Career change from software to medicine. Need advice!

[ocml85]

Hey guys,

I’m considering a career change from software development into medicine. I haven’t entirely decided on pursuing it because I’m not sure how competitive my application would be and I didn’t want to waste any time/effort/money in what might be a lost cause. I was hoping you guys could help me out by answering some questions and your opinion as to if I’ve got all bases covered.

About me:
25 years old
BS in Computer Science, Minor in Math
4 years work experience full time as a SW developer
3.13 overall GPA, 3.15 in-major
Took 1 semester biology w/o lab, 2 semesters geology during undergrad
1 year undergrad research in CS closely tied to biology research
1 year undergrad tutoring in CS
1 grad class in engineering management (decided not to pursue degree)

I know the GPA is fairly low by med school standards. Would it matter that I was in a bit more difficult program while working through school?

Would the undergrad research count at all to an adcom? It dealt with writing algorithms for gene sequencing, but definitely the more technical side of it. A couple of jobs I’ve taken dealt with health research but again definitely the more technical side of it. Would it be favorable to mention these at all, if anything, to show that I’ve been interested in health for a while?

I’ll still have to work full time while getting the pre-reqs out of the way because I have a family to support, but figured it’d be possible to take two classes a semester at a four year university nearby.

Would adcoms look at two classes while working full time as a good course load? What if it was one class per semester? How about taking classes over summer semesters?

For ECs, I wont be able to do much shadowing, but I was planning on shadowing 3-5 doctors, each between 8 hours to possibly taking a week off from work to shadow full time for 40 hours. I’ve volunteered for a few community projects that aren’t medically related, including organizing sports leagues/refereeing and tutoring kids in math/programming, would those be looked at favorably?

I was planning on asking for LORs from work colleagues, doctors that I would’ve shadowed, and any professors I may get to know better during my pre-med classes. I’d ask those professors if they’re doing any research if I may spend some hours in their lab helping them out, if its even possible for a non-degree seeking student.

Realistically, I’m thinking I’d get a 3.0-3.5 GPA average for the pre-med classes. I’m thinking a MCAT of 28-31 would be a sure bet after a few attempts for me.

So what do you guys think? Do you think its worth a shot? Do you think it’d be possible for me to get into a DO program? What about a MD program? Suggestions? Anything I’m thinking about the wrong way or missing?

Any input is much appreciated. Thanks in advance!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[theseeker4]

Hey guys,

I’m considering a career change from software development into medicine. I haven’t entirely decided on pursuing it because I’m not sure how competitive my application would be and I didn’t want to waste any time/effort/money in what might be a lost cause. I was hoping you guys could help me out by answering some questions and your opinion as to if I’ve got all bases covered.

About me:
25 years old
BS in Computer Science, Minor in Math
4 years work experience full time as a SW developer
3.13 overall GPA, 3.15 in-major
Took 1 semester biology w/o lab, 2 semesters geology during undergrad
1 year undergrad research in CS closely tied to biology research
1 year undergrad tutoring in CS
1 grad class in engineering management (decided not to pursue degree)

I know the GPA is fairly low by med school standards. Would it matter that I was in a bit more difficult program while working through school?

What would your sGPA be, which would include any math, biology, chemistry and physics classes you took? How many credits total do you have toward the sGPA?

Generally, the GPA is much more important than the undergrad major. A person with a 3.9 in the easiest major there is would be more likely to gain admission than the 3.1 in the most difficult major. That said, if they get past the numbers screen and actually look at your application in-depth, the fact that you took a more demanding major may give you a bit more of an edge than your numbers alone.

Would the undergrad research count at all to an adcom? It dealt with writing algorithms for gene sequencing, but definitely the more technical side of it. A couple of jobs I’ve taken dealt with health research but again definitely the more technical side of it. Would it be favorable to mention these at all, if anything, to show that I’ve been interested in health for a while?

Many schools, especially MD schools, like applicants to have research experience. It will add to your application as an EC, and you should definitely include it.

In the EC section of the application, you can describe your job, and include how what you have done relates to health and science there.

I’ll still have to work full time while getting the pre-reqs out of the way because I have a family to support, but figured it’d be possible to take two classes a semester at a four year university nearby.

Would adcoms look at two classes while working full time as a good course load? What if it was one class per semester? How about taking classes over summer semesters?

Working full time and taking 1-2 classes a semester should be fine as far as how it looks to adcoms. Have you considered taking out loans to go to school full time? That would greatly reduce how long you have between now and when you can start making real money as a doctor, and the additional years of work as an attending are worth the loans taken out now. Either way, take as many classes as you can possibly manage, at a 4-year university, and get A's in every single one. Take them every semester that they are available, as you want to get them done (while keeping a high GPA) as soon as possible.

Obviously, if you get a single B it isn't game over, but what you HAVE to do if you want to get in is stop then and there, figure out why, exactly, you didn't get an A, and figure out what, exactly, you need to do to get an A in the future. You cannot rely on a B+ average to get you into med school with the GPA you are starting with, and you can't rely on getting A's without a specific plan as to how you will do it.

