* *2009-2010 "What Are My Chances/Where Should I Apply/What Should I Do" * *

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This is a "What should I do?" post---

Currently:
gpa - 3.13
mcat - 26o (took it again today)
lor - trying to get one from a DO; i have the entire semester to find one, shadow, & get a lor.

I'm applying to a few SMPs, but there is obviously a decent chance that I won't get in. The question is-- should I apply as soon as the application is available OR should I retake a few classes over the summer and apply late summer?

or-- am I able to apply as soon as the application is available and update my grades as the summer progresses? does the app. committee get like an update that i boosted my grades?
 
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Hi There,

I am debating whether or not I should drop my current Microbiology class. I have already taken it and got a C but now I am feeling the crunch because I know I have to smoke my MCAT and managing that as well as an A in Micro seems like a stretch. That as well as the fact that retaking Micro will only improve my GPA by .02 (because I am a post-bacc and have a lot of credits as is) So, what should I do? Try and make Micro and MCAT studying work? Push my MCAT date back (which means I won't have my scores for June) Drop Micro and focus mainly on my MCAT? Then either accept the C or retake it after my MCAT?

STATS:

Science GPA: 3.09, Cum GPA: 3.32. By the time I apply I will have shadowed about 5 doctors and am working on racking up about 250 hrs of clinical experience. I also worked as a Radiology Lab technician. I am a non-traditional student with a previous Bachelors in Political Science and History and am a few classes shy from my second bachelors in Biomedical Science.

Now, I know my GPA is not hot whatsoever and I am wondering what matters most. I have a *bunch* of W's on my transcript and was wondering if I really should rack up another one by dropping Micro but I know, without an impressive MCAT, I really won't have a competative chance.

Advice?
 
Rainingstairs said:
Hi There,

I am debating whether or not I should drop my current Microbiology class. I have already taken it and got a C but now I am feeling the crunch because I know I have to smoke my MCAT and managing that as well as an A in Micro seems like a stretch. That as well as the fact that retaking Micro will only improve my GPA by .02 (because I am a post-bacc and have a lot of credits as is) So, what should I do? Try and make Micro and MCAT studying work? Push my MCAT date back (which means I won't have my scores for June) Drop Micro and focus mainly on my MCAT? Then either accept the C or retake it after my MCAT?

STATS:

Science GPA: 3.09, Cum GPA: 3.32. By the time I apply I will have shadowed about 5 doctors and am working on racking up about 250 hrs of clinical experience. I also worked as a Radiology Lab technician. I am a non-traditional student with a previous Bachelors in Political Science and History and am a few classes shy from my second bachelors in Biomedical Science.

Now, I know my GPA is not hot whatsoever and I am wondering what matters most. I have a *bunch* of W's on my transcript and was wondering if I really should rack up another one by dropping Micro but I know, without an impressive MCAT, I really won't have a competative chance.

Advice?
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I wouldn't drop Micro. If you've already taken it an got a C and now you drop it again it'll seem as though you couldn't handle it even on the second round. I know it's important to do well on the MCAT, but it's also important to show that you can handle a difficult load. Even if you drop now it'll show up as a W and that might draw some questions. Micro won't hold a candle to medical school so you'll want to show them you can handle it.
 
Hello, I am a 4th year biology major and have already taken all of my pre-med class requirements besides the MCAT. I would greatly appreciate any advice on what I need to do to be a strong applicant? Specifically what I need to aim for on my MCAT to compensate for my low grades.
My current GPA is a 3.22 and I have not taken my MCAT, but I will in June.
-my science GPA is a 2.9
-I am currently doing research with an emergency room hospital and am listed as a co-author in medical journal publication.
-I have been shadowing a doctor once a month for the past year.
-I volunteer at a hospice twice a month, and tutor children in a homeless shelter once a month.
-I have a 100 hours of volunteer work in the pediatric ER.

If you think I should wait and apply later, how many extra semesters should I take to increase my acceptance chances? I am willing to do whatever it takes!
Thanks in advance for your time and advice. Cheers!!
 
I am a sophomore, with an improvement in grades, but freshman year I messed up with a F (replaced with B+ in calc), a C and C+ (Chem 1 and 2), and a C+ (Microecon). I currently have a 3.3 gpa, and I have a ways to go in undergrad, but am I in horrible shape? I want to be a DO bad and have shadowed an oncologist DO, volunteered, and been involved in clubs.
 
At least a 25-26 on the MCAT and you're good.

Check out my profile
 
This is hard for me to post, but I need real advice from other DO hopefuls.

