Advice! - stats for PT good enough to pursue MD?

[JNSmith]

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Hi all! I've been contemplating between pursuing physical therapy and med school, and was wondering if I could get some input regarding my chances and stats. I'm currently in the process of wrapping up my last pre-med prereqs for PT school, which thankfully happen to be the same prereqs for med school (with the exception of o-chem).

I currently have a 4.0 science GPA, which includes physics, A&P, general chem, general bio, stats and psych. My overall GPA is a tad lower, thanks to my undergrad years, and is about a 3.3. I haven't taken the MCAT yet, but have taken the GRE. In terms of EC's - most of my extracurricular's are based around the physical therapy profession, and I'm afraid I have no research or lab EC's. I initially began pursuing physical therapy, but don't want to feel as though I'm settling with something because I'm afraid I won't get into med school. Any advice? Do you think I'd have at least a chance to get into med school with my GPA stats and lack of EC's? If not, anything I could do to improve them?

I plan on taking o-chem this upcoming school year, so I will begin in the fall and finish in June 2013. If I do pursue the MD route, should I wait to apply to med school after I finish o-chem, or would it be safe to apply this upcoming application season for admittance immediately after I complete the o-chem series?

Thanks in advance, I truly appreciate any feedback!

 

[235788]

Hi all! I've been contemplating between pursuing physical therapy and med school, and was wondering if I could get some input regarding my chances and stats. I'm currently in the process of wrapping up my last pre-med prereqs for PT school, which thankfully happen to be the same prereqs for med school (with the exception of o-chem).

I currently have a 4.0 science GPA, which includes physics, A&P, general chem, general bio, stats and psych. My overall GPA is a tad lower, thanks to my undergrad years, and is about a 3.3. I haven't taken the MCAT yet, but have taken the GRE. In terms of EC's - most of my extracurricular's are based around the physical therapy profession, and I'm afraid I have no research or lab EC's. I initially began pursuing physical therapy, but don't want to feel as though I'm settling with something because I'm afraid I won't get into med school. Any advice? Do you think I'd have at least a chance to get into med school with my GPA stats and lack of EC's? If not, anything I could do to improve them?

I plan on taking o-chem this upcoming school year, so I will begin in the fall and finish in June 2013. If I do pursue the MD route, should I wait to apply to med school after I finish o-chem, or would it be safe to apply this upcoming application season for admittance immediately after I complete the o-chem series?

Thanks in advance, I truly appreciate any feedback!

ehh 3.3 is low. Consider DO.

 

[sector9]

Moving to "What are my chances"

 

[Catalystik]

Hi all! I've been contemplating between pursuing physical therapy and med school, and was wondering if I could get some input regarding my chances and stats. I'm currently in the process of wrapping up my last pre-med prereqs for PT school, which thankfully happen to be the same prereqs for med school (with the exception of o-chem).

I currently have a 4.0 science GPA, which includes physics, A&P, general chem, general bio, stats and psych. My overall GPA is a tad lower, thanks to my undergrad years, and is about a 3.3. I haven't taken the MCAT yet, but have taken the GRE. In terms of EC's - most of my extracurricular's are based around the physical therapy profession, and I'm afraid I have no research or lab EC's. I initially began pursuing physical therapy, but don't want to feel as though I'm settling with something because I'm afraid I won't get into med school. Any advice? Do you think I'd have at least a chance to get into med school with my GPA stats and lack of EC's? If not, anything I could do to improve them?

I plan on taking o-chem this upcoming school year, so I will begin in the fall and finish in June 2013. If I do pursue the MD route, should I wait to apply to med school after I finish o-chem, or would it be safe to apply this upcoming application season for admittance immediately after I complete the o-chem series?

Thanks in advance, I truly appreciate any feedback!

Do your undergrad grades show an upward grade trend? What was the GPA for each of the junior and senior years? Historically are you a very strong test taker?

One does not generally take the MCAT until the prerequisites are completed and one has done some dedicated study for 2-3 months. So, when would you have completed OChem II? Then, it takes a month to get the score back. Your application would be at a disadvantage if you submit your application after August 1.

Any plan for more upper-level Bio and Biochem?

Do you have any experience related to taking care of patients? Any nonmedical community service? Leadership or teaching? Research experience isn't required, but 73% of applicants did list it.

Psych is not included in the BCPM. The P stands for Physics alones.

 

[JNSmith]

Thank you for your thoughtful response, Catalystik. My grades do indeed show an upward trend, as I'm afraid the low GPA is due to my sophomore year. On average, my GPA for my junior and senior years is about a 3.5 and my post baccalaureate is a solid 4.0. As for test taking, yes, I am historically a pretty strong test taker.

I would not complete OChem II until June 2013, so I guess I wouldn't be able to take the MCAT's until after that I'm afraid. Which would then push my application back until 2014 - making me older than I had anticipated at the time of beginning school. I didn't know that the MCATs should be taken after ALL prereqs are complete - so thank you for sharing that!

