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- Dec 15, 2016
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Hi everyone! I've been lurking this forum for a little over a month now and I regret not finding it sooner. I'm looking for any feedback on where I'm at and where I have to go. Any input is appreciated!
I graduated 2013 with a bachelor's in Biology. During my undergrad I was truly ignorant of the commitment and dedication it would take to get into medical school, combine working all through college and a lack of good study habits and you've got the results you see below. Once I looked into what all it would take to get into medical school, reality certainly gave me the proverbial slap in the face.
I finished with a cGPA: 3.16 sGPA: 2.89 (BCPM classes and labs not counting a couple retakes). My trend was upward throughout the four years with B's and C's (mostly C's) in my core science classes and A's and B's in my upper level bio courses (last few semesters were in the 3.4-3.5 range). I took the MCAT in 2012 and scored a 29R (10-8-11 spread if I remember correctly).
Fast forward through a couple years of working dead-end jobs and I'm committed to working towards medical school. I've dropped the bad study habits and learned to manage my time better and to prioritize things appropriately. I quit my dead-end job and have been working full-time as an EMT in a busy system (plenty of calls, from stubbed toes to hemorrhagic strokes) for almost a year now and it's really helped to light a fire in my belly and keep me focused.
So that's where I'm at, right now I'm thinking about retaking the MCAT due to the new format and my first score is several years old now (plus I want a higher score given my situation). After that I was looking to apply to an SMP to help show I can perform at a demanding level akin to med. school (from what I understand the SMP GPA won't boost my undergrad but it will at least show I can handle a heavy courseload). During that time, I'm also looking for ways to round myself out as a whole, I feel like leaning on the EMT work as my only clinical experience is putting all my eggs into one basket, so to speak.
So yea, that's where I'm at. I have a lot of questions but I'll try to keep it simple as I feel I've already vomited a wall of text. Is my path of MCAT -> SMP the most practical use of my time? I've considered going back and taking undergrad classes but given my science degree I'm not sure how many classes I could actually take that would be beneficial. I've poured over this for the past few weeks but I feel like I'm running around in circles at this point. My biggest strength at this time is the amount of free time I have, my job only takes up a few days a week, and I have no family/kids/spouse that demand my energy so I feel like I've positioned myself as best as I can to really put my nose to the grindstone.
Thanks for any advice and for taking the time to read all of this! I will admit it was cathartic to get it all out, like airing my dirty laundry.
I graduated 2013 with a bachelor's in Biology. During my undergrad I was truly ignorant of the commitment and dedication it would take to get into medical school, combine working all through college and a lack of good study habits and you've got the results you see below. Once I looked into what all it would take to get into medical school, reality certainly gave me the proverbial slap in the face.
I finished with a cGPA: 3.16 sGPA: 2.89 (BCPM classes and labs not counting a couple retakes). My trend was upward throughout the four years with B's and C's (mostly C's) in my core science classes and A's and B's in my upper level bio courses (last few semesters were in the 3.4-3.5 range). I took the MCAT in 2012 and scored a 29R (10-8-11 spread if I remember correctly).
Fast forward through a couple years of working dead-end jobs and I'm committed to working towards medical school. I've dropped the bad study habits and learned to manage my time better and to prioritize things appropriately. I quit my dead-end job and have been working full-time as an EMT in a busy system (plenty of calls, from stubbed toes to hemorrhagic strokes) for almost a year now and it's really helped to light a fire in my belly and keep me focused.
So that's where I'm at, right now I'm thinking about retaking the MCAT due to the new format and my first score is several years old now (plus I want a higher score given my situation). After that I was looking to apply to an SMP to help show I can perform at a demanding level akin to med. school (from what I understand the SMP GPA won't boost my undergrad but it will at least show I can handle a heavy courseload). During that time, I'm also looking for ways to round myself out as a whole, I feel like leaning on the EMT work as my only clinical experience is putting all my eggs into one basket, so to speak.
So yea, that's where I'm at. I have a lot of questions but I'll try to keep it simple as I feel I've already vomited a wall of text. Is my path of MCAT -> SMP the most practical use of my time? I've considered going back and taking undergrad classes but given my science degree I'm not sure how many classes I could actually take that would be beneficial. I've poured over this for the past few weeks but I feel like I'm running around in circles at this point. My biggest strength at this time is the amount of free time I have, my job only takes up a few days a week, and I have no family/kids/spouse that demand my energy so I feel like I've positioned myself as best as I can to really put my nose to the grindstone.
Thanks for any advice and for taking the time to read all of this! I will admit it was cathartic to get it all out, like airing my dirty laundry.