Chances? Suggestions?

[Mangos18]

I want to hear from those students who have already gotten in. My undergrad stats aren't the best. I graduated with a 2.0, (and I have so many repeats on my transcripts) so because of this, I took a year off between undergrad and graduate school and I did research, I went on a medical mission trip.

Currently, I'm almost done with my masters in neuroscience, my gpa is around 3.2-3.3, AND I'm retaking orgo 1, 2 and physics 2 this summer. And I should mention that I've shadowed three podiatrist (one every summer for the past three summers).

I really don't know what else I can do to make my application stronger? I'm studying for the mcat and right now I've getting around a 26-27 on the practice exams. Podiatry is something I REALLY want to do, I just love every aspect of it!

Any suggestions/help is greatly appreciated! Thank you.

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[bmhsacosta]

I'm not too sure about how much podiatry school weighs undergrad vs grad school (if they disregard undergrad grades due to being so long ago in your case). No disrespect, but I'm surprised you got into graduate school with a 2.0. That being said I agree with your plan of action. Retake those courses and score well on the MCAT ( I've been told a 9 or higher in bio is a good indicator of success in podiatry school). Maybe apply wider than you normally would and if given an interview be sure to prepare for them to ask you about the difference in your graduate vs undergrad performance.
Goodluck to you

 

[Ferocity]

You NEED to get at LEAST a 26 on the MCAT.

 

[Mangos18]

Thanks. When you say apply broadly - do you mean all 9 school? Yeah I'm surprised I got into a goo graduate program as well... I honestly don't know how I'm doing so well. but I guess whatever I'm doing is working.

 

[SuperFeisty]

I was under the impression grad school has a much easier grading system? As in, if you get a couple of C's you're out? It would look much more impressive if you had achieved a higher GPA on your masters. I would recommend you focus on the retaken courses. If you can pull A's on all of those AND do well on your MCAT, schools will seriously consider you. For me, I wasn't quite as bad, a 2.55 from a top school, but at the time, the ONLY schools that still sort of showed interest were Barry and NYCPM. I needed some great postbac work and a solid MCAT to get in. Remember, it is your responsibility to convince their admissions committees that A) you WANT to do podiatry and B) you can handle the academic studies there.

 

[Mangos18]

Besides the Mcat is there anything else I can do? I just really need to show podiatry schools that my I can handle upper level science work. ahhh. stress.

 

[Mangos18]

My lowest grade in Grad school at the moment is a B? I wouldn't say the grading is easier...but then again I don't know. I REALLY want to go to nycpm - I love the school there, except I know its a tough school to get into.

 

[bmhsacosta]

Besides the Mcat is there anything else I can do? I just really need to show podiatry schools that my I can handle upper level science work. ahhh. stress.

Maybe do a visit day to show interest? I think your shadowing speaks for itself. If you can get 3 solid letters (maybe overkill) I think you'd be golden as far as showing interest. Maybe you could also contact the schools and ask for advice on how to proceed to make yourself a solid candidate.

 

[Mangos18]

Well I just got this semesters grades and my masters gpa went up to a 3.5 - I dunno if that helps a ton or not?! hopefully it does!

 

[josebiwasabi]

Nice job improving that GPA.

Definitely apply to NYCPM next year. I would suggest you contact the admissions department if you have any questions, especially since your situation is a bit unique. Most people don't have that large of a gap between their undergrad and grad school GPAs lol. And best of luck on your MCAT. Study hard for that and it'll help you a lot.

 

[Mangos18]

Thanks. Yeah I've been in touch with NYCPM. I really want to apply for the Jan Term, since I finish my masters this Dec.

I took a prep class for the MCATS and I have until August to study for them, so here to hoping I do well!

 

[bobdolerson]

I'm going to say a few things that are applicable, and try and relate them in a roundabout and meaningful way...

Pod school is exponentially more work than undergrad, with much harder classes and faaar heavier course load.

A GPA can be manipulated in a lot of ways that make it not a perfect way to measure candidates, so they try and make it meaningful in specific ways.

First of all, they try and see your motivation. How hard did you try? A 2.0 is absolutely abysmal in undergrad (not trying to put salt in your wounds, just trying to throw it out there honestly) and correlates to failing out in pod school.

Next, the 3.x in your masters is a good thing for several reasons. Masters classes are harder, and the fact that you did much better there shows them first, that you /really/ upped your drive and determination and, second, that you can perform adequately in harder classes, more similar to pod school than undergrad classes.

They try and see how motivated you are to succeed, and how well you'll perform with harder classes.

Retaking the classes you did poorly in will show a willingness to do what it takes to get /into/ pod school, but it's not as good a factor for showing how well you'll do in classes academically. Motivation is a good thing to demonstrate, though, so because your undergrad grades were so low, retaking them wouldn't be a bad thing. I would say for most people to skip those classes and go ahead and just take different upper level sciences that are more difficult to demonstrate the aforementioned skills even more saliently, and if you passed your required classes, the same still holds true.

If you want to retake those classes because you don't know the material (doesn't seem all that likely since you did well in your masters) then it wouldn't be terrible, and would probably help your MCAT scores.

At this point, most of what you could do to show the admissions committee your character is done. The only thing left to do is either retake classes (cannot be stressed enough that you need to do /really/ good, ie As and As and As) you did badly in the first time, take some upper-level sciences to balance out a poor GPA and show you can do well in harder classes, and you /really/ need to dominate the MCAT.

That's probably the single best thing you can do at this point, is do well on the MCAT, so, if I were you (and I may be, but I don't know, I didn't do very well in philosophy) I would focus the majority of my efforts there.

A solid (30+) MCAT can offset a lot, while a mediocre MCAT (mid-20s) will put you at "average" in that category. Considering the two big deals for admissions are GPA and MCAT, and your GPA is pretty well stuck where it is, it makes a lot of sense to perform really well on this singular thing and increase your chances.

Good luck!

 

[Mangos18]

Thank you! Yes, I think I need to do REALLY well on the MCAT - I don't know about a 30+ (just because I dont want to disappoint myself) But I am aiming for a high 20 - like 28, 29?

Also - I'm not retaking a ton of undergrad classes - just OChem.

 

[bobdolerson]

Don't aim for a number

Just aim high! You'll likely surprise yourself with how good you do.

Something to remember that I'm really glad somebody told me before I took it....

...you will almost inevitably get to a point where you pass up 2-3 questions and think, "seriously? what the heck is this crap?" (often in orgo, that's where it was for me). Don't get discouraged! Remember that the MCAT is a curved test, and if you think a question is so ridiculously complicated and you've never seen the information before, it's incredibly likely everyone around you is thinking the same thing.

Just do your best, expect to be blindsided by a couple problems, and don't feel bad if you walk out disappointed, because I haven't really met many people that felt "good" about it afterwards.

Good luck!