Advice in Pursuing Medicine (Engineering Background)

[mcendoc95]

Hi everyone,

I graduated with a BS in Mechanical engineering and a minor in Biomedical engineering. I did finish the prerequisites for medical school, however I graduated with a 3.2 GPA. Low for medical school standards. I was unsure of applying for medical school during my undergraduate years, but I became motivated to become a doctor while in the military. I am currently serving my time as a military officer and was able to find some shadowing opportunities.

My questions are:

1. If I were to retake classes, do I need to declare a new major?
2. Is it better to go to graduate school first and get a high GPA?
3. How can I become a more competitive and diverse applicant with such a low GPA?

I would love any advice and possibly stories if you were in similar situations. Thanks!

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[Forever Geebs]

First, thank you for your service!

To answer your questions:
1. No, you can be a non-degree seeking graduate student and enroll in any undergraduate course.
2. No, unless you have an excessive amount of science hours and it would be next to impossible to see any marked improvement in your GPA.
3. Increase your GPA and slay the MCAT. Extracurricular are important, but your scores are the absolute most important component of your application.

Few questions for you:
1. How many science hours do you have?
2. Have you received a D (or lower) in any of your science courses, and more specifically, any of the pre-requisite courses?
3. Outside of shadowing, what do your other ECs look like?

 

[mcendoc95]

First, thank you for your service!

To answer your questions:
1. No, you can be a non-degree seeking graduate student and enroll in any undergraduate course.
2. No, unless you have an excessive amount of science hours and it would be next to impossible to see any marked improvement in your GPA.
3. Increase your GPA and slay the MCAT. Extracurricular are important, but your scores are the absolute most important component of your application.

Few questions for you:
1. How many science hours do you have?
2. Have you received a D (or lower) in any of your science courses, and more specifically, any of the pre-requisite courses?
3. Outside of shadowing, what do your other ECs look like?

1. Do science hours only pertain to the prerequisites? If so, I have 1 year of biology, 1 year of chemistry, 1 year of organic chemistry, 1 semester of biochemistry, and 1 year of physics. I also have a semester in psychology. Engineering courses are all science, so >148 hours.
2. No, I have not received anything lower than a D in any of my classes.
3. I have volunteered at a hospital a long time ago (high school), and I have 3 research publications in biomedical engineering, biophotonics, and medical imaging. During my undergraduate curriculum, I was part of 2 research labs and a Biomedical engineering club.

 

[workaholic181]

1. Do science hours only pertain to the prerequisites? If so, I have 1 year of biology, 1 year of chemistry, 1 year of organic chemistry, 1 semester of biochemistry, and 1 year of physics. I also have a semester in psychology. Engineering courses are all science, so >148 hours.
2. No, I have not received anything lower than a D in any of my classes.
3. I have volunteered at a hospital a long time ago (high school), and I have 3 research publications in biomedical engineering, biophotonics, and medical imaging. During my undergraduate curriculum, I was part of 2 research labs and a Biomedical engineering club.

BCPM includes any bio, and Chem, and physics or math that you took as an undergrad, not just the core pre reqs. Engineering is tricky, but from what I've read most applicants list the entry level engineering as some kind of physics. Check out what amcas says about it. If I were you, Id take the mcat after some serious prep and see what happens. A good mcat, your veteran status could lead to acceptances, especially at Do schools. If you are boning for an MD I would look to do a post bac with linkage when your service is done, or try to take upper division science classes -pref bio- to boost your GPA. You'll also need more relevant and recent Healthcare exposure and shadowing.