ADVICE: Please HELP! [2.42 sGPA 3.43 GPA 35P] Stressed out...

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mhelp

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What are my chances for getting into a US allopathic school? What else can I do if Post-bacc isn't an option for me?

Undergraduate: 2.42 sGPA 2.58 cGPA
Graduate: 3.43 GPA
MCAT: 31P

Lots of research experience with 2 publications.
Clinical experience.
Club Activities.

Also if I apply which schools should I apply to? Thanks!

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Why would post-bacc not be an option? Your chances are nil without some kind of GPA damage control. I would recommend post-bacc classes to raise your GPA to ~3.0, then apply to SMP programs (many have a 3.0 GPA cutoff). If you do extremely well, then apply MD/DO.
 
Realistically? Your more or less in a position where the best choice would be to do a post-bacc get your gpa up to a 3.0 and apply for SMP's. Otherwise you should consider DO. But yes, I don't know what to tell ya.
 
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Honestly, when I was at Mount Sinai, I came across someone (a minority, but still) with abysmal uGPA (we're talking 2.0), but she got a 36 MCAT and a 3.5 in grad school. She got accepted to 12 schools, including Sinai.

Your MCAT score and graduate GPA shows a great change. I would actually consult with someone from admissions and see what they say. You might be more competitive than you think.
 
honestly if I weren't already married and had extremely high expectations placed upon me from my wealthy in-laws, I would definitely do 2 years of post-bacc and bring up my undergrad GPA to above 3. If MD really isn't a possibility I can always go for a DO.
 
Honestly, when I was at Mount Sinai, I came across someone (a minority, but still) with abysmal uGPA (we're talking 2.0), but she got a 36 MCAT and a 3.5 in grad school. She got accepted to 12 schools, including Sinai.

Your MCAT score and graduate GPA shows a great change. I would actually consult with someone from admissions and see what they say. You might be more competitive than you think.

That is really encouraging to hear. I'll do just that and try calling some admission offices. I'll just have to hope for the best and apply for DO schools as back up. Thanks.
 
Are there any extenuating circumstances behind your low uGPA? Is it due to a bad freshman year, or low grades throughout? Are you in a hard science masters program?

I initially had a 4.0 GPA then I received a C during my sophomore year from taking a GE course and I thought it was the end of the world for my goals in becoming a doctor and just got depressed and didn't goto classes anymore.

Looking back... my actions were EXTREMELY naive and foolish but that is life. If I didn't learn it back then, I may have been prone to such a breakdown in med school. I'm glad I learned from the experience just not too happy about how its become a red flag for graduate schools. Anyways, I've accepted that its happened and now I'm just trying to catch up and reach my goals.

If anyone else has advice, I'd really appreciate it all. Thanks again.
 
With the financial limitations you've expressed, I think that US MD schools will not be a realistic goal for you. Caribbean schools are an option, though I think that DO is the best way to go if you want a better chance of snagging the US-based residency spot that you want. The islands, however, would have the advantage of being further from your in-laws' "expectations". Please don't start on this path if the primary reason is to make someone else happy.
 
I wouldn't make DO be your safety net for acceptance. Your low ugpa won't meet the cut-off for their schools. You already know the answer to your problems...fix the gpa to the point where you're not automatically rejected for not meeting certain cut-offs.

I still think you have a shot though.
 
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There are some DO schools that will consider a cGPA of 2.5, but one must meet expectations for a minimal science GPA also, and from what I recall, a C+ is a general expectation for that. As the AACOMAS application merges undergrad GPA and grad GPA (unlike AMCAS) one has hope that at some schools a better grad performance would be taken into consideration.
 
You really do need to fix that undergrad GPA. I have a less than 3.0 undergrad GPA and a high grad GPA, I’m applying this year and I’m hoping they will overlook my undergrad career. But I meet most of the cutoffs so I am not looking to retake the classes.

I know how you feel about retaking classes. It’s really really hard to get a masters degree and then go back to undergrad. I get it, really I do. But you need to suck it up and go back. It’s honestly not an option for you. Show them that you can do at least 2 semesters of straight A's, and then no matter how low your undergrad GPA remains, you will still have an upward trend.

It sucks going backwards, but if you don’t then you will never move forward from this. Just do it and get it over with, don’t waste your money on applying multiple times like I have. If you really want to be a physician you have to do what it takes to get there. By reading your posts I can see that you are persistent, and I hope that you succeed. Good Luck!
 
With the financial limitations you've expressed, I think that US MD schools will not be a realistic goal for you. Caribbean schools are an option, though I think that DO is the best way to go if you want a better chance of snagging the US-based residency spot that you want. The islands, however, would have the advantage of being further from your in-laws' "expectations". Please don't start on this path if the primary reason is to make someone else happy.

I decided to pursue a career in medicine before I got married. Business would be so much more lucrative but I really have my heart set out on helping people as a physician.
 
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I wouldn't make DO be your safety net for acceptance. Your low ugpa won't meet the cut-off for their schools. You already know the answer to your problems...fix the gpa to the point where you're not automatically rejected for not meeting certain cut-offs.

I still think you have a shot though.

I'll just hope for the best this year. The application process is never to be understood but I called a couple DO admissions offices and talked to them about my situation. They were really nice and encouraged me to apply. I know my application will be filtered immediately from some DO schools, but I really do think DO schools will be much more understanding of my situation and see the improvements I've made.
 
Well I've been accepted into several DO schools and will start medical this coming fall. Thank you everyone for the advice.
 
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