2.8 sGPA and 3.0 cGPA no MCAT ouch I know:)

[lolasmommy]

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Above I have listed my stats so far. I intend to take the Aug. or early sept. MCAT and intend to apply in 2010 for entrance into the 2011 class. I have a few more EC's to add (if you dont want to glance at my profile it consists of research, volunteer work, teaching, tutoring, working in an ICU, and other fun filled stuff). I had taken 2 postbac. courses and got an 'A' in both (both 400 level and really fun) while working full time. I had calculated that if I take 92 credit hrs (2 more sems) of all sciences and get an 'A' in all of them my stats will change to 3.0 sGPA and 3.2 cGPA. My questions for you wonderful advisors of SDN😉 1) Is there any shot at med school (MD or DO) if I apply with the current 2.8 sGPA and 3.0 cGPA stats? 2) Do you all suggest going ahead with my post bacc plan?
Ive heard so many 'miracle' stories of people getting in with less than average stats. They have amazing ECs, a strong MCAT score, and they interview well. Do you suppose that I may fall into that category? Helpful words would be greatly appreciated😀

 

[camaras2480]

Above I have listed my stats so far. I intend to take the Aug. or early sept. MCAT and intend to apply in 2010 for entrance into the 2011 class. I have a few more EC's to add (if you dont want to glance at my profile it consists of research, volunteer work, teaching, tutoring, working in an ICU, and other fun filled stuff). I had taken 2 postbac. courses and got an 'A' in both (both 400 level and really fun) while working full time. I had calculated that if I take 92 credit hrs (2 more sems) of all sciences and get an 'A' in all of them my stats will change to 3.0 sGPA and 3.2 cGPA. My questions for you wonderful advisors of SDN😉 1) Is there any shot at med school (MD or DO) if I apply with the current 2.8 sGPA and 3.0 cGPA stats? 2) Do you all suggest going ahead with my post bacc plan?
Ive heard so many 'miracle' stories of people getting in with less than average stats. They have amazing ECs, a strong MCAT score, and they interview well. Do you suppose that I may fall into that category? Helpful words would be greatly appreciated😀

1. No
2. No, kind of.

You need to take enough postbac to pull your sGPA to 3.0. A lot of schools screen for 3.0 GPAs.

After that, you need to do an SMP. Your GPA really won't cut it, not even with like a 40+ MCAT. Why? Because Adcoms will see you as a lazy, smart kid (with a 3.0/40). Doing an SMP gives you a fresh slate, and a chance to prove yourself to the committee that you can handle the medical curriculum. Hold a 3.5+ minimum in the SMP, score a minimum 30 (preferably 32-34) on the MCAT, and you should be good to go. If any of this doesn't make sense, just say so and I'll post again.

 

[taylormade2006]

Is there an acronym thread on SDN? I just searched but came up empty.

I don't know what a lot of acronyms mean (SMP in this case).

 

[amine2086]

Is there an acronym thread on SDN? I just searched but came up empty.

I don't know what a lot of acronyms mean (SMP in this case).

SMP stands for Special Masters Programs. Here is a link to official thread that talks about SMP: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=346106

 

[camaras2480]

SMP stands for Special Masters Programs. Here is a link to official thread that talks about SMP: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=346106

Yup sorry, Special Masters Program.

 

[lolasmommy]

1. No
2. No, kind of.

You need to take enough postbac to pull your sGPA to 3.0. A lot of schools screen for 3.0 GPAs.

After that, you need to do an SMP. Your GPA really won't cut it, not even with like a 40+ MCAT. Why? Because Adcoms will see you as a lazy, smart kid (with a 3.0/40). Doing an SMP gives you a fresh slate, and a chance to prove yourself to the committee that you can handle the medical curriculum. Hold a 3.5+ minimum in the SMP, score a minimum 30 (preferably 32-34) on the MCAT, and you should be good to go. If any of this doesn't make sense, just say so and I'll post again.

NO its fine... I can comprehend text just fine... and though it is obvious that a postbac. is needed I will do just that. An SMP is really not an option in my case. Thank you for your advice.

 

[camaras2480]

NO its fine... I can comprehend text just fine... and though it is obvious that a postbac. is needed I will do just that. An SMP is really not an option in my case. Thank you for your advice.

Sure, no problem. And also, I should have mentioned DO - I don't think I did. Just so you know, I think your continued postbac will make you a great candidate for osteo. You also won't need as strong an MCAT. Of course, still, the higher the merrier 🙂

And I mean that numerically.

 

[MilkmanAl]

I think what camaras was getting at with the DO comment is AACOMAS replaces only considers your most recet grades for courses you've retaken. That practice allows you to boost your GPA rather handily if it's low due to a few D's or F's. C's are a little harder to fix but can still be remedied.

The most obvious isuue I see with your plan is the 92 hours/2 semesters thing. How is that even possible? 15 classes per semester? I don't think that's going to work out even if some college is insane enough to let you do it. Maybe I'm missing something, but that seems like more of a 2-3 year plan than a 2 semester plan.

Regardless of what your GPA turns out to be, you'll have to perfect every other part of your application. Anything less than a 35 or so on the MCAT will likely be insufficient for MD schools. It's doable, but it's going to be a stressful, discouragiung application cycle. Brace yourself.

 

[Stratego]

Be aware that there are some DO med schools that will accept applications with a GPA of 2.75, and many that consider a 3.0. Of course with such a low cGPA, you'd need a strong MCAT score to prove you understand the material.

 

[tonyswfla]

what do you think about just getting a traditional MS at a prestigious university?

 

[lolasmommy]

OOPs I meant 23 credit hours at approximately 13 credit hrs. one sem. and 12 credit hours the next sem. all science courses and their labs to push me over to the 3.0 threashhold. (92 came from quality points (AMCAS weight x semester hrs. = quality points) sorry about that

Depends on where you are applying to determine how schools screen.

You could do the 90 hours thing if that gets you above 3.0 and you get all As and a strong MCAT and get in. But the 3.0 cutoff thing works differently at different schools. UMiami for Fl. residents will screen people based on postbac/graduate work if they have lower ugrad numbers. Same with most Fl. schools in general except possibly FIU. But again it depends on how bad your situation is, what kind of upper trend, your MCAT score, what mitigating circumstances caused you to do poorly before, etc.

For the HBCs this may also be the case possibly. You would have to contact different schools to see how they view things. But 92 semester hours is more like 2-3 years worth of coursework. how do you get that much in 1 year's worth of coursework?

At minimum that would be 2 years of 3 semesters each per year of 15 credits or 18 credits in the fall and spring and 12 in the summer plus something like that again in the following year.

Also, not sure that an SMP is always necessary if you show a strong upper trend unless the schools you are trying to get into are more well known schools like BU or Gtown or something of that nature, esp. if you get a strong MCAT score. But depends where you are applying and how individual schools view things. Like the fl. example I gave is very different then how other states will view things in their schools. Or how schools like Albany and NYMC view things are different then say BU or Gtown or case or some other well known school.

Talk to the schools that are willing to talk to you and talk to admissions personell on here. that is my advice to you. and if your next question is how do you know which schools will talk to you and advise you, my answer is this. There is only one way to find out. call all the schools and see which ones will be willing to advise you.

 

[lolasmommy]

👍Thank You all for the great advice. It really help put things in perspective. Ill be postbac-ing for the next couple of sems and working on my application. Thank U ALL