chances at DO

[kypreos]

Well, Ive been lurking around the boards and im sure some of you have seen my posts but i messed up my undergrad GPA my freshman year(1.8 *curses*), transfered to a community college were I had no idea what I wanted to do in life so when I took Bio 1 type classes it was more of a "meh" type of situation(originally a business major). since the middle of my junior year I have literally buckled down and my gpa has gone up significantly, getting almost straight A's every semester. Now it seems I'm graduating with a GPA that is unacceptible. I am a HUGE fan of the philosophy and I look forward to shadowing a DO in the very near future. Carrib is Out for me bc the risk of residency match is scary+tuition which brings me to the most important reason, my family, i currently live with my fiance and im getting married this summer. So let me list the grades for you to look at and tell me if I even have a shot at DO.

I will be graduated in may with this gpa.....
sGPA=2.6
cGPA=3.1
Mcat=whenever Im ready to take it and Im actually pulling a 30+ on practice tests youll see me at the prometric testing center. planing on jan 31'st but might reschedule to march 28th for an extra 2 months.

Here are a couple of questions that I have. Is it possible to apply and let them know that you will be sending them an updated GPA...NOT MCAT score? for instance I apply then take courses over the summer and then send them an updated transcript. my biggest fear is getting shredded by the cutoff. my science GPA is crap, it pisses me off that im even talking about it. ughh anyways moving on.

Also my EC's (IMO) are decent
Certified Personal Trainer(lived @ the gym)
USAPL Powerlifter
Lost 100 lbs through hard work
100 hours of volunteering
shadowed multiple doctors

So...if my mcat is bw a 28-32 How am I looking? I know the margin of questions right/wrong bw the scores is big, but if I pull in that range with the GPA listed I'm curious if I'll get interview invites. my #1 school is LECOM-Bradenton, I love that place nice people/area/I love PBL, I'm a huge self learner. on thier website(like a lot of other schools) they list a minimum gpa of a 3.0, well im above that so im not so worried but some schools list that a minimun science gpa=2.7 so this is what scares me. I would even pull out loans and take more classes the following semester (fall 2009) i dont care as ong as it brings my GPA up in time for the 2010 cycle, what scares me is having to wait another friggin year. I didnt apply this year so that I could raise my GPA even further and wait for the 2010 cycle, but now my sGPA is still low. So I'm worried. I have been MCAT preping for 9 weeks(second time taking it first time=low 20's) so I'm hoping for a better score. I know I may sound paranoid but I just shadowed a nuerosurgeon this past month and I realize I want to be doctor more and more(altho the shadowing process can be boring) this makes me anxious as to whether I will have to wait ANOTHER YEAR. any help is greatly appreciated.

The list of schools I would be applying to=
Touro-NY
NYCOM
UMDNJ-SOM
NOVA-COM
LECOM-BRADENTON+ERIE+SETON HALL
VCOM
WVSOM
PCOM both campuses
Touro (MD) hackensack
Florida state university(MD)
Miami Miller School of Medicine(Boca) (yes very IS friendly and by far the biggest longshot probobly bc im from NJ but ive met with them a couple times and its my ultimate dream school)

I cant think of any more to apply to. the 3 MD schools are Touro- hackensack, they will be accepting thier first class in 2010. FSU is known to take applicants with lower gpa's and MSM is my dream lol

any advice is greatly appreciated, ive always taken your advice so dont feel like your voice wont be heard lol. if you have any other DO schools on the east coast(preferably warm weather) please feel free to shout them out! I know this is gonna happen and its just a metter of time, i just hope it will be this year

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[JaggerPlate]

Well, Ive been lurking around the boards and im sure some of you have seen my posts but i messed up my undergrad GPA my freshman year(1.8 *curses*), transfered to a community college were I had no idea what I wanted to do in life so when I took Bio 1 type classes it was more of a "meh" type of situation(originally a business major). since the middle of my junior year I have literally buckled down and my gpa has gone up significantly, getting almost straight A's every semester. Now it seems I'm graduating with a GPA that is unacceptible. I am a HUGE fan of the philosophy and I look forward to shadowing a DO in the very near future. Carrib is Out for me bc the risk of residency match is scary+tuition which brings me to the most important reason, my family, i currently live with my fiance and im getting married this summer. So let me list the grades for you to look at and tell me if I even have a shot at DO.

I will be graduated in may with this gpa.....
sGPA=2.6
cGPA=3.1
Mcat=whenever Im ready to take it and Im actually pulling a 30+ on practice tests youll see me at the prometric testing center. planing on jan 31'st but might reschedule to march 28th for an extra 2 months.

Here are a couple of questions that I have. Is it possible to apply and let them know that you will be sending them an updated GPA...NOT MCAT score? for instance I apply then take courses over the summer and then send them an updated transcript. my biggest fear is getting shredded by the cutoff. my science GPA is crap, it pisses me off that im even talking about it. ughh anyways moving on.

Also my EC's (IMO) are decent
Certified Personal Trainer(lived @ the gym)
USAPL Powerlifter
Lost 100 lbs through hard work
100 hours of volunteering
shadowed multiple doctors

So...if my mcat is bw a 28-32 How am I looking? I know the margin of questions right/wrong bw the scores is big, but if I pull in that range with the GPA listed I'm curious if I'll get interview invites. my #1 school is LECOM-Bradenton, I love that place nice people/area/I love PBL, I'm a huge self learner. on thier website(like a lot of other schools) they list a minimum gpa of a 3.0, well im above that so im not so worried but some schools list that a minimun science gpa=2.7 so this is what scares me. I would even pull out loans and take more classes the following semester (fall 2009) i dont care as ong as it brings my GPA up in time for the 2010 cycle, what scares me is having to wait another friggin year. I didnt apply this year so that I could raise my GPA even further and wait for the 2010 cycle, but now my sGPA is still low. So I'm worried. I have been MCAT preping for 9 weeks(second time taking it first time=low 20's) so I'm hoping for a better score. I know I may sound paranoid but I just shadowed a nuerosurgeon this past month and I realize I want to be doctor more and more(altho the shadowing process can be boring) this makes me anxious as to whether I will have to wait ANOTHER YEAR. any help is greatly appreciated.

