Can I get into med school?

[bree95]

I'm an URM and go to a small private college where I was able to do an exchange program my junior year at USC. I had a rough junior year and my sGPA dropped significantly. I did some calculations and the highest my sGPA can reach after senior year classes is a 3.4. Have I ruined my chances of getting into med school? Does it look bad that my grades dropped once going to a more competitive university and then my grades getting better once returning to my home college for senior year? Also my first semester at USC was a 2.13 cGPA and second semester was 3.15cGPA. Do you think admissions committees would notice the improvement or is it just all bad?? Any advise or thoughts would be very helpful

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[Domepiece]

Not an expert, but if you have spent some time around medical personnel, you have pry noticed that everything in medicine is based on trends in data and this is a truth that persists in medical school admissions. One bad semester or year with subpar performance compared to consistent excellence, especially when you are hypothetically stepping into both a new social and academic scene to expand your personal horizons, will not be a nail in the coffin I imagine. A sustained trend of meh performance could be a significant detriment though. Additionally, if your timeline was to apply at the end of junior year, that pry wouldn't be a good decision considering the GPA trend once reaching upperclass coursework would be the trend by which you would be judged.

The most important things to keep in mind are these:
1) What's done is done. Keep what you learned about why your grades dropped in the back of your mind, but don't let worry deter your ability to perform well. You need to concentrate on finishing strong, and worrying about the past does absolutely nothing to move you towards the achievement of that goal.
2) GPA is an important measure, but it is only one measure by which you are judged. Regardless of where your GPA numbers fall, your MCAT will likely hold just as much weight as your GPA. Concentrate on destroying that behemoth if you haven't taken it already.

If you are talking about the West Coast USC, Fight On

 

[bree95]

Not an expert, but if you have spent some time around medical personnel, you have pry noticed that everything in medicine is based on trends in data and this is a truth that persists in medical school admissions. One bad semester or year with subpar performance compared to consistent excellence, especially when you are hypothetically stepping into both a new social and academic scene to expand your personal horizons, will not be a nail in the coffin I imagine. A sustained trend of meh performance could be a significant detriment though. Additionally, if your timeline was to apply at the end of junior year, that pry wouldn't be a good decision considering the GPA trend once reaching upperclass coursework would be the trend by which you would be judged.

The most important things to keep in mind are these:
1) What's done is done. Keep what you learned about why your grades dropped in the back of your mind, but don't let worry deter your ability to perform well. You need to concentrate on finishing strong, and worrying about the past does absolutely nothing to move you towards the achievement of that goal.
2) GPA is an important measure, but it is only one measure by which you are judged. Regardless of where your GPA numbers fall, your MCAT will likely hold just as much weight as your GPA. Concentrate on destroying that behemoth if you haven't taken it already.

If you are talking about the West Coast USC, Fight On

Thanks this makes me feel a little bit better. I am studying for the MCAT now and plan to take it spring of 2017, so hopefully I do well Fight on!