Applications & difficulty

[abc22]

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[Paulywog]

You have asked a lot of questions. I will answer according to my experiences.
The school you go to might have a difference on your competitiveness as an applicant, but not significant. I don't think it will make a 2.9 at UCSD compare to a 3.3 at a CSU.
As far as GPA, the higher the better. Samuel Merritt has a minimum science GPA of 2.75, not sure about the new Western school. CSPM also has a minimum MCAT of 18, which shouldn't be too hard.
Taking a year off shouldn't be bad. Why would you wait? It is one year earlier to earn income. Taking time off could be good to enable you to perform better at POD school. The MCAT is good for a few years.
You have to list those classes that fullfill the prerequisites. As for Biology, I am not sure. Chemistry, both inorganic chem and ochem are both required so you will have to list both grades.
Start shadowing a podiatrist, if you haven't already and do some service. Anything to help you stand out and show that you have an interest in medicine/Podiatry.
Samuel Merritt's requirements are on their website. Prereq's, above 2.75 science GPA, 18 MCAT, an extra english class or communication-style class and the other basic stuff. Hope this helps a little. Keep asking questions, they will eventually get answered.

 

[GoldenGustie]

In my experience it is best to consult the admissions office with these types of questions. However, for podiatry school I am not sure how much they look at the undergraduate institution you attended as far as the competitveness goes (as important as that can be, it is extremely difficult to rank institutions).

Ultimately it is going to come down to the entire package that you present through you application. Don't under-estimate the importance of your extra-curricular activities and motivation that you can portray through your application and essay! All of these factors are seriously weighed by admissions committees as medicine is as much being able to relate and empathize with your patients as it is being a solid academic. Some schools, however, are more difficult to get into than others simply because of the number and caliber of students that historically apply.

It is never a bad thing to ask questions of the admissions office, for most of the time they will be pretty straight with you. GL

 

[krabmas]

Chemistry, both inorganic chem and ochem are both required so you will have to list both grades.
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General Chemistry is not = to Inorganic Chemistry. Inorganic is a 300 level class that mostly chem majors take and gen chem is an intro level class that chem majors, engineers, pharm, pre-meds... all take. Some majors have their own gen chem but it is still intro level and not inorganic chemistry.

 

[biomechanicsrox]

Just my understanding of the application process... but don't you have to include all science classes in the science GPA, not just prerequisites. If it was just your pre-reqs wouldn't it be referred to as a science pre-requisite GPA or something similar. It seems misleading to only include the pre-reqs and not all the science classes you have taken. Also, for some of the sciences it does not specify which ones you have to take. Personally, I never took General Biology 1 and 2, but was told by admissions that my functional anatomy and upper level organ physiology satisfied the requirements.

 

[PJAG]

First off, you shouldn’t worry about the CSU vs. UCSD grading system in relation to your application process. I am not sure what your science gpa is at, but you definitely want to get it near a 3.0. Keep in mind that CSPM does have a requirement of a 2.75 science gpa. If you want to take some time off, go for it but make sure you at least get some vacationing done. I took time off before I applied and it wasn’t a big deal to the admissions committee. For your General Biology requirement that means your lower division biology courses. For the Chemistry requirement I inputted my general chemistry I & II courses for the application. However, you should definitely contact Dr. Tran from CSPM(or email: [email protected]) about the chemistry requirement & the admission process. Getting above an 18 on the MCAT shouldn’t be too much of a problem to accomplish. I don’t know the level of competitiveness at Western, but from what I hear it is going to be a very good program. Anyways, good luck!

 

[Paulywog]

Dr. Tran is very helpful. He answered all of my questions. It has been hard for me to get a hold of him lately, but he will call you back, if you leave a message, whenever he gets back to his office. One problem I had during the application process was spending my time worrying about what I needed to do to get into POD school when I should have spent that time studying more for the classes I was taking at the time. My grades took a little dive when researching POD schools and worrying about everything. Maybe it was just me that had this problem.

 

[PJAG]

Dr. Tran is very helpful. He answered all of my questions. It has been hard for me to get a hold of him lately, but he will call you back, if you leave a message, whenever he gets back to his office. quote]

And if by some chance Dr. Tran is unavailable you might want to contact Andre Singleton(new admission outreach person for CSPM).....email address: [email protected].

 

[TheBee]

Why are you considering those two schools in particular. Just wondering...