Am I being realistic?

[BasilE]

Hey all!
I'm a long time lurker that would love any and all input. I'm a single mom that decided to go back for pre-medicine after working closely with surgeons for 5+ years. I have been applying broadly to both MD and DO schools but worry it's a reach. Unfortunately, I enjoyed my first year of college too much when I was straight out of high school and my overall gpa has suffered because of that. My current gpa is 3.7 but my overall gpa is 3.3. I got a 497 on the MCAT after studying for roughly 3 months this summer but haven't taken biochem or physics yet. I have strong LORs from my professors and the surgeons I've work with for years. However, I fear that my MCAT and overall gpa will ruin my chances. I have busted my butt to get to this point and feel that I'm capable. Is there any hope?

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[candbgirl]

What state do you live in? Are you URM by any chance? Where did you apply?

Your GPA is well below average of matriculantsts MD students(3.7) but okay for DO and your MCAT is too low period. Why did you take the MCAT before completing your science reqs? What were you scoring on your Fl practice tests? A 497 is too low for MD and awfully low for DO.

 

[Goro]

Hey all!
I'm a long time lurker that would love any and all input. I'm a single mom that decided to go back for pre-medicine after working closely with surgeons for 5+ years. I have been applying broadly to both MD and DO schools but worry it's a reach. Unfortunately, I enjoyed my first year of college too much when I was straight out of high school and my overall gpa has suffered because of that. My current gpa is 3.7 but my overall gpa is 3.3. I got a 497 on the MCAT after studying for roughly 3 months this summer but haven't taken biochem or physics yet. I have strong LORs from my professors and the surgeons I've work with for years. However, I fear that my MCAT and overall gpa will ruin my chances. I have busted my butt to get to this point and feel that I'm capable. Is there any hope?

With that MCAT score you are not being realistic.

 

[TabbyTuxy]

Disclaimer: I am not a med student nor adcom, just another pre-med.

I agree that you will need to retake the MCAT — if you can’t bring up your GPA, you will really need a good score to compensate for that. Leading up to my MCAT test date, I found biochemistry to be the most helpful class I had taken. Mastery of the subject can be very helpful in working through unfamiliar biology questions or even, in some contexts, chemistry questions. I think it is unrealistic to expect to do well without a biochemistry background, and the physics material is broad enough that a course in that is completely essential too. I am sure your life is vastly different from my own, and likely much busier, but I believe you also need far more than 3 months to prepare well for the MCAT. I found studying for about 3hrs/day the summer before taking the MCAT in May, then a few hours each day leading up to it was adequate for success, and that’s nearly a year of studying (although not full-time). At about 3 months out you should likely be taking practice exams, not beginning to review material. Your score is not awful considering the lack of biochemistry and physics! With those courses under your belt you will be able to score well, I’m sure.

Keep in mind that you already scored close to 50% percentile with less than ideal prep and lacking some major courses. You obviously are intelligent enough to do extremely well with more prep time and some kind of course in those subjects.

While your GPA is not good, you will have other strengths in your application. Exposure to medicine is extremely valuable, and you should never underestimate the power of the story you can sell as a non-traditional applicant. If you can improve your MCAT and create an honest, compelling narrative about why you want to take this plunge, I’m sure you’d have a great shot at DO and also MD programs.

Major props to you for pursuing what you want! This process is crazy with a lot of ways to mess up, and it can be especially unforgiving if someone isn’t totally “in the loop.” I wouldn’t give up hope, though. You may not be competitive this cycle, but you can always take another year to study for the MCAT, hopefully formally learn some biochemistry and physics, and try again next year. I believe you’re very capable, if you’re willing to put in that time and effort even when it is really hard.