Hopeless?...

[Medical8]

I am a current pre-med student who can graduate within a year. My GPA is embarrassingly low, but I have always had the dream and goal to become a doctor by entering an MD school. Cumulative ~3.0 and sGPA ~2.6 at the moment. I have the opportunity to bring both up over the next year or so.

I have let myself be distracted by other things in life throughout college, and unfortunately have at times lost sight of my ultimate goals. As the end of college draws nearer, I am getting more and more nervous about my chances. I have retaken several classes already, and I am sure for a lot of you this sounds absolutely ridiculous that I am still trying, but I know what I want and will do whatever it takes to do it. I have yet to take the MCAT.

My question is, is it really possible for me to get into an MD program at this rate? If not, how can I better change my mindset to DO possibilities when I have dreamed MD for so long. I have nothing against DO schools at all, but it's hard to change your mentality when you have been set in something for so long...

I am new to this site but I'm sure many of you have heard this story before, and I appreciate honesty over being pumped with sunshine.

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[Hemorrage]

I am a current pre-med student who can graduate within a year. My GPA is embarrassingly low, but I have always had the dream and goal to become a doctor by entering an MD school. Cumulative ~3.0 and sGPA ~2.6 at the moment. I have the opportunity to bring both up over the next year or so.

I have let myself be distracted by other things in life throughout college, and unfortunately have at times lost sight of my ultimate goals. As the end of college draws nearer, I am getting more and more nervous about my chances. I have retaken several classes already, and I am sure for a lot of you this sounds absolutely ridiculous that I am still trying, but I know what I want and will do whatever it takes to do it. I have yet to take the MCAT.

My question is, is it really possible for me to get into an MD program at this rate? If not, how can I better change my mindset to DO possibilities when I have dreamed MD for so long. I have nothing against DO schools at all, but it's hard to change your mentality when you have been set in something for so long...

I am new to this site but I'm sure many of you have heard this story before, and I appreciate honesty over being pumped with sunshine.

MD will require that you do an SMP and completely destroy it along with a very good MCAT score.

DO will require that you retake your bad pre-req classes and get a B+ or higher along with a decent MCAT score.

Its not over, but you won't be matriculating in the next 2 years, it will take a few years of work to get a decent app together

 

[RogueUnicorn]

if you were really set on med school for "so long" your gpa wouldn't have been 3.0/2.6. you're pretty much toast for md school unless you're willing to take a long (3+ yrs) and hard journey with zero guarantees. even DO is going to be a good amount of work.

 

[Medical8]

MD will require that you do an SMP and completely destroy it along with a very good MCAT score.

DO will require that you retake your bad pre-req classes and get a B+ or higher along with a decent MCAT score.

Its not over, but you won't be matriculating in the next 2 years, it will take a few years of work to get a decent app together

What things would you suggest for making a "decent app?"

 

[Medical8]

if you were really set on med school for "so long" your gpa wouldn't have been 3.0/2.6. you're pretty much toast for md school unless you're willing to take a long (3+ yrs) and hard journey with zero guarantees. even DO is going to be a good amount of work.

I appreciate your honesty, but don't question my motives and mindset. People go through things that you never have or maybe you don't completely understand...

What does your idea of "long and hard journey" entail? And what amount of work will it take for DO? I'm asking because I truly want to know what I can do to fix things.... Thank you for any input.

 

[qwerty2012]

Chance is very limited.
You need to prove that you can do it academically, that is the most important.
That means 4.0 or near of 2-3 years of whatever classes you willing to take, in addition to 30+ mcat.

Everything is possible, it just depends on what you want and how far you willing to go.
There are some great comebacks in SDN, I suggest searching old threads.

 

[tn4596]

I appreciate your honesty, but don't question my motives and mindset. People go through things that you never have or maybe you don't completely understand...

What does your idea of "long and hard journey" entail? And what amount of work will it take for DO? I'm asking because I truly want to know what I can do to fix things.... Thank you for any input.

Assuming you are already in college for 3 year. It would take another 3 years of perfect 4.0 cgpa to bring ur your cgpa to 3.5 ( still not very competitive for md schools).
DO route is much more viable. As some had said, retake classes that you had a bad grades. Prepare properly for mcat and volunteer about 4 hrs a week in the mean time. I think that would take about 2 years of schooling and a gap year. Your chance will be pretty good then assuming you can pull it off.

 

[Praefectus]

Your sGPA needs the most work, so focus on that. Make sure you retake any pre-reqs below a B. The old grades will still count in your calculated GPA, so keep that in mind.

 

[Hemorrage]

What things would you suggest for making a "decent app?"

well you need to do the cookie cutter setup first.

