I browse these forums from time-to-time and figured I'd post as I'm currently conflicted. I'm a transfer student, very much non-traditional. I'm currently at my state university and am only having trouble in one of my courses- physics go figure. As of right now with this class, and my GPA I'm getting a strong feeling of, "my hopes and dreams are dying in front of me."
With that said, my GPA is on the lower end because I'm not a strong test-taker and my community college did not do a +/- system which actually hurts my GPA by quite a bit; along the lines of a .3.
I'm all about hands-on in which I excel. You'll find out just how much so by my history. Blowing off some steam- currently I feel as if school is a rat-race and a "game" to see who can memorize and regurgitate information in most courses I've personally seen little-to-no practical value in the field. Call me cynical, but I need to get that off my chest. Don't let my thought process disillusion you from that fact I'm all about medicine and caring for patients.
With that said, here are my stats-
cGPA 3.1; again it would be 3.3+ if my CC used a +/- system instead of straight A, B, etc.
sGPA 3.1
No MCAT - Yeah I know it's important
Here's where I shine and my dedication speaks louder than words:
7+ years working in a level 1 emergency department.
-You name it, I've seen it.
-Ambulance EMT for just under a year before working primarily under a roof.
6 years as a flight medic in the USAF.
-I worked in ERs all over the U.S., Europe, and clinics across various military installations in the Middle East.
-I was in Iraq after the surge working at JBB's emergency room; level 1 trauma that was the primary location for all trauma related incidents. I could go into detail what I saw, but let's just say I've seen so much life and death that it pales in comparison to the years I've worked in a civilian level 1 trauma ER. This is where I knew I wanted to become a doctor; specifically ER.
2 years volunteering in a low income Latino community center.
-Organized community events focused primarily on underprivileged and troubled teenagers. Provided a safe and fun place for them to hang-out after school. Probably the most heart warming experience watching a failing student work toward graduating. Not to mention helping them grow from a high-risk individual to a productive member of their community.
1 year working at a phase 1 pharmaceutical research company.
-Collected body fluids, vitals, separated blood, etc. One of the more interesting things I've done.
4 years as a coordinator--only a couple weeks of the year--working with my sister and friend who organized and created a Lupus fund raiser collecting over $30,000 for research.
Various other little things, but I want to keep it short.
I'd love to stay at my state med-school if the fates allow! Also, I don't have any of the academic research or publications, (yet) that most seem to have. I'm currently pursuing something similar to what I did at my phase 1 site.
To stress again, physics is absolutely killing me and I have a strong indication I may either have to withdraw and retake, or take a big GPA hit. I hope my dedication is apparent and that my stress toward undergrad isn't too much cause for concern. My mindset is focused more on the clinical aspect as I've had so many years in it. I've played a hand in so many lives saved that it's addicting to want to continue, unfortunately I feel as if my dreams are dying due to the GPA issue and I'm in somewhat of a "funk". I've worked hard in my short time and the idea of a medical school workload is in no way daunting to me; in fact, I get an adrenaline rush thinking about it as it's precisely what I want to do! The undergrad portion is currently taking it's toll on me as I feel it's... monotonous. Again, please don't mistake this as selling anything short; I'm just expressing my current position in hopes of any practical or personal advice.
Any words of wisdom would be appreciated.
Thanks for reading this lengthy post!
With that said, my GPA is on the lower end because I'm not a strong test-taker and my community college did not do a +/- system which actually hurts my GPA by quite a bit; along the lines of a .3.
I'm all about hands-on in which I excel. You'll find out just how much so by my history. Blowing off some steam- currently I feel as if school is a rat-race and a "game" to see who can memorize and regurgitate information in most courses I've personally seen little-to-no practical value in the field. Call me cynical, but I need to get that off my chest. Don't let my thought process disillusion you from that fact I'm all about medicine and caring for patients.
With that said, here are my stats-
cGPA 3.1; again it would be 3.3+ if my CC used a +/- system instead of straight A, B, etc.
sGPA 3.1
No MCAT - Yeah I know it's important
Here's where I shine and my dedication speaks louder than words:
7+ years working in a level 1 emergency department.
-You name it, I've seen it.
-Ambulance EMT for just under a year before working primarily under a roof.
6 years as a flight medic in the USAF.
-I worked in ERs all over the U.S., Europe, and clinics across various military installations in the Middle East.
-I was in Iraq after the surge working at JBB's emergency room; level 1 trauma that was the primary location for all trauma related incidents. I could go into detail what I saw, but let's just say I've seen so much life and death that it pales in comparison to the years I've worked in a civilian level 1 trauma ER. This is where I knew I wanted to become a doctor; specifically ER.
2 years volunteering in a low income Latino community center.
-Organized community events focused primarily on underprivileged and troubled teenagers. Provided a safe and fun place for them to hang-out after school. Probably the most heart warming experience watching a failing student work toward graduating. Not to mention helping them grow from a high-risk individual to a productive member of their community.
1 year working at a phase 1 pharmaceutical research company.
-Collected body fluids, vitals, separated blood, etc. One of the more interesting things I've done.
4 years as a coordinator--only a couple weeks of the year--working with my sister and friend who organized and created a Lupus fund raiser collecting over $30,000 for research.
Various other little things, but I want to keep it short.
I'd love to stay at my state med-school if the fates allow! Also, I don't have any of the academic research or publications, (yet) that most seem to have. I'm currently pursuing something similar to what I did at my phase 1 site.
To stress again, physics is absolutely killing me and I have a strong indication I may either have to withdraw and retake, or take a big GPA hit. I hope my dedication is apparent and that my stress toward undergrad isn't too much cause for concern. My mindset is focused more on the clinical aspect as I've had so many years in it. I've played a hand in so many lives saved that it's addicting to want to continue, unfortunately I feel as if my dreams are dying due to the GPA issue and I'm in somewhat of a "funk". I've worked hard in my short time and the idea of a medical school workload is in no way daunting to me; in fact, I get an adrenaline rush thinking about it as it's precisely what I want to do! The undergrad portion is currently taking it's toll on me as I feel it's... monotonous. Again, please don't mistake this as selling anything short; I'm just expressing my current position in hopes of any practical or personal advice.
Any words of wisdom would be appreciated.
Thanks for reading this lengthy post!
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