MD & DO Admissions' take on adversity.

[Doghead]

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The unimpressive:

- Undergraduate degree of 3.0 cGPA, 3.1 sGPA.
- One semester of volunteering at hospice.
- Currently shadowing a D.O., but the physician is my relative.

The adversity:

Throughout my undergraduate studies, I worked 30+ hours a week in a non-medical job, whilst driving the 4 hours home every weekend to take care of my ill mother who passed away end of my freshmen year. This continued with my sister who also became ill, passing away the summer before my senior year. In addition to the obvious emotional challenges, I had very little time for studying. My help needed at home, I even missed several exams when my sister's condition worsened. It was after this I volunteered in hospice for my final semester before graduating. Time for clinical experience, getting to know professors (LORs), and MCAT preparation was simply non-existent. My life was essentially on hold for a couple years.

The plan:

My adviser advised that I attend 20 credits of upper-level post-bach studies at an alternate 4-year university, to prove my academic competence when given the opportunity. Somewhere in there, take the MCAT, find clinical experience, and apply in June.
I found nearby relatives to stay with, voiding the need for working 30+ hours a week for rent. I have thus achieved a 4.0 in Neurobiology and Biochemistry. I am currently taking Histology, Advanced Biochemistry, and Neuroanatomy. My MCAT is scheduled for April 11th, and I have just secured a job as an ER Scribe beginning in May.

The concern:

I am confident in my Post-bach GPA. I am ecstatic about the experience I will gain as a Scribe. I have befriended several professors and am confident in their LORs. I feel as though my last obstacle is the MCAT. I haven't had significant time to study for it and was wondering how to best, and most safely, approach this. I have no other specific questions, but I have never received outside input before. I have always endured alone. I would be sincerely grateful for any fine-tuning or advice, and any thoughts on how medical schools might interpret my case.

 

[Lya]

First of all, I'm sorry for what happened during your undergraduate years. You should mention what you said above in your interviews as well as secondary essays.

Secondly, congrats on your post-bacc improvements and the scribe position! That is a remarkable improvement and many schools will appreciate it.

Regarding your MCAT, go to MCAT forum in this website, look into SN2ed's 3 month schedule, and see how you can incorporate it into your schedule.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/threads/breaking-down-the-mcat-a-3-month-mcat-study-schedule.623898/

If you will be busy this semester, you should not take MCAT when you are not ready. Feel free to reschedule. Are you in scribe for full time starting in May? When are you applying? Ideally, you need to have 3 free months to study, but people do study while taking the light course load.

 

[JJMrK]

I'm sorry for the passing of your family members, and can't begin to imagine what that was like.

The good news is that you have demonstrated improvement and the ability to do the work. You also have a compelling story, and I personally am impressed with what you've accomplished in the face of hardship. However, you MUST crush the MCAT to maintain an admission committee's confidence that you are academically fit for medical school. I would advise not taking the exam until you are consistently scoring 32+ on practice exams.

 

[AlbinoHawk DO]

If you can get a 3.7+ on a 30 unit post-bacc and a good MCAT score (26+), you should be able to get into DO school (also assuming you apply broadly).

 

[Doghead]

Thank you, so much, for all of the detailed and timely advice everyone, sincerely. This has been very helpful. To confirm, you advise that I should reschedule my MCAT for a later date? What is the latest date I can take the MCAT without hurting myself? I was hoping to begin upon the conclusion of school, at the start of May. This means I will be starting my full-time position as a scribe simultaneously.

In the event that this leaves me too little time to score competitively on the MCAT, should I still apply this cycle?

 

[Doghead]

Thank you very much Lya. I begin my Scribe position between May 1st and 10th. I was told to apply June 1st, sending an application to one school without having done the MCAT yet, to get all of my AACOM work verified ahead of time. I am not sure when to take the MCAT now, this entire process can be intimidating at times.