Advisor is concerned - what should I do?

[tbornottb]

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I'm sorry if this is the wrong place to post this, but I'm somewhat freaking out about this meeting I had with academic advising on Friday. I really need some solid advice.

I'm finishing up my post-bacc work this year and I haven't had the best advising during my post-bacc saga. I went to academic advising the other day because they have a new advisor and I wanted to talk to him about my plans and also find out more info regarding a committee letter.

My background info: I'm in a formal post-bacc program that I've taken my time with because I wanted to take upper division courses and do research before applying to med school. I didn't take any science courses in college and was completely lost during undergrad. I went to a good school (top ranked liberal arts college) but only graduated with a 3.3. When I graduated I got a job in finance but wasn't passionate about the work I was doing. I lost my best friend to cancer and that experience really changed me. Reading about his cancer got me interested in medicine but I decided to spend some time shadowing my family physician before applying to post-bacc programs.

I had a rocky start with my post-bacc program but I didn't want to give up so I kept at it and my grades improved. My 1st and 2nd semesters I didn't do too well but the advisor I met with told me I wasn't a lost cause so I started working my butt off to pull up my grades.

Cut to my meeting on Friday with the new pre-med advisor - he tells me he is very concerned about my grades and how I will perform on the MCAT (note that I haven't taken the MCAT yet). He also said it's bad that I'm taking Physics II in the spring and then the MCAT in April (even though the other advisor told me this was fine). So now I'm very nervous. This is my dream and I invested a lot into this post-bacc program, but now I feel like an idiot. This advisor just completely smashed any shred of confidence I had 🙁

Here's what my post-bacc coursework and grades look like. Sorry this post is so long!

1st Semester:
Intro Bio I: B
Intro Bio Lab I: B+
Gen Chem I: B+
Calc I: B+

2nd semester:
Gen Chem II: C+
Gen Chem Lab I: B
Gen Chem Lab II: B
Intro Bio II: A

Summer coursework:
Intro Bio Lab II: A
Intro Neuroscience: A

3rd semester:
Cell Bio: A
Upper division Neuro: A
Upper division Genetics: A
Microbio: A

4th semester:
Orgo I: B+
Upper division Physiology: A
Immunology (offered as an upper division Bio course): A

Summer II:
Spent this summer doing research, took only one course
Orgo Lab: B+

5th semester (what I’m taking right now):
Orgo II
Physics I
Physics I Lab

*next semester will be my last, I will take Physics II and its lab component. My plan was to take the MCAT in April 2013 and apply early. I also wanted to take Biochemistry during the summer.

 

[AdrianVeidt]

??? Grades look fine to me. Your advisor is a hater no doubt. Don't be discouraged; you made straight A's taking basically 4 upper division biology classes, you're not stupid. Work on your general chemistry, do good in physics and you'll thoroughly be able to have sex with MCAT no problem.

 

[MedPR]

Looks fine to me.

 

[ShenanigansMD]

I remember the fear that flowed through me with my advisor, as she power tripped on telling me my faults on switching to Pre-Med. And then she employed the usual doublethink that goes on behind telling pre-meds what to do:

You have to do volunteering, research, and shadowing - BUT don't make it look like you're checking off boxes!!!!!!!

Ugh, undergrad was scary. OP just avoid the C+ grades and you'll be fine.

 

[tbornottb]

Thanks so much for your advice. He really freaked me out. I know chem is not my strong suit. It was really tough for me to even pull a B+ in Orgo. I don't know if I should re-take Gen Chem II since I got a C+, I was originally told not to

 

[Lucky Louie]

You have a great story. I think the new advisor is mostly worried about how you'll do with the MCAT, and the fact that when you plan to take the MCAT, you'll be in the midst of the Physics II course. Maybe the advisor wanted to see you take a prep class, or during the summer. But, nah. You're looking good. Just be sure you're ready for the MCAT. That'll be the best test to see whether you're ready for med school.

 

[Moosepig]

You're good brother.

Get out there and attain your dreams.

 

[Eiot]

Looks fine to me.

The best lesson to take from this is most advisors are crap. You'll likely learn more from this website/those actually in med. school than you would from a typical advisor.

~edit~ Why is it telling me the word "advisor" is spelled incorrectly, but "adviser" is fine?

 

[music2doc]

I'm sorry if this is the wrong place to post this, but I'm somewhat freaking out about this meeting I had with academic advising on Friday. I really need some solid advice.

I'm finishing up my post-bacc work this year and I haven't had the best advising during my post-bacc saga. I went to academic advising the other day because they have a new advisor and I wanted to talk to him about my plans and also find out more info regarding a committee letter.

My background info: I'm in a formal post-bacc program that I've taken my time with because I wanted to take upper division courses and do research before applying to med school. I didn't take any science courses in college and was completely lost during undergrad. I went to a good school (top ranked liberal arts college) but only graduated with a 3.3. When I graduated I got a job in finance but wasn't passionate about the work I was doing. I lost my best friend to cancer and that experience really changed me. Reading about his cancer got me interested in medicine but I decided to spend some time shadowing my family physician before applying to post-bacc programs.