The list of schools I would be applying to=
Touro-NY
NYCOM
UMDNJ-SOM
NOVA-COM
LECOM-BRADENTON+ERIE+SETON HALL
VCOM
WVSOM
PCOM both campuses
Touro (MD) hackensack
Florida state university(MD)
Miami Miller School of Medicine(Boca) (yes very IS friendly and by far the biggest longshot probobly bc im from NJ but ive met with them a couple times and its my ultimate dream school)

I cant think of any more to apply to. the 3 MD schools are Touro- hackensack, they will be accepting thier first class in 2010. FSU is known to take applicants with lower gpa's and MSM is my dream lol

any advice is greatly appreciated, ive always taken your advice so dont feel like your voice wont be heard lol. if you have any other DO schools on the east coast(preferably warm weather) please feel free to shout them out! I know this is gonna happen and its just a metter of time, i just hope it will be this year

A few things ...

1. Congrats on buckling down, it's not an easy thing to do.
2. Can you retake any of those courses?? Even if they aren't science. The reason is because AACOMAS replaces retaken courses, so if you could retake 3-5 you failed or did poorly in ... your gpa should shoot right up.
3. I think your sci gpa is the real problem. Some DO schools have cutoff's at 2.75, some 2.5 etc ... I wouldn't want to be close to this cutoff.
4. The avg cGPA for DO schools is around a 3.4, and apparently the average MCAT is only a 25 (though most stats I've seen this year have schools much closer to a 28) ...

so I'd say retake a few courses (if you can) and just do as well as you can on the MCAT and I'd bet with a 3.2-3.3 cum and a 28+ MCAT, good ECs and the life experiences ... you'll be okay for DO. Good luck!!

 

[kypreos]

thanks for the quick reply and encouraging words! there are a 2 or 3 C's that I i can retake over the summer, my main concern is If I retake classes over the summer, will I pull this off in time for the 2010 app cycle. would I be able to let them know just like if I was going to notify them of an incoming MCAT score that I'm taking courses and not to shove me in the shredded cut off pile until they recieve my new grades? Just because I know applying on June 1st is crucial but I wouldnt have completed my summer courses until august? i dunno it seems like im cutting it close.

 

[JaggerPlate]

thanks for the quick reply and encouraging words! there are a 2 or 3 C's that I i can retake over the summer, my main concern is If I retake classes over the summer, will I pull this off in time for the 2010 app cycle. would I be able to let them know just like if I was going to notify them of an incoming MCAT score that I'm taking courses and not to shove me in the shredded cut off pile until they recieve my new grades? Just because I know applying on June 1st is crucial but I wouldnt have completed my summer courses until august? i dunno it seems like im cutting it close.

You can always update AMCAS and AACOMAS (as far as I know), plus you never know the difference it may make. If you're sitting in some under review pile and schools are suddenly updated that you retook 3 or those C's and Aced all of them ... it may bring attention and lead to an interview. Plus, if you are set on applying this cycle, it seems like summer is the only real time to retake them.

 

[Live4Life]

You can always update AMCAS and AACOMAS (as far as I know), plus you never know the difference it may make. If you're sitting in some under review pile and schools are suddenly updated that you retook 3 or those C's and Aced all of them ... it may bring attention and lead to an interview. Plus, if you are set on applying this cycle, it seems like summer is the only real time to retake them.

Just a quick correction, you can update AACOMAS but AMCAS doesn't allow updates once you have submitted. So don't send in your transcripts and finalize your AMCAS application until you have your updated grades. However, for AMCAS it doesn't really matter since they don't replace grades, rather they only average them into your GPA.

 

[JaggerPlate]

Just a quick correction, you can update AACOMAS but AMCAS doesn't allow updates once you have submitted. So don't send in your transcripts and finalize your AMCAS application until you have your updated grades. However, for AMCAS it doesn't really matter since they don't replace grades, rather they only average them into your GPA.

Are you sure?? I remember reading in the post bacc forum that people were continually submitting their SMP/post bacc grades after submitting and people always ask about trying to not submit grades after applying?? They also say to submit all transcripts ...

 

[Decicco]

You can send an update letter with new grades, but you can't update your primary after its been submitted for MD programs.

Since the average DO MCAT is around the 50th percentile (<26), I think the OP has a good chance of admittance with 30+ MCAT despite his GPA.

 

[JaggerPlate]

You can send an update letter with new grades, but you can't update your primary after its been submitted for MD programs.

Since the average DO MCAT is around the 50th percentile (<26), I think the OP has a good chance of admittance with 30+ MCAT despite his GPA.

Good to know about AMCAS. I'd say with a cGPA of 3.1 and a 30, the OP would get some responses ... but I know there are certain schools (midwestern comes to mind at the moment) that have a sGPA cutoff of 2.75, so I'd definitely work on that.

 

[kypreos]

thank you all for our responses. I was begining to doubt this would be possible, but now I'm thinking this might work and its just the momentum I need to get thiis crackalackin. thanks so much fellas.