Apply for Medical School & SMP

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daZ3d

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Hi everyone. I am currently a 3rd year undergraduate who has recently decided not to apply for medical school this year. Due to my mediocre GPA of 3.1, I wanted to hold off until senior year to apply. I am planning to take the MCAT on July 8, 2010 and see how I will perform. If needed, I will take it again early next year during the second semester of my senior year. So, here is a question I couldn't find addressed (or maybe I wasn't looking hard enough :p).

I am under the assumption that students apply for SMP during their senior years (early second semester?). I would like to apply for SMP during the required times and medical school around June 2011. If I get accepted into a SMP and into medical school, how will I approach this situation?

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Hi everyone. I am currently a 3rd year undergraduate who has recently decided not to apply for medical school this year. Due to my mediocre GPA of 3.1, I wanted to hold off until senior year to apply. I am planning to take the MCAT on July 8, 2010 and see how I will perform. If needed, I will take it again early next year during the second semester of my senior year. So, here is a question I couldn't find addressed (or maybe I wasn't looking hard enough :p).

I am under the assumption that students apply for SMP during their senior years (early second semester?). I would like to apply for SMP during the required times and medical school around June 2011. If I get accepted into a SMP and into medical school, how will I approach this situation?

You weren't looking hard enough :(

Anyway I think the answer is pretty obvious to your last question. You turn down the SMP and go to medical school.

Right now just focus on your studies, you still have half of one semester now and 2 more semesters left in your senior year. I don't know if you have, but try doing a rough calculation of how much of a GPA improvement you could theoretically improve. Also ask yourself if you want to do osteopathic or allopathic schools and do research into schools that you would be particularly interested in applying to and the stats of the average matriculant. It's not terribly late but if you haven't started on your E.C. get on it immediately.

SMP programs should be treated as a last resort and I don't think you need to consider it now. If you really feel like it peruse through the other threads here of the OCD pre-med students (me included) that are scrambling to find a post-bacc/SMP program to get into since medical school isn't a current option. Some names to look for if you don't want to go through 10030020608 threads would be Georgetown SMP, BU MAMS, Tufts MBS, EVMS etc.

Focus on your current studies and make sure you do well on your MCAT. An upward trend during this semester and the last two semesters of your senior year with a good MCAT score could go a long ways in medical school Adcom decisions.
 
Thanks for your thorough response. Well, I do have research and some shadowing experience. I decided to hold off applying this year because of what I mentioned earlier and I wanted to get to know my professors and advisors very well before I request letters of recommendations.

I wasn't sure if I was just able to drop the SMP acceptance if I would have received one in favor of medical school. But, let's say I didn't get my acceptance to medical school until Fall 2011 when my classes for the SMP has already begun. I figure there's no way I can get accepted into medical school in early August when SMP begins, so would I just start the SMP curriculum before hearing from medical schools?
 
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Okay. Let me see if I got this straight.

So you're considering a scenario where you're applying out in June (right after your graduation) to medical school. You have already applied out to an SMP program during the winter quarter of your senior year and you got accepted. You start the program in the fall and lo and behold you get an acceptance from medical school?

Is this right?

Because if the above is true, it seems like it would be common sense that you do the SMP until you recieve a positive response or you apply out with the grades that you get from the program. You can't control whether you recieve an acceptance or not so if you were like me, I would cover all bases by starting the program to prevent any lag time. If you do recieve an acceptance into medical school during the fall, it is really up to you. Stay in the program, drop the program, take a cruise, go into hiberation, w/e. It's your call as long as you have the acceptance in hand.
 
Okay. Let me see if I got this straight.

So you're considering a scenario where you're applying out in June (right after your graduation) to medical school. You have already applied out to an SMP program during the winter quarter of your senior year and you got accepted. You start the program in the fall and lo and behold you get an acceptance from medical school?

Is this right?

Because if the above is true, it seems like it would be common sense that you do the SMP until you recieve a positive response or you apply out with the grades that you get from the program. You can't control whether you recieve an acceptance or not so if you were like me, I would cover all bases by starting the program to prevent any lag time. If you do recieve an acceptance into medical school during the fall, it is really up to you. Stay in the program, drop the program, take a cruise, go into hiberation, w/e. It's your call as long as you have the acceptance in hand.

yep i'm in the same situation, except, I am the year older version of you.
 
