Does anyone else feel this way?

[pixiedust]

Ok so, premed has been a disaster for me so far, I'm in my fourth semester of college, first let me discuss grades then circumstances.

In non BCPM classes I've essentially gotten A's here is the rest:

Bio I & II: B+
Chem I : B+
Chem II: D (75 % of teh class got F's so I guess i'm lucky)
Orgo I: Taking it now but it ain't gonna be pretty.
Physics I: Withdrew
Calc I & II: B+

I have about a 100 hours of volunteering, 1 summer internship, one published paper, I shadow/ intern for a neurologist and Mt Sinai. I'm a Bio major and am probably gonna do the BA/ MA program in economics. I've been really depressed lately, my grades are not motivating, and are killing my passion for medicine. I can't really give up teh idea cuz I've chased this dream for thecpast 7 years. Most of the forums like this have people with amazing GPA's and I dunno if I shoudl even bother. Plus most of my freinds are taking social sciences classes crying over A-'s and I walk in to orgo and pray I get a C or B-. I really can't picture myself doing anything else, but pre med seems to be getting more and more out of reach. To add to all this I was on anti epilepsy meds and went off last november, since then I have experienced a lot of anger spells lack of concentration, depression, and It's so frustrating. I suffered from epilepsy in high school, and was in teh hospital in and out for a year. When applying to colleges, my GPA was horrible (around 80%) and most colleges were completely insensitive to my situation. I feel like the same thing will happen whe I apply to med school. It was due to thsi anger and depression that I had to withdraw from physics. And I am finding it really hard to concentrate in my classes and so it's hard to study for orgo too. I really dunno what to do.

I'm sorry for teh long post but i really need to talk to someone.

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[Zummy]

I am empathetic to your situation. I was a non-science major in undergrad and decided at the "last minute" that I had to pursue medicine-something my insecurities about my past performance had kept me from pursuing right from the get-go. I didn't think I "had a chance" to get in, so I resigned to majoring in English, not really sure what I'd do with it. So, as I neared graduation, I realized there was NOTHING else I wanted to do, and had to try, so I began taking my pre-reqs. I did average in most, got a couple of Cs got a couple of As... even had to withdraw and repeat Chem 1A!

However, I got in the first year I applied, and I didn't have near the extracurriculars you do! My advice would be, DON'T GIVE UP! I know how performing less than stellar can affect your self-confidence, and how that can often be paralyzing. I even had this issue in my first year of med school. I was so afraid of not passing, that I was studying inefficiently, etc. It's a vicious cycle. But it CAN be overcome! If you're committed and hard-working, you can do it!

Apply to as many schools as your pocketbook will allow, and apply to a range of schools (I think I applied to 30-40!!), being realistic about your competitiveness level (look at MSAR for each school's average GPAs, MCAT, etc). I think you'll find most med schools will be more understanding of your year out of school. In fact, many will find your experiences a strength. They want empathetic doctors. Best wishes and GOOD LUCK!

 

[nikibean]

OP,
Don't give up if this goal is what you want to achieve. There are many things you can do to help your application. Sounds like your ECs are good.
You need to retake Chem II, definitely. Try a good local community college or another professor? That will definitely help.

Do you have a pre-med advisor at your school? They can help you out with this issue, much more so than the SDN folk can.

Good luck, and if it's really what you want, stick with it.

 

[brcleats12]

First off, it looks like you've got quite a few extracurricular activities, so that portion of your applications would look good. What may be helpful is if you provided your current GPA. It'll give people on the forum a better grasp of what you're dealing with. Also, where are you doing your undergraduate? I know for physics, I had a tutor for awhile until I got into the swing of things. Maybe that would be helpful.

I'm sorry about the depression that you're going through. I suffered from a bout of depression when I saw my grades decline after transferring. It was good that you withdrew from physics I if you weren't feeling up for it.

Also, it seems as you have taken many of the prerequisites in a relatively short time period (2 years). It took me almost three years to complete the prerequisites and I was a biology major. Don't take too many science courses at once. Are you feeling as though you're grasping the material, but aren't getting the resulting test scores? I have gotten poor grades in classes, but when it came to taking the MCATs, I was pretty well prepared. MCAT scores are very important. GPA is only one component of your candidacy.

Good luck with everything. Chin up, and feel free to private message.

Ok so, premed has been a disaster for me so far, I'm in my fourth semester of college, first let me discuss grades then circumstances.

In non BCPM classes I've essentially gotten A's here is the rest:

Bio I & II: B+
Chem I : B+
Chem II: D (75 % of teh class got F's so I guess i'm lucky)
Orgo I: Taking it now but it ain't gonna be pretty.
Physics I: Withdrew
Calc I & II: B+

I have about a 100 hours of volunteering, 1 summer internship, one published paper, I shadow/ intern for a neurologist and Mt Sinai. I'm a Bio major and am probably gonna do the BA/ MA program in economics. I've been really depressed lately, my grades are not motivating, and are killing my passion for medicine. I can't really give up teh idea cuz I've chased this dream for thecpast 7 years. Most of the forums like this have people with amazing GPA's and I dunno if I shoudl even bother. Plus most of my freinds are taking social sciences classes crying over A-'s and I walk in to orgo and pray I get a C or B-. I really can't picture myself doing anything else, but pre med seems to be getting more and more out of reach. To add to all this I was on anti epilepsy meds and went off last november, since then I have experienced a lot of anger spells lack of concentration, depression, and It's so frustrating. I suffered from epilepsy in high school, and was in teh hospital in and out for a year. When applying to colleges, my GPA was horrible (around 80%) and most colleges were completely insensitive to my situation. I feel like the same thing will happen whe I apply to med school. It was due to thsi anger and depression that I had to withdraw from physics. And I am finding it really hard to concentrate in my classes and so it's hard to study for orgo too. I really dunno what to do.