I am graduating with a psychology degree in May. However, when I finish summer school in July, my predicted cGPA will be around a 3.7 and my predicted sGPA will be around a 3.3. I will be taking one or two classes in the fall, and if I receive A's in those, my sGPA will bump up to a 3.44. I have only taken Zoology, Microbiology, G. Chem 1 & 2, and am in Organic I and Physics I now. I plan to take Organic II and Physics II over the summer, and I will take Biology I and Biochemistry in the fall (they are the only two classes I will be taking.) Obviously, I fully committed to medical school a little later in my undergraduate career. Also, I will have retaken three science classes by the time I am finished with my undergraduate career this summer. I think the worst was when I received a D in Gen. Chem. I (my first pre-req) my sophomore year and retook it the next semester for a C. Ugh. But I have grown up a lot since then and am on track again and receiving A's in my classes.

This summer, I participated in a physician shadowing program where I received about 120 hours of shadowing in over ten specialties. I have several ECs that I have participated in for 2+ years (including being a research assistant in a forensic psychology laboratory), and I was president of an honors society that had an extensive volunteer focus for a year. However, I do not have any clinical experience unless physician shadowing counts in that area.

I know I can get some good letters, and I've already started studying for the MCAT I will be taking sometime August-October.

I guess my main questions concern if I will have a good shot at DO schools if I get a 25+ on my MCAT and if anyone has any suggestions with what I should do with this time off after I get done with summer school. Should I perhaps stick with my current plan and just try to find a health-care related job to go with that? Apply for a nearby SMP? Perhaps just keep going and try to improve undergrad cGPA and sGPA? I know that a lot of it will just depend on me and what I feel comfortable with, but I would like to know what others think. Thanks in advance!
 
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You have nothing to worry about in terms of GPA. Your cumulative GPA is WAY above average and your science GPA is around the average. So, your GPA definitely will not hold you back. Do well on the MCAT 27+ and you should have no problem. I believe shadowing does count as clinical experience and is defintely something you should list on your app. Were any of those docs DOs? I would try to get a letter from one if you can. In the meantime, keep doing well in school, do well on your MCAT, and try to gain some more clinical exposure. Apply early and you will be fine.
 
RySerr21 said:
You have nothing to worry about in terms of GPA. Your cumulative GPA is WAY above average and your science GPA is around the average. So, your GPA definitely will not hold you back. Do well on the MCAT 27+ and you should have no problem. I believe shadowing does count as clinical experience and is defintely something you should list on your app. Were any of those docs DOs? I would try to get a letter from one if you can. In the meantime, keep doing well in school, do well on your MCAT, and try to gain some more clinical exposure. Apply early and you will be fine.
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I know it would be ideal to apply right when AACOMAS opens up, but I am not taking the MCAT until fall. Should I just go ahead and complete my applications to the best of my abilities right when it opens up and just submit my MCAT when it is complete? Would having my scores received around Sep.-Oct. reduce my chances significantly or just a little at DO schools?
 
GPA: 2.6
MCAT: 31
Age: 21

I know I have a low GPA, but do you guys think my MCAT score can make up for it? I also have a ridiculous amount of extracurricular activities, lots of volunteer and work experience in health care. Any advice would be great.

Thanks.
 
robynrich said:
I know it would be ideal to apply right when AACOMAS opens up, but I am not taking the MCAT until fall. Should I just go ahead and complete my applications to the best of my abilities right when it opens up and just submit my MCAT when it is complete? Would having my scores received around Sep.-Oct. reduce my chances significantly or just a little at DO schools?
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Having your primary complete (that includes MCAT) in sept-oct is definitely considered late. I know that a lot of DO schools take apps into january and february (maybe later?) so its not going to ruin you, but you are definitey giving up the advantage of applying early. That being said, DEFINITELY do not wait until sept/oct to submit your primary for verification. Complete your app to the best of your ability (basically evertyhing except your MCAT score) and then submit it for verification. You can do this in the summer, then youll be in line for veriifcation with rest of the apps. Last year, AACOMAS was insanely slow at processing applications. For the people that submitted the first day it took 4+ weeks (so imagine what it would be like if you submitted significantly later). If you submit early, you will be verified by the time your MCAT scores come around, and when they do your app will automatically be sent out to the schools and you wont have to wait. That way you can get your secondary apps shortly after and crank those out ASAP.

orderman said:
GPA: 2.6
MCAT: 31
Age: 21

I know I have a low GPA, but do you guys think my MCAT score can make up for it? I also have a ridiculous amount of extracurricular activities, lots of volunteer and work experience in health care. Any advice would be great.

Thanks.
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Many schools have a GPA cut off at the 2.7-3.0 range. You are way below that, so before you apply to any school i would make sure they dont have a GPA cut off where you will be automatically rejected. Even for schools that don't have a cut off, a 2.6 is reallly low and is probably not going to cut it. Your MCAT is solid, and your app would REALLY benefit from taking a year to do an SMP to boost up that GPA. If you do that, you are a very solid applicant.
 