Okay. Let me see if I got this straight.

So you're considering a scenario where you're applying out in June (right after your graduation) to medical school. You have already applied out to an SMP program during the winter quarter of your senior year and you got accepted. You start the program in the fall and lo and behold you get an acceptance from medical school?

Is this right?

Because if the above is true, it seems like it would be common sense that you do the SMP until you recieve a positive response or you apply out with the grades that you get from the program. You can't control whether you recieve an acceptance or not so if you were like me, I would cover all bases by starting the program to prevent any lag time. If you do recieve an acceptance into medical school during the fall, it is really up to you. Stay in the program, drop the program, take a cruise, go into hiberation, w/e. It's your call as long as you have the acceptance in hand.

Yes, this is exactly what I'm referring to. Is it possible to just drop the SMP when a medical school acceptance arrives? Also, if I had paid tuition for the SMP and decide to drop, do you get a partial refund or is it money wasted?
 
You can drop it whenever you want, some people even leave because of family or medical emergencies. If you pay the tuition for the SMP it's non-refundable.
 
You can drop it whenever you want, some people even leave because of family or medical emergencies. If you pay the tuition for the SMP it's non-refundable.
Incorrect. You can drop out of an SMP (or other academic program) only with permission of the med school that accepted you. Your acceptance letter usually says you have to complete any programs you're enrolled in, before matriculation in med school.

In effect, if the med school accepts you with the understanding that you're completing an SMP, they get to vote on whether you can drop out. If your acceptance isn't based on your SMP, then they won't much care. The kicker is that you can't know in advance of starting an SMP which way this would go.

Also, SMP apps open in about October, almost a year before the programs start in August. Some start in July.

In your shoes I'd be looking at adding a 2nd major or a minor, or otherwise extending undergrad for another year, to get your GPA up as high as possible on the easiest & cheapest path. Use this additional time to beef up everything: EC's, LORs, essays, MCAT. If you can do 2 years at a 4.0, and if your MCAT is 35+, then you'd be wasting money on an SMP. And imho this is what you should be shooting for, partially to convince yourself that you can work at that level.

Best of luck to you.
 
How is that incorrect. You can drop out of an SMP program at any point in time after enrolling can you not? Say you have a medical emergency, ran out of money, family emergency, etc. you could not participate in the program any longer, there is one of two options a) the program allows you to take time off or b) you essentially drop out. It will not reflect well and will burn bridges but what will stop you from leaving after paying the tuition?

If you are referring to an instance where the medical acceptance came because of the SMP that he was still enrolled in, then yes he would need permission if he wanted to still maintain the acceptance that was given under the pretense that he would continue to successfully complete it.

In his scenario it does not apply. If it does then it is my mistake and I apologize. If the hypothetical scenario that he suggested were to be true, he would have zero grades from the SMP if he was to recieve the acceptance in the fall. That would mean within the first month or two of his SMP he would have received an acceptance from such and such university. Unless you believe a medical school would accept him with his 3.0-3.1 GPA straight out of college simply because he put attending *insert SMP name here* and 2-3 planned courses without ever receiving a single one of those grades then yeah I guess I am wrong. Most of my friends who went this route required at least 2 quarters of excellent grades before receiving an interview in February and a conditional acceptance late March with better stats than him before they started.
 
I'm not playing along with the hypothetical, I'm concerned about incorrect statements being taken out of context. Such as by Gatewasani. What's correct is that an SMP student cannot drop out, without consequences, upon acceptance into med school. One of those consequences can be losing your acceptance.

When you apply to med school you have to disclose every college you ever went to, and any college you're planning to go to. You can choose to not disclose impending SMP enrollment at your own risk. Note that if you take federal funds to attend that SMP, then your enrollment in it is public information.

If you get a med school acceptance while enrolled in an SMP or other program, that acceptance is usually conditional upon completion of work in progress. Says so right in your letter. If you get sick or whatnot, you still can't just drop the SMP without your med school's permission. It has nothing to do with whether the med school considered your SMP as part of their decision.

If you look around this forum, you'll see that people get this permission with some regularity. But you have to ask.
 
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