3 Options - Need Advice

[Zifish]

Hello Fellow Nontrads,
I'm at a crossroads and could seriously use some advice, and I'll give some background for reference. I was a really great student and have some incredible EC's that would make me stand out, but I'll have trouble convincing adcoms of my candidacy because of two reasons, GPA and MCAT. I have 3 semesters of failed coursework taken over 10yrs ago while battling homelessness, bringing my GPA down a whole point to 2.7, with well over 200 credits under my belt at this point. I'm 30 now, married, my wife works full time and I'm a stay at home dad to our 2yr old during the day, and have returned to school last year to finish my undergrad in the evenings, earning deans list my last two semesters and finishing my BS in psych. My MCAT is an issue because it's been 13yrs since I've taken the general science courses and my foundation has dissolved, making it tough to build upon with test prep. Also, since daycare isn't an option, I was only able to dedicate a few hours nightly to mcat prep, and it's evident that this isn't sufficient since I scored a 496 in March and 494 in July. My content knowledge isn't there, so I would need at least a year to review the course content extensively and then redo prep to score higher, but that isn't an option at the moment due to our living situation. This leaves me with three options that I can think of, and could use some advice on what to do:

1: Apply to an online MPH program to boost my cGPA for DO school, and during the time completing the masters I'd review the general science courses and retake the mcat for a higher score. I'd love to be a DO, and was one of the people the changes to the retake policy really harmed. I'm thinking online MPH because my wife could still work and I could care for our child, and I could seriously see myself working in public health as a career so the degree wouldn't be useless if I'm unable to get into medical school, which is why I'm not looking into SMP's, and my credit hours are too high to make a postbacc work in my favor either. The downside of the MPH is that schools don't view it as favorably since it's not heavy in science coursework, and I'd be accumulating more student loan debt

2: Apply to Australian medical programs. I love the country, wouldn't mind relocating for a few years or even permanently, and their medical education seems to turn out great physicians and emphasize patient care. The pros are that their application process is straight forward and my GPA/MCAT allows me to apply to a few programs, and it's not the Caribbean. The cons being the IMG status when applying for residency in the US, and the programs I qualify for would be 4yrs in Australia instead of 2 in aus and 2 in us, leaving me limited exposure to US clinicals through an away rotation or two.

3: Apply to the Caribbean? This honestly sounds terrible due to the attrition rates and low residency placement rates. Also, since I'd be bringing my wife and daughter along to the third world island, I'd worry about their safety while I'm on campus studying. The pros being the 2x2 design and the clinical training in the US that I wouldn't get in Australia.

What would you all do? I want to make educated decisions, and think I might be a good candidate for a foreign medical education. I'm sure the door to US MD is shut, and the US DO door is nearly shut as well now that grade replacement is a thing of the past. I'm not terrified of being an IMG, and would embrace the title if they give me a chance to become a physician. I know this is a marathon, but with a family, every year I'm not in medical school and passing the responsibilities at home back to my wife is a struggle on the family's dynamic and my wife is growing weary as any SO would. Escaping this with as little extra student loan debt as possible, and being able to graduate medical school before the next decade happens and actually be able to practice medicine would be ideal. Thanks for the advice!

 

[Pansy]

I didn't read your whole paragraph, but as for point 3: My wife graduated from St.Georges in Grenada. It's the Caribbean's safest island, supposedly. Might be worth looking into.

 

[Shotapp]

I didn't read your whole paragraph, but as for point 3: My wife graduated from St.Georges in Grenada. It's the Caribbean's safest island, supposedly. Might be worth looking into.

Bad advice

OP you have three strikes against you (a low GPA and two bad MCAT scores). As you are right now, you will fail out of Medical school. You need to retake the pre-requisites so you can have a solid foundation for the MCAT. You will also need to do a SMP before you can even apply to Medical school.

