I'm a non-trad who is 40.
Welcome. There's a fairly large contingent of us here who are starting over 40.
My stats are the following:
Harvard UG BA in history 3.3 gpa
UVA MA in history 3.8 gpa
UVA some PhD work in history 3.8 gpa
Recent GRE scores: 800 verbal 720 quant 5.5 analytical
Undergrad is kept separate from grad, with respect to med school. You effectively "are" a 3.3 for the time being, even though you may have finished undergrad nearly 20 years ago. (In 2008, during a med school interview, I was questioned about a grade on my undergrad transcript...from 1984.)
Worked as an adjunct college history instructor and high school history teacher
Great - teaching is generally helpful. But assume that your lengthy career will be viewed as "an interesting extra-curricular activity" by med schools. You'll be evaluated like the 21 year olds are evaluated, for better or worse, on undergrad GPA and MCAT, before your life experience is even considered.
Only minimal undergrad science classes. Math up to multivariable calculus and linear algebra.
From 20 years ago, right? The good news is that math doesn't need to be kept current like biology does. (20 years ago we didn't know from genomes.)
What clinical experience do you have? Have you volunteered in a hospital or clinic? Have you shadowed a practicing physician? These experiences are required before you can get into a competitive postbac, and frankly, they're required before you have credibility as a med school aspirant. I suggest you should find a volunteer position immediately.
I'm considering both a postbacc to make up the science requirements,
Both?
but I'm a little nervous that I won't get a flat 4.0 gpa as has been advised on here. Do I have any options if I don't get a 4.0 gpa?
Well, for one thing, stop reading the pre-allo forum. Bad advice is the norm there. Average GPA for US MD schools is about 3.6.
Regardless of how well you do in a postbac, it's literally impossible for you to have a 4.0 on your med school application, because all undergrad grades are averaged into a cumulative undergrad GPA. Are you sunk? No. Do you really need those straight A's? Yes, but think 3.7+.
You're late for applying to the classic formal postbacs such as Bryn Mawr or Goucher, but if you get moving immediately you might have some luck. Generally you can take the prereqs anywhere you like. (I don't recommend CC coursework, particularly coming from an antique 3.3.) See
the postbac forum for more ideas on how to get this done.
I am very open to DO med schools, too, but am concerned I won't make the cutoffs.
What cutoffs? Grade cutoffs? To the extent that these exist, they cut at 3.0. Move along.
Look, your stats story is still pretty much yours to write. Get mostly A's in a full year of hard science, and you'll be almost at a 3.5 cumulative undergrad, and almost at a 4.0 for cumulative science, which is fine for MD school admissions. Get a solid MCAT (31 is average) to add credibility to your slightly low GPAs. Gather letters of recommendation, put in serious clinical volunteering time, write some essays and you're golden. If you do more like 3.5 or worse in the prereq sciences, and/or you can't get over 30 on the MCAT, then you'd want to be looking more at DO than at MD.
If you can get into a Bryn Mawr or Goucher, that's the fastest way to play. If you start at those programs this coming fall, and you do well, you could be in med school Fall 2013.
More likely, for US MD, you'll need to spend 2 years getting ready to apply in June 2014 and start med school Fall 2015. Get the prereqs done with mostly A's, and also take biochem and genetics and other stuff. Do serious no kidding around MCAT prep, so that you have score-in-hand by June.
Are Australian or Caribbean schools better options?
Options yes; better
no. Carib med schools are a profitable
business and you would be very foolish to consider that route. Australia and Ireland have better credibility (not to mention sexiness) but you'd be coming back to the US as a foreign grad. Do DO before you look at foreign med school.
Best of luck to you.
