cGPA 3.45 sGPA 3.62 33MCAT

[donkeykongrunne]

I'm not so interested in how my exact stats line up with med school admissions but more interested in how my personal circumstances and grade progression alter my chances.

My first 2 years of undergrad were mediocre - 2.9 cGPA.
My Junior year was better - a semester at 3.625 and a semester at 3.500.
My senior year was great - 4.0 both semesters including Nuclear Physics, O-chem 1, Biophysics 1 and 2, etc.

As the title states my end result it = cGPA 3.45 sGPA 3.62 33MCAT. (Physics major)

The reason there was such a drastic change in my grades was because I was constantly driving home to help with my mom having stage 4 breast cancer (a major reason i want to become a doctor). Between driving home all the time and depression my grades suffered. My mom passed away the summer before my senior year which, as bad as it sounds, lifted a great burden and allowed me to focus much better.

With that in mind will schools think of me as a 3.45 GPA student or much closer to the 4.0 that I demonstrated my final year and what sort of success do you think I would have at the level of school's I'm interested in (Wake Forest, Illinois, Minnesota, Medical College of Wisconsin, Stony Brook, Loyola, etc.)? I want to apply for the NEXT cycle, not the current.

Thanks!

EDIT:

As far as EC's if anyone was wondering I have 2 years of Physics research and in the spring I'm starting an internship with a radiation oncologist. This whole next year of down time I'll be volunteering and shadowing as much as I can because I know I'm weak there.

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[ppappui]

You will be a solid applicant if you complete those ECs the upcoming year. The adcom will always consider your entire GPA (they will not ignore your first 2 years), especially at the screening stage. However, of course they will be considering your upward trend, circumstances on why you had the poor GPA, how your MCAT reflects your current GPA more so, etc. In fact, they will be focusing on that more than just your cGPA of 3.45, because that doesn't tell the whole story.
Make sure you provide them with why your GPA has an upward trend and how you did it. Those secondary essays that have to do with "hardships" will allow you to explain that.
Keep doing what you're doing now, get the volunteering and other activities the upcoming year, write a good Personal Statement, apply early and submit secondaries early, and you'll be in medical school in the fall of 2013

 

[Catalystik]

As far as EC's if anyone was wondering I have 2 years of Physics research and in the spring I'm starting an internship with a radiation oncologist. This whole next year of down time I'll be volunteering and shadowing as much as I can because I know I'm weak there.

So will your clinical experience consist only of 5 months with the radiation oncologist, or will you have other formal clinical experience among your volunteering efforts? Keep in mind that 1.5 years of clinical experience is the average, and longevity is more important that raw hours.

Be sure to include a primary care doc among your shadowed physicians. About 50 total hours is the average.

Many schools also want to see nonmedical community service. Is that included in your volunteer efforts. Is it regular (weekly or twice monthly, which is preferred) rather than sporadic?

Any teaching or leadership to mention? Hobbies, sports, and/or Arts involvement are also important.

The research, BTW, is well above the average.

 

[donkeykongrunne]

So will your clinical experience consist only of 5 months with the radiation oncologist, or will you have other formal clinical experience among your volunteering efforts? Keep in mind that 1.5 years of clinical experience is the average, and longevity is more important that raw hours.

Be sure to include a primary care doc among your shadowed physicians. About 50 total hours is the average.

Many schools also want to see nonmedical community service. Is that included in your volunteer efforts. Is it regular (weekly or twice monthly, which is preferred) rather than sporadic?

Any teaching or leadership to mention? Hobbies, sports, and/or Arts involvement are also important.

The research, BTW, is well above the average.

Thanks for the responses!


Well I have next year entirely off so I figure i would spend a lot of that time building up my EC's as best as possible. This means they will be spread out over a year which isn't THAT long but the numbers should hopefully be over the averages.

As far as teaching, I've TA's a class as well as run my own independent tutoring service. Do these help?

As for sports sports I run on the cross country and triathlon clubs at my school and am involved in many intramural activities (water polo, basketball).

Community service - I taught at a homeless shelter for about 50 hours my freshman year and co-lead a very successful Relay for Life team. While that isn't necessarily out of the ordinary, the amount we've raised (well over $100,000 as well as me being the top fundraiser,) definitely is. I'm not sure if I should mention this?

 

[Morsetlis]

You will be a successful applicant. Focus either on more continued clinical experience, or research, or both, but not at the expense of GPA.

 

[Catalystik]

1) As far as teaching, I've TA's a class as well as run my own independent tutoring service. Do these help?

2) As for sports sports I run on the cross country and triathlon clubs at my school and am involved in many intramural activities (water polo, basketball).

3) Community service - I taught at a homeless shelter for about 50 hours my freshman year and co-lead a very successful Relay for Life team. While that isn't necessarily out of the ordinary, the amount we've raised (well over $100,000 as well as me being the top fundraiser,) definitely is. I'm not sure if I should mention this?

1) Definitely.

2) Mention everything (using a single space is fine if you are running out of room).

3) It isn't considered tacky to mention a large figure.