 

[Nugester]

1) Ace all your classes
2) Study real hard and rock the MCAT (final attempt)

 

[bulbosity]

Hello Fellow Nontrads,
I'm at a crossroads and could seriously use some advice, and I'll give some background for reference. I was a really great student and have some incredible EC's that would make me stand out, but I'll have trouble convincing adcoms of my candidacy because of two reasons, GPA and MCAT. I have 3 semesters of failed coursework taken over 10yrs ago while battling homelessness, bringing my GPA down a whole point to 2.7, with well over 200 credits under my belt at this point. I'm 30 now, married, my wife works full time and I'm a stay at home dad to our 2yr old during the day, and have returned to school last year to finish my undergrad in the evenings, earning deans list my last two semesters and finishing my BS in psych. My MCAT is an issue because it's been 13yrs since I've taken the general science courses and my foundation has dissolved, making it tough to build upon with test prep. Also, since daycare isn't an option, I was only able to dedicate a few hours nightly to mcat prep, and it's evident that this isn't sufficient since I scored a 496 in March and 494 in July. My content knowledge isn't there, so I would need at least a year to review the course content extensively and then redo prep to score higher, but that isn't an option at the moment due to our living situation. This leaves me with three options that I can think of, and could use some advice on what to do:

1: Apply to an online MPH program to boost my cGPA for DO school, and during the time completing the masters I'd review the general science courses and retake the mcat for a higher score. I'd love to be a DO, and was one of the people the changes to the retake policy really harmed. I'm thinking online MPH because my wife could still work and I could care for our child, and I could seriously see myself working in public health as a career so the degree wouldn't be useless if I'm unable to get into medical school, which is why I'm not looking into SMP's, and my credit hours are too high to make a postbacc work in my favor either. The downside of the MPH is that schools don't view it as favorably since it's not heavy in science coursework, and I'd be accumulating more student loan debt

2: Apply to Australian medical programs. I love the country, wouldn't mind relocating for a few years or even permanently, and their medical education seems to turn out great physicians and emphasize patient care. The pros are that their application process is straight forward and my GPA/MCAT allows me to apply to a few programs, and it's not the Caribbean. The cons being the IMG status when applying for residency in the US, and the programs I qualify for would be 4yrs in Australia instead of 2 in aus and 2 in us, leaving me limited exposure to US clinicals through an away rotation or two.

3: Apply to the Caribbean? This honestly sounds terrible due to the attrition rates and low residency placement rates. Also, since I'd be bringing my wife and daughter along to the third world island, I'd worry about their safety while I'm on campus studying. The pros being the 2x2 design and the clinical training in the US that I wouldn't get in Australia.

What would you all do? I want to make educated decisions, and think I might be a good candidate for a foreign medical education. I'm sure the door to US MD is shut, and the US DO door is nearly shut as well now that grade replacement is a thing of the past. I'm not terrified of being an IMG, and would embrace the title if they give me a chance to become a physician. I know this is a marathon, but with a family, every year I'm not in medical school and passing the responsibilities at home back to my wife is a struggle on the family's dynamic and my wife is growing weary as any SO would. Escaping this with as little extra student loan debt as possible, and being able to graduate medical school before the next decade happens and actually be able to practice medicine would be ideal. Thanks for the advice!

Tough situation...of the 3 options you suggest, Option 1 doesn't really seem likely to get you into either md or do school in this country. Option 2 seems somewhat promising (and I know nothing of how you would stack up relative to other Australian applicants; I going on what you're indicating). However, it seems more likely than not you will have a hard time matching in the US, but if you are good with permanently living in Australia, this could work. Option 3 is a gamble, so if you truly would be ok living in Australia, I'd go with Option 2; if you are hesitant about that prospect, I'd default into Option 3.

 

[Skiiiiiing]

This is a tough road even with strong academic credentials

Why not PA or something more obtainable

 

[WGSgrad]

1) You should make a list of all the reasons that physicians, administrators, and admissions officers on this site and elsewhere might suggest someone in your position should walk away. Some of their advice for someone in you position can be pretty harsh but not getting defensive and really working through their reasoning is going to be key for you.

2) Sit down with your partner and have a serious conversation about your future and what that means for your partner and your family. What sort of sacrifices will be required on this journey of you and your family.

