Advice on what to do

[Zach Blader]

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Hey guys. I'm going to a regular old safe college here in North Carolina. Before that I went to a community college and got grades all across the A-F spectrum. The only two F's I have are from immaturity. I signed up for classes and never went, not once, and didn't drop them of course. I did just recently end up getting my AA at this community college before I transferred to my university. My major at my safe college is Computer Science, my minor is psychology. My cumulative GPA from the community college is 2.81. If I retake the classes I made F's in, then my GPA at the community college will be a 3.19 -Anyways, Do I stand a fighting chance becoming a psychiatrist, going into a university as a junior majoring in computer science with a GPA of 2.81 from the CC? Should I retake the failed classes, at CC or Uni, at all?

Here are the classes from community college.


ENG-232 402 American Literature II
A
3.00


CIS-110 302 Introduction to Computers
A
3.00


COM-231 204 Public Speaking
A
3.00


BIO-112 721 General Biology II
B
4.00


BIO-111 711 General Biology I
A
4.00


ENG-113 241 Literature-Based Research
C
3.00


DRA-111 512WB Theatre Appreciation
B
3.00


MAT-140 341 Survey of Mathematics
C
3.00


MAT-140A 341 Survey of Mathematics Lab
C
1.00


REL-211 511TR Intro to Old Testament
C
3.00


SOC-210 511WB Introduction to Sociology
B
3.00


BIO-169 401 Anatomy and Physiology II
F
0.00


BIO-175 401 General Microbiology
F
0.00


ENG-113 402 Literature-Based Research
W
0.00


HEA-112 201 First Aid & CPR
A
2.00


ART-111 OL2 Art Appreciation
A
3.00


ACA-115 WB03 Success & Study Skills
B
1.00


BIO-168 HY04 Anatomy and Physiology I
C
4.00


ENG-111 WB11 Expository Writing
B
3.00


PSY-241 HY01 Developmental Psych
A
3.00


HIS-236 BHS50 North Carolina History
B
3.00


PSY-281 BHS50 Abnormal Psychology
B
3.00


HIS-112 BHS50 World Civilizations II
B
3.00


PSY-211 BHS50 Psychology of Adjustment
B
3.00


HIS-111 BHS50 World Civilizations I
B
3.00


PSY-150 BHS50 General Psychology
B
3.00

 

[Frazier]

The hurdle at this stage would be getting into medical school. Your past academic performance needs amelioration.

I believe DO schools permit grade replacement.

Replacing the bad grades completely might be your best bet.

Everything should be done at a university at this point -- some schools don't accept prereqs that were completed at a community college...so there is that.

You would find more advice if you posted this in the pre-med forums. The fact you like psychiatry is irrelevant when the real problem is just getting past admissions.

 

[Zach Blader]

Thanks, I'll post it there. But since you gave me some information, I will say that I'll definitely retake the two failed classes. If I took them at university level, would my community college accept them on their transcripts? Also, even though getting past admissions is the focus, are there limits on becoming a psychiatrist after getting into medical school? Maybe I'm wrong but I thought once you got in medical school everything was a go.

 

[Frazier]

Thanks, I'll post it there. But since you gave me some information, I will say that I'll definitely retake the two failed classes. If I took them at university level, would my community college accept them on their transcripts? Also, even though getting past admissions is the focus, are there limits on becoming a psychiatrist after getting into medical school? Maybe I'm wrong but I thought once you got in medical school everything was a go.

I don't know if the community college would "accept them on their transcripts". That said, I don't know why they would need to.

When you apply, you will plug all your grades across all institutions into your online medical school application.

The overseeing entity that runs the admission process will then work your transcript, calculating your various GPA's, and factoring in grade replacement via retakes.

Now something I didn't think of in my earlier post: if you are trying to replace a grade, you might need to take the same exact class at the same exact insitution (in opposition to its equivalent course at the university). You would be much better off asking on the Pre-Osteo subforum for premeds about the intricacies of grade replacement. http://forums.studentdoctor.net/forums/pre-medical-osteopathic-do.13/

In regards to your last question, getting into medical school is the first hurdle, then you need to pass all your classes and board exams, then apply to residency.

Different medical specialties have different competitiveness inherent to their application process.

For example, it is much harder to obtain a plastic surgery residency position to become a plastic surgeon than it is to obtain a psychiatry residency position and become a psychiatrist.

So, in that sense, if you really like psych and pass all your medical school courses -- then, yes, for all intents and purposes, becoming a psychiatrist will be a go without any major roadblocks as you would be hard-pressed to not match a spot anywhere in the US.

Of course with psychiatry, and all other medical specialties, if you are aspiring to complete your residency at the top institutions (Harvard/Columbia/etc.) then the competition is stiff and you will need to build up a powerful application while in medical school rather than just coast.

 

[Zach Blader]

I understand, and thanks for letting me draw this out. The information is great. Psychiatry then, is a go unless it's at a top institution, which I'm not interested in compared to another institution. I also get your point about the entity plugging in any replaced grades. I'll make a new thread later on in the Pre-Osteo subforum to find out more.

So once you get into medical school, it's four years of classes, exams, then four years of residency/training.
Got it.

Like I said earlier, I'd like to get my bachelors in CS while minoring in Psychology. Since I am doing that, I think it's best to then join a Post-Baccalaureate Pre-med Program after graduation..

Anyways, last thing... I know I'm thinking far in the future, and while I don't doubt my goals will change, I want to make sure I'm not missing out preparing for premed school. (Besides the classes, which I'll take during the post-baccalaureate) Do I need to start working on anything at this moment, like my thesis? Or can all the application requirements be done while getting the post-bac?

 

[BarryZuckerkorn]

Start studying for the new MCAT...

https://www.aamc.org/students/applying/mcat/mcat2015/

 

[TexasPhysician]

Moving to pre-med as there is no way to gauge chances of residency pre-medical school.