Another Bachelor's?

[LunaCaelum]

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I have recently decided that I am going to put off applying to vet school and apply for this bachelor's program in molecular genetics technology. Since GPA is the weakest link in my application, I feel like this will boost my last 45 hours GPA and my science GPA.

The assumption I'm making is that they will use these grades for GPA calculations. The classes are all upper division and it is a program from a well known institution. But it is a second bachelor's (my first was in biology).

So this year I will take the rest of the pre-reqs I need and then will hopefully be doing this program next year.

So my question is, is there any reason why they would like ignore these grades and just use the first degree? There shouldn't be right?

Or am I just being stupid and putting off my application for nothing? I really feel like this would be a great way to boost my application.

Does anyone have any advice? Maybe others who followed this route or those who considered it but chose not to?

Thanks for any advice.

 

[HopefulAg]

So my question is, is there any reason why they would like ignore these grades and just use the first degree? There shouldn't be right?

Not that I know of. The grades from the first degree would still be used, of course, but they wouldn't just ignore the second one.

Or am I just being stupid and putting off my application for nothing? I really feel like this would be a great way to boost my application.

If you can apply now, and think you're competitive (what's your stats?), I'd apply this time. If nothing else, it gives you experience for next time.

Does anyone have any advice? Maybe others who followed this route or those who considered it but chose not to?

This was brought up in a similar capacity a few weeks back and I think the general consensus was to do a Master's instead of another undergrad if possible. Reason being is that it shows the adcoms that you're capable of doing well in upper level classes.

 

[nyanko]

My opinion is that it depends on what your first degree was in, and how well prepared you feel.

edit to add: I actually read your post better this time and see that your first one was in bio. So it depends on the second part...if your grades in bio weren't good, it would depend on how well prepared you feel. You can always declare yourself as a second Bachelors student to take more upper div classes and not finish it if you get in, so really if you feel ready you could apply this year while still doing that.

If it was a non-related-to-life-science degree then I don't think doing a Masters instead as HopefulAg suggested is really an option. I know that after only my first Bachelors degree in CS there's no way in hell that I would have been accepted into any good, reputable MS program within the life sciences, and with good reason! I wouldn't have been ready for it! Undergrad classes are there to provide a foundation. Graduate school in the sciences is advanced and difficult, despite the sentiment here that it is a "backup" or application padding thing.

There are absolutely zero similarities between a thesis-based MS and a second BS, and without an appropriate science background you will not do well in either a thesis or non-thesis based MS and it could possibly hurt you more than help you.

I did go and get a second Bachelor's, in Molecular Biology and Microbiology, and to be honest I wouldn't change my strategy one bit. With that knowledge and foundation I was both able to excel in grad school and become a better candidate for vet school. My grades from both undergrads and grad school were counted in my cumulative GPA, only prerequisites (split between the two undergrad degrees 😛) were counted in prerequisite GPA, and my grad school + last year of second BS were counted in the last 45 hours/60 quarter units GPA.

 

[Packen]

So my question is, is there any reason why they would like ignore these grades and just use the first degree? There shouldn't be right?

I think it depends on the school. Regardless of how many upperlevel science classes you take, VMRCVM ONLY looks at Bio, Chem, Orgo, BioChem, Phys, and (*I think*) cell bio to calculate their science GPA. Not sure which other bio it is, but point being that they don't look at ALL your science classes to calculate the science GPA.

That being said, you can ask them to substitute a lower level science grade for an upper level one in the same subject (i.e. and A in micro for a C in Bio 101). But you must submit a specific letter of intent, and it does not always get acknowledged.

I don't know how other schools work since this will be the first year I have applied to a school other than VMRCVM. But it might be worth looking into before you decide on starting a second BS. While good grades in the second BS would help your overall GPA, it might not help your science GPA.

 

[david594]

I'd still apply to vet schools this year if you have all your other ducks in a row. The odds of getting in may not be good, but if you do, the value of getting in is worth a whole lot more than the small cost of applying.

How bad were your grades? There is a big difference between a 3.2 "bad" and a 2.8 "bad".