Thanks for the reply! I got into a fast track 6 year MD program out of high school, which i just wasn't ready for. It killed my GPA and so I withdrew from the program. I have shadowed doctors and volunteered in hospitals since middle school. Also, I work in a pharmacy and do a lot of community service with diabetics, immunization programs, free health clinics, and working with elementary school students to prevent drug/alcohol/Rx abuse. My GPA isn't great, but I could probably retake the MCAT and score higher. My diagnostic exams have come to 33-35. I'm hoping to score that in March. I really would prefer not to do a SMP program after graduation, so i'm just trying to get an idea of my chances w/o one.
 
orderman said:
Thanks for the reply! I got into a fast track 6 year MD program out of high school, which i just wasn't ready for. It killed my GPA and so I withdrew from the program. I have shadowed doctors and volunteered in hospitals since middle school. Also, I work in a pharmacy and do a lot of community service with diabetics, immunization programs, free health clinics, and working with elementary school students to prevent drug/alcohol/Rx abuse. My GPA isn't great, but I could probably retake the MCAT and score higher. My diagnostic exams have come to 33-35. I'm hoping to score that in March. I really would prefer not to do a SMP program after graduation, so i'm just trying to get an idea of my chances w/o one.
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Your ECs and work experience is great, but I think you have the wrong approach to improving your application. Your MCAT does not need imporvement.

GPA: 2.6, MCAT 31

GPA: 2.6, MCAT 34

Put yourself in the adcoms position. Does that 3 point increase really matter? No. You still have a 2.6 GPA and your still a long ways away from the GPA cutoff. A 31 is an MCAT score that does not need improvement. Your GPA, on the other hand, needs some major improvement. You need to fix the weakness in your app, you dont need to improve your strengths. It wont matter how high your MCAT is if your GPA doesnt make the cut off. I'm serious. Ask around these boards and you will find people who were automatically rejected because they had a 2.98 GPA and the cutoff was 3.0.

If I were an adcom and I see your app with a 2.6/31...and I saw that you retook the MCAT but showed no attempt at improving the GPA....i'd be thinking 😕😕😕 This applicant is totally backwards.

You can go ahead and apply with your app as is, but i'd honestly save the 200 bucks for the MCAT retake and ONLY apply to schools that you know DO NOT have a cut off. If they have a cut off, and you apply anyway, they'll laugh as they take your check straight to the bank and send you that rejection email once it has cleared.
 
My overall GPA is 3.29, sGPA 3.10, 33 MCAT. I am a non-traditional student, started and ran my own business for six years before attending college. I spent two summer doing research, one was microbiology research at my home school, and the other was an immunology summer research position at the Mayo Graduate School and I have applied to research programs for this summer. I have a D.O. LOR, with about 70 hours of shadowing, MD and DO combined. My clinical volunteering outside of shadowing is limited but I am trying to find opportunities to do so this spring and summer. KY resident, and my top list of schools at this point includes Pikeville, LMU-DCOM, PCOM, Nova, and VCOM and LECOM-Erie. What are my chances for admission next year?
 
Eustace said:
My overall GPA is 3.29, sGPA 3.10, 33 MCAT. I am a non-traditional student, started and ran my own business for six years before attending college. I spent two summer doing research, one was microbiology research at my home school, and the other was an immunology summer research position at the Mayo Graduate School and I have applied to research programs for this summer. I have a D.O. LOR, with about 70 hours of shadowing, MD and DO combined. My clinical volunteering outside of shadowing is limited but I am trying to find opportunities to do so this spring and summer. KY resident, and my top list of schools at this point includes Pikeville, LMU-DCOM, PCOM, Nova, and VCOM and LECOM-Erie. What are my chances for admission next year?
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Your GPA is below average (but not considerably), but the rest of your app looks great. Excellent MCAT score, impressive research position(s), interesting background, DO letter, etc. Try to find some more clinical opporutnities to get invovled with this spring/summer and be sure to include them on your app (even if you just recently started them and havent done too much or maybe are even waiting to start volunteering, just so that the schools knokw what it is you'll be doing). Apply early and i think you will have a lot of success next cycle. 👍
 
orderman said:
Thanks for the reply! I got into a fast track 6 year MD program out of high school, which i just wasn't ready for. It killed my GPA and so I withdrew from the program. I have shadowed doctors and volunteered in hospitals since middle school. Also, I work in a pharmacy and do a lot of community service with diabetics, immunization programs, free health clinics, and working with elementary school students to prevent drug/alcohol/Rx abuse. My GPA isn't great, but I could probably retake the MCAT and score higher. My diagnostic exams have come to 33-35. I'm hoping to score that in March. I really would prefer not to do a SMP program after graduation, so i'm just trying to get an idea of my chances w/o one.
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Some school automatically screen you out if your GPA isn't at least a 2.75. Take some more classes or retake classes you did poorly in. AACOMAS will replace the grade when averaging your GPA. Did you earn less than a C in any pre-reqs? If so, then you have to retake those anyway.
 
orderman said:
Thanks for the reply! I got into a fast track 6 year MD program out of high school, which i just wasn't ready for. It killed my GPA and so I withdrew from the program. I have shadowed doctors and volunteered in hospitals since middle school. Also, I work in a pharmacy and do a lot of community service with diabetics, immunization programs, free health clinics, and working with elementary school students to prevent drug/alcohol/Rx abuse. My GPA isn't great, but I could probably retake the MCAT and score higher. My diagnostic exams have come to 33-35. I'm hoping to score that in March. I really would prefer not to do a SMP program after graduation, so i'm just trying to get an idea of my chances w/o one.
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You have a 2.6. A 45 MCAT won't make up for that.
 
