Advice on Schools for Non Trad Student With Upward Trajectory

[boogiechilling]

Hi All,

I'm currently working on a post-bacc and have about 29 unenrolled credits, plus another 15 credits from this current semester and 8 graduate credits I'm waiting on grades for. I had a pretty terrible gpa in undergrad, but have done a lot of work to show and upward trajectory. I'll be nearly nearly 30 when I apply to medical school....if that matters. These are my current stats:

Post Bacc GPA: 3.76
Science GPA: 3.35 (there are two c's from my undergrad which have brought this down, but the rest of my courses are hard science so I'm hoping this will improve)
Cumulative GPA: 2.58
Undergrad GPA: 2.17

I'm hoping that with the remaining 52 credits I'll be able to bring my cumulative up to a 3.0. I'm worried that a cumulative with a 2 in front of it will mean that my application is thrown immediately in the bin.

Extra curriculars include volunteering with HIV/AIDS patients & volunteering on the current vaccination effort. I also was recently certified as an EMT and trained in wilderness first aid & SAR. I'm looking for clinical hours, ride alongs, work, whatever relating to that but it's been tricky in the pandemic. I'm interested in working in low income/rural healthcare, possibly specializing in psychiatry.

I'm looking at DO schools, because that seems like my best option given my grades. But I'd also like to put some feelers out for recommendations of any MD schools that may not immediately reject me. I don't have an advisor, so i'm really just looking for a jump off to do a bit of research of my own. There are so many medical schools in the US I'm not quite sure where to start.

Thanks in advance.
- M

Edit: I'm not sure if this makes a difference but I hold a BA in Photography. All of my undergrad classes were art conservatory classes. So my post-bacc is a total change of pace

 

[acstylin]

I had a similar story with three years of bad grades followed by 3 years of good grades and barely got my GPA over a 3.0. Good MCAT. I got a LOT of rejections from MDs. I ended up with an I then an A from my state school and one in TX (I think I was super lucky there as I’m not a TX resident). I got a lot of love from DOs. The moral, you’ll probably have the best luck with your state schools but that GPA has to be above 3.0 in all cases if 3.0 is the minimum at MDs- at least that’s the story I got from adcoms. DOs will love the come back story though.

 

[GreenDuck12]

Hi All,

I'm currently working on a post-bacc and have about 29 unenrolled credits, plus another 15 credits from this current semester and 8 graduate credits I'm waiting on grades for. I had a pretty terrible gpa in undergrad, but have done a lot of work to show and upward trajectory. I'll be nearly nearly 30 when I apply to medical school....if that matters. These are my current stats:

Post Bacc GPA: 3.76
Science GPA: 3.35 (there are two c's from my undergrad which have brought this down, but the rest of my courses are hard science so I'm hoping this will improve)
Cumulative GPA: 2.58
Undergrad GPA: 2.17

I'm hoping that with the remaining 52 credits I'll be able to bring my cumulative up to a 3.0. I'm worried that a cumulative with a 2 in front of it will mean that my application is thrown immediately in the bin.

Extra curriculars include volunteering with HIV/AIDS patients & volunteering on the current vaccination effort. I also was recently certified as an EMT and trained in wilderness first aid & SAR. I'm looking for clinical hours, ride alongs, work, whatever relating to that but it's been tricky in the pandemic. I'm interested in working in low income/rural healthcare, possibly specializing in psychiatry.

I'm looking at DO schools, because that seems like my best option given my grades. But I'd also like to put some feelers out for recommendations of any MD schools that may not immediately reject me. I don't have an advisor, so i'm really just looking for a jump off to do a bit of research of my own. There are so many medical schools in the US I'm not quite sure where to start.

Thanks in advance.
- M

It’s unlikely you’ll get much love from MD programs outside of your home state. what’s your state of residence? i think you are correct in worrying about a sub 3.0 GPA as many programs do have minimum cutoffs. Simply put there are far too many qualified applicants with higher stats. A GPA above a 3.0 helps, as does a strong MCAT score. Once you have those pieces you can get better advice for schools to apply to.

 

[boogiechilling]

It’s unlikely you’ll get much love from MD programs outside of your home state. what’s your state of residence? i think you are correct in worrying about a sub 3.0 GPA as many programs do have minimum cutoffs. Simply put there are far too many qualified applicants with higher stats. A GPA above a 3.0 helps, as does a strong MCAT score. Once you have those pieces you can get better advice for schools to apply to.

My home state is California...which doesn't help me much considering it's the land of the 4.0 med school applicant ha

 

[GreenDuck12]

My home state is California...which doesn't help me much considering it's the land of the 4.0 med school applicant ha

Ouch. You could look into moving to a less competitive state but honestly DO is the path of least resistance and can get you where you need to go.

 

[Goro]

Hi All,

I'm currently working on a post-bacc and have about 29 unenrolled credits, plus another 15 credits from this current semester and 8 graduate credits I'm waiting on grades for. I had a pretty terrible gpa in undergrad, but have done a lot of work to show and upward trajectory. I'll be nearly nearly 30 when I apply to medical school....if that matters. These are my current stats:

Post Bacc GPA: 3.76
Science GPA: 3.35 (there are two c's from my undergrad which have brought this down, but the rest of my courses are hard science so I'm hoping this will improve)
Cumulative GPA: 2.58
Undergrad GPA: 2.17

I'm hoping that with the remaining 52 credits I'll be able to bring my cumulative up to a 3.0. I'm worried that a cumulative with a 2 in front of it will mean that my application is thrown immediately in the bin.

Extra curriculars include volunteering with HIV/AIDS patients & volunteering on the current vaccination effort. I also was recently certified as an EMT and trained in wilderness first aid & SAR. I'm looking for clinical hours, ride alongs, work, whatever relating to that but it's been tricky in the pandemic. I'm interested in working in low income/rural healthcare, possibly specializing in psychiatry.

I'm looking at DO schools, because that seems like my best option given my grades. But I'd also like to put some feelers out for recommendations of any MD schools that may not immediately reject me. I don't have an advisor, so i'm really just looking for a jump off to do a bit of research of my own. There are so many medical schools in the US I'm not quite sure where to start.

Thanks in advance.
- M

Edit: I'm not sure if this makes a difference but I hold a BA in Photography. All of my undergrad classes were art conservatory classes. So my post-bacc is a total change of pace

Your trajectory is great!!! With a strong MCAT, MD can be on the table as well.

 

[boogiechilling]

Your trajectory is great!!! With a strong MCAT, MD can be on the table as well.

Thats really good to hear from a faculty member thank you! I keep thinking that it's a hopeless cause and that my undergrad degree will haunt me for the rest of my academic life.