Drexel vs. Penn Post-bac program

[Gfelte]

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In a couple of days I have to make a decision between the postbac pre-health programs at Drexel and Penn. I am at a complete loss because I don't know much about the Drexel program. Is anybody in this program? What are some of the pros and cons? Help!!!

 

[NewmansOwn]

In a couple of days I have to make a decision between the postbac pre-health programs at Drexel and Penn. I am at a complete loss because I don't know much about the Drexel program. Is anybody in this program? What are some of the pros and cons? Help!!!

I assume you're referring to the evening post-bac premed program at Drexel? If so, it's two years as opposed to Penn's (intended) one year, so the only reason you'd choose that is if you want to work full-time while attending. Or, I suppose, if you had another extenuating reason for wanting to take longer to do the prereqs.

 

[Gfelte]

I am referring to Drexel's evening post-bac program. The reason I originally applied to this program was in fact, to continue working and paying off my undergraduate loans. Despite the difference in one year vs. two, I was wondering if by being able to work and go to Drexel, am I doing myself a disservice by sacrificing reputation and a great education at Penn? While I understand it becomes a personal choice, whether or not to continue working, I am trying to figure out if Drexel is going to give me a good enough education to get me into a decent medical school.

 

[NewmansOwn]

I am referring to Drexel's evening post-bac program. The reason I originally applied to this program was in fact, to continue working and paying off my undergraduate loans. Despite the difference in one year vs. two, I was wondering if by being able to work and go to Drexel, am I doing myself a disservice by sacrificing reputation and a great education at Penn? While I understand it becomes a personal choice, whether or not to continue working, I am trying to figure out if Drexel is going to give me a good enough education to get me into a decent medical school.

Sure, I think it would -- you may even get preferrential consideration at Drexel. There's some debate about whether taking classes part-time looks bad because adcoms will wonder if you can handle full-time science, but the jury is still out. I don't think you'll have a problem getting into med school from Drexel, but would Penn give you a slight advantage...? Maybe, but I wouldn't say it's too major.

 

[pdoc]

I am referring to Drexel's evening post-bac program. The reason I originally applied to this program was in fact, to continue working and paying off my undergraduate loans. Despite the difference in one year vs. two, I was wondering if by being able to work and go to Drexel, am I doing myself a disservice by sacrificing reputation and a great education at Penn? While I understand it becomes a personal choice, whether or not to continue working, I am trying to figure out if Drexel is going to give me a good enough education to get me into a decent medical school.

Do you mind posting your stats...I assume that you got into both already?

 

[dogsnme2]

Sure, I think it would -- you may even get preferrential consideration at Drexel. There's some debate about whether taking classes part-time looks bad because adcoms will wonder if you can handle full-time science, but the jury is still out. I don't think you'll have a problem getting into med school from Drexel, but would Penn give you a slight advantage...? Maybe, but I wouldn't say it's too major.

Although I did not do a post-bacc, I can say with reasonable confidence that if you are planning to do one, you should not worry about taking the courses on a part-time basis, if you are working. Admissions committees will understand that you are earning money to pay down your debts, etc. If, however, you were to take the courses on a part-time basis, and you had nothing to show for it (I.e. you spent your days on the beach somewhere tropical with a martini in your hand), they would not respond positively.

 

[seeker073180]

Although I did not do a post-bacc, I can say with reasonable confidence that if you are planning to do one, you should not worry about taking the courses on a part-time basis, if you are working. Admissions committees will understand that you are earning money to pay down your debts, etc. If, however, you were to take the courses on a part-time basis, and you had nothing to show for it (I.e. you spent your days on the beach somewhere tropical with a martini in your hand), they would not respond positively.

sorta true. if you come from a science background and have already had multiple science courses simultaneously, then taking just a couple classes is fine. it might take a while for your GPA to move, but staying involved in something academic is also worthwhile and shows progress (get As). however, if you're coming from a non-science background and are only taking 1-2 science classes at a time, then that's not as good. AdComs want to see that you'll be able handle the LOAD. I guess it really depends on what your background is.....*nudge*

course selection would be the other important thing - don't take any repeats; take upper level stuff; take stuff that's relevant to medical education and/or fills in gaps in your foundation: immunology, microbio, biochem, etc.

 

[Gfelte]

I graduated from a private liberal arts college in 2006 with a BA in music and a BA in business. My GPA was a 3.7, and I currently work for a very prestigious company in the city. I just recently began volunteering in a local ER and I am also sitting for the national EMT exam in April. In July, I decided to apply to a post-bac program, because I am completely changing careers, and have only taken three science courses (A's in all). Someone suggested I consider the post-bac program, and after much research this seemed like the best option.