JayL86 said:
Hello, I am a 4th year biology major and have already taken all of my pre-med class requirements besides the MCAT. I would greatly appreciate any advice on what I need to do to be a strong applicant? Specifically what I need to aim for on my MCAT to compensate for my low grades.
My current GPA is a 3.22 and I have not taken my MCAT, but I will in June.
-my science GPA is a 2.9
-I am currently doing research with an emergency room hospital and am listed as a co-author in medical journal publication.
-I have been shadowing a doctor once a month for the past year.
-I volunteer at a hospice twice a month, and tutor children in a homeless shelter once a month.
-I have a 100 hours of volunteer work in the pediatric ER.

If you think I should wait and apply later, how many extra semesters should I take to increase my acceptance chances? I am willing to do whatever it takes!
Thanks in advance for your time and advice. Cheers!!
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It sounds like you have quite an impressive application ASIDE from the GPA. A GPA less than 3.0 will set back your chances since there are schools that screen and automatically reject applicants with gpas lower than that; you would need to do some research and find which schools do that. Your other option is to improve your GPA by taking upper level courses (if you wish) and attempting to reach that 3.0 cutoff, if possible.

Was the GPA the reason you didn't try taking the MCAT and applying last year? Either way, since your GPA is definitely below average, you'll need an above average MCAT score, meaning 27+ for sure. Even with a high MCAT score, however, you'll still need to reach a 3.0 if you want more doors to open for you.

Also, were you able to, or will you, obtain a DO letter?

Krupat said:
I am a sophomore, with an improvement in grades, but freshman year I messed up with a F (replaced with B+ in calc), a C and C+ (Chem 1 and 2), and a C+ (Microecon). I currently have a 3.3 gpa, and I have a ways to go in undergrad, but am I in horrible shape? I want to be a DO bad and have shadowed an oncologist DO, volunteered, and been involved in clubs.
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It is good that you are concerned with this early on and that you are getting involved; that will help you in the long run. A LOT of people mess up early on in their undergrad careers and manage to go to medical school; I would not say you are in "horrible" shape. Your best bet is to improve your grades from now on and show an upward trend; schools love to see that and will respect it. You should also consider retaking any Cs you received in prereq classes, but if you do end up having an upward trend, that will probably not be necessary. Good luck!
 
I am just trying to get a feeling for some of you folks who were able to get interviews / acceptances with lower than average unbalanced verbal scores...

I am just looking at worst case scenario for myself, say I score OK on the sciences (10 on each), but a low 6 or 7 on the verbal.... is this basically crucifixion?

I understand that what most people will say is STRICKLY based on opinions, but I just wanna get what people's consensus are about this very topic.

The rest of my application is "OK", post-bacc performance with 46 credits (post-bacc GPA between 3.8-4.0, depending on how well I perform on my current semester)..... Overall GPA 3.2X, science GPA approx 3.7+

Thanks
 
I believe the cutoff for many schools is 7. Although I know there are some schools that will allow a score of 6 as long as the rest of your application is in order. There are more exceptions made if English is not your first language.
 
english isn't first language... more like 4th language lol

but I don't think this is my big problem, I think when I start reading every passage, i am soo scared of doing bad, and so scared of running out of time, that it makes me panic and not read properly.... dunno how to overcome this problem
 
Here a 10/10/4 for a total of 24M. 4 is on verbal because of English being my second language and it was the first time I took MCAT.
Any DO school would be fine as long as they accept Canadians.
I'm from Canada, GPA: 3.75 science GPA: 3.87 graduated from Honours cell biology.
Any chance for me or a retake is a MUST???
 
You can get a better score than that. Study hard and tak it again even if you boost your verbal by3-4pts you drastically improve you app.
 
theres no way in hell you'll get in with a 4. You're going to need to bump that sucker up.

I got a 7 on verbal => multiple acceptances. My app was very strong outside the MCAT to balance it out though. Do your best and go from there, thats all you can really do 🙂
 
Peter59 said:
Here a 10/10/4 for a total of 24M. 4 is on verbal because of English being my second language and it was the first time I took MCAT.
Any DO school would be fine as long as they accept Canadians.
I'm from Canada, GPA: 3.75 science GPA: 3.87 graduated from Honours cell biology.
Any chance for me or a retake is a MUST???
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i agree with previous posters. i've seen lots of 7's and even some 6's get acceptances. I've never seen a 4.

