Has anybody been admitted to medical school without finishing their Masters program..

[theDr.]

Has anybody been admitted to medical school without finishing their Masters program such as a MPH or any other programs. For instance, I began my MPH but i might not be done with it by the spring of 2005 and I am seeking to be admitted by the fall of 2005...will medical schools not admit be because of it...even though I would like to do their md/mph program?

Has anybody been in this situation and been admitted?

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[sgilani]

i know this doesn't answer your questions (sorry) but when did you start your MPH and where?

 

[theDr.]

i started this fall at UConn. I am not regretting the decisions in way because i feel it may be hindering my acceptance...i wanted to do a MPH/MD program in med school so i figured I would get a head start...now i am regretting it...but i love the mph also...i thought it would make me a better candidate.

Maybe i should have take more science courses instead. I was a business major and also did bio 1 and 2, chem 1 and 2, org 1 and 2, and phys 1 and 2, and i took bio chem as well. Those were the premed coureses I took and i got a 3.9 gpa in them....I don't know.

 

[juddson]

My impression is that there are few hard and fast rules when it comes to applying to medical school, but if there ever was one . . . it is this: You must complete your current degree before matriculation. I can't tell you how many times I have heard that.

It is my guess that you would not even be admitted if it means that you will not have completed your current MPH degree. I could be wrong, but I think you have to finish first.

judd

 

[theDr.]

even if the schoosl have a md/mph program? that makes no logical sense at all. why not? what is the point?

 

[sanoge7]

You have to get the degree before you start medical school... Because schools like to see you finish what you start and it is just the "right thing" to do. What if you change your mind as a medical student just like it appears that you changed your mind here? I think that medical schools look for excellence and committment in every aspect of your life, in every activity, etc. I think that, although you think you have a specialized circumstance, bottom line is: you should finish what you start. for sure you should talk this over with your pre-med advisor before you make any potentially destructive decisions !

 

[theDr.]

even if I explain I want to finish the MPH in medical school in their md/mph program...i still want to finish the program.

 

[sgilani]

but thedr. brings up a good point. what if the school where you are getting your mph has an affiliated med school. can you be allowed to start med school if you have a few (<5) classes left for your other degree. technically, couldn't you take those remaining classes during the summers while in med school or add on an additional class per semester until you finish?

 

[BushBaby]

I finish my MPA in May but I got accepted regardless. Doing the math, they figured that there is nothing (on the medical end) that would prevent me from graduating with my MPA before med school starts.

 

[theDr.]

I am doing my MPH at Uconn, however, even if i attend other med schools iwth a md/mph program,most of the credits will transfer anyways...i would still finish the mph.

 

[sgilani]

is there anyway to state your intentions to finish in the personal statement, secondaries etc? sorry, i'm clueless about the app process b/c i'm not applying til june.

 

[Megalofyia]

For my own reasons I don't want to finish the masters that I've started so I called some of the med schools I am interested in. So far the only school that has said I MUST finish my masters to be accepted is Wake Forest. No one else seemed to care so long as I had the pre reqs done.

 

[NE_Cornhusker1]

Originally posted by theDr.
even if the schoosl have a md/mph program? that makes no logical sense at all. why not? what is the point?

if i remember right the term is poaching. it's not cool for the school you started to support you for a couple of years only to have you drop out their program to go to school somewhere else and awards you the degree. schools try not to stab each other in the back in this way.

 

[theDr.]

well my state school stabbed my in my back..so screw them.

 

[NE_Cornhusker1]

that sucks. the only school that would feel good about taking before you were done is uconn [where you're at now].

 

[theDr.]

another problem is the concentration I would like my mph to focus on are very weak. Meaning, the electives I were told that were going to be present are not and I just found this semester when I was looking for some classes that I wanted to do my concentration in. Therefore, i honestly would like to continue or finish my MPH program somewhere else were I will be getting out of the program what I put into it. That is another major thing that is buggy me about the mph program...this is not a garbage excuse, its the truth.

 

[johnnyjringo]

Hey - in answer to the original question - it can be done. I tanked a neurophysiology program just before writing my thesis. I managed to score a couple of acceptances, and the med schools didn't seem too worried about my leaving the program. I just explained that I knew it was the wrong path for me. However, I did leave grad school the year before I applied to med schools.

