need an advice to prepare...

[ddosike]

hi i graduated from ny state university (sb) with 2.89 gpa health science major.

Didnt take any pre-req courses yet. I joined u.s army national guard as drill soldier and will be gone for training between jan 2015 to aug 2015.

Reason why I joined the army was to get medical experience (since i'm joining as combat medic 68w) and get some tuition aid.

My plan is that once im back from training, i will apply and take post-bacc pre-med program and boost up my gpa and get more medical experience by working as MA part-time (ill get MA certification from army).
I know that I have to prepare for new mcat and more volunteer activities, but I just want to know if i will be on right track with my plan. I'm looking at nycpm school.

I need realistic advice since I'm already at age of 28, and dont want to waste any more time.

thank you

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[hughesn2]

Uhhhh, what can a "Health Science Major" really be if you didn't take Chemistry, Biology, Physics, or Orgo? Is it like Health Administration, so more of the business aspect of the medical field? Well realistically you have to take your pre-reqs before you take the MCAT because it would be a waste of money and time to study for the MCAT while taking your first semester of courses. If you haven't taken any of the 4 classes I listed above then that means you have about 24 to 28 credits of courses still needed just to fulfill the pre-req requirement to even apply. And last time I checked the post-baac programs you are talking about aren't going to accept someone without any science undergrad courses. Don't take my word for it, but many of the post-baac programs intended for first cycle med school rejects who want to boost their GPA are going to be finding applicants with science experience.

You mention the state of NY so here is a link from the AAMC that has a Pre-Med type Post-Bacc programs in the state: https://www.services.aamc.org/postbac/getprogs.cfm
Pre-Med type post-baac students are going to be taking Biochem, Physiology, and Microbiology courses. Which means they'll have pre-reqs of at least basic sciences. So you are going to have to get at least the basic science pre-reqs through a community college or 4yr university first. And if you do well enough in those I guess you could apply to a post-baac program. Like you said you are already 28 and taking into consideration that podiatry med school is 4yrs then add about 3yrs for residency. Realistically after you come back from training, get your pre-reqs, take the MCAT, apply, get accepted, start podiatry school, finish podiatry school, start residency, finish residency you could 37-38yrs old when you are legally allowed to practice medicine. At least one thing you have for you, I am guessing, is that the army paid for a good chunk of your undergrad tuition

 

[Asksport]

Uhhhh, what can a "Health Science Major" really be if you didn't take Chemistry, Biology, Physics, or Orgo?

You're assuming a "health science major" is a science major. This isn't always the case. For example, public health bachelors exist that don't require any of the subjects you mentioned.

Like you said you are already 28 and taking into consideration that podiatry med school is 4yrs then add about 3yrs for residency. Realistically after you come back from training, get your pre-reqs, take the MCAT, apply, get accepted, start podiatry school, finish podiatry school, start residency, finish residency you could 37-38yrs old when you are legally allowed to practice medicine.

I understand that one should be vigilant in taking on a 6 figure debt and making a 7 year investment; but, if podiatry is a field you are passionate about, I highly encourage you to pursue it.

And last time I checked the post-baac programs you are talking about aren't going to accept someone without any science undergrad courses. Don't take my word for it, but many of the post-baac programs intended for first cycle med school rejects who want to boost their GPA are going to be finding applicants with science experience.

Check again. Plenty of "career-changer" post bacc programs exist for those who haven't completed their pre-req classes. It is also possible to do an "informal" post bacc by taking your pre-requisite classes at your local community college.

ddosike, Doing well in the pre-reqs will boost your GPA and be of benefit in preparing for the MCAT. However, I want to note that your GPA currently is in NYCPM's matriculant range (sGPA: 2.6-4.0 / cGPA: 2.5-3.92). My advice is to take your pre-reqs (whether it be at a local CC or through a formal program), do well on the MCAT, and apply.

Good Luck!

 

[hughesn2]

Well Askport, for the first one if you read my next sentence I mentioned a degree that I assumed it was. And the next one I was just mentioning the time table because he did ask for realistic advice and understanding that you will be 36 to 38yrs old when you start is something to keep in the back of your head.

Your last sentence is exactly what I was getting at: Take the pre-reqs, take the MCAT, and apply. I was just mentioning that he needs to keep the time table in the back of his mind.

 

[ddosike]

Yes thx for the reply guys. I really do.
And to clarify my major "health science", my concentration was healthcare informatics, as long as we had 12+ natural sceince courses, we were able to get into the health science major program. I took anatomy and phys I,II, bio (no lab), geology, radiation in physics( 4credits but no lab). Thx again for the realistic and helpful advice!

 

[hughesn2]

Okay, you said "Didnt take any pre-req courses yet" so now you do have about 20 credits left to get into the pre-reqs. You could easily crack that out in the Fall semester of 2015 after your training, the next semester be part time to crack out one or two of those courses. You don't really need to have two semesters of being a full time student to knock that out. Take them at a community college and during the 2nd semester of these classes you begin to study for the MCAT. But one thing is with so little amount of natural science courses, how did you fare in those courses?

 

[ddosike]

Okay, you said "Didnt take any pre-req courses yet" so now you do have about 20 credits left to get into the pre-reqs. You could easily crack that out in the Fall semester of 2015 after your training, the next semester be part time to crack out one or two of those courses. You don't really need to have two semesters of being a full time student to knock that out. Take them at a community college and during the 2nd semester of these classes you begin to study for the MCAT. But one thing is with so little amount of natural science courses, how did you fare in those courses?

Do pod-school accept pre-req from community college? I heard some medical schools do not accept pre-req courses from community college but only four year college? correct me if im wrong.

 

[lear45]

Do pod-school accept pre-req from community college? I heard some medical schools do not accept pre-req courses from community college but only four year college? correct me if im wrong.

They do accept CC prereqs. I did my organic chemistry at CC. Several of my classmates also got some of their prereqs out of the way at CC.

 

[Asksport]

Do pod-school accept pre-req from community college? I heard some medical schools do not accept pre-req courses from community college but only four year college? correct me if im wrong.

This myth has become very pervasive on SDN. There may be select MD schools which question your motive for taking classes at a CC (depending on circumstance), but every medical school (MD/DO/DPM) will accept CC classes.

 

[Toadesque]

Any med school that writes off CC classes is a joke in my opinion. As someone who took classes at one and at a university (of california) I can safely say many of the classes I took at CC were even more challenging. Because many CC classes are 2+ hours long the professors can design very long and exhausting exams and they do not curve either so it was often more difficult to get a good grade at the CC. I remember when I took Physics at my uni you could get a B even if you got a 65 on all the exams but did all the HW assignments because of how generous the curve was.