With that being said...how important is it to take the full load of science courses at Penn vs. two science course at night at Drexel? From what I've gathered, at Penn it is extremely difficult to do well (and very expensive) and Drexel might be both financially and academically easier. Is that a true statement? Does anybody know?

 

[dogsnme2]

I graduated from a private liberal arts college in 2006 with a BA in music and a BA in business. My GPA was a 3.7, and I currently work for a very prestigious company in the city. I just recently began volunteering in a local ER and I am also sitting for the national EMT exam in April. In July, I decided to apply to a post-bac program, because I am completely changing careers, and have only taken three science courses (A's in all). Someone suggested I consider the post-bac program, and after much research this seemed like the best option.

With that being said...how important is it to take the full load of science courses at Penn vs. two science course at night at Drexel? From what I've gathered, at Penn it is extremely difficult to do well (and very expensive) and Drexel might be both financially and academically easier. Is that a true statement? Does anybody know?

Hi there,

In comparing post-bacc programs, I can understand why you would look for the easiest program. I know that Drexel's post-bacc IMS program involves taking several actual medical school courses alongside the first-year medical students, albeit simulcast via video. I could be wrong, since I did not do the IMS program, but I believe that these courses are: physiology, biochemistry, genetics, immunology and microanatomy. I think others posted more about this elsewhere on SDN.

If you don't do well in a "special master's program," such as Drexel's post-bacc IMS program, then admissions committees would be hard-pressed to accept that you can handle a full medical school courseload. I do not know what Penn's program is like, but in the end, a good grade is a good grade. If you do well in a "special master's program," you will clearly demonstrate that you can handle the workload, and would likely succeed in medical school. I can also vouch for the fact that a decent number of students in my class come from Drexel's IMS program.

In the end though, you will have to figure out which program best meets your needs. See if you can contact students in both programs, and ask their advice.

Best of luck.

 

[Chrissy]

Hey there,

I'm a Penn post-bacc so I thought I'd chime in and help....I was also considering the Drexel program and ended up choosing Penn based on a few reasons...First, it seems that the overwhelming majority of successful Drexel post-baccs are those that go to Drexel Med. Clearly there is nothing wrong with this, but my point here is I feel that Drexel's primary means to med school is giving you a slightly better chance at getting into DCOM if you meet a certain GPA requirement...and even then it's no guarantee. This is purely anecdotal, but if you do "well" at Penn you will be in a much more advantageous position once applying. Second, the administrative aspect IMO cannot be compared. I never heard from Drexel post bacc after applying very very early and late in the spring i called them to inquire and I was told i was accepted and they were "waiting" to hear from me....which really really bothered me. On the contrary, Penn's post-bacc program is highly organized, very professional (interview/tour is like a med school interview day only more laid back), and the advising is top-rate. Lastly, yes it is harder. The basic sciences are curved to a C+/B- and in an entire class of post-baccs this may become problematic. That being said, med schools seem to realize the nature of Penn and the post-bacc program and many of the requirements for linkages require a GPA between 3.2-3.4. Also, the classes are all at night so the program does accommodate working students. IMO, penn is the better option unless you feel very strongly for drexel and drexel med. I have known people to work hard in the drexel program and they get into DCOM and it appears like a very smooth transition and great opportunity....however, for most of us, i feel putting yourself in a more objective and positive light towards a wide array of schools is better in the long run. good luck

 

[preveting]

Hi, I was wondering how hard it is to get into Drexel University's VMS program. I don't feel like my gpa is high enough to go straight into vet school..but hearing how helpful Drexel is I was hoping to apply. What are the admission statistics? gpa? gre? work experience? and if I don't get accepted into drexel how can I improve my application for the following year?

 

[pookisantoki]

When you guys say "penn" do you guys mean Penn state or UPenn

 

[fireflygirl]

When you guys say "penn" do you guys mean Penn state or UPenn

UPenn.

