It will make you less competitive but how much so may depend on your entire situation . Your appear to working full time so a nontraditional student. Give me some idea of what you are doing, what you studied/major at CC, what you plan to major in online
It wasn’t a CC. It’s a college that used to offer only associate degrees, but then started to offer bachelors. Ever since, it’s continued to hold both. Granted, it’s still a no-name school in the boonies. I will have an associates of science in biology - this covered all my prerequisites, a research project with a presentation at a state conference, an internship at the local hospital, and guaranteed shadowing (I did mine with a general surgeon).
I did this while simultaneously attending a technical college to become an AEMT. Managed a GPA of 3.8 while there and will have a good 2 years worth of work as an AEMT with 911 dispatch and at the hospital.
Accomplishments that I could list would be sort of random, but definitely meaningful to me. Left a job with a Fortune 500 company, comfortable pay, and benefits. Sold my home. Sold my car. Hell, sold most of my clothes. Downgraded everything. Went and worked in construction, back-breaking work that paid less than 1/3 of my original salary. I did this while attending two colleges simultaneously. I’ve started a company that donates products to homeless shelters (hygiene products, clothing, blankets, etc.) and have currently donated slightly over 1,000 products in total. In 2 years time, I’m sure this could be at least twice as much as currently, as it didn’t really pick up until the last 6 months or so. I’ve ran multiple marathons and am currently training for my first ultra. I was also recently awarded the chance to get my personal trainer certification for free. I’ve fallen in love with my experiences from geriatric patients and would like to use that sort of certification to help local areas that hold geriatrics (nursing homes, hospices, etc.) to help them stay active and encourage that sort of positivity. Granted, this is a random hypothetical situation. Regardless, I may take the training since it’s free and I enjoy it.
Reason I want to pursue medicine are very long, but I feel like my personal statement could be crafted really well from this. I used to eat horribly and was always lethargic, unmotivated, and just low. Started eating better and it changed everything. Became obsessed with nutrition. Then the physiology of how food breaks down in the body. Our microbiome. Led to me wanting to do research. Started an EMT class and fell in love with having patients. I always come to the same questions. Why not be a nutritionist? I want to participate in research, even outside of nutrition. Why not PhD? Because I really want patients. I’ve discovered this through my EMT journey. Also, our AEMT’s are expected to borderline do almost everything the paramedic does other than push drugs. This may be specific to my area, because a lot of people claim EMT experience isn’t that great, but our scope of practice is very broad where I am, so the experience has been phenomenal.
Biggest reason I’m considering online is because of bills. I’m a non-trad, I don’t think it takes a ton of explaining. 24/48 hour shifts help me finish 24 hours worth of paid time, something I can usually only get in 3 whole days worth of work in other jobs. This gives me 2 more days a week to focus on other things (studying, shadowing, volunteering..)
Sorry for the long reply. Wanted to kind of shed some light on my situation and was getting the vibe people think I’m looking for an easy way out or am being lazy. Online is simply more feasible for me now that my prerequisites, LOR’s, shadowing, etc are cleared. I can still get my undergraduate from the University of Florida and be challenged. 2-3 of the classes actually require me to come to the campus during the summer for in-person labs - again, these are not prereqs thouth. It won’t be a walk in the park.
Granted, I will continue to drive 90 minutes a day to a far away, no-name college if taking my other classes in person are truly that much more beneficial. I assumed staying (slightly) more sane during the process, still getting a biology undergrad, and graduating from a college like UF would be more beneficial, although I do understand the actual college makes no true difference in terms of an application other than if you went to somewhere like Yale.
The next two years I would plan to work in EMS, shadow in every specialty possible, volunteer throughout the community, continue working my company that donates considerably, finish an ultra marathon, become certified as a trainer and help out in any ways possible through that, volunteer as a teaching assistant for the tech college I got my EMS diploma from, and the like.
Given a strong personal statement, average GPA and MCAT (to be safe, aiming for high of course!), my EC’s, is it really that bad to finish online?
Again, sorry for such a long post.
