thank you everyone for the replies
my major is biomedical engineering,both under grad n grad.........is it worth doing the drexel evening post-bac? what is the chance of my acceptance to a medical school if i do a post bac?
It's totally impossible for anyone to honestly predict an applicant's chance for guaranteed admssion to medical school. This is scary business you know, it's often unforgiving--even Draconian--and it often seems random. There is some method to the madness, however, and I will try to reveal some options for you if you are intrepid enough to continue reading.
For allopathic medical schools, there are four ways you can go about this:
1. Repeat an entire U.S. undergraduate degree. This seems extreme but you're going to come across admissions counselors and Directors of Admissions at U.S. medical schools who will present this as a very reasonable (if not the only) option. This is the most expensive route, and the most costly, but the one that will give you least resistance.
2. Have your undergraduate transcript evaluated by a professional credentialing agency like WES; their office in New York is very inefficient and several staff members would benefit from re-training but they'll get you where you need to be (interestingly, their Toronto office is highly-efficient and a pleasure to work with.....I digress). Such agencies know the educational system around the globe, and they can convert your foreign transcript into a U.S. equivalent with grades, earned credits, and a GPA. Don't worry, >70% where I come from is an A, and almost nobody can score >80% ever, and straight A's are unheard off. Professional agencies know this, and will (interpret: 'should) give you a fair evaluation. Some medical schools in the U.S. will accept an evaluated foreign undergraduate transcript along with some U.S. prerequisites (which you'll need for the MCAT). You'll have to contact all medical schools you're seriously considering to see who will accept this option. I took this option. I applied to nine allopathic schools and received just three interviews...with a pretty crap MCAT, though. Expect a lot of resistance, but be polite and persistent. You aren't saying which country your undergraduate degree is from and that may also present a problem. I'll tell you now that I'm a product of the British system, and that made no difference. Overall, this option requires 60-90 credits completed in the U.S. Some medical schools will allow those credits to be a mix of graduate classes and U.S. undergraduate prerequisites. In my case, I never took physics in college overseas, so I took that stateside and applied with 91 credits from a U.S. Ph.D. In your case, you most definitely owe U.S. allopathic medical schools general biology, general chemistry, and organic chemistry (8 credits of each) since you only have physics from your undergraduate degree in your post on this forum.
3. Try rolling your undergraduate credits from overseas into a U.S. undergraduate degree. This is probably a compromise between options one and two. Some U.S. undergraduate schools will give you 1-2.5 years of credit on a 'pass' basis, and you'll need to score well in the rest of your classes. Find 'Bluemirage' who is an Australian national and he ocassionally posts here. We communicated extensively when he was at your stage, and he took option #3. He is now a medical student at a U.S. allopathic school, and he can give you his first-hand experience.
4. Enroll in a formal post-bacc. program - usually intended for U.S. graduates without a science background - but perhaps appropriate for you. This will give you around two years of undergraduate credits and, coupled with your U.S. graduate work, it might catapult you into the required 60-90 U.S. credit range. Another option would be to do the classes 'piece-meal' and at your own pace either at a 4-year undergraduate school or at a community college. I know people in your situation (including yours truly) who have been successful with either option. Persistence is the key.
You must ask yourself now what you are willing to sacrifice in order to get there. In my case, I decided that repeating an entire undergraduate degree was too much for them to ask for--in part based on what I had accomplished since graduating from college and also based on what I refused to put my wife through by taking this option--but it's a personal decision, and I just stayed away from medical schools that were this extreme.
Overall, just realize that a U.S. masters degree or PhD alone does not cut it for U.S. allopathic schools. They all want a U.S. or Canadian undergraduate degree with prerequisite courses or something that looks like it on paper. As such, special masters programs are not right for you. I also realized very quickly that some Admissions Directors at U.S. medical schools are more knowledgeable about your situation than others who don't know and/or don't care to take the time to learn. I was blessed that my own medical school has a gifted and highly-knowledgeable Director of Admissions. In addition, they're all pretty much looking for an MCAT score >30, so don't make the mistake that I did by taking the MCAT with zero working knowledge of some sections if you are missing prerequisite courses. Lastly, if you do not have a green card, you'll not be eligible for federal loans and that adds an additional dimension of complexity to your situation.
It's not impossible to gain admission if you're determined - even though the tunnel you're about to enter seems long and dark. I'm an average student, and I did it on my first try without dealing with waitlists; you can too. Stay humble, always treat people well, and try to do what needs to be done to look as close as possible to the 'generic U.S. applicant'. Good luck!