I had a rocky start with my post-bacc program but I didn't want to give up so I kept at it and my grades improved. My 1st and 2nd semesters I didn't do too well but the advisor I met with told me I wasn't a lost cause so I started working my butt off to pull up my grades.

Cut to my meeting on Friday with the new pre-med advisor - he tells me he is very concerned about my grades and how I will perform on the MCAT (note that I haven't taken the MCAT yet). He also said it's bad that I'm taking Physics II in the spring and then the MCAT in April (even though the other advisor told me this was fine). So now I'm very nervous. This is my dream and I invested a lot into this post-bacc program, but now I feel like an idiot. This advisor just completely smashed any shred of confidence I had 🙁

Here's what my post-bacc coursework and grades look like. Sorry this post is so long!

1st Semester:
Intro Bio I: B
Intro Bio Lab I: B+
Gen Chem I: B+
Calc I: B+
2nd semester:
Gen Chem II: C+
Gen Chem Lab I: B
Gen Chem Lab II: B
Intro Bio II: A

Summer coursework:
Intro Bio Lab II: A
Intro Neuroscience: A

3rd semester:
Cell Bio: A
Upper division Neuro: A
Upper division Genetics: A
Microbio: A

4th semester:
Orgo I: B+
Upper division Physiology: A
Immunology (offered as an upper division Bio course): A

Summer II:
Spent this summer doing research, took only one course
Orgo Lab: B+

5th semester (what I'm taking right now):
Orgo II
Physics I
Physics I Lab

*next semester will be my last, I will take Physics II and its lab component. My plan was to take the MCAT in April 2013 and apply early. I also wanted to take Biochemistry during the summer.

To be honest, I'm not as hopeful as the pre-meds who've responded so far. Your advisor is right to be "concerned" -- at least at first glance -- although I would not say you are doomed or anything. A 3.3 UG GPA puts you in a pretty bad place to begin with. Your PB GPA could help that, but your grades do seem a bit "colorful" and some secondaries will ask for just your prereq grades (which happened to be many of your worst grades). You basically seem to have an uneven knowledge base and that may worry some adcom members who would then likely look to other candidates instead when it comes to interviews. I would work hard to get your last few prereqs in with solid grades. Your chem background is especially concerning with a B and then a C+. That will likely draw some questions should you get to the interview stage.

That all said, I think the rest of your app will make up for the numbers issues and when I look closely at your grades, it looks like you'll probably be fine. Do you know what your sGPA ends up being? If it's over about 3.6 for the PB, I'd discard any "concerns" your advisor has.

Anyway, best of luck. Let us know how the MCAT goes!

 

[BABSstudent]

Study hard for the MCAT and rock it. Your grades look fine to me, even if they are lower than what you would want. You have a nice upward trend there!

The only thing I would be worried about is gen chem on the MCAT. You will have to focus on studying that really well. Also, since you won't complete physics by the time you take the MCAT, you will have to work hard to learn the material before you take the test. I suggest maybe pushing the test date back to the June date to ensure you get as much time to study physics and gen chem before the MCAT.

It's your dream, so go out and do it. Get a 30+ on the test and you will be a medical student the following year.

 

[tbornottb]

To be honest, I'm not as hopeful as the pre-meds who've responded so far. Your advisor is right to be "concerned" -- at least at first glance -- although I would not say you are doomed or anything. A 3.3 UG GPA puts you in a pretty bad place to begin with. Your PB GPA could help that, but your grades do seem a bit "colorful" and some secondaries will ask for just your prereq grades (which happened to be many of your worst grades). You basically seem to have an uneven knowledge base and that may worry some adcom members who would then likely look to other candidates instead when it comes to interviews. I would work hard to get your last few prereqs in with solid grades. Your chem background is especially concerning with a B and then a C+. That will likely draw some questions should you get to the interview stage.

That all said, I think the rest of your app will make up for the numbers issues and when I look closely at your grades, it looks like you'll probably be fine. Do you know what your sGPA ends up being? If it's over about 3.6 for the PB, I'd discard any "concerns" your advisor has.

Anyway, best of luck. Let us know how the MCAT goes!

Thanks for your honesty. I know the 3.3 UG GPA hurts, I would do anything to go back and do it over again if I could. Right now my science GPA works out to a 3.63 but if I ace physics and Orgo II (I know this will be tough but that's my goal), then I'll get it up to a 3.7

 

[tbornottb]

Thanks for the advice everyone!

 

[BABSstudent]

If you get a 3.7 sGPA you will be fine. And how many years separate your undergrad from your post-bacc?

 

[ClemsonFirst]

If you aren't hell bent on MD you can always go to a DO school with those grades for sure.

 

[mzarrowsmith]

Taking MCAT before you finish Physics 2 puts in a slightly tough spot b/c some of those random topics tend to appear a lot on MCAT (mirrors, sound, etc.) I think I'd switch to a June or July MCAT.

As far as the grades, there's no point in concluding that you won't do well based on those. Review the content, take practice exams and see how you do. I think it's quite possible to do well on MCAT without great grades because the question style is very different. Buy the Official Guide to the MCAT and start getting a sense of where your weaknesses are. When you do well, send a copy of your score report to this doubting Thomas.

