Medical Application information and help regarding GPA questions

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Goro

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Hello, I am new to the forum and am new to the application process as well so I felt more comfortable asking the questions here.
I have a general application question as well as a personal question regarding my GPA and if the rest of my application can compensate for something that had happened that messed up my GPA.

1. I wanted to know if I can do this for both websites as I am applying to MD programs and a D.O. program. I don't take my MCAT till June 15th, but I want to get my application verified as soon as possible. Is it a good idea to pick a school for both websites that I don't want to go to before I take my MCAT just to get my application processed? The idea behind this is that if I don't do well enough on my MCAT, I would not be considered a reapplicant on any school I want to go to, but I still get my account verified instead of waiting till July 15th and then getting my account verified should I decide that my MCAT score is high enough.

My second question is more of a personal question. For my personal statement, I talk about going through sexual assault, and my grades suffering pretty terribly during my junior year undergraduate. For one of my semesters, the GPA for that semester alone was a 1.19, and I nearly dropped out of school. My senior year, I took on 17 hours for one semester and 18 hours for the other and managed a 3.0 GPA during that time after getting therapy and addressing the trauma. I also got a masters degree in social work with a 4.0 GPA, and I'm finishing my last post bach prerequisite science courses now. My science GPA will be around 3.5, but my overall GPA because of that junior year will be around 3.1-3.2 ish at best.

I want to know realistically what chances do I have to get into medical school? I was really down putting in those numbers because I sat there and said "How could anyone overlook this even if I provide a reason for why this happened?" I have work experience as a social worker working in prison, I worked with people with intellectual disabilities, and internship experience working with the criminally insane. I also have many letters of recommendation and 150 hours of shadowing experience. Even with all of that, I wonder will any school overlook that horrible year I had?

Thank you for your time and consideration and help in these matters!
1) yes, you can apply to throwaway schools to get verified.

2) The PS is not the place to explain away poor grades. There will be prompts in secondaries for this
You can use your trauma to explain your interest in Medicine and how it led you along this path, and how it influences your future clinical goals.

Very sorry to hear of your woes. Some 20% of my own students have suffered this themselves. :(

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