Upper level bio and biochem could definitely be taken if they will enhance my application, especially since I'll have another entire year off between taking the MCATs and applying.

As far as EC's go - I have patient experience within the physical therapy field. I have quite a bit of nonmedical community service that I've done for fun over the years, and because I was a business administration major during my undergrad years, I have upper division leadership classes as well as management work experience within the sports field.

 

[Catalystik]

As has been pointed out, your cGPA is on the low side for MD schools, but that can be countered with a strong upward grade trend (at many schools), a very high MCAT score, additional postbac work with high grades, terrific ECs, SMP, etc. You might take a look at sector9's sticky at the top of this forum to get an idea of MD outcomes with various MCAT scenarios and your likely cGPA at the time of application.

Since many med schools will also prefer to see Biochem, and some upper-level Bio on your transcript when you apply, be sure you are aware of what needs to get done for the schools you most wish to target. Personally, I'd suggest doing it anyway to have a headstart for the intense MS-1 year. These need not be complete before you apply, but you should list them as future plans and send reports of grades in an update letter.

Some versions of the MCAT don't have much OChem II, so it is possible to do well without that prerequisite. If you had a light course load next spring, you might study for the MCAT simultaneously with taking OChem II and take the test in May 2013 to stay on track for applying summer 2013.

Patient experience in the PT realm is transferable to med school applications, but you'd want to augment that with some experience with sick and acutely injured folks. A long duration of being involved in nonmedical community service will benefit you. Leadership is also a plus.

 

[HotandCold]

As has been pointed out, your cGPA is on the low side for MD schools, but that can be countered with a strong upward grade trend (at many schools), a very high MCAT score, additional postbac work with high grades, terrific ECs, SMP, etc. You might take a look at sector9's sticky at the top of this forum to get an idea of MD outcomes with various MCAT scenarios and your likely cGPA at the time of application.

Since many med schools will also prefer to see Biochem, and some upper-level Bio on your transcript when you apply, be sure you are aware of what needs to get done for the schools you most wish to target. Personally, I'd suggest doing it anyway to have a headstart for the intense MS-1 year. These need not be complete before you apply, but you should list them as future plans and send reports of grades in an update letter.

Some versions of the MCAT don't have much OChem II, so it is possible to do well without that prerequisite. If you had a light course load next spring, you might study for the MCAT simultaneously with taking OChem II and take the test in May 2013 to stay on track for applying summer 2013.

Patient experience in the PT realm is transferable to med school applications, but you'd want to augment that with some experience with sick and acutely injured folks. A long duration of being involved in nonmedical community service will benefit you. Leadership is also a plus.

Mine had next to none. And little OChem in general. I can vouch for this, Orgo on the MCAT from the word round the street is decreasing, and not having taken Ochem 2 (if you review the material) shouldn't hurt you. Ochem 2 class for me was all about mechanisms. Nothing like that was relevant for my MCAT.

 

[Scalpels]

Mine had next to none. And little OChem in general. I can vouch for this, Orgo on the MCAT from the word round the street is decreasing, and not having taken Ochem 2 (if you review the material) shouldn't hurt you. Ochem 2 class for me was all about mechanisms. Nothing like that was relevant for my MCAT.

Really! I would've thought the MCAT would be riddled with OrgChem questions.

I'm still over a year from having to take it, so I'm not totally sure the exact questions on there. I think I'll be just before they do the upcoming section changes, though.

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Good luck, OP! That's great about your post-bacc GPA.

 

[JNSmith]

Thank you all for your responses! I think I've figured out a plan, and am aiming to take the MCAT in April of next year. I have some updated stats and EC's that I thought I'd post and get some feedback on. The only prereq I have left is the Ochem series, which will be taken beginning fall of this upcoming school year.

Currently:
cGPA: 3.40
sGPA: 3.75
post-bacc GPA: 4.00
MCAT: not yet taken

EC's:
125 hours working as PT aide in an outpatient clinic
50 hours volunteering at Guide Dogs for the Blind
President's Honor Roll all of post-bacc
4 years work experience for multiple sports teams, including a collegiate athletic dept.
Lead a team of 30 student interns during my time at the athletic department
Lead a team of 10-20 interns (depended on the year) during my 2 years with a local minor league baseball team
Marketing manager for the Sports Business Club during my time in undergrad
Am currently running in a half marathon to benefit and raise funds for As Our Own - an organization that rescues children from slavery in India

I also have the opportunity to begin accumulating volunteer hours within an ER and will shadow an MD beginning this summer. Should I aim to include anything else in terms of my EC's? I want to put my best foot forward during next year's application process, knowing that my core GPA is on the "low" side and I am not a traditional student.

 

[Catalystik]

What did you decide about research?

 

[JNSmith]

I looked into OHSU volunteer research and it seems they have a great program that I will be filling out an application for this summer. The research is for 4 hours/week for 4 months. Would that be sufficient research exposure or should I consider additional hours?

 

[Catalystik]

A semester's worth is fine. If you find that you like it, leave the door open to continuing for the next semester.