are my chances ruined?

[pavingtheroadtoDO]

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My freshman year was horrible. Fall semester I had a 2.4 gpa and spring semester I failed all my classes and was placed on academic suspension. However, i have come back and my sGPA will be around 3.8. I havent retaken the classes I failed, should I look into doing that? Has this ruined my chances for even getting into medical school even with my improvment?

 

[zukunft195]

Do not retake a class unless it is a pre-med requirement and you got less than a C in it.

Your chances are far from ruined. Just get good grades from now on. You need to work toward building an upward trend.

Good luck.

 

[mc_bio19]

Are you finishing up your sophomore year now? If so, you're far from screwed. You just need to maintain your grades and continue an upward trend. Many people are successful despite a rough year in undergrad.

 

[Dagrimsta1]

keep it up baby, you good

 

[Hakuna Matata]

Retake all pre-req classes that had a C or less. Keep getting good grades and establish an upward trend. This happens to a lot of people, your chances are fine if you keep doing well from now on. Good luck.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile

 

[Goro]

Do not retake a class unless it is a pre-med requirement and you got less than a C in it.

Your chances are far from ruined. Just get good grades from now on. You need to work toward building an upward trend.

Good luck.

This. And if you do well on MCAT, your state MD school will be worth a shot. There are MD schools that reward reinvention.

 

[Aspiring_Future_D.O.]

My freshman year was horrible. Fall semester I had a 2.4 gpa and spring semester I failed all my classes and was placed on academic suspension. However, i have come back and my sGPA will be around 3.8. I havent retaken the classes I failed, should I look into doing that? Has this ruined my chances for even getting into medical school even with my improvment?

Use your failure as a key talking point - you overcame a weakness and you're "working on it" this is attractive and demonstrates your persistence and resiliency amidst setback. This assumes the only "problem" with your application is your GPA.

 

[Aspiring_Future_D.O.]

Are you finishing up your sophomore year now? If so, you're far from screwed. You just need to maintain your grades and continue an upward trend. Many people are successful despite a rough year in undergrad.

"The more total credit hours you have the more difficult it is to change your overall GPA, so starting off the first couple semesters with a high GPA is essential to graduating with a high GPA." Dr. Ryan Otter, Ph.D. The College Game Project: Practical Advice from a College Professor

 

[mc_bio19]

"The more total credit hours you have the more difficult it is to change your overall GPA, so starting off the first couple semesters with a high GPA is essential to graduating with a high GPA." Dr. Ryan Otter, Ph.D. The College Game Project: Practical Advice from a College Professor

Of course it is easiest to graduate with a high GPA if you've started out with nothing but stellar grades. That's obvious. However, this is not the case for every individual AND it does not mean that one cannot successfully get into medical school if they had a difficult year.

 

[JB50]

"The more total credit hours you have the more difficult it is to change your overall GPA, so starting off the first couple semesters with a high GPA is essential to graduating with a high GPA." Dr. Ryan Otter, Ph.D. The College Game Project: Practical Advice from a College Professor

In other words: Water is drinkable and oxygen is breathable.

 

[Aspiring_Future_D.O.]

Of course it is easiest to graduate with a high GPA if you've started out with nothing but stellar grades. That's obvious. However, this is not the case for every individual AND it does not mean that one cannot successfully get into medical school if they had a difficult year.

True. I agree. What I'm re-stating is that statistically GPA-recovery is a challenge - not entirely impossible, I managed a decent recovery from my Freshman year in high school during both my Junior and Senior yrs. of course H.S. is a different ball game entirely. I pulled out one C in college, was devastated - it ruined my sGPA, but I'm still competitive due to A's and B's in all other college classes (the trade-off was lacking a social life in college, worth it in my opinion) In terms of medical school competitiveness sub-3.0 GPAs does not completely eliminate all chances at medical school.

For those looking at a poor Freshman/Sophomore GPA keep your head up! Stay persistent and resilient! If you do and aggressively focus/take action to maintain A's and B's for your Junior/Senior year then you still have a fighting chance (also assuming many other 'competitive' factors). Medical school admissions committees are taking a risk by investing huge amounts of resources to train and educate a generation of physicians, if you can't prove you're worth the investment from your personal character (demonstrated by your grades) how can they really justify giving you a spot at their school? Hard work will not go unnoticed if you passionately and intentionally live with purpose.

There's no luck in this game, you either have what it takes or you don't. So take responsibility of your future and do whatever it takes to be the physician you want to be!

Best Regards

 

[Rhabdoviridae]

I would say there is plenty of time for improvement. Especially if you are applying to osteopathic programs I wouldn't worry too much. Contrary to the general consensus on this site, DO schools are not difficult to get into and an average MCAT and grade point average should suffice (or even somewhat below).

 

[zukunft195]

I would say there is plenty of time for improvement. Especially if you are applying to osteopathic programs I wouldn't worry too much. Contrary to the general consensus on this site, DO schools are not difficult to get into and an average MCAT and grade point average should suffice (or even somewhat below).

"Average," as compared to what?

 

[Rhabdoviridae]

"Average," as compared to what?

Average in terms of MCAT score (among all takers) and GPA (at most universities in most majors). At my school, the average MCAT was a 24 for my entering class (old scale) and a 3.3 GPA.

 

[Doctor or bust]

My freshman year was horrible. Fall semester I had a 2.4 gpa and spring semester I failed all my classes and was placed on academic suspension. However, i have come back and my sGPA will be around 3.8. I havent retaken the classes I failed, should I look into doing that? Has this ruined my chances for even getting into medical school even with my improvment?

Everybody loves an underdog story, make one for yourself. My freshman year ended with around a 2.4 and I'm sitting with a 3.6 now after a few years of not kidding around with my academics. Keep your sGPA as high as possible as that can be a saving grace and put your studies at the top of your priorities. Life is going to be harder for you now but your goals are within reach. Keep your grades high and kill the MCAT, if you can do those along with doing some solid ECs you should have no issue getting some adcom love. The only things that will ruin your chances for med school is not applying, being a felon, or getting IAs.