Could use some advice on what to do next

[spidey066]

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Background info: I graduated last year from my state school with a 3.33 cGPA and a 3.15 sGPA with a 26 MCAT. Numerous ECs during college (officer positions in many clubs), did research for 1.5 years, also have many clinical and volunteering experiences including an international mission trip and scribing in 3 different specialties (currently a scribe at an internal medicine practice now in my gap year). I also had strong recommendations from professors/research mentors and a D.O. that I shadowed.

I applied in the 2015-2016 cycle (completed secondaries late August - early September) to around 20 osteopathic schools and got 2 interviews, I was waitlisted for one and rejected for the other (due to a C in a pre-req even after retaking). Idk if the the waitlist will pan out well for me so I want to weigh out my options for next year and was hoping for some advice on which one I should choose.

Option 1: Enroll into a formal Master's program or post bacc program. My premed advisor said this would be the best choice because it will "prove" to med schools I can handle the coursework. I would try to bring up my gpa and apply again after one year of coursework. I probably would have to quit my scribing job because I would be relocating and so that I can focus on school and do well. I would also plan on retaking my MCAT but tbh I'm kind of worried it would be hard for me to study for that and do well in a masters/post bacc all at the same time.

Option 2: Enroll in a local community college and just take science classes to to help bring up my sGPA (such as anatomy, microbiology, etc.). I would also again retake that one pre-req I got a C in. I can't really retake anything else because the rest are my grades are just mainly Bs (with a few As here and there). The thing that worries me about this is that my premed advisor said med schools don't really take community college classes seriously and that it's better to do a formal post bacc/masters at a 4 year institution rather than a "do it your own" post bacc at a community college. However, the one benefit of this option is that I only live 10 min from my CC and it would allow me to be supper flexible with my schedule (I would prob take 2-3 courses a semester) so that I can keep my scribing job and still study for a MCAT retake. Likewise I would re-apply for medical school after one year of coursework (after taking around 5-6 classes).


Which option do you think would be best for my situation? I only plan on applying to D.O. schools like I did during this cycle. Also feel free to suggest a different option if these two aren't ideal. Thank you in advance for your help. I really appreciate it.

 

[radian313]

Background info: I graduated last year from my state school with a 3.33 cGPA and a 3.15 sGPA with a 26 MCAT. Numerous ECs during college (officer positions in many clubs), did research for 1.5 years, also have many clinical and volunteering experiences including an international mission trip and scribing in 3 different specialties (currently a scribe at an internal medicine practice now in my gap year). I also had strong recommendations from professors/research mentors and a D.O. that I shadowed.

I applied in the 2015-2016 cycle (completed secondaries late August - early September) to around 20 osteopathic schools and got 2 interviews, I was waitlisted for one and rejected for the other (due to a C in a pre-req even after retaking). Idk if the the waitlist will pan out well for me so I want to weigh out my options for next year and was hoping for some advice on which one I should choose.

Option 1: Enroll into a formal Master's program or post bacc program. My premed advisor said this would be the best choice because it will "prove" to med schools I can handle the coursework. I would try to bring up my gpa and apply again after one year of coursework. I probably would have to quit my scribing job because I would be relocating and so that I can focus on school and do well. I would also plan on retaking my MCAT but tbh I'm kind of worried it would be hard for me to study for that and do well in a masters/post bacc all at the same time.

Option 2: Enroll in a local community college and just take science classes to to help bring up my sGPA (such as anatomy, microbiology, etc.). I would also again retake that one pre-req I got a C in. I can't really retake anything else because the rest are my grades are just mainly Bs (with a few As here and there). The thing that worries me about this is that my premed advisor said med schools don't really take community college classes seriously and that it's better to do a formal post bacc/masters at a 4 year institution rather than a "do it your own" post bacc at a community college. However, the one benefit of this option is that I only live 10 min from my CC and it would allow me to be supper flexible with my schedule (I would prob take 2-3 courses a semester) so that I can keep my scribing job and still study for a MCAT retake. Likewise I would re-apply for medical school after one year of coursework (after taking around 5-6 classes).


Which option do you think would be best for my situation? I only plan on applying to D.O. schools like I did during this cycle. Also feel free to suggest a different option if these two aren't ideal. Thank you in advance for your help. I really appreciate it.

Your mcat is decent for DO schools. If the breakdown is good then I wouldnt retake because a lower score coupled with your C retake would be a big red flag.

Idk why your advisor said that, but many folks take CC retakes. Just make sure youll get credit for it as sometimes it doesnt count as a retake due to the difference in credit hours at a university vs a CC.

Keep your scribing going, its good experience. But dont let it interfere with your academic goals.

Did you apply broadly enough? I mean with what youve told us, an acceptance was likely possible unless there was a serious downward trend in your gpa or something.

 

[change4med]

Your premed advisor gave you some pretty crappy advice IMO.

Retake your C's, have a flexible schedule, keep doing your EC's and study for the MCAT in case you need to retake. If it's mentioned in an interview, tell them it saved you a ton of money and it was nearby/allowed your more flexibility, I told my interviewers that and they were more than okay with it. Save your money, and don't reapply til your new grades are in?

Take advantage of grade replacement and save some cash if you can! The masters/post-bacc is for a school you're dead set on getting into

 

[Bones 2020]

Your cGPA is fine, so I wouldn't bother with an entire post-bacc or a masters. It's just that sGPA (and maybe the MCAT, but I had a 27) holding you back.

How much time did you dedicate to MCAT studying?