3) Figure out what it's really going to take. Start by reading the third post in this thread from DrMidLife: The Low Gpa--What Do I Do Thread

4) Make peace with the following:

A) There are no easy paths to an MD/DO for anyone but your situation is going to be even tougher.
B) Despite what you wrote in the first line in your post you weren't a "really great student." There are certainly reasons for why you didn't perform well in the classroom and those reasons may be significant and worth mentioning in an essay about adversity or when someone ask you about your GPA from years ago.
C) Based on what you have said you may be a really great student now. That's good. Because you also need to make peace with the fact that admission to medical school is going to require at least two years of coursework including the prerequisites and upper level science courses.
D) You can't go abroad. You have a family and a partner with a full time job. You just aren't in the position to take that sort of risk. Instead, consider enrolling as a second degree student at your local university, which makes you eligible for federal student loans, and take all of the prerequisites again. And take some upper division courses. And KILL IT. Every grade that is not an "A" is a step back.
E) Figure out if your poor performance on the MCAT was a result of poor preparation for the material or poor test taking skills. Whichever reason, don't take the MCAT again until you have retaken the prerequisites, the material is fresh and cold, and you are in the best possible position to get the best possible score you can and KILL IT.

I wish you the best of luck. The advice I have offered above is not given blithely. I turned down a full time job offer after graduate school to return to undergrad to take the prerequisites, prepare for the MCAT and apply to medical school. And while I don't have a partner or kids, I'm 31 and understand what time means at this stage. But if you're going to do this, you really need to give yourself the best shot you can.

 

[Zifish]

I didn't read your whole paragraph, but as for point 3: My wife graduated from St.Georges in Grenada. It's the Caribbean's safest island, supposedly. Might be worth looking into.

Thank you for the comment! How did your wife like the education at SGU and when did she graduate? Was she able to secure a residency spot?

 

[Zifish]

Bad advice

OP you have three strikes against you (a low GPA and two bad MCAT scores). As you are right now, you will fail out of Medical school. You need to retake the pre-requisites so you can have a solid foundation for the MCAT. You will also need to do a SMP before you can even apply to Medical school.

Thank you for the comment. I agree that the Carib route is not ideal, and that my three strikes would look terrible to adcoms. Although anything is possible and anyone can fail in med school, my poor grades were isolated to a time when I was battling homelessness and couldn't achieve the academic excellence I had before the hardship. I took all of the prerequisites for med school in 2004, so I'm rusty on the foundation, compounded with my responsibility at home, I wasn't able to score well on the mcat. If I get medical school, I'll be able to hand over the reigns to my wife who will be the stay at home parent, so caring for the family won't be distracting me from succeeding in medical school.

I could definitely rebuild the foundation by auditing those foundational courses and score better on the mcat. I'm also worried about the usefulness of an SMP since I couldn't use the degree if I never place into a medical school. Any further advice is appreciated

 

[Zifish]

1) Ace all your classes
2) Study real hard and rock the MCAT (final attempt)

Thank you for the reply. Do you think jumping into a masters program while studying for the mcat would be a good idea? I need to bring up my GPA as well, and I believe that DO schools combine undergrad and grad GPAs when applying

 

[Zifish]

Tough situation...of the 3 options you suggest, Option 1 doesn't really seem likely to get you into either md or do school in this country. Option 2 seems somewhat promising (and I know nothing of how you would stack up relative to other Australian applicants; I going on what you're indicating). However, it seems more likely than not you will have a hard time matching in the US, but if you are good with permanently living in Australia, this could work. Option 3 is a gamble, so if you truly would be ok living in Australia, I'd go with Option 2; if you are hesitant about that prospect, I'd default into Option 3.

Thank you for the comment! I am wondering why you think an MPH wouldn't help with medical school admissions? Are adcoms only really caring about SMP's now and dismissing other masters? I know MPHs don't focus on heavy science coursework, but I was hoping it would bring up my GPA to avoid screens and would be a field I'd be interested in working

 

[deleted480308]

Mph doesn't boost your gpa unless things have changed. It's a grad level class.

Don't go carribean

 

[Zifish]

This is a tough road even with strong academic credentials

Why not PA or something more obtainable

Thank you for the reply, I agree this is gonna be a though road for me, because even stellar applicants have tough roads in this process.

I have nothing wrong with becoming a PA, but my understanding is that it's become more competitive than medical school due to the lifestyle that being a PA affords. If you're aware of a program that considers applicants under 3.0gpa then please let me know

 

[Zifish]

Mph doesn't boost your gpa unless things have changed. It's a grad level class.

Don't go carribean

Thank you for the reply! I was under the impression that undergrad and grad GPA was combined in the cGPA on aacomas for DO school? The credits from the MPH would then boost my cGPA and I'd end up with a degree I'd consider utilizing if I couldn't get into med school. But I may be mistaken

 

[Sculptura]

Mph doesn't boost your gpa unless things have changed. It's a grad level class.