For ECs, I wont be able to do much shadowing, but I was planning on shadowing 3-5 doctors, each between 8 hours to possibly taking a week off from work to shadow full time for 40 hours. I’ve volunteered for a few community projects that aren’t medically related, including organizing sports leagues/refereeing and tutoring kids in math/programming, would those be looked at favorably?

I was planning on asking for LORs from work colleagues, doctors that I would’ve shadowed, and any professors I may get to know better during my pre-med classes. I’d ask those professors if they’re doing any research if I may spend some hours in their lab helping them out, if its even possible for a non-degree seeking student.

Try to fit in a few hours of volunteering at a hospital ER or a clinic if you can each week. This exposes you to the medical environment, provides clinical experience to see if you actually want to do this, and is both medical and volunteering EC for your application.

Does the school you will be taking classes at have a pre-med committee? If so, you will need to talk to that office and find out what you need to do to be eligible for a LOR from them. Medical schools are very cautious about applicants who don't get a committee letter when one is available from their school, so you really need to get one from the committee if your school has one.

LOR's from work colleagues and doctors you shadowed are very unimportant. Medical schools want letters from professors you have had, usually 2 science and 1 non-science letter. Keep this in mind when taking classes, and get to know as many professors as well as you can to be able to ask them for a LOR when the time comes. This is important even if your school has a committee letter, as the committees usually ask for LOR's from professors to be included, or even if they don't, having professors sending positive LOR's in addition to the committee letter can do nothing but help you.

Realistically, I’m thinking I’d get a 3.0-3.5 GPA average for the pre-med classes. I’m thinking a MCAT of 28-31 would be a sure bet after a few attempts for me.

OK, with your current undergrad GPA, you need to focus on getting a 4.0, or absolutely as close as you can manage. A 3.0-3.5 GPA may not cut it if you want a good chance of getting in. Take one class at a time at first if you have to, to determine what exactly you need to do to all but guarantee you an A in these classes.

Do not count on "a few attempts" at the MCAT. Get good grades in all the pre-reqs, and dedicate a few months to study including every practice exam you can find, and nail it the first time. If you study for it, a few attempts will burn you out, and may hurt you as med schools will see every time you took it and several attempts getting low scores look bad. Plan to take it once, don't plan to do "practice runs" or anything like that to improve upon later.

So what do you guys think? Do you think its worth a shot? Do you think it’d be possible for me to get into a DO program? What about a MD program? Suggestions? Anything I’m thinking about the wrong way or missing?

If you can put in the effort to get A's, you definitely have a shot. You are starting from behind regarding your GPA, so you will need to do what you can to get A's across the board. You can't settle for a B or B+ average as "realistic" because it may not be enough to get in. Admissions committees will be impressed and know you are serious if you apply with a 3.9 post-bac GPA and a 30+ MCAT on the first attempt. They may not be willing to take a chance if you pull off a 3.3 post-bac GPA and a 29 MCAT after getting a 24 and a 26 the first two attempts.

That said, if you are willing and able to put in the work you have to do to ace everything, you definitely have a shot at getting into at least a DO school, and probably some MD schools as well. For DO schools in particular, if you have any specific courses that you got very low grades in, you can re-take the class and DO schools will only consider your new grade for GPA calculations, significantly raising your GPA if you have a few classes bringing your GPA down. This won't help you much if you have a bunch of B's instead of a few D's or F's though, obviously.

Good luck!

 

[Arrode]

Hey I'm similar to you. 24 year old, BS-IT, working as a software dev (2 years).

I know the GPA is fairly low by med school standards. Would it matter that I was in a bit more difficult program while working through school?

I don't think they're going to care. I was CS for 2 years then swapped to IT because I wanted to do web development. CS is a hard major. Much harder than the liberal arts, so I feel you there. I had a 3.4 overall when I graduated, but I feel like I worked a lot harder than a lot of my friends. Unfortunately pre-med is a hard major too and a lot of people get out of that with a great GPA, so I don't think adcoms will care too much.

Would the undergrad research count at all to an adcom? It dealt with writing algorithms for gene sequencing, but definitely the more technical side of it. A couple of jobs I've taken dealt with health research but again definitely the more technical side of it. Would it be favorable to mention these at all, if anything, to show that I've been interested in health for a while?

I'd include this. Research looks good, even though it's not 100% medically related. I took bioinformatics in college which was algorithms for gene sequencing too, but I never did research, but it ties in to health care so I'd 100% include it!

Would adcoms look at two classes while working full time as a good course load? What if it was one class per semester? How about taking classes over summer semesters?

2 yes, 1... not so much. I'm doing an accelerated post-bac that's 2-3 science courses at a time (so full load at some points PLUS a full time job). The admissions for my post-bacc said that medical schools love it when people work full time and take a big load of classes. It shows you can handle the rigors of med school. It's also preferable to do your pre-reqs at a 4 year university and not at a cc. The rationale for this is a lot of admission officers think that cc courses are easier than their 4 year university counterparts and might look less favorably on them, especially since your undergrad GPA is lower.

For ECs, I wont be able to do much shadowing, but I was planning on shadowing 3-5 doctors, each between 8 hours to possibly taking a week off from work to shadow full time for 40 hours. I've volunteered for a few community projects that aren't medically related, including organizing sports leagues/refereeing and tutoring kids in math/programming, would those be looked at favorably?

