29 not sure what route to take.

[dean4409]

Hi all,
This is my first time posting so any and all feedback would be greatly appreciated.

My name is Wesley I am starting over at the age of 29. My first career was in criminal justice, I was a police officer for 7 years and was a supervisor for a year of my time on the force. I resigned due to having a family and a near death incident I got enrolled and have begun a surgical technology program which I will graduate in May and start working as a CST. I graduated from the University of Oklahoma and have a BS in Crim Justice. I begun graduate school a few years back for a MS in criminal justice, but have gotten out of the field.

I have an undergrad GPA of 2.6 and a grad school GPA of 3.5. My last 60 hours GPA is 3.6. I am not sure which way to head after I finish my CST program.

My whole family is in nursing, but I have thought about medical school, PA school, and perfusion school.

I know I am not the most competitive due to my grades, but I would still need to take pre reqs for many of the programs. Since starting over after a few "fun" years in college I have excelled and now know how to study and take advantages of the courses. I predict all A's or all A's and a B or 2 in the prereqs.

Am I out of my mind for thinking med school is a possibility? How will my age affect my changes of getting into medical school I would be 32 or 33 by the time I begin Med School.

Thanks

W. Dean

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[CaffeinatedForLife]

I can address the age question right now: definitely not an issue! Most D.O. schools look favorably on reinvention and life experience. They also are fairly generous about forgiving a lower GPA as long as you show a substantial and convincing upward trend.

As an older student, especially with your experience as a police officer, you have proven leadership qualities, commitment to service, ability to deal with stress, thinking under pressure, etc. These are all characteristics that younger applicants have not necessarily had the opportunity to develop or prove, but that are highly valued by medical schools. Your life experiences are a great asset to you as an applicant.

FWIW, I think 29 is still young. I have friends in their 60's who are working on their Nurse Practitioner certs. I encourage you to keep all doors open and choose the path that calls the most clearly to you. Your age is definitely not a factor unless you make it one.

If you're still not convinced, consider the fact that I will be matriculating into medical school next year as a 43 year old!

Best of luck!

 

[dean4409]

Thank you so much, I also learned that DO schools will do grade replacement when averaging GPA. This will greatly improve my GPA to well over 3.2 based on my recalculations.

Thank you so much for the feedback.

 

[CaffeinatedForLife]

No problem...BTW, I saw a chart somewhere that compiled the demographics of all Class of 2019 medical students, and was astounded to see the oldest student was 72! That pretty much squashed any lingering doubts for me.

 

[OrdinaryDO]

I'll add in that just recently the average age of matriculation into medical school was 25. So, take into account how many 21-22 year old graduates matriculate and you would almost have to think that there are quite a few people in their upper 20's or lower 30's applying to level that average to 25. I agree with the above poster, life experiences are a major advantage. Not only does it give you insight and maturity, but it also gives you an advantage when asked tough questions about adversity and times when were faced with stressful situations. I like your life story thus far--if you are serious about this then I would make the decision final and set your mind to medical school that way you have a set goal and you know what you need to do to get it done. Do well on your pre-reqs and your MCAT and I would be willing to bet you have more of a fighting chance than a lot of other applicants.

Best of luck, Mike.

P.S. GO POKES!!!!!