Does your university offer online classes? I retook 3 classes from my undergrad university online and there was never any mention about them

 

[spidey066]

Thanks for the response guys. My MCAT breakdown was 10 BS, 9 PS, 7 VR. I studied for it for about 2.5 months in the summer between junior and senior year. Tbh my GPA trend is kinda weird. Freshman year I had 3.4 cgpa. Sophomore year i got lazy and it dropped down to a 3.2. Junior through senior year I got it up to a 3.3 but just kinda got stuck there. My state university doesn't really offer online courses for science classes so I guess there's another reason I'm trying to take classes at a CC. I only plan on retaking the one class I got a C in. The other classes would just be science classes I haven't taken yet so that I can boost up my gpa. Would those kind of classes be alright to take at a CC vs a 4 year university?

 

[change4med]

Thanks for the response guys. My MCAT breakdown was 10 BS, 9 PS, 7 VR. I studied for it for about 2.5 months in the summer between junior and senior year. Tbh my GPA trend is kinda weird. Freshman year I had 3.4 cgpa. Sophomore year i got lazy and it dropped down to a 3.2. Junior through senior year I got it up to a 3.3 but just kinda got stuck there. My state university doesn't really offer online courses for science classes so I guess there's another reason I'm trying to take classes at a CC. I only plan on retaking the one class I got a C in. The other classes would just be science classes I haven't taken yet so that I can boost up my gpa. Would those kind of classes be alright to take at a CC vs a 4 year university?

If you're going DO it's fine. I've been asked about them in my interviews, and if you do well and explain to them that A) it financially makes more sense B)Allowed more flexibility to continue EC's/work/MCAT studying, they are not going to have anything negative to say about it.

 

[DantheManimal]

Background info: I graduated last year from my state school with a 3.33 cGPA and a 3.15 sGPA with a 26 MCAT. Numerous ECs during college (officer positions in many clubs), did research for 1.5 years, also have many clinical and volunteering experiences including an international mission trip and scribing in 3 different specialties (currently a scribe at an internal medicine practice now in my gap year). I also had strong recommendations from professors/research mentors and a D.O. that I shadowed.

I applied in the 2015-2016 cycle (completed secondaries late August - early September) to around 20 osteopathic schools and got 2 interviews, I was waitlisted for one and rejected for the other (due to a C in a pre-req even after retaking). Idk if the the waitlist will pan out well for me so I want to weigh out my options for next year and was hoping for some advice on which one I should choose.

Option 1: Enroll into a formal Master's program or post bacc program. My premed advisor said this would be the best choice because it will "prove" to med schools I can handle the coursework. I would try to bring up my gpa and apply again after one year of coursework. I probably would have to quit my scribing job because I would be relocating and so that I can focus on school and do well. I would also plan on retaking my MCAT but tbh I'm kind of worried it would be hard for me to study for that and do well in a masters/post bacc all at the same time.

Option 2: Enroll in a local community college and just take science classes to to help bring up my sGPA (such as anatomy, microbiology, etc.). I would also again retake that one pre-req I got a C in. I can't really retake anything else because the rest are my grades are just mainly Bs (with a few As here and there). The thing that worries me about this is that my premed advisor said med schools don't really take community college classes seriously and that it's better to do a formal post bacc/masters at a 4 year institution rather than a "do it your own" post bacc at a community college. However, the one benefit of this option is that I only live 10 min from my CC and it would allow me to be supper flexible with my schedule (I would prob take 2-3 courses a semester) so that I can keep my scribing job and still study for a MCAT retake. Likewise I would re-apply for medical school after one year of coursework (after taking around 5-6 classes).


Which option do you think would be best for my situation? I only plan on applying to D.O. schools like I did during this cycle. Also feel free to suggest a different option if these two aren't ideal. Thank you in advance for your help. I really appreciate it.

I recently posted something quite similar. And I have similar stats to you so here's some more answers/advice and a poll to go with it..

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...adcoms-will-value-more.1190069/#post-17563155

 

[mathnerd88]

The problem is that both your GPA and MCAT are pretty low when combined together. All you need is to work on either increasing that MCAT or GPA. One good MCAT score or GPA will make up for the other.

If you had like a 31 MCAT, then schools will more likely forgive you. Same if you had a high GPA like 3.7+.

 

[88559]

If money is an issue for you, then I wouldn't do the master's program. I have the same MCAT as you and I raised my science GPA by taking science classes either through community college or at my school.

However, if money isn't an issue and there's a school that you really like, maybe you can consider the linkage master's program. Personally, I think it's too much money but it is a direct shot into the school and provides you with a structured classroom environment.

 

[spidey066]

Thanks again guys for the replies. If I raised my sGPA/cGPA (via the CC route) to around a 3.5 do you think I would need to retake my MCAT? (I got a 26, 10 BS, 9 PS, 7 VR) Also since I'll be re-applying I assume I would have to get new LORs correct? Or can I use the previous LORs from this application cycle? If I got new LORs from a CC professor would they not be as significant in comparison to LORs from a 4 year university professor? I haven't really been to my old college campus since I graduated so I Imagine it would be difficult to get my old professors/research mentors to write me new letters since I haven't seen them in a while.

 

[mathnerd88]

Thanks again guys for the replies. If I raised my sGPA/cGPA (via the CC route) to around a 3.5 do you think I would need to retake my MCAT? (I got a 26, 10 BS, 9 PS, 7 VR) Also since I'll be re-applying I assume I would have to get new LORs correct? Or can I use the previous LORs from this application cycle? If I got new LORs from a CC professor would they not be as significant in comparison to LORs from a 4 year university professor? I haven't really been to my old college campus since I graduated so I Imagine it would be difficult to get my old professors/research mentors to write me new letters since I haven't seen them in a while.

Keep in mind that your MCAT is only valid THREE years before matriculation for many schools, meaning if you took your MCAT before August 2014 it will not count towards the next cycle. If you have a GPA at least 3.5, then you should be good to go. Cast a wide net for DO schools.