Engineering to DO School???

[oldengr]

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Hi All,

I want to apply to some DO programs but I'm not sure If I have a chance. Could anyone give my profile an honest evaluation?

I graduated in 2010 with a BS in electrical engineering. Originally though, I had transferred from community college to UCLA. In truth, the adjustment to UCLA was really hard on me, and as a result, my UC gpa got battered. Despite the crappy GPA, I still landed a gig with a huge defense contractor, and have been there since.

Here is my academic profile:

Community College (lower divs): cGPA 3.74,
UCLA (upper divs): cGPA: 2.91
Total Ugrad GPA: 3.33 (is averaging CC & UCLA gpas fair game?), sGPA: 3.15 (I had mistakenly omitted my engineering courses from my sGPA determination...sorry!)
Part time MS.ElecEng program: 3.90 (employer subsidized, halfway done, and probably irrelevant.😛)

The plan would be to take a year and take Ochem and Bio at a local CC, take the MCAT, and do some ECs. I really want to go ahead with the career change, but even if I got A's in Ochem/Bio and a 30+ MCAT, how competitive would I be in the DO app pool?

Thanks guys!
oldengr

 

[Isha2018]

You definitely have a good chance!

Unfortunately, some schools will be snotty about community college courses. But, yes you will average all of your undergraduate GPA together. For DO schools, the AACOMAS application also factors in your graduate science classes and puts them in the sGPA.

For DO schools, you generally want a 28+ MCAT, at least a cGPA above 3.0 (to avoid automatic rejection), and a sGPA above 3.4. I think you can get your cGPA and sGPA elevated with your CC plan for taking classes. With a 30+ MCAT and good EC's, you'll do just fine.

For me, I have been accepted to WesternU-COMP in Pomona, CA and ATSU-SOMA in Mesa, AZ so far. I have a history degree and a nursing degree. I did almost all my science prereqs at a CC here in Texas. I have a 26 MCAT, 3.47 sGPA, and 3.62 cGPA.

Good luck! Work smart and you'll do great. DO schools like non-traditional students. 😉

 

[NuttyEngDude]

Here is my academic profile:

Community College (lower divs): cGPA 3.74, sGPA 3.63 (haven't taken bio or ochem classes)
UCLA (upper divs): cGPA: 2.91
Total Ugrad GPA: 3.33 (is averaging CC & UCLA gpas fair game?)
Part time MS.ElecEng program: 3.90 (employer subsidized, halfway done, and probably irrelevant.😛)

Averaging all your undergrad grades whether CC or not is how it's done.

The plan would be to take a year and take Ochem and Bio at a local CC, take the MCAT, and do some ECs. I really want to go ahead with the career change, but even if I got A's in Ochem/Bio and a 30+ MCAT, how competitive would I be in the DO app pool?

Thanks guys!
oldengr

You'd be very competitive. But there is more to it than numbers, if you don't have a good motivation for changing careers and entering medicine then they will ferret it out of you during interviews, to your detriment. If you dont have some good volunteering then you wont make it to the interview. All will be asked about during the interview.

Good luck.

 

[DrMidlife]

Agree w/the above, you're in better shape academically than you think. Three things.

1. Schoolwork. Get straight A's in ochem & bio, and take more than just ochem & bio. Look at biochem, micro, physio, as much science as you can. Take classes at a 4 year brick&mortar university, and get letters of recommendation from faculty. Don't screw this up - every grade you get that isn't an A now is a step away from med school.

2. MCAT. Put everything you've got into this. Plan to take the test once, and only once, well ahead of the opening date of AMCAS/AACOMAS. That means you're ready to demolish this exam in April, May at the latest (regardless of what year you take it). Don't screw around with a summer test date, and don't try to save money by not doing rigorous prep, and don't try to do MCAT prep as a 3rd or 4th priority in your life. Pri 1.

3. Location. Consider getting out of California. DO or MD, other states are going to offer you better odds. The cost of going to a public med school (MD or DO) should be very, very compelling.

Best of luck to you.

 

[Goro]

Hi All,
Yup, it's doable.

To calculate your cGPA, you have to include everything, not merely school by school. Do this for science and non science coursework.

Your plans are sound. good luck!


I want to apply to some DO programs but I'm not sure If I have a chance. Could anyone give my profile an honest evaluation?

I graduated in 2010 with a BS in electrical engineering. Originally though, I had transferred from community college to UCLA. In truth, the adjustment to UCLA was really hard on me, and as a result, my UC gpa got battered. Despite the crappy GPA, I still landed a gig with a huge defense contractor, and have been there since.

Here is my academic profile:

Community College (lower divs): cGPA 3.74, sGPA 3.63 (haven't taken bio or ochem classes)
UCLA (upper divs): cGPA: 2.91
Total Ugrad GPA: 3.33 (is averaging CC & UCLA gpas fair game?)
Part time MS.ElecEng program: 3.90 (employer subsidized, halfway done, and probably irrelevant.😛)

The plan would be to take a year and take Ochem and Bio at a local CC, take the MCAT, and do some ECs. I really want to go ahead with the career change, but even if I got A's in Ochem/Bio and a 30+ MCAT, how competitive would I be in the DO app pool?

Thanks guys!
oldengr

 

[oldengr]

Hi guys,

A big thank you to Isha2018, NuttyEngDude, Dr Midlife, & Goro giving me some tips.

But regretfully, I botched my sGPA calculation. Illogically, I hadn't noticed that engineering grades were accounted into sGPA.

In the updated case, My cGPA = 3.33 & sGPA = 3.15. Even if I aced the four remaining premed prereqs, my aggregate increase in GPA would be 0.10 at best. Is that detrimental to me as a DO prospect? I don't have much in the way of ECs. I only have 300 hours of community work spread over the last 3 years. Please be honest.

Ever since childhood, I've always wanted to pursue medicine as a career. However, I opted for engineering because it was the shortest path to earn a decent living and support my heart diseased addled father (I grew up in an EFC = 0 home).

Now at 26, I figure it's now or never. Since I am responsible for my families' mortgage, I won't be able to quit my day job just yet. My only remaining choice is to finalize my premed classes during CC evening sessions after work. I'll have to find a way to get some clinical exposure too.

With my updated numbers, do I stand a real chance? I'm so sorry for bungling the earlier numbers, I feel so foolish.

Thanks again,
oldengr

 

[DrMidlife]

If you're willing to be talked out of it, then be talked out of it. Otherwise go for it and get it done. We've seen MUCH WORSE stories that resulted in success. My numbers were WAY worse and I'm WAY older.

26 is quite young, in this forum. If you don't apply to med school for a while, med school will still be there. Spacing out your med school prep over multiple years is common. Taking science courses at a community college is controversial. On a GPA comeback, controversial isn't good. Look for programs like Berkeley Extension, Harvard Extension etc.

Categorization for engineering coursework can be complicated, and eyeballs belonging to somebody you've never met will be reviewing your categorization on your med school app. It's probably fair to assume you're over 3.0, but don't be super confident about your sig figs on either GPA.

TAKE MORE THAN THE PREREQS. Take biochem, microbio, immuno, cell bio, genetics, whatever you can.

The way to fix your EC shortcomings is to get more EC's. Start a 4 hour/week volunteer gig, right away, and keep doing it through your app cycle. Get onto the web page for your local hospitals and get into a volunteer program. Suck it up and escort old ladies for six months to earn the privilege of holding an obese arm being sutured in the ER. Use that gig to get shadowing opportunities with DOs and others in specialties of interest.

The more time you spend not sure you're doing this, the more likely you'll be to get comfortable with not being sure and then oops you're 50. Just choose.

Best of luck to you.