 

[exmike]

Originally posted by johnnyjringo
Hey - in answer to the original question - it can be done. I tanked a neurophysiology program just before writing my thesis. I managed to score a couple of acceptances, and the med schools didn't seem too worried about my leaving the program. I just explained that I knew it was the wrong path for me. However, I did leave grad school the year before I applied to med schools.

If you're ENROLLED the year you are applying then you face more problems.

I've had schools state I only had to finish prerquisites, as well as schools stating specifically that I had to finish whatever program I was currently enrolled in. It pretty much varies from school to school.

 

[Megalofyia]

If you want to start a list of schools that don't care I will start it.

This is information I got from calling the schools

Schools that don't care:
Iowa
UTHSCSA
Drexel

Schools that say you must graduate or be out a year:
Wake Forest

 

[exmike]

This is information I got from calling the schools

Schools that don't care:
Iowa
UTHSCSA
Drexel
Ohio State


Schools that say you must graduate or be out a year:
Wake Forest
Case Western
MCO

 

[theDr.]

what do you mean be out a year?

 

[G0S2]

Schools that don't care:
Iowa
UTHSCSA (just called and confirmed this)
Drexel
Ohio State


Schools that say you must graduate or be out a year:
Wake Forest
Case Western
MCO
UVA (cancelled my interview there since they told me that if I were to be accepted, it would be taken away if I did not have the PhD)

 

[velouria]

i got in after starting and not finishing an mph.
i just had to get a letter from my program director saying he is aware of/approves of my med school plans. he had a form letter already. it came up in interviews, but was never a big issue.

good luck

 

[Demosthenes_7]

Most MD schools care and no DO schools care. The thing to do if you are an allopathic applicant is to go non-degree, then you are not expected to receive a degree before you matriculate. Just make sure your AMCAS application reflects this.

 

[macdown]

The University of Minnesota will not accept you if you are currently enrolled in a graduate program (I wish they would have told me that before I applied). They also do not let you apply 2 years in a row.

 

[Megalofyia]

Schools that don't care:
Iowa
UTHSCSA
Drexel
Ohio State


Schools that say you must graduate or be out a year:
Wake Forest
Case Western
MCO
UVA
BU - as per their website
University of Minnesota



Bumping up for the information.

 

[Heal&Teach]

I guess that you can add Emory to the list of "schools that don't care". I knew a person who finished only a year, and they let him in with no qualms.

 

[Megalofyia]

Schools that don't care:
Iowa
UTHSCSA
Drexel
Ohio State
Emory


Schools that say you must graduate or be out a year:
Wake Forest
Case Western
MCO
UVA
BU - as per their website
University of Minnesota

 

[jlee9531]

Schools that don't care:
Iowa
UTHSCSA
Drexel
Ohio State
Emory


Schools that say you must graduate or be out a year:
Wake Forest
Case Western
MCO
UVA
BU - as per their website
University of Minnesota
Creighton

 

[Yoyomama88]

can anyone else add something to this thread

 

[Endee]

Wait, so I'm currently in a MS program and I plan on applying next summer, halfway through the MS, to start Fall 2010, which will be after I finish the degree. Are some of you saying schools won't accept you unless you have already completed it? Or, like undergrads, its fine if you apply while in the program as long as you will finish it by matriculation?

 

[ACSurgeon]

Wait, so I'm currently in a MS program and I plan on applying next summer, halfway through the MS, to start Fall 2010, which will be after I finish the degree. Are some of you saying schools won't accept you unless you have already completed it? Or, like undergrads, its fine if you apply while in the program as long as you will finish it by matriculation?

I'm pretty sure the discussion was whether schools wanted you to complete the masters program before matriculating, not applying. So, yes, it's like undergrad (except apparently a few schools don't care if you dont finish your masters, which doesnt apply ot undergrad).

 

[chad5871]

I'm pretty sure the discussion was whether schools wanted you to complete the masters program before matriculating, not applying. So, yes, it's like undergrad (except apparently a few schools don't care if you dont finish your masters, which doesnt apply ot undergrad).

Yes, that's correct. All schools understand if you're applying while you're currently enrolled in another program (undergrad, post-bacc, masters, PhD, etc.) as long as you finish by the time you matriculate to medical school. This discussion is regarding whether schools will reject you because you didn't finish your current program prior to matriculating.

 

[Compass]

This thread is ancient! The guy would be almost done with medical school by now, wouldn't he? Be in his residency already, playing Scrubs IRL.