If youre having trouble with Verbal - buy the examkrackers or Kaplan verbal MCAT books. They have TONS of passages. Take all of them under timed conditions. just by doing those and going through your answers I'll bet you can get it up to a 7 at least. Then you should have no problem getting acceptances.
 
Nasem said:
I am just looking at worst case scenario for myself, say I score OK on the sciences (10 on each), but a low 6 or 7 on the verbal.... is this basically crucifixion?
Thanks
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I dont think so. I've seen people on MDApps and SDN with similar numbers... 10,10,6 / 9, 10, 7 / etc etc

So whats the absolute minimum you should try to get?? (for D.O.) ... I'd say shoot for a 7. It is possible to get accepted with a 6 but many schools will screen you out before interviews. SO your best chance is with a 7 or 8 as your low for any section
 
Peter59 said:
Here a 10/10/4 for a total of 24M. 4 is on verbal because of English being my second language and it was the first time I took MCAT.
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A 4 on Verbal in the 2008 MCAT puts you in the 9.6 percentile. That means that more than 90% of test takers beat you on verbal as I'm sure you already know. I don't see any way you would ever get in-- even as an ESL student. Yet, your other scores are quite acceptable. You've got to work on Verbal-- spend nearly all your time at it!!!!! The lowest I've personally seen anyone get in with in any category is a 6.
 
Hello ladies and gentlemen!

I have finally decided to go into medical field and very excited about it. I currently hold undergrad in computers and work for a bank. During my undergrad I took a lot of science courses. Starting this summer I'll be taking rest of pre-reqs required to apply for DO program. My undergrad GPA was 3.0. I went to college fulltime and worked like 80 hours a week. So didn't do too well.

I am very serious about D.O. program and really considering LECOM-B since it's just 50 miles away from where I live. I am NOT planning on working(at all) during D.O. Pretty much I'll finish up all pre-req requirements and MCAT this year(2009) and apply for 2010 program.

What are my chances of getting into LECOM-B's DO program? Don't have healthcare related work experience but have intermediate knowledge of biological and chemical sciences. I am very much interested in D.O. program. Any ideas, tips, suggestions and feedback would be appreciated.
Thanks
 
tabishis said:
Hello ladies and gentlemen!

I have finally decided to go into medical field and very excited about it. I currently hold undergrad in computers and work for a bank. During my undergrad I took a lot of science courses. Starting this summer I'll be taking rest of pre-reqs required to apply for DO program. My undergrad GPA was 3.0. I went to college fulltime and worked like 80 hours a week. So didn't do too well.

I am very serious about D.O. program and really considering LECOM-B since it's just 50 miles away from where I live. I am NOT planning on working(at all) during D.O. Pretty much I'll finish up all pre-req requirements and MCAT this year(2009) and apply for 2010 program.

What are my chances of getting into LECOM-B's DO program? Don't have healthcare related work experience but have intermediate knowledge of biological and chemical sciences. I am very much interested in D.O. program. Any ideas, tips, suggestions and feedback would be appreciated.
Thanks
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So impossible to tell without an MCAT score, exact gpa, ECs, LORs ... etc. If you want to do this, there are probably quite a few steps you need to take.
-MCAT (you're already on this one)
-finishing up the pre-med with HIGH grades (a 3.0 isn't going to cut it, DO average cgpa is around 3.5)
-get some volunteering, physician shadowing, etc under your belt
-Retake any science classes you scored lower than a C- in.
-make some solid relationships with your new professors to get those letters of rec you'll need.
-get back to us when you have more details.
Good luck!!! 👍
 
besides the obvious (good grades and MCAT) i would say definately put some extra time on these two:

-get some volunteering, physician shadowing, etc under your belt
-make some solid relationships with your new professors to get those letters of rec you'll need.

DO admissions are all about having some extra clincal exposure. and also youll need a DO letter of recommendation... so start shadowing a couple now. make sure to study well for the MCAT (2-m3 onths at least). doing well on the MCAT will help outweight your lower GPA

[also, 80 hours a week and full time classes is the dumbest thing iver ever heard, imo]
 
linkDO said:
besides the obvious (good grades and MCAT) i would say definately put some extra time on these two:

-get some volunteering, physician shadowing, etc under your belt
-make some solid relationships with your new professors to get those letters of rec you'll need.

