- Joined
- Oct 18, 2017
- Messages
- 7
- Reaction score
- 0
Hello all,
I am about to wrap up my first year as a post-bacc. and am stressing out about the timeline of everything, and am second-guessing many of the decisions I have made thus far. Some facts about me to give the general idea... If you don't want to read the wall of text that is the last 3 years of my life, please skip to the bottom section where I ask some questions.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Undergraduate:
-May 2017 B.S. in Finance, minored in Econ. from a large state school
-2.86 cGPA (125 credits)
-~2.2 sGPA (consists of a 4 credit B- in Bio I, and 8 credits of C in Calcs I and II - not really sure if stat classes count as math, but the point is my sGPA is low, but at least with little credit-weight)
-Founding member and on an exec. board of an organization which researched and published fundamental and technical factors affecting prices of natural gas and crude oil
-One summer internship as a walking/talking, glorified printer, errrr accounting intern - your nightmares don't compare to this cubicle lifestyle
-Volunteered in an ER my senior year (rekindled my love of medicine and desire to pursue it)
After graduation:
-Spent the summer of 2017 doing nothing besides lackadaisically studying chemistry because I was considering post-bacc. (yes I was, and truthfully still am, a spoiled child who threw away 4 years of undergrad education and the summer of 2017 doing nothing productive, but I've been maturing slowly and steadily...)
-Began to work as a math tutor for grades 2-12 for a franchise called Mathnasium in my hometown during Fall 2017; despite what my C's in Calc will tell you I am pretty good at math and love being in teaching positions, especially with children
-By January 2018 I was enrolled in 7 credits (Bio and Psych) at a local community college and working as a medical scribe (ScribeAmerica) for a pediatric outpatient clinic that specialized in children with complicated cases (i.e. down syndrome, cerebral palsy, autism, etc.)
-Scribed on MWF's for what I would estimate is a total of 150-200 total hours (~17 hrs/wk)
-Went to classes on TR's (Tuesday and Thursday); got my first 4.0 with a bit of effort; thoroughly enjoyed taking science courses
Post-Bacc:
-I have been a post-bacc. student at a small (<4,000 undergraduate population) school since May 21, 2018
-The program has a linkage with one DO and one MD program (both reputable institutions for their respective degrees), but you have to do all of the communication with the staff at these schools yourself (perhaps that's normal, but it surprised me and made me think it was a bit of a weak relationship and opportunity altogether)
-I have a 3.94 GPA at this school (this does not count the 7 credit A's at community college; 3.96 post-graduation GPA with those 7 credits)
-A in Gen Chem I & A- in Gen Chem II over the Summer 2018
-All A's in 12 credit Fall 2018 semester (Bio I, Physics I, and Orgo I)
-Currently on track for all A's in 12 of my 16 credits (Bio II, Physics II, and Calc I) and either a B+ or A- in Orgo II - proton NMR will be the death of me..
-On track to achieve a 3.91-3.94 cumulative post-bacc. GPA by the end of this semester (including all 43 credits taken after graduating in May 2017)
-Actual cGPA would be 3.12-3.13, and sGPA would be 3.54-3.57
-Volunteered ~8.3 hrs/wk for a total of >100 hours during Fall 2018 in an ER as what can be considered an unpaid research associate; I screened for patients eligible for any of the 4 studies being conducted, obtained informed consent, and collected/input data; semester-long program ended and I forgot to re-apply for the Spring 2019 semester (huge mistake)
-Currently volunteering in the same ER through a different department and am now responsible for helping patients, who present to the ER using medicaid services, access basic resources like food, housing, transportation, etc. (only 4 hrs/wk)
-I also am considering committing to becoming a volunteer in same-day surgery (3 hrs/wk; really basic, boring responsibilities tailored to high school students but could look good to have more hours??) and as a neurology "scribe" where I would document neuro resident response times during stroke alerts to collect data for a committee to use in improving decision-making/response-time efficiencies (one 6 hr shift/2 wks)
-I will have enough letters of recommendations for the committee to evaluate me this summer, but I am unsure of the quality of these letters given that I have had such a small window of time to get to know my professors compared to the other 4-year students here who also ask for LOR's; with that said, I do believe I have made a good impression of myself at the school
-Besides the one bio class I took back in 2013, I have no perspective to judge the rigor/demand of my courses, but I feel as though they are as challenging as any non-Ivy; regardless, I have learned a lot in the past year which will serve as a good base for my MCAT; with that said, I have not started studying for an MCAT nor have I taken biochem, sociology, or psychology (my community college class was quite informal, to say the least)
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Some questions I have:
-Where/How do I find out which MD programs value restructuring? I read from Goro's guide that all DO's value this, but only some MD programs care about it. Seeing as these will be the only schools worth applying to, I find it important to know how to access this information.
