am i as bad as i think i am?

[DrBravesgirl]

hey guys...i've been keeping up with the forums for a while, although this is my first post...i have a question for everyone..i've got a 3.4 cumulative gpa (3.2 bcpm, although it's on an upward trend--3.7 over the past two semesters), tons of EC's (research, volunteer work, leadership stuff), an essay i've been told by my english profs is excellent (and explains my weak gpa),and i got a 27Q (all 9's) on this past mcat..i'm re-taking it in august (i took a kaplan course the first time, now i got the whole TPR set of books, as well as the nova physics book to help me out)..two things i want you wise SDNers opinions about:
1) with less than two months to go until the test, with the materials i've got, if i devote a good 25-30 hrs a week to studying, think i can bring it up to at least 10's in each section? (i think i froze on verbal, but bio and physical were about where my practice test scores had me)
2) with my stats, and given that i'm taking the august mcat, does it look good for me? i'm applying to 20 schools (a good mix of a couple "upper" tiers, middle tiers, and "lower" tiers)..i'd go anywhere i got in, but i would love to go to tulane (i have ties there) or if i get lucky, southern cal....any thoughts/feedback/inspiration for me? thanks!

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[djsash]

ok i think baseball sucks its not even an sport but i think even with your applic now without retaking the august you will be fine and you will get in,,,although med school do have a certain avg of gpa and mcat after that getting the interview is mostly how your letters of rec are..personally i think those are the most import things...i asked three of the medical schools in the country...so don't worry smiiiiiiiiiiiiilllllllel if you realy want it you will get in
good luck

 

[Papa Smurf]

Pros: 3.7 SGPA over the last two years
EC activities

Cons: 3.2 overall SGPA
3.4 Cumulative GPA
27MCAT

What school are u coming from? A GPA w/o a school designation is of no use. Retake MCAT, get a 30, and you should be able to get in. 2 months is plenty of time to raise your score 3 points. 30 hrs a week is excessive IMO, but my study habits are beyond pathetic so don't listen to me. I'm afraid that if you don't improve on that 27, you may not get many invites, and if you do, you'll be relegated to waitlists.

 

[DrBravesgirl]

papa smurf--

i'm at tulane right now...not ivy league, but a pretty tough school (or at least, i think so, lol) in its own right..from what my premed advisor told me, i've got glowing recs, too. will that help the cons?
ugh, if i'm this stressed now, what's going to happen once interviews and etc. (i hope!) start coming around??!!!??

 

[jlw2004]

People do get into med school with less than a 3.8 GPA. I had a 3.18 GPA, sent out 4 applications, got 2 interviews and 2 acceptances.

I think you can probably raise your MCAT scores if you devote major time to it over the summer. I would recommend doing as many MCAT style multiple choice questions as possible (Kaplan, Examkrackers, COlumbia Review). Studying the same way you studied the first time around (unless you feel you didn't get through what you wanted) probably won't change your score much. Studying differently may be the trick. I'll repeat myself -- the more questions you can do, the better! Just MHO.

 

[Doctora Foxy]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by jlw2004:
•People do get into med school with less than a 3.8 GPA. I had a 3.18 GPA, sent out 4 applications, got 2 interviews and 2 acceptances.

I think you can probably raise your MCAT scores if you devote major time to it over the summer. I would recommend doing as many MCAT style multiple choice questions as possible (Kaplan, Examkrackers, COlumbia Review). Studying the same way you studied the first time around (unless you feel you didn't get through what you wanted) probably won't change your score much. Studying differently may be the trick. I'll repeat myself -- the more questions you can do, the better! Just MHO.•••••What was your MCAT score and what school did you attend? If you had a 38 MCAT from Harvard, you'd be giving false hope. :wink:

To the OP: I started studying really hardcore only a few weeks before the exam b/c I finally had access to practice passages....in those last few weeks I brought up my score by a few points. If you study like a maniac starting now, I bet you can reach 30 by the August test. Good luck!

And I responded to your PM :wink:

 

[Spiderman [RNA Ladder 2003]]

jlw2004: where did you apply to and where you got accepted?

 

[psi1467]

Baseball not a sport? That's ridiculous! As people involved in medicine I think it's according to point out that baseball has long been referred to as "the thinking man's sport", due to the constant change of complexion and countermoves done by teams, amidst the athletic competition.

 

[jlw2004]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by Spiderman [RNA Ladder 2003]:
•jlw2004: where did you apply to and where you got accepted?•••••I applied to the PA schools Pitt, Penn State, MCPHU (Drexel!), and Temple. Didn't want to go to Penn (not that I had a chance) or Jeff. I got interviewed / accepted at Temple and MCPHU and attend MCPHU.

My stats (I can't believe I'm sharing this) -- 34 MCAT, BS in Biology from Notre Dame, 1 yr of grad school at a small state school (which I HATED!). Worked for 6 yrs as an engineer but kept active in med with EMT and work health / safety committees. Only thing I did to soften my poor GPA was take advanced Orgo and get an A to hopefully balance out my C- in second semester orgo.

 

[DrBravesgirl]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by Papa Smurf:
•I'm afraid that if you don't improve on that 27, you may not get many invites, and if you do, you'll be relegated to waitlists.•••••I'll be relegated to waitlists if I improve on the 27, or if I get invites with the 27?

 

[SMW]

I had a 3.5 cum, 3.4 bcpm, took the August MCAT last year (for the first time) and got a 30 (12V, 8PS, 10BS, M) and got waitlisted at Tulane and got into USC (in total I received 5 acceptances and 5 waitlists out of 23 applications). I also got into Columbia, much to my surprise (and didn't get into my state school). I studied for 30-35 hours per week for 2 months to get those scores, using the Kaplan study materials at their centers, but not going to the classes (I'd taken the classes earlier, but didn't do enough practice tests, and so wasn't ready for the April test -- they let you retake and/or just use their center for a nominal fee if you've taken the class recently). I think you will be fine with a 30, or even a 29, which you should be able to pull off if you do lots of practice tests, and make sure you understand why you miss every single question you miss. You might consider applying to a few more schools. Just make sure you have your files complete at all your schools before those August scores come out in mid October. Which could be hard to do and keep your study hours up. I had a lot of secretarial support at home, which allowed me to focus on studying and essays almost exclusively. Welcome to SDN and best of luck to you!!

 

[DW]

to clarify, baseball as a game doesn't suck, but the current state of the game (no salary cap, steroids, competitive imbalance, overpaid primadonnas) both sucks and blows at the same time. Football is the dominant US sport by far these days in my humble opinion.

since you're a braves fan, do you live in GA? Mind you, the average mcat at MCG is a 29, morehouse a 24, and at mercer its like a 25. Granted, you'd be confined to practicing in GA most of your life. And if you live in atlanta, there are some great opportunities to do some great resume booster stuff (carter center, cdc, grady, american cancer society, and many other things) to spruce up that app.

Anyways, go Phightin' Phillies (yeah, I know my hometown team sucks this year as always, but I'm a true fan).

 

[relatively prime]

I think you have a chance of getting into medical school. You should apply D.O. for sure and apply to ALL your state schools. If you do that you should get in somewhere... maybe not a top 30 or anything like that though. Your best chances are at your state schools and D.O. schools.

Good luck