Clarification needed on raising undergrad GPA

[Onward]

I am a bit confused on how one could raise their undergraduate GPA after graduating. If you already graduated, and with a degree in biology so that all your pre-requisites are met, can you raise your AMCAS UGPA by taking, say, undergraduate courses in nutrition and physiology? What if you take these undergraduate courses while enrolled in a master's program that isn't officially post-bac or anything? Would an SMP count towards that GPA? I'm just confused. I hear so much talk about raising your GPA but am not sure how it can be done.

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[glamqueen]

Any additional undergrad after graduation counts just the same as "more senior year" in your undergrad GPA. Anybody can raise their GPA by taking more undergrad - even after graduation. Many of us who did this went ahead and just earned a second bachelor's, because why not - when we're taking extra classes in a different discipline.

Anything graduate - even a SMP - is not undergrad. So this will not go into your undergrad, but it will go into a graduate GPA, which is not considered in your BCPM or Amcas overall gpa.

What I did - graduated in 2002 in another area. Went back to undergrad as a second-degree seeking student (anybody can choose this on their FAFSA whether or not they complete the degree or not), got financial aid for tuition, earned a second degree in microbiology. Taking the pre-reqs only would still have had me applying when I did, so taking the few extra courses to get a second degree did not delay when I could apply to school and go. It was a great decision for me. Showed a great record of handling heavy science classes, and I applied with a strong GPA.

I hope this helps. I'm not sure why people always suggest SMP right away, when sometimes the people asking for suggestions really just need a record of handling hard sciences and earning A's at the undergrad level so it improves their BCPM and overall undergrad AMCAS GPA.

 

[ruraldr]

Hey there,

To raise your GPA you'll want to take classes as a 5th year student or a post-bacc student, not as a masters student. The post-bacc classes will count towards your gpa, while masters course work is not counted.

The couple courses you suggested would both be fine ideas...

 

[Onward]

Okay, here is my situation. I am a public health PhD student who is thinking of applying to med school. (My BSc was in Microbiology and I already met all the med school pre-reqs). I honestly want to take nutrition and anatomy courses to improve my understanding of what I'm studying for my PhD. If I sign up for undergraduate versions of these courses while I am enrolled as a PhD student, will it raise my AMCAS uGPA?

 

[glamqueen]

Yes. Any undergrad classes will raise your undergrad GPA. That sounds like a good plan. Good luck.

 

[Onward]

Oh, excellent. And here I had been checking out Georgetown's SMP site all morning. Good to know; thanks.

 

[aphios5]

Yes. Any undergrad classes will raise your undergrad GPA. That sounds like a good plan. Good luck.

Not just "any" undergrad classes will raise your undergrad GPA - after you've received your 1st undergraduate degree, classes taken after this point are considered "post bac" if I'm not mistaken...see below:

Assign Post Baccalaureate (PB) status to any undergraduate level course
work you enrolled in:​

•

After receipt of your initial BA/BS degree.

• ​

​

While enrolled in a graduate program, if course work is not applied to

a graduate degree.
• ​

​

Assign Graduate (GR) status to any professional or graduate-level course

work that is not applied to an undergraduate degree.
• ​

​

Do NOT assign Graduate (GR) status to any professional or graduate-level

course work applied to an undergraduate degree. Assign appropriate
undergraduate status (FR, SO, JR, SR).
Unusual Circumstances
If you have attempted graduate-level coursework while formally enrolled in an
undergraduate program. Credit for the graduate coursework is counted
toward the undergraduate degree requirements:
o The graduate-level coursework should be listed under the
appropriate undergraduate status (usually “JR” or "SR") at the time
the courses were attempted. This coursework should not be listed
under the "GR" status.
If you have attempted undergraduate-level coursework while formally enrolled in
a graduate program. The undergraduate coursework does not count toward
the graduate degree requirements:
o If a Bachelor’s degree has been received; the undergraduate level
coursework should be listed under the "PB" status and not under​

the "GR" status; if a degree has not been received (rare).



​

 

[glamqueen]

Nope. I graduated with a first degree, enrolled in a second degree, and all of my undergrad science stuff from this second - AMCAS filed under "senior year." It all went into one undergrad GPA. I was verified rather quickly also. There was nothing to correct.

 

[glamqueen]

On second thought, though - unlike the OP - I was not in a grad program when I enrolled in more undergrad. Perhaps the OP should give AMCAS a call to ask what the classification of the courses would be in order to make the most educated decision on what types of courses to take?

That would be my next suggestion. Good info for whoever posted above me. OP - be glad they posted that!

 

[aphios5]

Better to be safe than sorry - definitely give the powers that be a call if there is any confusion.

 

[glamqueen]

I agree - it kind of sucks giving AMCAS so much power over your life, but it is worth it in the end!

 

[bluebeardAT]

Sorry to bump this, but I want to clarify that this same grading system still applies.

So as a college grad, if I take undergraduate courses, those grade apply to my undergraduate GPA and are considered such by medical schools?

 

[228]

Not to hijack the thread..and this may be an obvious question, but I'll ask anyway...


IF I get a C or lower in a course (even if it is even a Lab), should I retake it? For the record i'm not worried about having to wait an extra year--i'm in no rush.
Maybe DO schools will look more kindly on this as they take into account grade replacement?

 

[etp123]

Not to hijack the thread..and this may be an obvious question, but I'll ask anyway...


IF I get a C or lower in a course (even if it is even a Lab), should I retake it? For the record i'm not worried about having to wait an extra year--i'm in no rush.
Maybe DO schools will look more kindly on this as they take into account grade replacement?

Yes this is an obvious question lol. Look up schools you're interested in applying to that need prereqs. You'll see that they REQUIRE you to have passed those classes with AT LEAST a C... otherwise anything below means you failed the prereq. Now keep in mind you're going to be competing with an intensely competitive hoard of other pre-meds so it may be in your best interest not to leave that C on your transcript unredeemed. Of course it's always better to have gotten it the first time around, but it looks much better that you retook it for an A then just leaving the C. Even for MD schools who won't replace the grade at least it shows an effort to improve and it is averaged in.

Probably it's fine to leave a C in there if maybe the rest of your application is spectacular and you had compelling extenuating life circumstances to explain the lapse in academic performance, but on the whole better to cover all your bases.

 

[etp123]

Sorry to bump this, but I want to clarify that this same grading system still applies.

So as a college grad, if I take undergraduate courses, those grade apply to my undergraduate GPA and are considered such by medical schools?

Yes medical schools, MD or DO, consider ALL your undergrad-level grades you've ever gotten at ALL institutions you've ever attended when calculating your GPA, whether you were degree-seeking or not. DO apps have the slight distinction of replacing retaken classes with the most recent grade. If you were a lawyer for example then partway into your career decided to switch tracks into medicine, you could do a career-change postbac program to take undergrad-level classes and satisfy those basic science prereqs. It's not like those grades don't matter because they had already completed an undergrad degree before or something. The grades after your first bachelor are just listed differently when you're assigning grades to each year, but they're still there and the med schools still see them. ALL of them.