1st Non Trad Semester Over -- playin' the numbers game...

[Engineer2MD]

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OK I'm kind of freaking out. I *may* end up with all B's this semester. Yes, this is a lame "what are my chances" thread, but please -- someone give me some confidence here.

Stats:
Under-grad GPA engineering: 3.82
Grad GPA engineering (masters): 4.0

3 years employment with extremely well-respected company in my field, wrote papers, went to conferences, etc.

Got married, moved across the country.

Returned to school. While working part time and trying to figure this all out, here's what I will probably end up with:

Biology 1: B 4 hours
Genetics: B 3 hours
Organic Chemistry 1 lecture (not lab yet): B 3 hours

I honestly didn't work as hard on school as I should've. I was arrogant and cocky and....... *sigh*

So how do you guys think this will play out? Am I going to have some explaining to do?

AHHHHHH! Back to studying.
Tracia

 

[Beast11]

OK I'm kind of freaking out. I *may* end up with all B's this semester. Yes, this is a lame "what are my chances" thread, but please -- someone give me some confidence here.

Stats:
Under-grad GPA engineering: 3.82
Grad GPA engineering (masters): 4.0

3 years employment with extremely well-respected company in my field, wrote papers, went to conferences, etc.

Got married, moved across the country.

Returned to school. While working part time and trying to figure this all out, here's what I will probably end up with:

Biology 1: B 4 hours
Genetics: B 3 hours
Organic Chemistry 1 lecture (not lab yet): B 3 hours

I honestly didn't work as hard on school as I should've. I was arrogant and cocky and....... *sigh*

So how do you guys think this will play out? Am I going to have some explaining to do?

AHHHHHH! Back to studying.
Tracia

You need to be careful how you quote your various GPAs. AMCAS calculates a BCPM grade point average (that is, only biology, chemistry, physics, and math-hence BCPM). This is for ALL classes (not just chem 1, phys 1, bio 1 and org)-both grad and undergrad. However, AMCAS is pretty narrow in their view-while many classes labelled "engineering" (even, in my case, a chemical engineering)-while being mathematically and scientifically rigorous-did not count in the BCPM.

Most engineers have to take chem 1 and phys 1 so you may be fine there. However, I would bet that all your grad classes are labelled engineering-that (coupled with the view that grad classes are easier) means that your extra grad degree won't help much (although it certainly has to help some!)

I would go over my transcript and redo a calculation of a GPA just based on the prefix of the classes (again-be hard on yourself- computer science is NOT BCPM, engineering 101 is NOT BCPM) and use those grades as a guide.

 

[Law2Doc]

OK I'm kind of freaking out. I *may* end up with all B's this semester. Yes, this is a lame "what are my chances" thread, but please -- someone give me some confidence here.

Stats:
Under-grad GPA engineering: 3.82
Grad GPA engineering (masters): 4.0

3 years employment with extremely well-respected company in my field, wrote papers, went to conferences, etc.

Got married, moved across the country.

Returned to school. While working part time and trying to figure this all out, here's what I will probably end up with:

Biology 1: B 4 hours
Genetics: B 3 hours
Organic Chemistry 1 lecture (not lab yet): B 3 hours

I honestly didn't work as hard on school as I should've. I was arrogant and cocky and....... *sigh*

So how do you guys think this will play out? Am I going to have some explaining to do?

AHHHHHH! Back to studying.
Tracia

Since you have a decent GPA in a science background, you are probably okay, but should really try harder to get A's in the remaining prereqs. The rule of thumb should be to try and get "mostly A's". Best that you hit a snag now instead of in med school, where arrogance/cockiness can lead to worse consequences than Bs.

 

[saylorsdad]

I think the mcat should be taken before you start thinking about what your chances are. If you score above the minimum requirements then you are in the game. If you score way above the minimum requirements around 30 then you are fine.

Are you thinking MD or DO? DO is generally more friendly toward non-traditional.

 

[thoffen]

Thankfully your stellar undergrad GPA will help you out a lot. For your remaining pre-reqs, go for As and get them (mostly) and you'll be absolutely fine.

You should decide MD/DO based on philosophy and experience right now. There's no reason to think you won't be competitive at MD schools.

 

[meddog]

I think the mcat should be taken before you start thinking about what your chances are. If you score above the minimum requirements then you are in the game. If you score way above the minimum requirements around 30 then you are fine.

Are you thinking MD or DO? DO is generally more friendly toward non-traditional.

I thought that DO schools were generally more friendly toward people who have worked in the healthcare industry and thus have hundreds of hours of clinical experience.

There are plenty of opportunities out there for non-trads at MD schools and some even have special relationships with post-bacc programs (which you may have already researched). Just get the A's, study A LOT for the MCAT and get some meaningful clinical experience. You will be fine. Good luck!

 

[Captain Fantastic]

As long as this semester can be chalked up to "lesson leared: work harder" you'll be fine. You obviously know how to make great grades (awesome engineering GPA, BTW). Just show the adcom you still have it.

You should think about how you'll respond if you're asked about them at an interview, but I wouldn't put a neon sign in my personal statement pointing out my first semester post-bacc grades. Chances are you won't have to explain anything.

If you turn things around and pull in A's from here on out your grades will not be the factor that keeps you out of medical school.

 

[njbmd]

OK I'm kind of freaking out. I *may* end up with all B's this semester. Yes, this is a lame "what are my chances" thread, but please -- someone give me some confidence here.

Stats:
Under-grad GPA engineering: 3.82
Grad GPA engineering (masters): 4.0

3 years employment with extremely well-respected company in my field, wrote papers, went to conferences, etc.

Got married, moved across the country.

Returned to school. While working part time and trying to figure this all out, here's what I will probably end up with:

Biology 1: B 4 hours
Genetics: B 3 hours
Organic Chemistry 1 lecture (not lab yet): B 3 hours

I honestly didn't work as hard on school as I should've. I was arrogant and cocky and....... *sigh*

So how do you guys think this will play out? Am I going to have some explaining to do?

AHHHHHH! Back to studying.
Tracia

Look at it this way, if you had earned all "Cs", you would be digging out of a hole. At this point, figure out how to not earn any grades in the future that are less than B+ and keep moving forward. Right now, you need to figure out how NOT to have another semester like the one above or you will be an engineer who took some pre-med courses and not a physician. Rather than worrying about your chances, your bigger problem is how you are going to fix your study habits because they are not working.