DO admissions are all about having some extra clincal exposure. and also youll need a DO letter of recommendation... so start shadowing a couple now. make sure to study well for the MCAT (2-m3 onths at least). doing well on the MCAT will help outweight your lower GPA

[also, 80 hours a week and full time classes is the dumbest thing iver ever heard, imo]
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Sheesh I can't even handle 20hrs a week with a full load.😱
 
Thanks, everyone! As I mentioned earlier that my undergrad CGPA is 3.0. I am pretty sure that I'll get straight A's in all pre-req courses(Sciences) I am taking now. That should definitely bring the CGPA up(Undergrad+prereqs grade). MCAT- I'm aiming for 35 but I'll probably score high 20's on it.

Yes! I did work 80 hours a week(Day & Night) and went to college fulltime. Did it for 4 years. I never got good sleep all those years. I know it's unbelieveable but I had not choice. I have been independent since I turned 17. Oh well!

I can easily get three letter of recommendations from a D.O., M.D. and my Biology professor. That shouldn't be an issue. Healthcare experience: Nada! Zip! Zilch. I am currently employed at a bank fulltime and trying to get some volunteer job at a hospital over the weekend.

Hopefully! It'll all work out. Once again, I am ready to begin my new career and very excited about it. 🙂
 
tabishis said:
Thanks, everyone! As I mentioned earlier that my undergrad CGPA is 3.0. I am pretty sure that I'll get straight A's in all pre-req courses(Sciences) I am taking now. That should definitely bring the CGPA up(Undergrad+prereqs grade). MCAT- I'm aiming for 35 but I'll probably score high 20's on it.

Yes! I did work 80 hours a week(Day & Night) and went to college fulltime. Did it for 4 years. I never got good sleep all those years. I know it's unbelieveable but I had not choice. I have been independent since I turned 17. Oh well!

I can easily get three letter of recommendations from a D.O., M.D. and my Biology professor. That shouldn't be an issue. Healthcare experience: Nada! Zip! Zilch. I am currently employed at a bank fulltime and trying to get some volunteer job at a hospital over the weekend.

Hopefully! It'll all work out. Once again, I am ready to begin my new career and very excited about it. 🙂
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how do you have no healthcare experience but can easily obtain a letter from a DO and an MD?
 
Hi,

I hesitate to write this but I thought I'd give it a shot to hopefully knock some sense into me!

So, it would seem that I'm a pretty good applicant, 3.5 overall, 3.35 science, 3.9 grad school. My undergrad and grad degrees are in music and then I had to take all of the science pre-reqs at harvard extension and just finished with nothing below a B-. I'm a non-trad, married 28 year old and have a lot of outside experience, volunteering 300+ hours, research full time in IBD dept at children's hospital in Boston (on a side note, I have IBD so it's had a major impact on my decisions), hours of shadowing, counselor at an eating disorder center now, still perform and teach (jazz voice was my major), etc. and I feel very good about my PS and letters of rec (although no DO letter yet, just MD)

The big "however" is that I was VERY naive 2 years ago and took an mcat before having taken orgo and barely learned physics when I did it (it was a condensed summer course) and just didn't really study--took a kaplan course but just didn't keep up or try very hard...I was guessing all over of the place and didn't void it so I ended up with a 6-6-5 or a 17O. I've never even heard of anyone scoring that low (it was actually the same as my diagnostic!). Anyhow, I took a few years off, finished all of the classes and now it's mcat time again. It's been hard to get over this and I'm trying not to quit before I start but the previous score just scares me so much that I have a hard time getting into action. Even if I do get in the 20's, will schools look at that and deny the application right away? I've always been a terrible test taker. In the meantime, new date is April 18th and I'm doing examkrackers. I'm planning on submitting on day 1 of the cycle! Any opinions? My top choice is NSU 🙂

Thanks for your help and good luck everyone!
 
In regards to MCAT scores, if their due date was Feb 1st and so forth and I was planning on retaking the MCATs in late March [28th], do they even care or will I be put in the reject pile automatically?
 
Gulp* Well here goes.

I graduated in August with a Biology Major and a Psychology [Cog] minor with a 3.2 GPA and 3.0sGPA. Yeah I know it's totally low but I definitely started to improve my junior year [if you saw my transcript it went from C/Bs fresh/soph to A/Bs junior/senior year]. Afterwards I went to a community college to take anatomy and public speaking and got an A in both classes.

During my time as an undergrad [and after] I've shadowed doctors, done several research positions and am still volunteering at a truama center.

I've taken the MCATs once without properly studying and got 21L [7s across the board] and I'm planning to retake the thing in late March. I've already turned in my AACOMAS application but need to get my letters of recommendation in order and send it to the respective schools.

I was wondering what my chances of getting in are in my current state as well as if my application will be considered late to the schools which had ACCOMAS deadlines in February/March/April. [Since I'm still pending on my final MCAT in march].
 
hey everyone, i was just wondering when looking at stats for DO schools, are the GPAs (science and overall) calculated with only the repeated grades or both averaged. Also do DO schools tend to accept older candidates who went back and retook prereqs compared to someone like myself who in the span of four years in college retook almost all the prereqs. Does it matter that in 4 years im taking all my reqs over again. Will this make them think i am a weaker candidate or will it not matter to them.
 
