Applying to med school after one year of undergrad

[Member55555]

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Im entering my first year of undergrad in September and wanted to know my chances if I were to apply to NJMS after my first year of undergrad since NJMS only needs 90 credits to matriculate. If I come into undergrad with about 30 AP credits I will have 90 by the end of my second year of undergrad. If I were to go about this route what sort of extracurriculars would I need to do to show that I am mature enough to enter med school? And is it possible to get accepted?

 

[Chillbo Baggins]

Why the big rush?

It would be quite hard for you to finish your pre-reqs, take the MCAT, and get enough shadowing/volunteer experience in essentially a year and a half (when interviews would start).

 

[masaraksh]

 

[justAstudent]

It would be very hard to get in I think considering that people would have done much more than you in terms of ECs because they've had more time.

 

[Member55555]

Im not really trying to rush but when other people can go through a 6 year program I think I could do the same just in a different way

 

[Awesome Sauceome]

There is DEFINITELY the possibility that you A) Will hate science classes and/or pre-med stuff and all that it entails or B) You fail all of your pre-med classes

I have personally seen both... something like 50% of my freshman class claimed they were going to be doctors. By the end it was like 5%. And that is certainly not a bad thing! They found what they really wanted to do with their lives, which is awesome. It is about the journey man.

My advice would be to find the cheapest way to embark on that journey.

 

[kyamh]

Im not really trying to rush but when other people can go through a 6 year program I think I could do the same just in a different way

I would argue that the 6 year program students are also "rushing" to get to medical school.

Certainly, the fact that you are so young will be obvious to adcoms so they may give you some leniency for ECs. That said, don't expect that your standards will be significantly lowered compared to others.

I hope you do no underestimate the value of taking time to make such a life changing decision. However certain you may be that you want a career in medicine, you should acknowledge the possibility that you may realize otherwise.

Do search SDN for old and recent threads about taking gap years etc - plenty of people here have discussed the pros and cons of going straight to medical school vs taking some time off after undergrad. Arguments made by both sides will apply 2x as much to someone who wants to do only 2 years of undergrad, like you.

 

[aspirantmed]

If you're hell-bent on graduating college as soon as possible, I might recommend graduating in five or six semesters (certainly not four) and then doing some work or other 'real-world' experience for a year or two before applying. After all, the reason that the undergraduate degree is required for medical school admission is to acquire a diverse set of worldly experiences before you enter the medical community .. and to prove you've done that in two years as well as others have in four or more is no easy feat.

 

[WillburCobb]

...After all, the reason that the undergraduate degree is required for medical school admission...

Its not required for admission. People are admitted every year without finishing an undergrad degree prior to matriculation, albeit this population is rather small.

 

[aspirantmed]

Its not required for admission. People are admitted every year without finishing an undergrad degree prior to matriculation, albeit this population is rather small.

.. Missing the overall point of the statement; the idea is that we don't admit medical students the same way as the rest of the world (out of high school) because our system emphasizes maturity of thought and experience as a de-facto pre-requisite to entry.

 

[WillburCobb]

.. Missing the overall point of the statement; the idea is that we don't admit medical students the same way as the rest of the world (out of high school) because our system emphasizes maturity of thought and experience as a de-facto pre-requisite to entry.

I understood the point and agree with it. I was just nit picking at the one detail as its an issue that comes up fairly often in pre-allo and usually leads to arguments without people checking facts.

 

[sinombre]

Even if you somehow manage to do everything you need to in that timeframe (get A's, significant clinical experience, research, volunteering, do well on the MCAT, etc.) as an 18 or 19-year-old, you will have to demonstrate maturity in some significant way. There is a reason the average age of matriculants in the US is 25.

Edit: Actually there are several, but greater life experience and maturity in older applicants are significant reasons.