1. EC's- do things that your interested in, computers, music, etc.
2. Community Service volunteering
3. Clinical experience (job, volunteer)
4. Plenty of shadowing (important to prove you know what your getting yourself into)
5. Research project (you don't necessarily have to do scientific research. for example i do computer science/statistical research) (this proves that your a naturally curious person)

Finally, the most important aspect of the application to get you through the door and into their eyes for review is your GPA/MCAT. Like i've said before, your cGPA/sGPA are hardly any good for medical school. I suggest you aim for 3.8+ the next 2 semesters. That will allow you to at least get a 3.2/2.8 (which still isn't that good but better). During your last semester of college, apply to post-bacc or SMP programs. Go to one and perform WELL. This is crucial, you need to get at least a 3.8-4.0 to show medical schools you can handle the curriculum. Finally, take the MCAT and make SURE you score above the average (31.2).

If you can do those things, you can prove to them you are a viable candidate and you were just immature in undergraduate. Just remember, if you decide to take this road, its going to be a long 2-3 years to finish this task of even applying to get in. Even then its risky because these tasks cost money and can leave you in further debt if you don't end up getting accepted. You should highly consider the possibility of applying to D.O schools, you'll have a much higher chance of getting accepted.

 

[Yoseph101]

You need to start by getting rid of things that are distracting you. I don't know if you have done this or not, but, you need to take a hard look at what you've been doing and cut the malignant distractions out or manage them so they become a non-issue. If being an MD is your dream I think that would be the place to start.

 

[Medical8]

well you need to do the cookie cutter setup first.

1. EC's- do things that your interested in, computers, music, etc.
2. Community Service volunteering
3. Clinical experience (job, volunteer)
4. Plenty of shadowing (important to prove you know what your getting yourself into)
5. Research project (you don't necessarily have to do scientific research. for example i do computer science/statistical research) (this proves that your a naturally curious person)

Finally, the most important aspect of the application to get you through the door and into their eyes for review is your GPA/MCAT. Like i've said before, your cGPA/sGPA are hardly any good for medical school. I suggest you aim for 3.8+ the next 2 semesters. That will allow you to at least get a 3.2/2.8 (which still isn't that good but better). During your last semester of college, apply to post-bacc or SMP programs. Go to one and perform WELL. This is crucial, you need to get at least a 3.8-4.0 to show medical schools you can handle the curriculum. Finally, take the MCAT and make SURE you score above the average (31.2).

If you can do those things, you can prove to them you are a viable candidate and you were just immature in undergraduate. Just remember, if you decide to take this road, its going to be a long 2-3 years to finish this task of even applying to get in. Even then its risky because these tasks cost money and can leave you in further debt if you don't end up getting accepted. You should highly consider the possibility of applying to D.O schools, you'll have a much higher chance of getting accepted.

I have lots of volunteering as of now (100+hours) and have been shadowing various doctors for the last few semesters. For the last two semesters I have also been part of a cancer research group, hoping to publish by the end of the year. Does it matter what SMP I get into? Would it matter whether science or not? And what would be your suggested timeline for DO? Would I need SMP?

 

[sector9]

Thread moved to "What are my chances"

 

[Goro]

Yes, MD is a non-starter now. If you're interested at l int he DO rote, start doing your omewrk, and more importanly, find some DOs to shadow. If there's a DO school within driving distance, go check it out; talk to students and faculty.

I am a current pre-med student who can graduate within a year. My GPA is embarrassingly low, but I have always had the dream and goal to become a doctor by entering an MD school. Cumulative ~3.0 and sGPA ~2.6 at the moment. I have the opportunity to bring both up over the next year or so.


My question is, is it really possible for me to get into an MD program at this rate? If not, how can I better change my mindset to DO possibilities when I have dreamed MD for so long. I have nothing against DO schools at all, but it's hard to change your mentality when you have been set in something for so long...

.

 

[Etorphine]

I appreciate your honesty, but don't question my motives and mindset. People go through things that you never have or maybe you don't completely understand...

What does your idea of "long and hard journey" entail? And what amount of work will it take for DO? I'm asking because I truly want to know what I can do to fix things.... Thank you for any input.

Not buying it. When it comes down to it, everyone has their priorities. They were "distractions" because you prioritized them in the moment over doing what you needed to be doing to get into medical school. It's not just a matter of wanting to go to medical school; the question becomes, "How bad?"

I think MD is completely out of the question, but if your aspirations are to practice medicine and not just for the status of a MD degree, then I think you can still make it to a DO program.