Not true. For DO programs, the MPH classes would boost both cGPA and sGPA.

 

[Skiiiiiing]

Not true. For DO programs, the MPH classes would boost both cGPA and sGPA.

And a 2.7 on 200 hours. 30 hours of 4.0 wouldn't move this above 3.0, he'd need about 70 hours of 4.0

Most of the low GPA success stories were pre 2008

 

[Sculptura]

And a 2.7 on 200 hours. 30 hours of 4.0 wouldn't move this above 3.0

Most of the low GPA success stories were pre 2008

I was just dispelling the notion that graduate courses don't count in cGPA for DO admissions. I don't disagree with what you're saying.

 

[Shotapp]

Thank you for the comment. I agree that the Carib route is not ideal, and that my three strikes would look terrible to adcoms. Although anything is possible and anyone can fail in med school, my poor grades were isolated to a time when I was battling homelessness and couldn't achieve the academic excellence I had before the hardship. I took all of the prerequisites for med school in 2004, so I'm rusty on the foundation, compounded with my responsibility at home, I wasn't able to score well on the mcat. If I get medical school, I'll be able to hand over the reigns to my wife who will be the stay at home parent, so caring for the family won't be distracting me from succeeding in medical school.

I could definitely rebuild the foundation by auditing those foundational courses and score better on the mcat. I'm also worried about the usefulness of an SMP since I couldn't use the degree if I never place into a medical school. Any further advice is appreciated

Carefully read @WGSgrad's post. I don't think you fully understand the predicament you have dug yourself in. I don't take homelessness lightly but don't use that as an excuse. You could have withdrawn from school for a while to get your life together. People on this forum have overcome similar situations like yours and still had Harvard caliber grades.

1. You need to retake the pre-requisites for a grade because your GPA sucks.
2. You need to establish an upward trend in either a DIY post-bac or a hard science graduate degree (MBS or SMP).
3. You have to think logically here. You are also putting your family at risk if you consider off shore Medical schools.

 

[Sculptura]

1: Apply to an online MPH program to boost my cGPA for DO school, and during the time completing the masters I'd review the general science courses and retake the mcat for a higher score. I'd love to be a DO, and was one of the people the changes to the retake policy really harmed. I'm thinking online MPH because my wife could still work and I could care for our child, and I could seriously see myself working in public health as a career so the degree wouldn't be useless if I'm unable to get into medical school, which is why I'm not looking into SMP's, and my credit hours are too high to make a postbacc work in my favor either. The downside of the MPH is that schools don't view it as favorably since it's not heavy in science coursework, and I'd be accumulating more student loan debt

You would need approximately 60 credits of straight A's in order to hit the 3.0 cutoff for many DO programs. That's three or four years of coursework (and debt accumulation), with no less than a 4.0 GPA. As you probably know, this really isn't a practical option.

2: Apply to Australian medical programs. I love the country, wouldn't mind relocating for a few years or even permanently, and their medical education seems to turn out great physicians and emphasize patient care. The pros are that their application process is straight forward and my GPA/MCAT allows me to apply to a few programs, and it's not the Caribbean. The cons being the IMG status when applying for residency in the US, and the programs I qualify for would be 4yrs in Australia instead of 2 in aus and 2 in us, leaving me limited exposure to US clinicals through an away rotation or two.

From my understanding, the only half-decent Australian program for IMGs is UQ-Ochsner. I don't think they'd accept you. The last time I checked, UQ-Ochsner's entering class had a 3.4 average overall GPA and an average of 29 on the old MCAT.

3: Apply to the Caribbean? This honestly sounds terrible due to the attrition rates and low residency placement rates. Also, since I'd be bringing my wife and daughter along to the third world island, I'd worry about their safety while I'm on campus studying. The pros being the 2x2 design and the clinical training in the US that I wouldn't get in Australia.

Don't even think about it. Don't put your family through that. It's really just not worth it.

---

Here are three additional options you may want to consider:

Option #4: Podiatry.

Do well in some post-bacc classes to redeem yourself, devote a lot of time to MCAT prep and score 502+, get strong shadowing experience and LoRs... and you'll likely get into at least a couple of podiatry programs.

