Is a post-bac or SMP possible?

[Fromteachertodoc]

I'm really looking for whatever advice I can get about this. Here's my story. I finished school about 4 years ago. I have a B.A and M.A. in English literature. After I finished my M.A. I went to community college and took all the prereqs to get into medical school. I took the MCAT, shadowed some physicians, did some volunteer work, basically everything to get into medical school. I applied late, though, and was rejected from every school. My MCAT was only 25 and I did my prereqs at a community college, though, so it might have been more than applying late.

Since that time in 2012, I have moved to Korea to teach English. I intended to just stay a year, but some things happened and I've been here since. In that time, I havent had any more clinical exposure, nor taken any additional classes.

I have had some events happen in my life to reaffirm my commitment to go to medical school, but I'm unsure how to proceed. I've heard about post-bac and smps, but I dont even know if I would qualify for these. I'd like to have something liked up to go back to from Korea, instead of just being adrift when I go back. Would a program like this work in my situation? Or is there something else I should look into? Thanks for any advice.

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[ZedsDed]

The best advice I can give you is to spend many hours researching this on your own using the search function, I promise it will pay off. But I'll answer your question:
-What is your uGPA? Without this we have no idea where you stand.
-If you are planning on going to an MD school than you will have to retake the MCAT, period, and score at least a 31 or so (or whatever the new equivalent is).

 

[Goro]

Concur. I also think some more volunteer work is in order.

The best advice I can give you is to spend many hours researching this on your own using the search function, I promise it will pay off. But I'll answer your question:
-What is your uGPA? Without this we have no idea where you stand.
-If you are planning on going to an MD school than you will have to retake the MCAT, period, and score at least a 31 or so (or whatever the new equivalent is).

 

[Fromteachertodoc]

Sorry about that. uGPA is around 3.58 and science gpa is 3.8 (but again this is from a community college). I understand I will need to take the mcat again, but I have been so far out of school, I don't think I'd be comfortable studying on my own to take it. I feel like doing an SMP or a post-bac would be best in my situation, but I really don't know what application to these programs entails. Do I need an inperson interview, strong (and current) LOR, MCAT or GRE? Again any advice is appreciated, and as always, I'm sorry if this has been asked a million times.

 

[ZedsDed]

Sorry about that. uGPA is around 3.58 and science gpa is 3.8 (but again this is from a community college). I understand I will need to take the mcat again, but I have been so far out of school, I don't think I'd be comfortable studying on my own to take it. I feel like doing an SMP or a post-bac would be best in my situation, but I really don't know what application to these programs entails. Do I need an inperson interview, strong (and current) LOR, MCAT or GRE? Again any advice is appreciated, and as always, I'm sorry if this has been asked a million times.

You don't need to do an SMP. Your GPA is actually fairly competitive, and might be compensated somewhat by your sGPA. I'll say it again, you need to retake the MCAT to get into an MD school. The only part of your app that screams rejection is your MCAT score.

 

[Fromteachertodoc]

Thank you for that. I am aware I need to take the MCAT again, not just because of the low score, but also because its 3 years old. I'm still learning towards an SMP or post-bac, however because I've been out of school so long. I could, perhaps, relearn enough to pass the MCAT, but I'd really feel more comfortable with some refresher classes before diving into medical school. Do you know if many of these programs require a current MCAT or GRE? And do many require inperson interviews? Again, I live in korea currently, and I'd like to have something lined up before I go home. Thank you again, though

 

[ZedsDed]

Thank you for that. I am aware I need to take the MCAT again, not just because of the low score, but also because its 3 years old. I'm still learning towards an SMP or post-bac, however because I've been out of school so long. I could, perhaps, relearn enough to pass the MCAT, but I'd really feel more comfortable with some refresher classes before diving into medical school. Do you know if many of these programs require a current MCAT or GRE? And do many require inperson interviews? Again, I live in korea currently, and I'd like to have something lined up before I go home. Thank you again, though

SMP? Yes (there are exceptions.)
Postbac? No.
Interviews? (Varies from program to program, you will have to do your own research.)

I suggest you avoid an SMP. Just do a cheap 1-year postbacc if you want a refresher.

 

[Fromteachertodoc]

Great! Thank you for the tips, I'll look into some post-bacs