 

[Alejandro]

First of all, I will say that you're probably not going to get much love from your post. Why? Because most of us say that they have good intentions of going into medicine, blah blah blah. How is anyone supposed to take another seriously, if everyone is saying it?

Now that being said, regarding your application, if your academics are what are keeping you...I'd ace the MCAT, take some postbac classes in upper div science and ace those, and finally, gain some real-life work experience to show that you're a grown up and can compete with the big boys (the straight nerds who got in without a gap year, so to speak) with your maturity.

To be honest, it's pretty simple like that. But until this is done, everyone will be a skeptic.

But I wish you luck. I've been in that land myself, and it took a lot of work to get out of. To be honest, the first thing I did was disregard all the nay-sayers on SDN and learn to not ask for affirmation from SDN if I had such high conviction to succeed.

 

[An MD Hopeful]

the first thing i did was disregard all the nay-sayers on sdn and learn to not ask for affirmation from sdn if i had such high conviction to succeed.

+1

 

[Hemorrage]

I have lots of volunteering as of now (100+hours) and have been shadowing various doctors for the last few semesters. For the last two semesters I have also been part of a cancer research group, hoping to publish by the end of the year. Does it matter what SMP I get into? Would it matter whether science or not? And what would be your suggested timeline for DO? Would I need SMP?

100 hours is nothing tbh. I'm entering my sophomore year of college and i have close to 400 hours and i hope to have it up to like 700 by the time i apply. Obviously you don't need 700 but i would say 500 is a safe bet. The research group sounds great! Remember the publish doesn't mean anything unless you really got something out of it. Medical schools don't expect you to contribute to global academia by the time you appl.

The SMP shouldn't matter too much, most programs are fairly alike in terms of academics, however, what you should research is how successful their SMP applicants are in terms of getting into medical school after completing the program. Georgetowns SMP is a good example of a program that gets many students into medical school after completing it.

For the D.O route you could retake classes after you graduate. What i mean is take the pre-requisite classes that you did bad in and get A's. Remember doing poorly in them a 2nd time basically kills your chances indefinitely. Once you've done well in your pre-reqs calculate your sGPA, if you have a 3.5+ then your solid there. At this point you should have a 3.2-3.3 cGPA also. If you want to be competitive for the best DO schools then you should raise it to a 3.4 or 3.5 but with a 3.3cGPA/3.5sGPA you'll get in somewhere

 

[HDaddyDollarz]

forget the ECs, with your low gpa you need to demonstrate you can handle med school, which means retaking with all A's and an SMP......its possible, however look into PA and DPM, ill be honest, once you start practicing these differences become small.

your intentions dont matter, its your grades that count

 

[TriagePreMed]

My question is, is it really possible for me to get into an MD program at this rate?

If not, how can I better change my mindset to DO possibilities when I have dreamed MD for so long. I have nothing against DO schools at all, but it's hard to change your mentality when you have been set in something for so long...

No, it's simply not possible for you to get into an MD school. Your record is simply mediocre. Everyone here will tell you the usual post-bacc + high mcat + high smp = MD school, but the truth is that it's a very small minority of students that are able to walk that path. This path also assumes you have strong EC, which you will desperately need.

And sorry to break it to you on D.O., but the truth is that you're also not qualified for an Osteopathic program. It's easier to get into an Osteopathic college because of the retake policy, but bringing a 2.6 up to at least a 3.3 is not very easy. You have mentioned you've retaken courses. Unless you've scored B or higher on those (preferably A), you're kidding yourself.

I'm not saying grade recovery is impossible. I am a product of grade recovery. However, I've seen too many people crash and burn and be unrealistic about what they're doing.

Look, it's fine to "dream," but dreaming hasn't gotten you anywhere and it won't. You need to focus on reality. If you can't see yourself being a D.O., then don't be. Just go to a Caribbean school. And if not, a new career would be something to plan for.

I have lots of volunteering as of now (100+hours) and have been shadowing various doctors for the last few semesters. For the last two semesters I have also been part of a cancer research group, hoping to publish by the end of the year. Does it matter what SMP I get into? Would it matter whether science or not? And what would be your suggested timeline for DO? Would I need SMP?

100 hours is below the average, so you need to work on that. You'll also benefit from non-medical volunteer work and leadership.

Your publication, while helpful, is probably not going to be very meaningful unless you're first or second author to it.

If you don't know if an SMP is "science or not," then you don't even know what an SMP is. An SMP is a Special Masters Program designed by medical school to put you in play with year 1 medical school classes. You will need a 3.7+. No, a 3.5 will not "cut it" for you, but this is way down the line AFTER you pick up your sGPA to, at the very minimum, 3.0 AND you score a 32+ on the MCAT.