No podiatry school in America has an attrition rate that compares to that of SGU, Ross, AUA, AUC, etc. Also, you'd be able to stay stateside, and you'd become a physician.

Option #5: "Fresh Start" in Texas.

Move to Texas with your family and start undergrad from scratch. For the purpose of applying to public medical schools in Texas, your previous undergraduate coursework would be expunged.

Option #6: SMP.

The following thread includes a list of programs that (supposedly) consider students with GPAs between 2.7 and 3.0: List of Post-Baccs for 2.7-3.0 GPA Students It may be a tad outdated, since it's from 2014. You might want to contact individual programs directly to see if you meet their minimum admission requirements.

 

[Nugester]

Thank you for the reply. Do you think jumping into a masters program while studying for the mcat would be a good idea? I need to bring up my GPA as well, and I believe that DO schools combine undergrad and grad GPAs when applying

I'm in a similar situation to you. One year older, married, working full-time, part-time masters, currently studying for the MCAT; my wife and I want children (she's 3rd year in med school). My gpa from undergrad is slightly lower than yours and it is my own fault. I'm acing the science masters at a sit down school and will add a few more DIY upper science classes too to boost the gpa (online since it is more feasible) and plan on taking the MCAT January 2018.

I believe the biggest question is: how supportive is your spouse? Fortunate thing is mine is really supportive as I was/am supper supportive with her MD/PhD route. I believe you can do it, if you are willing to put in the work/time AND your spouse can support this journey. There are married couples in medical school and some even decide to have children in medical school but both partners need to commit. As for children, we plan to have our parents help out a lot (especially my mother as she eventually will move in with us).

I wouldn't consider the Caribbean if I were you. I have considered it myself and would only do it if I couldn't get in anywhere and I was single. I wouldn't want to impose that (along with the debt), especially with kids.

 

[workaholic181]

Hello Fellow Nontrads,
I'm at a crossroads and could seriously use some advice, and I'll give some background for reference. I was a really great student and have some incredible EC's that would make me stand out, but I'll have trouble convincing adcoms of my candidacy because of two reasons, GPA and MCAT. I have 3 semesters of failed coursework taken over 10yrs ago while battling homelessness, bringing my GPA down a whole point to 2.7, with well over 200 credits under my belt at this point. I'm 30 now, married, my wife works full time and I'm a stay at home dad to our 2yr old during the day, and have returned to school last year to finish my undergrad in the evenings, earning deans list my last two semesters and finishing my BS in psych. My MCAT is an issue because it's been 13yrs since I've taken the general science courses and my foundation has dissolved, making it tough to build upon with test prep. Also, since daycare isn't an option, I was only able to dedicate a few hours nightly to mcat prep, and it's evident that this isn't sufficient since I scored a 496 in March and 494 in July. My content knowledge isn't there, so I would need at least a year to review the course content extensively and then redo prep to score higher, but that isn't an option at the moment due to our living situation. This leaves me with three options that I can think of, and could use some advice on what to do:

1: Apply to an online MPH program to boost my cGPA for DO school, and during the time completing the masters I'd review the general science courses and retake the mcat for a higher score. I'd love to be a DO, and was one of the people the changes to the retake policy really harmed. I'm thinking online MPH because my wife could still work and I could care for our child, and I could seriously see myself working in public health as a career so the degree wouldn't be useless if I'm unable to get into medical school, which is why I'm not looking into SMP's, and my credit hours are too high to make a postbacc work in my favor either. The downside of the MPH is that schools don't view it as favorably since it's not heavy in science coursework, and I'd be accumulating more student loan debt

2: Apply to Australian medical programs. I love the country, wouldn't mind relocating for a few years or even permanently, and their medical education seems to turn out great physicians and emphasize patient care. The pros are that their application process is straight forward and my GPA/MCAT allows me to apply to a few programs, and it's not the Caribbean. The cons being the IMG status when applying for residency in the US, and the programs I qualify for would be 4yrs in Australia instead of 2 in aus and 2 in us, leaving me limited exposure to US clinicals through an away rotation or two.

3: Apply to the Caribbean? This honestly sounds terrible due to the attrition rates and low residency placement rates. Also, since I'd be bringing my wife and daughter along to the third world island, I'd worry about their safety while I'm on campus studying. The pros being the 2x2 design and the clinical training in the US that I wouldn't get in Australia.

