Do Med Schools Review Every Application

[DrEertfar]

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My first stint in college was back in 1995 and 1996. I tabulated a very impressive g.p.a. of 0.9 (50 credit hours) and flunked out of school. Nine years later I returned to school in the fall of 2005 a very different person from before. Since returning to school I've pulled a 3.87 g.p.a. while accumulating 102 credit hours, 24 of which are grad level bio and chem courses. I've done a lot of physician shadowing, volunteered, have good letters of recommendation and after two years of research I'm finally about to be published for my work. I've taken 3 practice MCAT's so far in preparation for the July 18th exam and have scored a 35 twice and a 36.

The problem is that my cumulative g.p.a. on my AMCAS application is going to be around a 2.90. I could be in school until I'm 75 years old and I'm not going to have enough credits to overcome 50 hours of .9 work. Will medical schools EVEN REVIEW my application when they see this g.p.a.? If they do review, do I have a chance in hell of getting an interview to explain who I am and the road I've traveled?

 

[jelly476]

in a word, yes. you have a good shot as long as you address your low gpa and the reason you flunked out initially in your essay. in fact, they will probably enjoy the non traditional candidate that you are if you have a good story. dont worry about it. maybe harvard or hopkins will skip over you, but almost every medical school reads the initial app.

 

[Sandlot1892]

My first stint in college was back in 1995 and 1996. I tabulated a very impressive g.p.a. of 0.9 (50 credit hours) and flunked out of school. Nine years later I returned to school in the fall of 2005 a very different person from before. Since returning to school I've pulled a 3.87 g.p.a. while accumulating 102 credit hours, 24 of which are grad level bio and chem courses. I've done a lot of physician shadowing, volunteered, have good letters of recommendation and after two years of research I'm finally about to be published for my work. I've taken 3 practice MCAT's so far in preparation for the July 18th exam and have scored a 35 twice and a 36.

The problem is that my cumulative g.p.a. on my AMCAS application is going to be around a 2.90. I could be in school until I'm 75 years old and I'm not going to have enough credits to overcome 50 hours of .9 work. Will medical schools EVEN REVIEW my application when they see this g.p.a.? If they do review, do I have a chance in hell of getting an interview to explain who I am and the road I've traveled?

I personally think they will. and the schools that take a liking to non-traditional applicants / improving GPA's will be sure to seriously consider your app.

theres only one way to find out though : go for it.

good luck!

 

[MilkmanAl]

I think you have a good chance if you write a very strong personal statement that includes your maturation story. Go murder the MCAT (which it sounds like you're very prepared to do), and apply broadly. I'd be surprised if you didn't get a chance somewhere. I'd even bet that if you apply to any schools that do open interviews, you'll get one just so they can ask you what happened.

 

[custard]

I think it would be okay if you address the initial low GPA in your personal statement (and mention how long ago it was and why it was so low etc).

 

[ChimpanzeeMinky]

My first stint in college was back in 1995 and 1996. I tabulated a very impressive g.p.a. of 0.9 (50 credit hours) and flunked out of school. Nine years later I returned to school in the fall of 2005 a very different person from before. Since returning to school I've pulled a 3.87 g.p.a. while accumulating 102 credit hours, 24 of which are grad level bio and chem courses. I've done a lot of physician shadowing, volunteered, have good letters of recommendation and after two years of research I'm finally about to be published for my work. I've taken 3 practice MCAT's so far in preparation for the July 18th exam and have scored a 35 twice and a 36.

The problem is that my cumulative g.p.a. on my AMCAS application is going to be around a 2.90. I could be in school until I'm 75 years old and I'm not going to have enough credits to overcome 50 hours of .9 work. Will medical schools EVEN REVIEW my application when they see this g.p.a.? If they do review, do I have a chance in hell of getting an interview to explain who I am and the road I've traveled?

Take a look at my MDApps profile. I ended up with a cum 2.84 after a year of 4.0 post-bacc work and will be matriculating at my state school this fall. Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions.

 

[riverwoman1040]

Are you sure you even need to include the transcripts from 1995-1996? Did you transfer credits from back then for your current degree or are you attending the same school? If not, maybe you don't... A friend of mine had a similar problem (not for medical school though), and he was told by someone in admissions that it wasn't necessary to send them. Maybe you can exclude them? Check into that.

Doubtful. Might be worth a try, but AMCAS wants all college coursework, and your chances of finding a loop hole are probably really small.