MD & DO Are my stats alright? Looking at applying for MD schools pretty soon!

[moshady79]

I'm hoping to apply for MD/DO schools next cycle. I have some ge's but I'm a bit worried about my gpa. So I transferred from a California CC to UC Irvine.. I completed 103 units at CC and left with a 3.34 gpa. My gpa went down hill during my time at CC b/c I was working around 35hrs/week.. I took a few online ge classes at my CC while attending UCI so that I can boost my CC gpa. I graduated UCI last year with a 4.0 overall gpa. My current gpa, including all of my CC courses, is a 3.71 overall and 3.62 bcpm. I studied all of last summer for the MCAT and got a 36. I got a C in 1 semester of physics and 1 semester of gen chem (took all biochem pre reqs at my cc). Im really worried about my gpa lol..

So My ec's includ 100 hours of volunteering at uci er room, an er internship, vice president of chemistry club, 50 hours volunteering at the cast room, 210 hours of volunteering at a student run clinic, and 1 year of on-campus-research (hoping to get a pub soon). I'm also a 1st generation URM (I dont think thats an ec lol). I also speak farsi and spanish fluently

I will apply to 1-2 DO schools. Maybe touro and western U. I'm mainly worried about my chances at an MD school though. My dream school is UCLA but I dont think my gpa is up to par. I'm thinking doing an SMP to increase my chances at the higher- tier med schools or maybe even join the army.

Do I stand a chance at a higher-tier MD school with my stats? Or should I do n SMP to boost my gpa or join the army so that I can add a nice EC?

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[gyngyn]

You may certainly join the military if you want, but you should be fine with those stats with a good list.
An SMP is contraindicated in your case. It can only hurt you!

 

[Goro]

100% agree with my sage colleague. Your GPAs are fine!

You may certainly join the military if you want, but you should be fine with those stats with a good list.
An SMP is contraindicated in your case. It can only hurt you!

 

[moshady79]

You may certainly join the military if you want, but you should be fine with those stats with a good list.
An SMP is contraindicated in your case. It can only hurt you!

How can an SMP hurt me? Can a regular Masters program benefit me? I'm sorry but I'm a bit new to the whole SMP/post-bacc stuff. I just know that it can help in terms of gpa repair.

 

[lmn]

You have absolutely no need for an SMP, they are for people who "tanked" undergrad or people who never took all the science classes. You're gpa is fine, don't read stats like a premed, buy the MSAR and look up gpa medians, or use other methods and look at averages if you'd like. Even at the top schools, it isn't like everybody has to have a 4.0 to get in.

 

[gyngyn]

How can an SMP program hurt me? Can a regular Masters program benefit me? I'm sorry but I'm a bit new to the whole SMP program stuff. I just know that it can help in terms of gpa repair.

An SMP is an audition for those with weak academic performance. You don't need grade repair.

Master's degrees are not generally helpful for otherwise good candidates (with regard to medical school). Don't get me wrong, they can be very helpful for other things, just not this. If you need something useful to do for a few years, they are fine.

 

[moshady79]

An SMP is an audition for those with weak academic performance. You don't need grade repair.

Master's degrees are not generally helpful for otherwise good candidates (with regard to medical school). Don't get me wrong, they can be very helpful for other things, just not this. If you need something useful to do for a few years, they are fine.

So at this point, an SMP program will hurt me if I don't manage to get excellent grades? If so, then I think maybe the military is a better option. It's a good EC to add, and I've always wanted to sign up ever since I was in high school.

 

[gyngyn]

So at this point, an SMP program will hurt me if I don't manage to get excellent grades? If so, then I think maybe the military is a better option. It's a good EC to add, and I've always wanted to sign up ever since I was in high school.

Don't let your lovely MCAT expire.