What would you all do? I want to make educated decisions, and think I might be a good candidate for a foreign medical education. I'm sure the door to US MD is shut, and the US DO door is nearly shut as well now that grade replacement is a thing of the past. I'm not terrified of being an IMG, and would embrace the title if they give me a chance to become a physician. I know this is a marathon, but with a family, every year I'm not in medical school and passing the responsibilities at home back to my wife is a struggle on the family's dynamic and my wife is growing weary as any SO would. Escaping this with as little extra student loan debt as possible, and being able to graduate medical school before the next decade happens and actually be able to practice medicine would be ideal. Thanks for the advice!

DO NOT go to caribbean! It's just way too risky for anyone, let alone a father with a growing family. Absolutely do not do that!

If you wouldn't hate living in Australia permanently, option 2 could be an option I suppose.. but seems somewhat fantastical to be honest. Just be aware that with the merger, it's going to be even harder for IMGs to match anywhere in the states.

Look you have a low GPA, and two poor MCAT scores. If I were you I would look into SMPs; they are literally designed for people who don;t have the grades/scores to help you achieve them before med school. Frankly I think you would need a program like that just to prep for how hard med school will be. If you have a bad science foundation for MCAT, that will be even more exposed in med school. Look into SMP programs.

Good luck OP. You can do this, but it will be challenging. Make sure it's what you really, really want, because even getting into medical school is several years away for you at this point.

 

[Skiiiiiing]

Also I think you are discounting the seriousness of a 494. You'd be at real risk for flunking licensing exams, even if someone admitted.

Your CARS isn't that malleable, and an awful lot of the science material is contained in the passages.

In retrospect with a Lizzy of 65-70, my own attempts are looking somewhere between fanciful and unrealistic, and I don't have kids to feed.

 

[WGSgrad]

Carefully read @WGSgrad's post. I don't think you fully understand the predicament you have dug yourself in. I don't take homelessness lightly but don't use that as an excuse. You could have withdrawn from school for a while to get your life together. People on this forum have overcome similar situations like yours and still had Harvard caliber grades.

I would also add... "...but don't use that as an excuse for why you don't have to put in the work now."

This is my concern here. I get that terrible **** happens to people and results in us falling short of where we know we could have been (could be). However, my issue with the OP is that they seem to operate on the mantra of "Well, bad **** happened to me and my past grades don't reflect who I really am as a student. I know this so adcoms will know it too."

That is not how it works. You have to give people a reason to take a risk on you. And neither the OP's MCAT score or GPA do that at the moment. If OP really wants this, then they will heed the advice that has been repeated elsewhere on this site and in this thread and commit to putting in the work it will take to get an admission to a U.S. DO/MD program (formal or DIY post-bacc, SMP, etc.) ; or consider another alternative path in medicine. Anything else is half-arsing it and the results will be as poor for them as they have been up to this point.

 

[Zifish]

I would also add... "...but don't use that as an excuse for why you don't have to put in the work now."

This is my concern here. I get that terrible **** happens to people and results in us falling short of where we know we could have been (could be). However, my issue with the OP is that they seem to operate on the mantra of "Well, bad **** happened to me and my past grades don't reflect who I really am as a student. I know this so adcoms will know it too."

That is not how it works. You have to give people a reason to take a risk on you. And neither the OP's MCAT score or GPA do that at the moment. If OP really wants this, then they will heed the advice that has been repeated elsewhere on this site and in this thread and commit to putting in the work it will take to get an admission to a U.S. DO/MD program (formal or DIY post-bacc, SMP, etc.) ; or consider another alternative path in medicine. Anything else is half-arsing it and the results will be as poor for them as they have been up to this point.

Thank you for your replies, I appreciate your advice. I will say though, that since programs receive tens of thousands of stellar applications each year, in no way do I think that US adcoms will even take the time to review my application due to my current scores and GPA being below screens, let alone take the time to care about my GPA trend. I included these details in my introductory paragraph so people responding could understand more about me and tailor the advice accordingly. Then, I haven't three options, based on my current situation, that I needed help deciding between. The first being a masters program in a field that I'd be interested in working, and using those graduate credits to boost my GPA above the screen cutoffs for DO schools, then can hope my GPA trend and EC's and interview will demonstrate my candidacy. The second being an Australian program since I'd consider working/living there permanently if a US residency didn't work out, and I'm not worried about my ability to succeed in medical school. The third and my least favorite option being a Caribbean program, but that's only because of the two years of clinical studies in the US, but a terrible option otherwise due to attrition and terrible match odds.

