Stuck and Needing Advice

[Trytogetby]

I graduated 3 years ago, but hit a road bump in life and did not immediately jump into med school. I have my BS in Biology. I am currently studying for the MCAT and am a little intimidated by all the stuff I seem to have forgotten! I haven't done research since undergrad, so I'm also having a tough time finding jobs, despite my degree. I want to take the MCAT in sept but not sure if ill be prepared enough. Debating whether to push it back to January, but I feel like I've wasted so much time already...I'm 26. What should I do to start giving myself a fighting chance?

Volunteer? Try for a Master's first? I just feel very overwhelmed and out of academia. Any advice, study tips, or even anecdotes of similarly difficult obstacles which have been overcome would be appreciated. Glad to have found this website.

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[NavyDoc23]

If you don't think you're ready for the MCAT do not take it. Taking it in September is kind of useless in my opinion anyways - especially if you were to apply this cycle. I think it would definitely be to your benefit that you push it back to January or even later, like April. Take practice tests to make sure you're scoring in the 30 range. However, you need to do many more things to add to your app for med schools to even think about looking at you. You need some clinical volunteering and shadowing. Some recent research would also be to your benefit. Have you been employed in any science or medically related field since you graduated? It would be beneficial for you to find a job now that involves some research - or at least something related to science/healthcare.
If you are having a difficult time studying MCAT material, or just plain getting back into the whole studying mindset, you may want to take a Kaplan or some other MCAT course. It will familiarize you with being in a lecture again. You have to decide what's best for you though. It almost sounds like this is kind of spur of the moment. You may have to ask yourself why you want to go into medicine in the first place. Make sure it's the right reasons, too, not just because the money is good and so on. Medicine will eat you alive if you are not fully devoted to it and do not love it.

 

[talinnlove]

Head over to the non-trad forum, http://forums.studentdoctor.net/forumdisplay.php?f=110. They have some pretty inspirational stories and good advice for people in your situation.

I think the consensus is that SMPs are a last resort for students with a cGPA or sGPA below 3.00, especially because the programs can cost about $45k.

Aside from the MCAT, focus on clinical volunteering, shadowing, and tracking down letters of recommendation (your life will be a lot easier if you're still in touch with undergraduate professors, but some schools make exceptions to their LOR rules if you graduated several years ago). Read the requirements for the schools you're interested in and work on getting those filled, since some of them can be pretty specific in regards to required coursework, minimum required shadowing hours, and LORs.

Hope that helps! Good luck

 

[Goro]

Medicine is a calling, so start volunteering.

I graduated 3 years ago, but hit a road bump in life and did not immediately jump into med school. I have my BS in Biology. I am currently studying for the MCAT and am a little intimidated by all the stuff I seem to have forgotten! I haven't done research since undergrad, so I'm also having a tough time finding jobs, despite my degree. I want to take the MCAT in sept but not sure if ill be prepared enough. Debating whether to push it back to January, but I feel like I've wasted so much time already...I'm 26. What should I do to start giving myself a fighting chance?

Volunteer? Try for a Master's first? I just feel very overwhelmed and out of academia. Any advice, study tips, or even anecdotes of similarly difficult obstacles which have been overcome would be appreciated. Glad to have found this website.

 

[Trytogetby]

thank you for your input, really helps

 

[TriagePreMed]

You'll be okay. I suggest volunteering in a lab and maybe that becomes a job. It happened to me. Don't take the mcat unless prepared. I know how it is to feel old. I'm almost 30, but we still have a chance at our dream. Some people die without even a chance.