education) in biology. If you were, you'd have put in more effort, right?
Having said that, you now, in my opinion, have to demonstrate "what's changed" and why the interest in podiatry.
Speaking for myself, I'm getting tired of the profession "recruiting" those who couldn't get into medical school and suddenly having an "unreal" interest in podiatry. In my opinion, it makes us look bad to our medical peers....
When you said,
"I know what it takes to get into school (good grades, scores, etc), but what makes an applicant not a good candidate? or even not be granted an interview?"
I will agree with that, but there is something missing.... hard work.
You are going to have to demonstrate that you are going to work as hard as you can so that you don't embarrass #1 the profession #2 your school on the boards and #3 yourself.
I encourage you to honestly evaluate your motivations and your dedication to this before you take another step.
Why? Because if you aren't interested and aren't going to bust your rear, leave the seat for someone who will.
It's a long road so take it step by step, if you've really grown-up since undergrad, I encourage you to take that first adult step, face rejection and at least apply.
Whiskers,
Wow. Okay, I first want to thank you for taking your time responding, but how off base can you be? I wrote this post to have people review my mini mini resume and see what their opinions are with the information given—not to make assumptions about my motivation and hard work.
Wow. Okay, I first want to thank you for taking your time responding, but how off base can you be? I wrote this post to have people review my mini mini resume and see what their opinions are with the information given—not to make assumptions about my motivation and hard work.
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jsh said:
It depends upon your priorities. Podiatry will be a second career for me. A lot of people thought that I was crazy when I quit my job and went back to school full-time to do my prereqs. I went from making $800 a week to zero overnight. Of course, I didn't have enough savings to finance the whole thing, so I did have to work. What it amounted to was three different part-time jobs at a time. Why? It was impossible to find just one (or even two) jobs that I coould fit around my class schedule. After all, class schedules change every semester, but most jobs don't allow you to do that.
The hardest part was time management. The only way to go to school full-time and work three jobs (all while making good grades) was to find things that allowed me to sit on my butt and study while working. Thinks like night desk clerk at a hotel and security guard at the zoo are neither glamorous, nor high-paying, but they do allow you to sit there and study. Also, there isn't any time left over for fun activities. Actually, there isn't even enough time for sleep, but somehow, if you want it bad enough, you can do it.
Now, I'm not telling you that you are not working hard enough or trying hard enough. All I'm saying is that it is possible to go to school, make good grades, and pay the bills all at the same time. It's not fun, but it is possible. I have a 4.0 science GPA (3.979 overall) and a 29 MCAT. BUT, my social life really sucks pretty badly!
The biggest consideration, in my opinion, is: Are you willing to go $150,000.00 in debt? It can take quite a while to pay those loans off. Knowing that your GPA is lower than a lot of people means that you are not likely to get a lot of money in scholarships. You might have to borrow the whole amount. On the other hand, a couple of semesters of A's in a post-bac program could raise that GPA of yours enough to get some scholarship money. Just my two cents...but good luck with whatever you choose to do.
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Agreed...whiskers is compensating for something...maybe a lack of friends, or a lack of good looks -we'll never know, but we can guess
Read some of the responses to my threads that whiskers has posted...he's/she's "not all there," if you know what I mean Seriously, he/she obviously is quite clueless and has a huge inability to say anything worth while...much less kind or relevant to anyone's posts - so we, as positive participants in this forum, can just agree to ignore anything "it" says.
Anyway, with a B.S. in bio...and a minor in chem..you at least show to be motivated in the sciences, even if you dont have a superb GPA. I have a BA in poli sci with a GPA VERY comparable to yours...3 years off from school...no science related work...no research...not even half way finished with the pre-reqs as of now, no MCAT and no plan to take it, no GRE yet(taking it in Jan)...and I still was given an invite to interview EVERYWHERE and decided to only interview at my top 3 choices (California, Scholl, AZPOD), was accepted to ALL 3, and I was even offered some money at each place. I am extremely motivated, very committed to the profession, and I showed that in my personal statement and then again in my interviews - I shadowed a podiatrist several times who then wrote me a letter of rec. I volunteer and I am a competitive athlete. I think these all helped balance out my low GPA and lack of science background. So, seeing as you have other things outside of your GPA, you are good to go!
I know this has been discussed on this forum a lot - but I honestly believe that if you show you are very committed and enthusiastic about podiatry, can effectively demonstrate that, havent failed out of college, and can communicate well in your interview, you will get in! I know it is getting more competitive - but with your background, there is no way you will get denied. So, go for it. Yeah it's going to be expensive, but student loans are a great deal that you cant ever get again, once you are no longer a student - take advantage while you can. Plus, there are lots of opportunities for scholarships throughout the 4 years in pod school...you can always try for those as you go. Good luck!
Read some of the responses to my threads that whiskers has posted...he's/she's "not all there," if you know what I mean Seriously, he/she obviously is quite clueless and has a huge inability to say anything worth while...much less kind or relevant to anyone's posts - so we, as positive participants in this forum, can just agree to ignore anything "it" says.Anyway, with a B.S. in bio...and a minor in chem..you at least show to be motivated in the sciences, even if you dont have a superb GPA. I have a BA in poli sci with a GPA VERY comparable to yours...3 years off from school...no science related work...no research...not even half way finished with the pre-reqs as of now, no MCAT and no plan to take it, no GRE yet(taking it in Jan)...and I still was given an invite to interview EVERYWHERE and decided to only interview at my top 3 choices (California, Scholl, AZPOD), was accepted to ALL 3, and I was even offered some money at each place. I am extremely motivated, very committed to the profession, and I showed that in my personal statement and then again in my interviews - I shadowed a podiatrist several times who then wrote me a letter of rec. I volunteer and I am a competitive athlete. I think these all helped balance out my low GPA and lack of science background. So, seeing as you have other things outside of your GPA, you are good to go!
I know this has been discussed on this forum a lot - but I honestly believe that if you show you are very committed and enthusiastic about podiatry, can effectively demonstrate that, havent failed out of college, and can communicate well in your interview, you will get in! I know it is getting more competitive - but with your background, there is no way you will get denied. So, go for it. Yeah it's going to be expensive, but student loans are a great deal that you cant ever get again, once you are no longer a student - take advantage while you can. Plus, there are lots of opportunities for scholarships throughout the 4 years in pod school...you can always try for those as you go. Good luck!
jsh said:
Scpod,
I truly admire you determination. That's really awesome. Well in the post that I had started, I said, "I know, I know, if I really wanted to go to Pod school, I would do everything possible including bringing my grades up, but in reality, how can I work part-time and pay my rent, insurance, and food and water."
So I hope you don't think I'm a bum by not going back to school. I admire your work ethics and wish I could take risks and be as courageous as you. Thank you for your advice. I have NO doubt you will do well in Podiatry.
I truly admire you determination. That's really awesome. Well in the post that I had started, I said, "I know, I know, if I really wanted to go to Pod school, I would do everything possible including bringing my grades up, but in reality, how can I work part-time and pay my rent, insurance, and food and water."
So I hope you don't think I'm a bum by not going back to school. I admire your work ethics and wish I could take risks and be as courageous as you. Thank you for your advice. I have NO doubt you will do well in Podiatry.
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