Am I on the right track?

[K1NG]

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[davidbm95]

Before I start, just want to apologize for the long read lol I didn't realize how long it would be until I finished. I just wanted some feedback and advice on where I currently stand. I appreciate those of you who will take the time out to read it!

A lot has been going through my mind all summer and I feel I need to get this off my chest. I also was really inspired by Diggidy's success story and felt that this would also give me an opportunity to document my improvements (hopefully) and accomplishments as I continue on my path to acceptance into med school.

I wish I had found this site sooner. It's a great resource and would have def put things in perspective for me when I began my undergrad as a freshman in 2009. I'm entering into my senior year now, and I wish I can press a 'restart' button so I can go back in time and correct the mistakes I made. But what's done is done. I am looking forward to the challenge that lies ahead of me..

Let's start with my GPA. Currently, my overall GPA is 3.39, sGPA 3.36 (as per calculated from an AMCAS GPA Calculator excel sheet I downloaded from a thread on here). Let me breakdown my GPA per semester so it paints a clearer story (if you would like the breakdown per semester as well just lmk):

Freshman
Overall GPA 2.94
sGPA 2.81

Bio I: B
Bio II (honors): B
Gen chem I: C
Gen chem II (honors): B+
Stats (honors): B-

Sophomore
Overall GPA 3.33
sGPA 3.28

A&P I: B+
A&P II: A-
Org I: B-
Org II: A-
Calculus: B

Junior
Overall GPA 3.96
sGPA 4.0

Physics I: A
Physics II: A
Genetics: A
Histology: A
Cell&Molec: A
I was also an LA for A&P

I feel that I have a very strong upward trend, and if I continue that through my senior year I hope that will make up for my poor performance early on. The classes that I'm taking for fall semester of my senior year include:

Biochemistry w/ lab (4)
Research internship (3) (really looking forward to this)
Medical terminology (3)
Social psych (3)
Multicultural issues in psych (3)
LA for A&P

Best case scenario, I get straight A's, which will put my overall GPA at 3.49 and sGPA at 3.45.

Now onto my ECs, which is what really concerns me. I wasn't able to do much, especially during my freshman and sophomore years. This was largely because I was struggling just to get decent grades (as you can see from the grades I was getting) and I didn't want to take on more responsibilities than I could handle. On top of that, I was also working ~15-25 hours a week helping my parents with the family business (and I still am going into my senior year). I developed a good work ethic over time and now getting A's while still working the same hours. Now that I had a hold on my classes, I started volunteering a little bit. Here is what I have so far:

15 hours Hospice volunteer (since Jan 2012) - will continue next week
5 hours Habitat for Humanity (since Feb 2012) - hard to get hours for this because they rarely have openings
6 hours tutoring disadvantaged children (since April 2012) - will resume when school opens in August

It's not much at all... I started some of them but stopped because my grades were dipping. However, I was really enjoying them. But now that I have a hold on my classes, and am back from vacation, I will use the rest of my summer to dedicate time to hospice volunteering. I will also leave my weekends open to volunteering once school starts. Is there anything else I should add to this list (besides already adding hours to my current list)?

Other ECs:

• First place in undergraduate symposium for my group's poster presentation of our research (it was just analytical research, no lab work)

• 1 year as an LA for A&P (Fall 2011 to Winter 2012, will be continuing my senior year)

• Member of pre-med society

• Just got inducted into Tri-Beta Honors society because of my performance in my junior year

• Dean's list (Winter 2011, Fall 2011, Winter 2012)

• Will begin research in the upcoming semeser

I feel that most of my ECs are recent, because I didn't want to sacrifice my already low GPA early on (I hope adcoms understand this). On top of that I already had a responsibility in helping my parents manage the family business.

Since I am going into my senior year, I know that I should have taken the MCAT already, but some things came up over the summer that prevented me from putting in dedicated hours. I had 1 month left of summer to study for it, but decided that instead of cramming everything, I can make better use of the month by volunteering instead.

Basically, I know that I have to take a year off already, since I'm obviously not applying this cycle and don't even have an MCAT score yet. Now that I'm entering into my senior year, I wanted some feedback on where I stand. How are my ECs? Besides the activities that I'm currently working on, should I get involved in any others? How high of an MCAT do I need to be competitive? Should I take the MCAT January, May or August?