I am wondering the same thing too, I retook 3 prereq classes; I'm afraid ill be categorized as a student who needed twice amount of time to learn the material where as most stellar pre-meds can ace it the first time around. 🙁
 
If thats what you're really afriad of, then take other upper level classes like biochem or something and rock them to show that you're capable of handling the difficult course load.
 
(posted this elsewhere... was advised to post my question in this thread as well).

My undergrad major was Philosophy. GPA 2.6. Did a graduate program in religion. Not much better at 3.1

I have not taken any of the premed prerequisites, and am considering doing the required course work at the local state university. Money is a consideration, and my spouse believes in me (yadda yadda yadda), but I don't want to be a jerk and put our lives on hold for 2 years only to not get accepted.

So my grades, frankly, suck. But my life experience is helpful. As an ordained clergy person who has since grad school had extensive clinical training as a healthcare chaplain (check out www.acpe.edu and www.professionalchaplains.org if you care to see the mental bootcamp they run us through, and also, as future docs, to gain an appreciation of your spiritual care providers). I have accompanied many people in their living and dying at the hospital, assisted physicians at family meetings wherein we've discussed care goals/end of life issues, and served on bioethics committees.

Now, I'm one of those folks who put the doctor dream on the back burner as a young person for all the wrong reasons. My desire is to enlarge my service to people/communities as a family medicine physician. My first choice of medical school is very much into educating students who might go into primary care specialties... especially family medicine, and especially in a rural setting. This is right up my alley.

So is it foolish to invest several thousand dollars and a year or two to do the pre-med work? Do I have the proverbial snowball's chance? 😉
user_offline.gif
 
ScarletKnights said:
hey everyone, i was just wondering when looking at stats for DO schools, are the GPAs (science and overall) calculated with only the repeated grades or both averaged. Also do DO schools tend to accept older candidates who went back and retook prereqs compared to someone like myself who in the span of four years in college retook almost all the prereqs. Does it matter that in 4 years im taking all my reqs over again. Will this make them think i am a weaker candidate or will it not matter to them.
Click to expand...

the GPAs only include the repeated courses (this is not the case for MD calculated GPAs, those are averaged). Dont worry about retaking your courses, it doesnt really matter when you did it.
 
Anam Cara said:
(posted this elsewhere... was advised to post my question in this thread as well).

My undergrad major was Philosophy. GPA 2.6. Did a graduate program in religion. Not much better at 3.1

I have not taken any of the premed prerequisites, and am considering doing the required course work at the local state university. Money is a consideration, and my spouse believes in me (yadda yadda yadda), but I don't want to be a jerk and put our lives on hold for 2 years only to not get accepted.

So my grades, frankly, suck. But my life experience is helpful. As an ordained clergy person who has since grad school had extensive clinical training as a healthcare chaplain (check out www.acpe.edu and www.professionalchaplains.org if you care to see the mental bootcamp they run us through, and also, as future docs, to gain an appreciation of your spiritual care providers). I have accompanied many people in their living and dying at the hospital, assisted physicians at family meetings wherein we've discussed care goals/end of life issues, and served on bioethics committees.

Now, I'm one of those folks who put the doctor dream on the back burner as a young person for all the wrong reasons. My desire is to enlarge my service to people/communities as a family medicine physician. My first choice of medical school is very much into educating students who might go into primary care specialties... especially family medicine, and especially in a rural setting. This is right up my alley.

So is it foolish to invest several thousand dollars and a year or two to do the pre-med work? Do I have the proverbial snowball's chance? 😉
user_offline.gif
Click to expand...


It isn't foolish. If you think you can hack it then go for it. DO schools, especially, will acknowledge the fact that you are a nontraditional applicant and take that into consideration. If your GPA for your prerequisites is a lot better than your former GPAs then it will show that you can handle the course load and you will be golden.

Don't consider it putting your life on hold. You are going to get older anyway and so you might as well do so while pursuing something you feel strongly about.
 
theaznfishy said:
Gulp* Well here goes.

I graduated in August with a Biology Major and a Psychology [Cog] minor with a 3.2 GPA and 3.0sGPA. Yeah I know it's totally low but I definitely started to improve my junior year [if you saw my transcript it went from C/Bs fresh/soph to A/Bs junior/senior year]. Afterwards I went to a community college to take anatomy and public speaking and got an A in both classes.

During my time as an undergrad [and after] I've shadowed doctors, done several research positions and am still volunteering at a truama center.

I've taken the MCATs once without properly studying and got 21L [7s across the board] and I'm planning to retake the thing in late March. I've already turned in my AACOMAS application but need to get my letters of recommendation in order and send it to the respective schools.

