correcting past demons

[Michael B5]

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My question is if a student during his first few years did go through that drunken pre-med syndrome or just didn't do well. Only passing one or two classes and many withdrawls. Then getting serious and having a 3.8 G.P.A and making an above average score on M.C.A.T by his senior year. Would he still be in contention for med school academically? (not counting the interview,summer jobs internships, etc. etc. etc.) Would does first few years weigh heavy?

 

[imtiaz]

Let's just look at this from a purely aesthetic point of view. Take two transcripts:

Transcript 1 Transcript 2
------------ --------------
YR 1 YR 1
---- -----
C A
C A
C A
C A
D A
C B
D A
YR 2 YR 2
----- ------
C B
C B
B B
B B
D A
C A
C A
YR 3 YR 3
----- -----
C B
B C
A B
A B
A C
A C
YR 4 YR 4
----- ------
A C
A C
A C
A C
A B
A B


Which looks better to you, overall? Which student would be the most motivated to do well in Med School? What do YOU think?

-imtiaz

 

[FourthTime]

Overall, committee members will look at your progression through school. They know that an 18 year old freshman is at a different maturity level than a graduating 22 year old. Also, more weight will be given to 400 level classes since they are more indicative of graduate type coursework. So, it's better to do well in the end rather than the beginning. Plus, you can pull the maturity card in your essay--they love to see that you have been through some adversity and overcome. That said, D's are bad and you may consider devoting some of your essay to explaining the grade--especially if there was a tough life situation at that time. I recently found out in an interview that it's really important to get A's in organic chemistry because it is indicative of your ability to memorize for gross anatomy (just wanted to pass that on). Good luck!