I am going through the most challenging moment of life and need some advice.

[llubermenschll]

I went to community college for 2 years, worked for a year, transferred to a 4-year university to get bachelor's, then went to a graduate school for master's. During my last semester of grad school, I got in an accident and had to withdraw that whole semester (6 W's) to move in with my family. For the next six months, I gradually recovered and decided to take some pre-med courses. But midway through I experienced some serious whiplash from the previous accident and couldn't even sit for an hour to study. Again, I withdrew 4 bio and 2 chem classes and labs. So here I am, all confused and worried that I won't even stand a chance to get into a medical school with more than 10 withdrawals.

My current hope is that after I fully recover, I retake pre-med courses that I withdrew from and also finish off the remaining requirements at an extension or through a pre-health program (if I can get in).

Do you have any advice for me?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[BluMist]

Focus on your health first. Then you can focus on acing the pre-reqs.

Your withdrawals seem to have legitimate reasons, so as long as you can explain it well in your application & interviews, you'll be fine.

 

[Pagan FutureDoc]

If you can prove that these health problems are gone or under control then two semesters of medical withdraws shouldn't hurt you. But focus on you for now, med school will always be there just get completely over the after effects of your accident.

Anicdotally, my wife was in a similar situation to yours. During her junior year she had a bad accident and then surgery (unrelated to the accident) she withdrew from six lectures plus a couple of labs. She's now an MS4.

 

[QofQuimica]

Definitely take some time off. Give yourself a chance to recover completely before you go back to school. When you're ready to go back and kick a**, then go back and kick a**.

I would also like to gently suggest that you spend some time doing something besides going to school for a while for your own sake. I don't mean to minimize what you're going through physically, because whiplash hurts like all get-out. And maybe (hopefully) you're just hyperbolizing/venting a bit anonymously on this website. But seriously, if dealing with a bunch of Ws on your college record is TRULY the "most challenging moment" of your life, you really haven't lived much, my friend.

 

[llubermenschll]

Thank you all for your advice. I really appreciate it.

I think the best thing for now is to focus on my health and prepare myself once I am recovered.

 

[Goro]

100% this.

Med schools aren't going anywhere. They'll be there when you're back to 100%.

Focus on your health first. Then you can focus on acing the pre-reqs.

Your withdrawals seem to have legitimate reasons, so as long as you can explain it well in your application & interviews, you'll be fine.