I was wondering what my chances of getting in are in my current state as well as if my application will be considered late to the schools which had ACCOMAS deadlines in February/March/April. [Since I'm still pending on my final MCAT in march].
Click to expand...

Domolish that MCAT.. study your arse off. If you study hard and possibly do one of the Kaplan/Princeton Review courses you could raise your score quite a bit. The problem is that your MCAT and GPA are both significantly below average. Getting a good MCAT score is really key for you to stand out. You could get lucky, but it will be a tough road the rest of this cycle with your current academic standing in my opinion.

This cycle may not go too great since it is so late. I wouldn't expect too much, especially since you haven't been complete at any schools yet, and the time from being complete to having an interview invite can be long sometimes. Schools are approaching the end of interview season dangerously soon. I would plan on applying next cycle. That way, not only will you will know where you stand with your MCAT, you will be very early in the application cycle which is a huge advantage.

PS-dont take your march MCAT if you don't feel completely ready. One of the biggest pitfalls is rushing to take the test even if you are not comfortable with the material. The AAMC practice tests are good indicators of where you are likely to score, so if you aren't getting AT LEAST mid to upper twenties on those, I would postpone it for a few months and keep studying.
 
ds3489 said:
Hi,

I hesitate to write this but I thought I'd give it a shot to hopefully knock some sense into me!

So, it would seem that I'm a pretty good applicant, 3.5 overall, 3.35 science, 3.9 grad school. My undergrad and grad degrees are in music and then I had to take all of the science pre-reqs at harvard extension and just finished with nothing below a B-. I'm a non-trad, married 28 year old and have a lot of outside experience, volunteering 300+ hours, research full time in IBD dept at children's hospital in Boston (on a side note, I have IBD so it's had a major impact on my decisions), hours of shadowing, counselor at an eating disorder center now, still perform and teach (jazz voice was my major), etc. and I feel very good about my PS and letters of rec (although no DO letter yet, just MD)

The big "however" is that I was VERY naive 2 years ago and took an mcat before having taken orgo and barely learned physics when I did it (it was a condensed summer course) and just didn't really study--took a kaplan course but just didn't keep up or try very hard...I was guessing all over of the place and didn't void it so I ended up with a 6-6-5 or a 17O. I've never even heard of anyone scoring that low (it was actually the same as my diagnostic!). Anyhow, I took a few years off, finished all of the classes and now it's mcat time again. It's been hard to get over this and I'm trying not to quit before I start but the previous score just scares me so much that I have a hard time getting into action. Even if I do get in the 20's, will schools look at that and deny the application right away? I've always been a terrible test taker. In the meantime, new date is April 18th and I'm doing examkrackers. I'm planning on submitting on day 1 of the cycle! Any opinions? My top choice is NSU 🙂

Thanks for your help and good luck everyone!
Click to expand...

If you improve your score and get in the mid-to upper twenties..possibly even thirties if you work hard enough 👍, they will see how much you have improved and it will work for you. They won't average it or look down on you for having a bad first test. A solid make-up will basically patch up the old one like a bandaid! You might have to explain yourself in an interview, but just tell them that you were naive before and saw how much commitment this road really takes!
 
I am from canada (US citizen) , I am planning to send my application to DO school in June, I have a 3.52 (non sci GPA) and a 3.45 sci GPA (aadcom average), I have a 3.8 non sci/ 3.62 sci gpa in my last 3.5 years of school, (with a 2.9 non sci/3.1 sci gpa in my first 2 years, I have 4 repeated classes on my application, and a couple of C's in my last 3.5 years (bio chem and cell bio but I have A's in many other upper level science courses). I am a EMT and I also work as a rehabilitation worker for the Handicapped, I will have more relevant EC's by June, I am also planning to take my MCAT, what do you think my chances are for getting in next year? -Oh I almost forgot, Because Im in canada theres not to many DO's to shadow, because of this I think it will be next to impossible to get one, I can get a MD LOR, but will it be acceptable to schools who require LOR's from DO's. Thanks
user_offline.gif
 
I didn't want to be the one to start the "== 2009-2010== Post AACOMAS Questions Here!" thread, so I decided to ask it here, as I have seen some app. questions posted.

I am beginning to fill out my AACOMAS application for 2010, even though it is technically the 2009 app. cylce. Will I have to re-fill out all the fields when they actually open the 2010 applications? Or does everything stay filled in and I am simply ineligible to apply for 2009? Did not know if I was wasting time filling stuff out if I was just going to have to do it again in May/June.

Thanks everyone, SDN continues to be a top resource in aiding the premedical community! (I PROMISE I will donate, just let me get through the application process first 🙂)
 
yes, you'll have to enter it all over again. there is no roll-over. That's why there isn't a 2009-2010 aacomas questions thread... you can't get into 2009-2010 aacomas yet. 😉
 
In that case I will cease and desist further entry! Looks like its back to MCAT studying...


Thanks again!
 
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