I just calculated my Science GPA and it comes to about a 2.85. I have Mostly's B's and C's in my science classes with a couple of A's in physics and Intro bio. On the other hand, my overall GPA is close to a 3.7 but I am scared that this is not enough for medical school. I plan on taking the new MCAT in May, but will I still get rejected right off the bat because of my low science GPA? How should I go about raising this sGPA and until when do MCAT schools see your GPA? If I take courses in Fall 2015 will that still count towards my GPA? Any and all advice is appreciated..
That would probably get you auto-rejected at most MD schools. I mean, think about it: the first two years of medical school are almost nothing but science. If you were looking at applicants to accept, would you choose one that had not yet demonstrated an ability to do well in science courses? That's not to say that you for sure would not get into an MD program, because you might. With a good MCAT score (especially the science portions), you could probably still get into a DO school. But it's a huge risk.
You can take a couple of practice MCATs and see where you stand roughly, but I doubt you'll be able to do very well right now, given your science history and the fact that you're giving yourself basically zero time specifically dedicated to MCAT study. Most guys that do really well take an entire summer to study for it.
Unfortunately, without having taken the MCAT, I cannot recommend to you whether to go the DO route or MD route. Honestly, to avoid wasting your time, I would not retake any of your previous coursework yet. Just plan a bunch of sciences for the Fall and Spring (but not too many that it's too challenging for you), and make straight-A's. You could also go ahead and take the MCAT this summer, perhaps in August, and just not apply until next year. That way you would both get the benefit of an entire 3-month dedicated study period, and the ability to apply very early in the process. I would recommend the early August MCAT, prior to your fall classes starting.
With taking the MCAT this summer, you can know what your options are, and better plan out your next year. If you do poorly, you can aim for a DO program and retake all of your C/D/F coursework. If you do excellent, you can continue pressing on with advanced sciences coursework to raise your science GPA, and show an upward trend for MD schools.
Don't worry about losing the year, it's becoming really popular to take a "gap year" prior to medical school anyway.
