DIY Postbacc

[samosamosa]

Hi everyone! I'm a fourth year undergrad. My GPA is currently a 3.1, which is not great.

However, I've made a lot of changes in my life and it's going well. I can possibly raise my GPA to 3.3 by graduation. I would like to take a further year of upper-div classes after graduation and raise my GPA to 3.45 before applying both MD and DO.

My question is - should I take this year of classes through a local community college or through my university's Extension program? How important is university prestige when doing a DIY postbacc? (I go to a well-known top tier school.) Will medical schools consider community college classes not as challenging as undergrad classes?

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[CoffeeintheMorning]

Some schools do not take community college courses. It would be safe to take courses at a uni.

 

[MareNostrummm]

Hi everyone! I'm a fourth year undergrad. My GPA is currently a 3.1, which is not great.

However, I've made a lot of changes in my life and it's going well. I can possibly raise my GPA to 3.3 by graduation. I would like to take a further year of upper-div classes after graduation and raise my GPA to 3.45 before applying both MD and DO.

My question is - should I take this year of classes through a local community college or through my university's Extension program? How important is university prestige when doing a DIY postbacc? (I go to a well-known top tier school.) Will medical schools consider community college classes not as challenging as undergrad classes?

I'd try to at least get the GPA over 3.5 rather than 3.45 if you want to apply for MD. It doesn't seem like much but 3.5 appears to be the unspoken line for "competitive", even though the matriculant average is at 3.7.

 

[Planes2Doc]

The only difference between structured versus ala carte is pre-med advising plus typically a committee letter. I originally looked at two structured programs in Chicago. The first was at my alma mater at Northwestern through their School of Continuing Studies. They prided themselves on being incredibly rigorous (the school had a bad reputation for general chemistry then), so I avoided it. I ultimately did Loyola University of Chicago, which allowed me to do day classes with undergrads, get pre-med advising, and a committee letter.

If I were to have done something myself, I likely would have done night classes from either Northwestern University, or taken them at another less rigorous four year school. You are free to do what you think is best. It all depends on your age and personal situation. My parents supported me for everything other than loans, and I lived with them. I was thus able to take day classes at Loyola, versus having to take night or weekend classes at Northwestern.

If you are able to focus everything on the post-bacc, I would likely suggest a less rigorous school, with heavy focus on MCAT studying. Do your best not to do any entry-level clinical jobs, and do at least one clinical volunteering and one non-clinical volunteering gigs during that time. I hope this helps.