Getting in w/o a BA/BS degree

[carlos5272]

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Hey all.
Just wondering if anyone has gotten accepted to a school without a degree, and what school accepted you. Also if you don't mind stating any special qualifications you feel may haved helped you get in(besides all of the hard work put in).
Thanks

Carlos

 

[bkpa2med]

I believe you need to be highly qualified for them to consider you without a BA/BS.

 

[aTmchick06]

I did get into medical school without my BS degree. I had been on the track team for a couple years at my University and it slowed me down so I decided to go ahead and apply my fourth year. I checked with the schools I applied to ahead of time to see if it was possible, and only applied to the ones that said yes. I will say they told me it was much much much harder to get in without a degree.

I was accepted to the UT Health Science Center in San Antonio....I mainly applied to Texas schools and a few others...

I can't say what, if anything, "helped" me get in early-
GPA- decent, but average...
MCAT- I took it in August and it was average
I had a very extensive sports background (the topic of my personal statement)
I had volunteer experience...like everyone else

I guess my biggest thing is I decided most of all to be myself in the interviews....I had no pressure because if I didn't get in this year I would just reapply and finish my degree. I didn't actually think I would get in early so I was probably more relaxed than other interviewees.

I found out after being accepted that I have the opportunity to still receive my BS degree after I finish this first year (I did not know that going in OR when I was accepted). They are basically forcing all of my medical school classes into the rest of my degree (~25 hours) and I will graduate in May 🙂

 

[Law2Doc]

Hey all.
Just wondering if anyone has gotten accepted to a school without a degree, and what school accepted you. Also if you don't mind stating any special qualifications you feel may haved helped you get in(besides all of the hard work put in).
Thanks

Carlos

What's the rush? Finish undergrad then go to med school. Another year of maturity only helps in the admissions process. There is no prize for getting into med school earlier. And one more year in a 40+ year career is pretty insignificant.

 

[zbruinz]

but it does sound nice to get in early! 🙂

 

[Wizard of Oz]

Most schools will accept you well before you are finished anyway, so I don't know how much it will factor in unless you tell them that you aren't going to finish. Some schools require that you graduate before they let you matriculate, others don't. Some undergrad places will grant you an automatic degree after you finish your first year of med school if you are willing to pay them for the credits.

 

[Mr. Freeze]

Most schools will accept you well before you are finished anyway, so I don't know how much it will factor in unless you tell them that you aren't going to finish. Some schools require that you graduate before they let you matriculate, others don't. Some undergrad places will grant you an automatic degree after you finish your first year of med school if you are willing to pay them for the credits.

That's what I'm doing. I had 90 hours when I got in, higher end GPA, avg MCAT, but also had 10 years of fire/EMS experience.

But like Oz said, they won't know if you finish or not, as long as you meet the prereqs. However, all things being equal between applicants, who will have a stronger residency app? Get your BS/A, whether "honorary" or actual attendance...

 

[Law2Doc]

But like Oz said, they won't know if you finish or not, as long as you meet the prereqs.

To be fair, he didn't say that -- he said many places wouldn't care, not wouldn't know. Almost all (if not all) med schools are going to require your final transcript before matriculation. Thus they will know.
Just finish college and go to med school.

 

[Mr. Freeze]

It is definitely "almost" rather than all...I didn't have to show one. It was only a requirement if you needed to show completion of a prereq you didn't already have.

"don't know how much it will factor in unless you tell them that you aren't going to finish" = they won't know if you do

"Almost all (if not all) med schools are going to require your final transcript before matriculation. Thus they will know."

I would say that means they care if you finish as well.

 

[Wizard of Oz]

I didn't read the first part of the OP's paragraph. In regard to specific schools, I can't say that I actually researched this much because I already had completed several degrees before I even took the MCAT myself. I would start by looking at an MSAR.

I think that it depends on the overall style of the school. Freeze's med school is very traditional--they still use A-B-C grades, weigh MCAT scores heavily during admissions, and they will take you as a teenager as long as you meet the standards and prereq's regardless of whether or not you have an earned bachelor's degree.

The med school in the Sunflower State to the north admits under very similar standards, GPA's, and MCAT averages, but they use the more modern grading system. While they admit you while you are still in school, they require a bachelor's on your transcript prior to matriculation. By require, I mean that they will literally tear up your admissions letter in your face if you didn't finish your degree in the time between acceptance and matriculation. It could be a degree in general studies, but a degree is required nonetheless.

Travel to the south, and the two big dogs in the Lone Star State are opposites. UT-Southwestern is an A-B-C school that doesn't require a bachelor's. Baylor is honors/pass/fail but advertises that all of their matriculants have completed a bachelor's. Note that both have similar admissions profiles--it just depends on what each individual adcom values.

Carlos, I'll tell you what I tell everybody else. You could have 20 years of nursing experience, worked with the peace corps every summer since 1990, a Ph.D. in a biomedical science, and be the ancestor of multiple generations of physicians (the latter of which would probably be the most valuable). If you don't have the numbers, your chances will be very limited. So study and nail that MCAT. That will be your ace in the hole because it is the only way that schools can compare students of such varied backgrounds. Also note that "average MCAT" is a relative term. My score was well above average compared to my current classmates, but it would be considerably below average if my school was a top quintile facility.

Look at the websites of schools that you are interested in. They are usually very forthcoming with what they expect and what they require.