 

[kronickm]

First, it seems that the overwhelming majority of successful Drexel post-baccs are those that go to Drexel Med. Clearly there is nothing wrong with this, but my point here is I feel that Drexel's primary means to med school is giving you a slightly better chance at getting into DCOM if you meet a certain GPA requirement...and even then it's no guarantee. This is purely anecdotal, but if you do "well" at Penn you will be in a much more advantageous position once applying. Second, the administrative aspect IMO cannot be compared. I never heard from Drexel post bacc after applying very very early and late in the spring i called them to inquire and I was told i was accepted and they were "waiting" to hear from me....which really really bothered me. On the contrary, Penn's post-bacc program is highly organized, very professional (interview/tour is like a med school interview day only more laid back), and the advising is top-rate. Lastly, yes it is harder. The basic sciences are curved to a C+/B- and in an entire class of post-baccs this may become problematic. That being said, med schools seem to realize the nature of Penn and the post-bacc program and many of the requirements for linkages require a GPA between 3.2-3.4. Also, the classes are all at night so the program does accommodate working students. IMO, penn is the better option unless you feel very strongly for drexel and drexel med. I have known people to work hard in the drexel program and they get into DCOM and it appears like a very smooth transition and great opportunity....however, for most of us, i feel putting yourself in a more objective and positive light towards a wide array of schools is better in the long run. good luck

I went to the Drexel post-bac so I guess I will comment as well. First of all, there are two linkage agreements for the PMED program, Drexel and Robert Wood Johnson. Both are great opportunities to skip the glide year if you do well in the program (3.45 min GPA requirement). If you do not do a linkage, which is what most people do, you are in fine shape to apply broadly. Obviously Drexel is not ivy league, but a 4.0 in your pre-reqs is still a 4.0 in your pre-reqs. The administration will write you a comittee letter and collect your other letters of rec to send out.

There is no curving of grades in Drexel's program. The classes you take are only PMED students and are relatively small, they take place three nights a week for about three hours a night. The burn-out rate at Drexel is very small, unlike Penn and other programs like it. As such, the placement numbers for Drexel are probably worse, Penn weeds people out before they graduate, whereas Drexel people get weeded out during application season. I also believe that Drexel is slightly cheaper, although not by much.

In the end, Penn probably does afford a slight advantage as far as name recognition is concerned, but not by a ton. If you graduate the Drexel program with good grades and do well on the MCAT you have as good a chance as anyone at getting in. Basically, do you prefer a more intense or more laid back atmosphere. If the former, look towards Penn, the later, Drexel.

As far as administration. What you said is funny. I applied to both Penn and Drexel, as well as a few other programs. Drexel got back to me promptly with an acceptance. Penn, on the other hand, never sent any reply or communication to me whatsoever. After a long time I called the dept. and they claimed that my file had been lost or never received (??? odd since I sent them stuff on multiple occasions, as did my recommenders). At this point I had already committed to Drexel so I just told them to forget about it. All in all it was very odd.

 

[Chrissy]

Haha....what you said definitely did happen to people. There was a window of 2-4 months last year where the director of the program switched and things were all over the place for a while. Everyone seems to be running very smoothly now.

 

[Audman]

I was wondering, Drexel linkage program... if you choose to do it, how does it work? If you maintain a certain GPA and a certain MCAT score, you get into Drexel Med?

actually, I am not familiar with the linkage programs at any other schools? Would there be anyone willing to describe a little bit about it? thanks

 

[Paulio08]

What kind of gpa requirements does Penn have for the Post Bac program?

 

[deleted248403]

Why not check out the massive UPenn thread?

But anyways its 3.0 cutoff essentially

 

[ali20685]

Haha....what you said definitely did happen to people. There was a window of 2-4 months last year where the director of the program switched and things were all over the place for a while. Everyone seems to be running very smoothly now.

The director of Penn that came in 2008/2009 actually just left at the end of 2009 for Temple. They still do not have a permanent Director. As for the advising, I have had the opposite experience of you. The advisors are really bad at Penn. I have found it to be highly disorganized in this program. If you are comfortable with independence, which I am, then this is a decent program. I know a number of pre-health postbacs that feel like this program is extremely disorganized at this point as well. That being said, the classes are decent. If you study hard enough you will do well in the program. Some professors are really awesome, ie the Biology prof is easy to approach and ready to help for anyone who needs it.

I applied to Drexel as well. I did not know I got in until I got a phone call asking when I was taking a particular math class that was a pre-req for physics. I will say though that the woman was extremely nice on the phone/apologetic for not letting me know promptly. She then sent me all the info. They sent a schedule of what I should be taking and when as well as the acceptance e-mail. They seemed organized with everything other than notification of acceptances.

I chose Penn because of the name as well as the opportunities, ie Clinical Research, that I felt were easily obtained being at Penn.

 

[MATabouti]

I realize this is an old thread, but is anyone here is in Drexel's evening post bac or going into it fall 2017? I'd appreciate someone who's willing to answer questions.