2.7 GPA, 518 MCAT FL, etc

[deleted922952]

I wanted to see what some opinions were on my situation. (tl;dr at bottom)

So I'm trying to go to med school. Regardless of my grades, this is something that I'm extremely motivated to do, so giving up's not an option. Anyway, med school was on the table when I started ugrad, but not really something I was striving for. (Mostly I was doing it to please the parents and all that jazz). Long story short, I did all the pre reqs except Phys II. Understood the material but no motivation yielded no effort. That mixed with personal issues, a family legal battle, and some existential crisis I had led to two whole years worth of piss poor grades. (I'm talking 1.8 and 2.0 semesters) Dropped pre-med only on my last semester of school (too late :/) Finished my ugrad with a 2.720; didn't check my sGPA, but yes, sciences were mediocre with a couple Fs in there I had to retake. My major and minor saved my ***.

I graduated then spent the summer and fall only working and travelled a bit to find myself I guess??? And ended up realising that I adore biology and learning about it and missed it. I warmed up to the idea of med school for real this time. Jumped on an informal post bacc opportunity for cheap and this past spring, I took Human Anatomy and Physiology I, Cell Bio, Genetics, and Biochemistry all together with their associated labs. Got a 4.0 on everything and for the summer, I'm taking Microbio with APII and their labs which I won't settle for anything less than a 4.0. I took my first MCAT practice test, full length and got a 518, which I'm still actively studying for so hopefully, I can get a few more points and break 520 by August, when I'm taking the real thing. (Gonna take another FL mid June). By the end of September, I want to start applying to schools, but idk which ones I should strive for. International schools are an option if all else fails, but ONLY in Europe because I have family scattered there that I can live with. I do still want to take immunology, virology, pathology at some point, just because it's interesting. At some point, I'll need to take phys II, so assuming I get 4.0 in those classes (again, won't settle for less), my gpa could end up at 3.2 by Jan 2019.

TL;DR --> Basically: by the end of September, I will have 3.0 most likely (2.72 ugrad + 4.0 for 24 credits post bacc, biochem was a retake), "520+" MCAT (optimistic outlook based on my current trend), about a semester of volunteering at a women's health wing at a hospital from ugrad, 3 months volunteering post graduation, no clinical due to my job taking up most of my time, but I was president of two different clubs in college and leader of a planning committee for an annual event while working throughout school, so I think I'm good on ECs.

I want to apply for a few MD schools in the fall.
Am I jumping the gun? Probably, but I don't feel like I'm out just yet if that makes any sense. Clinical is bad, but it's not like I have no experience in a hospital setting. It's just unbalanced. I have no real upward trend until Spring 2018, but I can handle difficult course loads in high amounts while working, etc. I probably should have held off on going to university for a year until I was ready, but that would have brought dishonour upon generations of generations of my family members, so that hadn't been an option, and unfortunately, I just did not do well.

So my question is, what schools do you think might not die laughing and toss my application out the minute they see it? My preference is east coast and more southern, but I'm not against adapting to a new environment.

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[candbgirl]

Don’t apply this year. Fall is too late especially with your GPA. You need to apply early not late. What is your sGPA? You realize that every course you have ever taken is counted in the GPAs, even the Fs. How are your ECs. You don’t mention them at all. You really only want to apply to med school one time with the best possible application possible so take your time and do it right. Check out the MSAR fo research schools. But you are searching without a MCAT so you really can’t develop a good list until you have that score.

 

[Faha]

It would not be a good idea to apply this fall. Keep taking and doing well in courses until May 2019 and then apply. If your cGPA and sGPA are above 3.2 and your MCAT is at least 515 then you have a 50% chance for a MD acceptance. The odds could be higher or lower depending on your state of residence which is ??? . You should also apply broadly to DO schools. You also need 50 hours of physician shadowing (including primary care) and 200+ hours of clinical volunteering with patient contact.

 

[Walter Raleigh]

Wait till next cycle. With a 520+ and 3.2+ with very strong upward trend, you've got a solid shot at the MD schools that reward reinvention. Good luck.

 

[trobinsonmd]

If you absolutely must apply this year, don't apply to a few schools... you probably won't get any IIs... either apply to at least 30, or don't apply this year and wait for next year and apply to 30 or 40. You're probably better off applying to the lower tier private schools (think Drexel, USF, Meharry) and you will be bound to get some II's. Try to use your past experiences and misfortunes and skew the situation in your favor in your personal statement by explaining your poor grades and how you have made a turn around. Most of the lower tier med schools will not throw away your app until reading your personal statement, so it's very important you put together a good one... show it to a lot of people and ask them for harsh crticism

 

[Walter Raleigh]

3.0 is often the magic number for your GPA not to get autoscreened. Get above that and you have a fighting chance, especially if you get that 520+ MCAT you're gunning for. With a 518 on your first full-length, it's definitely a realistic goal! Use official AAMC practice materials for gauging your performance - third party practice tests are just not as good as the real deal.