Abysmal 2nd year gpa. Going into 3rd. What are my chances?

[justaname]

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I've got a completely abysmal 64 percent average for my first 2 years at university (terrible 1st year, and a somewhat better 2nd, considering) and am going into my 3rd year. I can blame my more than lackluster performance on immaturity and not really knowing what to do -or even really WANTING to go to university.

Upon insistence from a roommate, I started volunteering at the hospital around the middle of second year and realised that I really did want to be a doctor (wouldn't you know it, my parents were right all along) and am completely driven towards this goal.

I've got:

64 percent average for my first 2 years.
About 50 volunteer hours from the childrens hospital.
Another 60 from a month in Ohio, shadowing and volunteering.
My biology and organic chemistry classes are competitive.

I plan on volunteering at a lab next summer and haven't taken my MCATS yet.

What can I do? I recognise that the odds are against me but I really want this. I wish I could go back 2 years and kick myself for voluntarily laying out bad cards.

Please help.

 

[chessknt]

I've got a completely abysmal 64 percent average for my first 2 years at university (terrible 1st year, and a somewhat better 2nd, considering) and am going into my 3rd year. I can blame my more than lackluster performance on immaturity and not really knowing what to do -or even really WANTING to go to university.

Upon insistence from a roommate, I started volunteering at the hospital around the middle of second year and realised that I really did want to be a doctor (wouldn't you know it, my parents were right all along) and am completely driven towards this goal.

I've got:

64 percent average for my first 2 years.
About 50 volunteer hours from the childrens hospital.
Another 60 from a month in Ohio, shadowing and volunteering.
My biology and organic chemistry classes are competitive.

I plan on volunteering at a lab next summer and haven't taken my MCATS yet.

What can I do? I recognise that the odds are against me but I really want this. I wish I could go back 2 years and kick myself for voluntarily laying out bad cards.

Please help.

When you say 64% you are meaning what on the GPA scale? Because a 64% is a D where I come from and if an A=4.0, B=3.0, C=2.0, D=1.0, then a 1.0 is going to be very prohibitive in terms of medical school admission.

 

[MilkmanAl]

I'll second that. Even with 2 years of A's, you'll only have something around a 2.5 which is still far from med school level. Maybe you should retake a lot of classes and look at DO schools? That'll preclude you from staying in Canada, but it'll be a hell of a lot easier to get into med school going that route than trying for an MD school.

DO schools replace grades for retaken classes while MD schools average the grades, in case that wasn't clear.

 

[chessknt]

I'll second that. Even with 2 years of A's, you'll only have something around a 2.5 which is still far from med school level. Maybe you should retake a lot of classes and look at DO schools? That'll preclude you from staying in Canada, but it'll be a hell of a lot easier to get into med school going that route than trying for an MD school.

DO schools replace grades for retaken classes while MD schools average the grades, in case that wasn't clear.

You can attest better than anyone at how harsh a low GPA can be on your chances, and yours is much higher than his. Retake/DO is also a good option.

 

[mbe36]

Maybe you should call some of your top-choice medical schools and see if they can offer advice. I do know one thing....you are going to need to OWN the MCAT. Good luck!!

 

[chessknt]

Maybe you should call some of your top-choice medical schools and see if they can offer advice. I do know one thing....you are going to need to OWN the MCAT. Good luck!!

Even a 45 would make him a hard sell with a 1.XX and few volunteering activites.

 

[mbe36]

Even a 45 would make him a hard sell with a 1.XX and few volunteering activites.

I offered him my advice so he can gather information to help make a wise choice. I did not say he will get in. But, if it is possible he needs to know a finite course of action. His situation is odd and not what a bunch of pre-meds normally deals with. I think some direct communication with a few medical schools will really clear the fog for him.

 

[Ogenki]

Get good grades from now on, get a master's or Ph.D. and apply for medical school after that. By then your grades shouldn't get you cut before they even look at your application.

If you can't stand the thought of putting in an extra 2-4 years of school compared to most other applicants, well ... most other applicants put in at least a smidge of effort in their first two years. Besides, a master's or Ph.D. isn't exactly useless when you get a MD later.