I don't have much time to shadow either, so this is what I'm doing!

So what do you guys think? Do you think its worth a shot? Do you think it'd be possible for me to get into a DO program? What about a MD program? Suggestions? Anything I'm thinking about the wrong way or missing?

I can't really say since I'm not the expert on getting in, but I just wanted to say our stories are similar and we're on the same path, so best of luck to you! 🙂

 

[ocml85]

Thank you for your response! I have a few follow up questions though.

What would your sGPA be, which would include any math, biology, chemistry and physics classes you took? How many credits total do you have toward the sGPA?

I calculated out my sGPA to be 3.07 with 32 credits. Theres only 4 credits bio (B lecture, A- lab), and the rest are made up of math classes. Turns out I did take a bio lab, saw it on my transcript.

Does the school you will be taking classes at have a pre-med committee? If so, you will need to talk to that office and find out what you need to do to be eligible for a LOR from them. Medical schools are very cautious about applicants who don't get a committee letter when one is available from their school, so you really need to get one from the committee if your school has one.

They do but I'm not sure if they provide advising to a non-degree seeking student. In case they don't, should I somehow try to make it known to the adcom that they wouldn't provide me a letter?

OK, with your current undergrad GPA, you need to focus on getting a 4.0, or absolutely as close as you can manage. A 3.0-3.5 GPA may not cut it if you want a good chance of getting in. Take one class at a time at first if you have to, to determine what exactly you need to do to all but guarantee you an A in these classes.

I calculated out what my sGPA would be if I added 32 more credits for the pre-reqs, and retaking bio 1. The highest my sGPA could get is 3.53. Would they consider my post-bac grades separately than my undergrad BCPM GPA?

I'm glad that one class per semester is okay. I'm definitely more confident about taking the classes now with a full time job. I wish I could go back to school full time but I'm not comfortable with taking out a loan just yet. I'd be fine with taking my time with classes to ensure I get good grades and not lose all my hair in the process. I'd end up taking close to three years to get all the classes out of the way. Does that seem alright?

For DO schools in particular, if you have any specific courses that you got very low grades in, you can re-take the class and DO schools will only consider your new grade for GPA calculations, significantly raising your GPA if you have a few classes bringing your GPA down. This won't help you much if you have a bunch of B's instead of a few D's or F's though, obviously.

Sadly, thats the case. I only have 1 C in my BCPM which is multivariable calculus taken at a community college. The rest are a good mix of B/B+, with a couple A's. Should I retake multivariable calculus? I got a B- in calc 1 and I'm sure I could retake that and get an A. What do you think?

Thanks again!

 

[ocml85]

2 yes, 1... not so much. I'm doing an accelerated post-bac that's 2-3 science courses at a time (so full load at some points PLUS a full time job).

Wow! You must have a lot of endurance and l33t h4x0r skills lol. I don't think I could do 3 classes at a time with my schedule. I'm hoping by the time I start the classes I can convince my company to let me work from home a few days out of the week so I have a bit more flexibility.

I was looking into part time post-bacs but theres non available near where I live. The only part time one available near me requires that you already have the pre-reqs under your belt. The others require full time attendance during the day, which isn't a viable option for me.

I can't really say since I'm not the expert on getting in, but I just wanted to say our stories are similar and we're on the same path, so best of luck to you! 🙂

Thank you Arrode 🙂 Good luck to you too!

 

[DRAD1S]

(To the OP)

This thread has actually been encouraging/helpful to me as I'm actually in the exact same position you are; 25 with a family and working to get into med school. I'm taking some additional classes right now to boost my UG GPA and will start up on the rest of my science pre-reqs come the fall of 2012. (If everything goes as planned.) I just pulled my GPA up to a 3.1 which is a positive direction but still a pretty sad cGPA (graduated with a double major in MIS and Finance with a 4.0 and 3.5 respectively.) After I finish these remaining classes + my remaining science classes I should have (in the vicinity) of a 3.5. I'm hoping my improved GPA + a competitive MCAT score + a decent amount of volunteer work will at least get me an interview somewhere. I'm not in a position to where I can provide any type of quality advice but just wanted to say hello and share a view from someone in the same boat.

All the best to you!

 

[sirenomelia]

Advice: Stay in compters/ IT, work, stay out of debt, make bank, retire at 55, expat to costa rica, drink margaritas and wear unsightly colorful shirts.

If you have to do medicine, enroll in a formal post-bac program- some of them are oriented to evenings for working people. If you get mostly A's then take an MCAT and if you do well then sit down and plan where to apply. Thats all premature at this point.

 

[MT Headed]

Advice: Stay in compters/ IT, work, stay out of debt, make bank, retire early, expat to costa rica, drink margaritas and wear unsightly colorful shirts.

Lol, and then the second half of the story is get bored with slacking, get tired of the humid weather, move back home, look for ways to contribute to your community, get re-interested in medicine, and find yourself entering medical school at the ripe old age of 42.

This is life. There are no wrong answers, as long as you are following your dreams.