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Hi all
I am 29yo and work in finance. I graduated from a top 30 school in the US with a degree in business in 2009 and I did most of the pre req classes except organic 2 and bio 2. I have not taken the MCAT. I am going to apply to medical school, and was curious as to whether I should consider a full post bacc program (I have gained acceptance to one) as my classes are so old (and for a slight GPA boost) or if I should just take the 2-3 classes I need on an ad-hoc basis, saving some time and some money. I would begin either path in summer 2017, and would hope to get to med school asap.
GPA:
My current med school GPA is a 3.50. My BCPM is 3.56. My first semester of college I had no motivation and wasn't even sure I should've been in college. I was young and immature, essentially. My GPA excluding those 2 classes taken in 2004 is 3.67, so a clear upward trend.
Experience:
In college I had a number of shadowing, volunteer, and research experiences. Since then I've been working very long hours, but have gotten back into it in the last few months. Again, I've been shadowing, volunteering, and researching, and should hopefully be published in some form or another in a few months. During my classes or post bacc I'd have more time to expand this part of my application.
MCAT:
I haven't taken it yet, but am going to take it in April 2017, BEFORE I start the post bacc or classes. This may affect my decision.
Post Bacc:
- Offers a linkage to med school, skipping a glide year
- Respected by med schools, and required by some given my pre reqs are mostly 8-9yrs old
- Would improve GPA given number of hours I'm taking
- Would be intense and limit extra-currics
- Expensive
Ad-hod Classes at local college:
- Would only need 2 classes
- Cheaper
- Could work and do extra-currics at same time
- Wouldn't improve GPA as much
My rough plan is to take the MCAT in April 2017. If my score isn't great but enough to link, then I will do the post-bacc. If my score is solid, I will apply to schools while completing the other 2 classes required.
I guess here are my questions:
1. Is my GPA OK to apply for MD programs, given a solid MCAT and my upward trend? Or do I need a post-bacc?
2. Either way (post-bacc or ad-hoc), assuming I had an MCAT score in summer 2017, could I apply that summer for matriculation in 2018 without having completed all of my classes? I know technically I can, but how is this viewed? Or would a glide year be necessary? If so, this is one more positive in the post-bacc column.
Thanks all!
I am 29yo and work in finance. I graduated from a top 30 school in the US with a degree in business in 2009 and I did most of the pre req classes except organic 2 and bio 2. I have not taken the MCAT. I am going to apply to medical school, and was curious as to whether I should consider a full post bacc program (I have gained acceptance to one) as my classes are so old (and for a slight GPA boost) or if I should just take the 2-3 classes I need on an ad-hoc basis, saving some time and some money. I would begin either path in summer 2017, and would hope to get to med school asap.
GPA:
My current med school GPA is a 3.50. My BCPM is 3.56. My first semester of college I had no motivation and wasn't even sure I should've been in college. I was young and immature, essentially. My GPA excluding those 2 classes taken in 2004 is 3.67, so a clear upward trend.
Experience:
In college I had a number of shadowing, volunteer, and research experiences. Since then I've been working very long hours, but have gotten back into it in the last few months. Again, I've been shadowing, volunteering, and researching, and should hopefully be published in some form or another in a few months. During my classes or post bacc I'd have more time to expand this part of my application.
MCAT:
I haven't taken it yet, but am going to take it in April 2017, BEFORE I start the post bacc or classes. This may affect my decision.
Post Bacc:
- Offers a linkage to med school, skipping a glide year
- Respected by med schools, and required by some given my pre reqs are mostly 8-9yrs old
- Would improve GPA given number of hours I'm taking
- Would be intense and limit extra-currics
- Expensive
Ad-hod Classes at local college:
- Would only need 2 classes
- Cheaper
- Could work and do extra-currics at same time
- Wouldn't improve GPA as much
My rough plan is to take the MCAT in April 2017. If my score isn't great but enough to link, then I will do the post-bacc. If my score is solid, I will apply to schools while completing the other 2 classes required.
I guess here are my questions:
1. Is my GPA OK to apply for MD programs, given a solid MCAT and my upward trend? Or do I need a post-bacc?
2. Either way (post-bacc or ad-hoc), assuming I had an MCAT score in summer 2017, could I apply that summer for matriculation in 2018 without having completed all of my classes? I know technically I can, but how is this viewed? Or would a glide year be necessary? If so, this is one more positive in the post-bacc column.
Thanks all!