I'm sorry for teh long post but i really need to talk to someone.

 

[CTSballer11]

Ok so, premed has been a disaster for me so far, I'm in my fourth semester of college, first let me discuss grades then circumstances.

In non BCPM classes I've essentially gotten A's here is the rest:

Bio I & II: B+
Chem I : B+
Chem II: D (75 % of teh class got F's so I guess i'm lucky)
Orgo I: Taking it now but it ain't gonna be pretty.
Physics I: Withdrew
Calc I & II: B+

I have about a 100 hours of volunteering, 1 summer internship, one published paper, I shadow/ intern for a neurologist and Mt Sinai. I'm a Bio major and am probably gonna do the BA/ MA program in economics. I've been really depressed lately, my grades are not motivating, and are killing my passion for medicine. I can't really give up teh idea cuz I've chased this dream for thecpast 7 years. Most of the forums like this have people with amazing GPA's and I dunno if I shoudl even bother. Plus most of my freinds are taking social sciences classes crying over A-'s and I walk in to orgo and pray I get a C or B-. I really can't picture myself doing anything else, but pre med seems to be getting more and more out of reach. To add to all this I was on anti epilepsy meds and went off last november, since then I have experienced a lot of anger spells lack of concentration, depression, and It's so frustrating. I suffered from epilepsy in high school, and was in teh hospital in and out for a year. When applying to colleges, my GPA was horrible (around 80%) and most colleges were completely insensitive to my situation. I feel like the same thing will happen whe I apply to med school. It was due to thsi anger and depression that I had to withdraw from physics. And I am finding it really hard to concentrate in my classes and so it's hard to study for orgo too. I really dunno what to do.

I'm sorry for teh long post but i really need to talk to someone.

This really sticks out too me and not because a D is a poor grade. Adcoms will not see what is written in the paranthesis when they look at your transcript and they will not know that 75% of your orgo classed failed it. So you need to stop making excuses and either buckle down or find another route. Again I do not want to sound heartless but that is how it is.

 

[pixiedust]

Thank you guys for your feedback, it was really comforting. My GPA for three semesters is a 3.3 overall. I have essentially A's and B's except for the one D, after this semester I see my GPA plummeting even more. I live in NYC and go to a college that is part of the City University of New York. My school has especially difficult science classes. I have actually compared my test to test I found on the internet for honors orgo classes in a few Ivys and ound thta mine were tougher! Our class average has been 30, for a class of about 150 people for the past two tests. The professor refuses to change his tests, and has tenure so essentially isn't going anywhere. I haave lost all motivation to even study for this class. I can stil pull off an A- if I do exceptionally well on the last two tests, but I got a 38 on the last test after studying for 2 weeks so its just frustrating to sit with that orgo book!
I als feel like I'm getting the material, but the tests are just rather unfair. Once again I really apreciate the advice, and thank you for listening...or actually reading lol.

 

[pixiedust]

This really sticks out too me and not because a D is a poor grade. Adcoms will not see what is written in the paranthesis when they look at your transcript and they will not know that 75% of your orgo classed failed it. So you need to stop making excuses and either buckle down or find another route. Again I do not want to sound heartless but that is how it is.

It wasn't an excuse, I guess I should have mentioned, that I know had I put in more work I could have gotten atleast a B if not an A. I did really well on my first test too, but after that my doctor took off my meds, now i'll be honest, I have always been a bit lazy, but when I had to I coudl pull myself together and work my butt off. But since the meds have been off I have been very agitated and unable to concentrate. I took an MRI 2 weeks ago and it was my first after my meds were taken off. The 30 mins I had to stay still were excrutiating, I wanted out after 5 mins, I was getting really restless. I know it is competitive and I appreciate your honesty, but that's partly why I'm writing to see if anyone else experience something similar and pulled through. Or if maybe I should take a break from my pre reqs for a semester, and then come back and retake the few classes i screwed up on. I'm planning on taking physics in the summer but I wonder if I should maybe pull myself together first.

 

[brcleats12]

Thank you guys for your feedback, it was really comforting. My GPA for three semesters is a 3.3 overall. I have essentially A's and B's except for the one D, after this semester I see my GPA plummeting even more. I live in NYC and go to a college that is part of the City University of New York. My school has especially difficult science classes. I have actually compared my test to test I found on the internet for honors orgo classes in a few Ivys and ound thta mine were tougher! Our class average has been 30, for a class of about 150 people for the past two tests. The professor refuses to change his tests, and has tenure so essentially isn't going anywhere. I haave lost all motivation to even study for this class. I can stil pull off an A- if I do exceptionally well on the last two tests, but I got a 38 on the last test after studying for 2 weeks so its just frustrating to sit with that orgo book!
I als feel like I'm getting the material, but the tests are just rather unfair. Once again I really apreciate the advice, and thank you for listening...or actually reading lol.

At least you'll be prepared for the Orgo section of the MCATs. Hang in there. Also, you should consider retaking Chem II again as one of the previous posters has suggested.