Out of these three options, what is your suggestion?

 

[workaholic181]

Thank you for your replies, I appreciate your advice. I will say though, that since programs receive tens of thousands of stellar applications each year, in no way do I think that US adcoms will even take the time to review my application due to my current scores and GPA being below screens, let alone take the time to care about my GPA trend. I included these details in my introductory paragraph so people responding could understand more about me and tailor the advice accordingly. Then, I haven't three options, based on my current situation, that I needed help deciding between. The first being a masters program in a field that I'd be interested in working, and using those graduate credits to boost my GPA above the screen cutoffs for DO schools, then can hope my GPA trend and EC's and interview will demonstrate my candidacy. The second being an Australian program since I'd consider working/living there permanently if a US residency didn't work out, and I'm not worried about my ability to succeed in medical school. The third and my least favorite option being a Caribbean program, but that's only because of the two years of clinical studies in the US, but a terrible option otherwise due to attrition and terrible match odds.

Out of these three options, what is your suggestion?

Depends on your affinity for Australia.. assuming all things equal I'd say going to grad school is your best bet. But again if you really want to live in another country and think you can be accepted there then go for it.

 

[Nugester]

Thank you for your replies, I appreciate your advice. I will say though, that since programs receive tens of thousands of stellar applications each year, in no way do I think that US adcoms will even take the time to review my application due to my current scores and GPA being below screens, let alone take the time to care about my GPA trend. I included these details in my introductory paragraph so people responding could understand more about me and tailor the advice accordingly. Then, I haven't three options, based on my current situation, that I needed help deciding between. The first being a masters program in a field that I'd be interested in working, and using those graduate credits to boost my GPA above the screen cutoffs for DO schools, then can hope my GPA trend and EC's and interview will demonstrate my candidacy. The second being an Australian program since I'd consider working/living there permanently if a US residency didn't work out, and I'm not worried about my ability to succeed in medical school. The third and my least favorite option being a Caribbean program, but that's only because of the two years of clinical studies in the US, but a terrible option otherwise due to attrition and terrible match odds.

Out of these three options, what is your suggestion?

If anything, it would be better to do a DIY postbac focused on science classes. Cheaper and you'll be studying for MCAT content. Why spend $20 K on a mph? Why split your attention between nonscience classes and doing some science on the side? It would look more favorable that you got a 4.0 sgpa then a 4.0 in mph. But if you are really intent on it, then 1.

 

[Shotapp]

Thank you for your replies, I appreciate your advice. I will say though, that since programs receive tens of thousands of stellar applications each year, in no way do I think that US adcoms will even take the time to review my application due to my current scores and GPA being below screens, let alone take the time to care about my GPA trend. I included these details in my introductory paragraph so people responding could understand more about me and tailor the advice accordingly. Then, I haven't three options, based on my current situation, that I needed help deciding between. The first being a masters program in a field that I'd be interested in working, and using those graduate credits to boost my GPA above the screen cutoffs for DO schools, then can hope my GPA trend and EC's and interview will demonstrate my candidacy. The second being an Australian program since I'd consider working/living there permanently if a US residency didn't work out, and I'm not worried about my ability to succeed in medical school. The third and my least favorite option being a Caribbean program, but that's only because of the two years of clinical studies in the US, but a terrible option otherwise due to attrition and terrible match odds.

Out of these three options, what is your suggestion?

Why are you asking the same question?

You have a family now so don't drag your family to ruins by failing out of an off shore Medical school. You have made three poor judgements already so don't make another one. You can't get instant gratification. It's going to take you a few years to repair your record because it took you years to make it.

Seriously read @WGSgrad post and @DrMidlife's post on how to come back from a low GPA.

 

[Shotapp]

Both did so in another era.

The odds have gone from long to farcical

OP had a family and responsibilities, this isn't the path

@holdthemayo

Is a recent low GPA comeback example and he/she got into a MD school. Adcoms love underdawgs that have turned things around.

 

[Shotapp]

URM? 520+?

Edited

ORM 516

Thread is titled
LOW GPA/MCAT Success Stories (Posts by Nontrads Already Accepted to Med School)