Could plan B hurt my chances 2nd time around?

[Bunsen Honeydew]

Hi, everyone:

I'm currently waitlisted at 2 schools, but am losing hope; I've just started the application process for 2005 and am re-taking the MCAT this August. My plan B is to get my MPH in a good program to which I've been accepted. Now I'm starting to wonder this: if I don't get in to med school for this fall, I take the MCAT and re-apply (and hopefully do better!), and do a year of the MPH program, will it hurt me come interview time?

Will it look "bad" that I've done a year of the MPH -- which I've actually also always been interested in? How will schools look at this detour? My ultimate goal is to get both degrees, but things haven't gone completely according to plan. I would probably either leave the program and finish after or defer MD school and finish the program.

My biggest fear is that I will bomb the MCAT again and not get in the 2nd time. If I haven't moved on to the MPH program, I'll be SOL. Any thoughts? Thanks for any advice!!

BH

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[dancer817]

I am actually in a similar situation. I am on three waitlists and have been accepted to a masters program in physio starting this fall. I have called a few schools to discuss improving my app and they say that because I dont have any grades for the Masters yet, they aren't going to recognize that I will have it and they suggest reapplying the next year (2006).....that seems so far away!!!!

Hopefully someone out there has the answers for us!!!

Good luck on those waitlists!!!

 

[DocStretch]

Honeydew, I don't think there's any way that earning an MPH will hurt you. I'm not sure what MPH program you're thinking about, but the one I'm in is a two year program, and if I'm not mistaken, medical schools won't accept someone in the midst of a grad program. You'll certainly want to investigate that if you aren't comitted to completing your masters. I think adcoms will look at your "detour" depending on the way you describe your experiences. If you tell them "well, I really just want to be an academic neurosurgeon and I think that public health is a load of crap and I just went there to impress you guys in this interview", they probaly won't think too highly of your "detour". On the otherhand, if you expound about the increased perspective you've gained and the potential to improve the health of groups of people in addition to individual patients, they might think a little better of it.
But you should really look into the requirements about completing a masters before matriculating in med school, I'm almost certain it's required and from your post it doesn't seem as though you'd want to finish it. G'luck w/those waitlists in the mean time.

 

[Bunsen Honeydew]

Hey, DocStrech:

Thanks for the info! I actually hadn't considered that med schools wouldn't accept someone mid-Masters. I called one of the med schools I'm waitlisted, and the person with whom I spoke said that basically it would be my choice if I wanted to cut the master's program short. She was certainly a little confused, so I should probably talk to the asst. dean of admissions instead.

Sounds like you're in an MPH program now, right? Do you like it? What area are you studying?

If I go, it will be to Columbia in NYC in epi. Like I said, I always wanted to do both at the same school, but that may not work out. I'm really confused about what to do. Im just not sure I'm totallly gung-ho yet on the epi program by itself -- I'm still holding onto the hope of a dual program. And, I guess the alternative is to do the epi program and apply for 2006, not 2005, as per your post. Sorry for rambling, just very confused and stressed! Any advice would be much appreciated.

BH

 

[chicadehuskers]

My graduate school mentor at Creighton University was on the medical school admissions committee. He told me that most medical schools will not accept someone who is in the middle of a grad. program. How long is the MPH program you are pursuing? Here are a few words of wisdom he passed on to people in a similar situation as you seem to be:

(1) If the admissions comm. likes you well enough to accept you without a Masters Degree, they will like you even better with one....thus, deferment (if you just need a year) is a very probable option for you.

(2) Find out if the school has a combined MPH/MD program. If you successfully complete the MPH program, your chances of getting into medical school there are greatly increased. They may be willing to let you apply for the dual degree program after completing a year of the MPH coursework. You may be able to complete your MPH work after your second year of medical school, or perhaps even before your first year.

Your best bet is to make nice with the dean of admissions (of both the graduate school and the medical school). He/she can make so many things happen for you if you show them that you are a real person with serious desires of being an MPH/MD. Hope this helps.

 

[DocStretch]

Hey BHd,
That's a good call to follow up with the assistant dean of admissions for sure about the discontinuing a masters program. I understand where you're coming from about wanting to get the degrees from a dual program. I was thinking the same thing when I applied to med school the first time. Once I didn't get in, it was either apply, wait a year with nothing in particular to do (in my case), hopefully get into med school (without the nice little boost an MPH perspective is gonna give me) and get an MD/MPH in six years later. My other option was to wait to apply until I was halfway done with my MPH, then apply to med schools with the advantage of the classes I've had this year. To make a long story short, both routes end with an MD/MPH but the one I choose by gettting my MPH first ought to help me to get into a "better" med school. I'm doing hospital and molecular epi at UMich and I really like it. I get to take a bunch of legit science classes like pathology, radiation biology, epid of cancer, etc... plus I get to take pretty important classes for my breadth requirments like "Overview of the US healthcare system" and "psychosocial factors of disease". Anyway, it was the right program for me. Hope you come to a decision that works out great for you. PM me if you have any other questions.

Ps chicadehuskers, great points. I hadn't thought of combining things as you did in #2.

 

[Bunsen Honeydew]

Thanks to you both for your advice. I feel like I'm having a (slightly early) mid-life crisis. A lot of variables and unknowns....plus the fact that I'm 34 and want to have another baby (oy vay!) is making me nuts!

DocStretch: your program sounds *awesome*. I've heard really good things about UMich. I'll have to check out Columbia's offerings more. I'm going to PM you when I get a moment. THanks!!

 

[stoleyerscrubz]

I can understand if medical schools do not want to accept students that will not finish their Masters by the time of matriculation to med school but how do they know when your program ends? Is there something on the AMCAS that says "will you have completed your masters by the time of matriculation?"

 

[Bunsen Honeydew]

I can understand if medical schools do not want to accept students that will not finish their Masters by the time of matriculation to med school but how do they know when your program ends? Is there something on the AMCAS that says "will you have completed your masters by the time of matriculation?"

In my case, it would be obvious. My program is a 2-yr. deal. And, of course, I would never be able to fib in an interview if I was still in a program. There isn't a place on the AMCAS application that asks it per se, but once you interview it will come out. I've decided to defer, retake the MCAT, and apply to dual programs.....I'm almost 99% sure.

BH

 

[DocStretch]

Hd is right that there isn't an explicit place for that on the AMCAS but whether or not it comes up in the interview, they'll know and I think it's uniformly standard to require completion of the grad program before getting accepted. For example, I cut and pasted the following from the Medical College of Wisc secondary from this year. Under the heading of "Stipulations for Acceptance" it had: "If you have indicated on your AMCAS application that you will be earning any kind of degree before you matriculate, your acceptance will be contingent upon completion of that degree and verified by official transcript."