-Assuming an average-competitive MCAT, could I get into a MD program with my stats? What are my chances at DO programs with my current stats?
-If I am lacking in a department of my application, please tell me. I am under the impression that my complete absence of "formal" research & clinical experience will kill my chances, but maybe I'm overthinking it.
-Do I take an extra year of classes at my post-bacc to continue to improve my GPA and give myself more time to study the MCAT at the expense of waiting to apply until the 2020 cycle? It's sort of soul-crushing to think of doing a 6th year of undergrad and spending more money so it is obviously not my preferred choice, but if it would make a considerable difference I would definitely consider this (I also would then be able to take biochem which would dramatically open up more options); perhaps only one more semester of Biochem and some other higher-level Bio's, then study MCAT/work a research job in Spring 2020? Or maybe do an SMP instead?
-I am worried that adcoms would look unfavorably at me if I took an extra year to take the MCAT because they might want to see that I have matured since earning my B.S. and can now handle the true "one year post-bacc curriculum" since I am not employed and am solely committed to academics
-Not really a question, but I would really appreciate any advice on things I should be working on. A huge concern of mine is, unsurprisingly, addressing the reckless immaturity I displayed during college. I know getting good grades is a good place to start, but I still feel I should be doing more. Any suggestions on this and other general tips would be nice!
Thank you for anyone that has made it this far. I hope to one day be able to give back to the sub-3.0, non-traditional community. Keep fighting the good fight, friends.
I am about to wrap up my first year as a post-bacc. and am stressing out about the timeline of everything, and am second-guessing many of the decisions I have made thus far. Some facts about me to give the general idea... If you don't want to read the wall of text that is the last 3 years of my life, please skip to the bottom section where I ask some questions.
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Undergraduate:
-May 2017 B.S. in Finance, minored in Econ. from a large state school
-2.86 cGPA (125 credits)
-~2.2 sGPA (consists of a 4 credit B- in Bio I, and 8 credits of C in Calcs I and II - not really sure if stat classes count as math, but the point is my sGPA is low, but at least with little credit-weight)
-Founding member and on an exec. board of an organization which researched and published fundamental and technical factors affecting prices of natural gas and crude oil
-One summer internship as a walking/talking, glorified printer, errrr accounting intern - your nightmares don't compare to this cubicle lifestyle
-Volunteered in an ER my senior year (rekindled my love of medicine and desire to pursue it)
After graduation:
-Spent the summer of 2017 doing nothing besides lackadaisically studying chemistry because I was considering post-bacc. (yes I was, and truthfully still am, a spoiled child who threw away 4 years of undergrad education and the summer of 2017 doing nothing productive, but I've been maturing slowly and steadily...)
-Began to work as a math tutor for grades 2-12 for a franchise called Mathnasium in my hometown during Fall 2017; despite what my C's in Calc will tell you I am pretty good at math and love being in teaching positions, especially with children
-By January 2018 I was enrolled in 7 credits (Bio and Psych) at a local community college and working as a medical scribe (ScribeAmerica) for a pediatric outpatient clinic that specialized in children with complicated cases (i.e. down syndrome, cerebral palsy, autism, etc.)