Sorry about all this blabbering lol I really needed to get this off my chest and get opinions and feedback from others. I'd greatly appreciate it.

You have a nice upward trend. I would advise you to increase your volunteer and shadowing hours. Try to get it in the 100-200 hour range for volunteering and 50 hours for shadowing.

I think you should shoot for a 30+ on the MCAT. Try to raise your GPA next year and get more EC and you'll be more competitive. Are you involved in any research?

 

[K1NG]

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[Goro]

It would help if you'd give us your cGPA and sGPA (total) and skip the novella.

 

[K1NG]

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[K1NG]

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[lolcat]

nice upward trend! i would say def try to get some shadowing done, like davidbm95 already suggested. as for other ECs, maybe you can volunteer at the ER or maybe a free clinic just to get some more exposure with some different type of patients. i would say try to get a position in some clubs but you're already a senior and classes are about to start so don't know the chance of that.

maybe LizzyM or Catalystik can also join in to give some advice for ECs, because personally my ECs aren't very great either


EDIT: I found this list, maybe it can help out? try to fill all the categories as best as you can

- Paid employment (not military)
- Paid employment (military)
- Community service / volunteer (not medical / clinical)
- Community service / volunteer (medical / clinical)
- Research / lab
- Teaching / tutoring
- Honors / awards / recognitions
- Conferences attended
- Presentations / posters
- Publications
- Extracurricular / hobbies / avocations
- Leadership (not listed elsewhere)
- Intercollegiate athletics
- Artistic endeavors
- Other

 

[K1NG]

Just a quick update... After this semester I'm at a cGPA 3.45 and sGPA 3.42. The semester could have gone better but life gets in the way sometimes. Its alright stuff happens.

I just have a quick question in regards to grade replacement for MD schools. I was thinking of retaking a C that I got in Gen Chem I as a freshman. If I get an A in that class, that would give me a B for a total of 8 credits right? If so, it would increase my cGPA and sGPA by 0.02... giving me a cGPA of 3.47 and sGPA of 3.44. That will not be my final GPA since it won't include my other 16 credits that I will be taking for my final semester. Any input if it'll be worth it or not? If it helps, my final GPA would be 3.54/3.53 when it's all said and done (when I graduate... subtract 0.02 to get my GPA if I don't retake Gen Chem I).

 

[Catalystik]

Just a quick update... After this semester I'm at a cGPA 3.45 and sGPA 3.42. The semester could have gone better but life gets in the way sometimes. Its alright stuff happens.

1) I just have a quick question in regards to grade replacement for MD schools. I was thinking of retaking a C that I got in Gen Chem I as a freshman. If I get an A in that class, that would give me a B for a total of 8 credits right? If so, it would increase my cGPA and sGPA by 0.02... giving me a cGPA of 3.47 and sGPA of 3.44. That will not be my final GPA since it won't include my other 16 credits that I will be taking for my final semester.

2) Any input if it'll be worth it or not? If it helps, my final GPA would be 3.54/3.53 when it's all said and done (when I graduate... subtract 0.02 to get my GPA if I don't retake Gen Chem I).

1) For MD schools, the transcript will show both classes, with 4 credits of C and 4 credits of A respectively. Mathmatically this will be calculated into your application GPA the same as 8 credits of B would be.

2) Unless you really didn't understand the class well enough to excel on the MCAT, there is no reason to retake for MD applications, as you redeemed the grade by doing better in other chem classes. Taking another original upper-level Bio class or Biochem instead, and getting an A the first time would be a better use of your time, IMO. For DO applications, which have grade replacement, retaking is more enticing, as this would have a more beneficial effect on your GPAs, however, your GPAs as projected will already be in the competitive range for DO schools without the retake, so again, why go to the effort and expense?

 

[K1NG]

Thanks for the advice! The only reason I was thinking about retaking that class was to increase my GPA. My biggest fear is to be overlooked as an applicant because my numbers are too low. But you're right, it might be better to take other upper level classes instead. I will be taking three 4000 level bio classes next semester, a 3000 level bio class, and a psych class.. putting me at 16 credits.

My goal is to get into a FL med school.