 

[hmoactktey]

I agree with what a few other people have said here, you should maybe think about pushing your MCAT back until after you are done with Physics II. Keep in mind that the physical sciences section of the MCAT is gen chem and physics. Just based on your grades, Gen Chem appears to be your weakest subject, so you are going to want to do better on the physics part in order to balance that out. This will be tough if you aren't finished learning all of the material. Taking the MCAT in May or early June wouldn't really hurt you as far as submitting your applications reasonably early, but it would allow you to get a better grasp on the physics. Something to think about.

Do well on the MCAT and you will be fine. Good luck!

 

[AdrianVeidt]

I agree with what a few other people have said here, you should maybe think about pushing your MCAT back until after you are done with Physics II. Keep in mind that the physical sciences section of the MCAT is gen chem and physics. Just based on your grades, Gen Chem appears to be your weakest subject, so you are going to want to do better on the physics part in order to balance that out. This will be tough if you aren't finished learning all of the material. Taking the MCAT in May or early June wouldn't really hurt you as far as submitting your applications reasonably early, but it would allow you to get a better grasp on the physics. Something to think about.

Do well on the MCAT and you will be fine. Good luck!

If OP's semester ends in say early May, does 2-3 weeks of class really matter if he takes the MCAT in mid-April?

 

[mcworbust]

Thanks for your honesty. I know the 3.3 UG GPA hurts, I would do anything to go back and do it over again if I could. Right now my science GPA works out to a 3.63 but if I ace physics and Orgo II (I know this will be tough but that's my goal), then I'll get it up to a 3.7

Seriously disregard the negativity from your advisor - have confidence in yourself! You've worked hard done well, especially recently, and when you rock the MCAT I hope you shove it up your advisor's ***. Also, the life experiences you've had will be a positive for admissions committees, and your rise in post bacc GPA will be looked upon favorably by admin committees.

My premed advisor turned me away from medicine after my first semester freshman year 3.3 - it delayed my application to med school for two years and I regret taking her advice. I hate to see others discouraged by misinformed, negative advisors that don't know anything, and I sincerely hope you make it (and believe you will) in spite of what your advisor thinks

Just take everyone's premed advice with a grain of salt, good luck

 

[BABSstudent]

If OP's semester ends in say early May, does 2-3 weeks of class really matter if he takes the MCAT in mid-April?

If the OP takes the MCAT in mid-April and ends classes in May, that means the OP will be studying during the semester. This could be difficult since his grades in gen chem suggest the need to study a lot.

I took the June test and got my scores back in July. I have 5 interviews so far, so it doesn't seem to be hurting me too much.

 

[Ser Demetrius]

your grades aren't the best....




Worst case scenario, you retake the "c" and go DO.

 

[FSU2013]

Your grades aren't awesome, but they're not bad either; plus you had some research. If you can do something clinical and muster a solid MCAT score, you should be fine. You may not get into Harvard, but you will get in somewhere - maybe DO, either way, you'll be fine. And I'd hate to make light of your friends awful misfortune, but it sounds like it could allow you to write a PS that could be compelling.

tl;dnr - Haters gon hate.

 

[occams_razor]

with a 3.7 BCPM and if you can get a good MCAT, MD is still attainable.

Personally I think the upward trend and doing well in upper level coursework looks better than if you have all A's in pre-reqs but then B's in upper level courses

Killing the MCAT is going to be vital. If you're not prepared to take it in April, don't chance it.

Also take Biochem and get an A!

 

[aloepathic]

Do you have a linkage program at your PB? If so I would strongly recommend you look into it (guaranteed an interview, get a chance to explain, sounds like you have a cool story anyway).

If not, you are certainly not a lost cause, you'll just have some 'splainin to do re your first year (which it sounds like there is a reasonable explanation for). Hope you're a good writer though, your essay is going to play a huge role here.

 

[SadieDoc]

I am in a similar boat as you. Post bacc career changer with an "eh" GPA from my first degree. Your grades show a great upward trend - keep it up! I do concur with previous posts about postponing the MCAT. I know the frustration of being an older student and just wanting to apply already! But truth is our "past life" GPAs will haunt us till the day we hold an acceptance letter in our hands (and we will!)
Just one more thought, maybe it's just my experience but my premed advisor is the most negative, holier than thou person I've ever met. Recently found out he was a premed in undergrad and bombed his mcat. Now his life is teaching Gen Bio 1 and discouraging smart, capable, well-rounded students like you and I. Screw 'em! 😉 you're on the right track- best of luck! Keep us updated!

 

[drizzt3117]

Do you have a linkage program at your PB? If so I would strongly recommend you look into it (guaranteed an interview, get a chance to explain, sounds like you have a cool story anyway).

If not, you are certainly not a lost cause, you'll just have some 'splainin to do re your first year (which it sounds like there is a reasonable explanation for). Hope you're a good writer though, your essay is going to play a huge role here.

Linkage typically requires completing all the prereqs in one year, except perhaps at Columbia where you can take two. The OP isn't following the normal postbac track.

 

[tbornottb]

thanks for all the helpful responses!