-Scribed on MWF's for what I would estimate is a total of 150-200 total hours (~17 hrs/wk)
-Went to classes on TR's (Tuesday and Thursday); got my first 4.0 with a bit of effort; thoroughly enjoyed taking science courses
Post-Bacc:
-I have been a post-bacc. student at a small (<4,000 undergraduate population) school since May 21, 2018
-The program has a linkage with one DO and one MD program (both reputable institutions for their respective degrees), but you have to do all of the communication with the staff at these schools yourself (perhaps that's normal, but it surprised me and made me think it was a bit of a weak relationship and opportunity altogether)
-I have a 3.94 GPA at this school (this does not count the 7 credit A's at community college; 3.96 post-graduation GPA with those 7 credits)
-A in Gen Chem I & A- in Gen Chem II over the Summer 2018
-All A's in 12 credit Fall 2018 semester (Bio I, Physics I, and Orgo I)
-Currently on track for all A's in 12 of my 16 credits (Bio II, Physics II, and Calc I) and either a B+ or A- in Orgo II - proton NMR will be the death of me..
-On track to achieve a 3.91-3.94 cumulative post-bacc. GPA by the end of this semester (including all 43 credits taken after graduating in May 2017)
-Actual cGPA would be 3.12-3.13, and sGPA would be 3.54-3.57
-Volunteered ~8.3 hrs/wk for a total of >100 hours during Fall 2018 in an ER as what can be considered an unpaid research associate; I screened for patients eligible for any of the 4 studies being conducted, obtained informed consent, and collected/input data; semester-long program ended and I forgot to re-apply for the Spring 2019 semester (huge mistake)
-Currently volunteering in the same ER through a different department and am now responsible for helping patients, who present to the ER using medicaid services, access basic resources like food, housing, transportation, etc. (only 4 hrs/wk)
-I also am considering committing to becoming a volunteer in same-day surgery (3 hrs/wk; really basic, boring responsibilities tailored to high school students but could look good to have more hours??) and as a neurology "scribe" where I would document neuro resident response times during stroke alerts to collect data for a committee to use in improving decision-making/response-time efficiencies (one 6 hr shift/2 wks)
-I will have enough letters of recommendations for the committee to evaluate me this summer, but I am unsure of the quality of these letters given that I have had such a small window of time to get to know my professors compared to the other 4-year students here who also ask for LOR's; with that said, I do believe I have made a good impression of myself at the school
-Besides the one bio class I took back in 2013, I have no perspective to judge the rigor/demand of my courses, but I feel as though they are as challenging as any non-Ivy; regardless, I have learned a lot in the past year which will serve as a good base for my MCAT; with that said, I have not started studying for an MCAT nor have I taken biochem, sociology, or psychology (my community college class was quite informal, to say the least)
_________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________
Some questions I have:
-Where/How do I find out which MD programs value restructuring? I read from Goro's guide that all DO's value this, but only some MD programs care about it. Seeing as these will be the only schools worth applying to, I find it important to know how to access this information.
-Assuming an average-competitive MCAT, could I get into a MD program with my stats? What are my chances at DO programs with my current stats?
-If I am lacking in a department of my application, please tell me. I am under the impression that my complete absence of "formal" research & clinical experience will kill my chances, but maybe I'm overthinking it.
-Do I take an extra year of classes at my post-bacc to continue to improve my GPA and give myself more time to study the MCAT at the expense of waiting to apply until the 2020 cycle? It's sort of soul-crushing to think of doing a 6th year of undergrad and spending more money so it is obviously not my preferred choice, but if it would make a considerable difference I would definitely consider this (I also would then be able to take biochem which would dramatically open up more options); perhaps only one more semester of Biochem and some other higher-level Bio's, then study MCAT/work a research job in Spring 2020? Or maybe do an SMP instead?
-I am worried that adcoms would look unfavorably at me if I took an extra year to take the MCAT because they might want to see that I have matured since earning my B.S. and can now handle the true "one year post-bacc curriculum" since I am not employed and am solely committed to academics
-Not really a question, but I would really appreciate any advice on things I should be working on. A huge concern of mine is, unsurprisingly, addressing the reckless immaturity I displayed during college. I know getting good grades is a good place to start, but I still feel I should be doing more. Any suggestions on this and other general tips would be nice!
Thank you for anyone that has made it this far. I hope to one day be able to give back to the sub-3.0, non-traditional community. Keep fighting the good fight, friends.
Last edited:
Best of luck!
