Good vs bad SMP programs

[chiddler]

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http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showpost.php?p=12006529&postcount=6

Do you agree/disagree with this point of view? If you agree, can you please tell me what might make a bad SMP program? If I were to shop around, how would I know if it's a bad program?

I understand the complications of poor performance in these programs. What else is there, though?

 

[DrMidlife]

That thread is all over the place. The post you're linking to seems to imply that SMPs should give you more than a chance at med school. That's not what SMPs are for. The sole point of doing an SMP is to get into med school despite a weak undergrad performance. If you're concerned that an SMP won't be helpful to you, in case you don't end up in med school, then definitely don't do an SMP.

If your GPA is fine, then there's no point in doing an SMP. People with fine GPAs who want to do regular grad work aren't hurting their med school chances by doing regular grad work.

If your GPA is not fine, an SMP is something you can do about it. People with not-fine GPAs only get into med school by doing ridiculous expensive things...that have no value outside the pursuit of med school. That 2nd bachelors? That 3rd MCAT retake? That SMP? All that money from multiple app years? None of it is an investment in a career...unless you get into med school.

If you screw up in an SMP, you don't get your year or your $50k back, nor do you have a resume asset for doing something other than med school. If you're lucky, potential employers won't know what an MSBS is and they won't say "oh, you didn't get into med school?"

A whole lot of people who do fine in an SMP end up in med school. And some people, who are not up to the extreme rigor of the coursework, don't do fine, and don't end up in med school. Be smart: figure out before you start an SMP whether you can get A's in hard classes, and make sure you really really really really really want to go to med school. Take care of those 2 things, and you'll figure it out along with your classmates. Surf in on denial and you're in for a very bad time.

Best of luck to you.

 

[physcigirl27]

That thread is all over the place. The post you're linking to seems to imply that SMPs should give you more than a chance at med school. That's not what SMPs are for. The sole point of doing an SMP is to get into med school despite a weak undergrad performance. If you're concerned that an SMP won't be helpful to you, in case you don't end up in med school, then definitely don't do an SMP.

If your GPA is fine, then there's no point in doing an SMP. People with fine GPAs who want to do regular grad work aren't hurting their med school chances by doing regular grad work.

If your GPA is not fine, an SMP is something you can do about it. People with not-fine GPAs only get into med school by doing ridiculous expensive things...that have no value outside the pursuit of med school. That 2nd bachelors? That 3rd MCAT retake? That SMP? All that money from multiple app years? None of it is an investment in a career...unless you get into med school.

If you screw up in an SMP, you don't get your year or your $50k back, nor do you have a resume asset for doing something other than med school. If you're lucky, potential employers won't know what an MSBS is and they won't say "oh, you didn't get into med school?"

A whole lot of people who do fine in an SMP end up in med school. And some people, who are not up to the extreme rigor of the coursework, don't do fine, and don't end up in med school. Be smart: figure out before you start an SMP whether you can get A's in hard classes, and make sure you really really really really really want to go to med school. Take care of those 2 things, and you'll figure it out along with your classmates. Surf in on denial and you're in for a very bad time.

Best of luck to you.

thank you. I needed that reminder. I'm driving myself crazy over my smp acceptances because I've been focusing on the "omg this gives me an MBS and this is just the post-bacc". I guess I need to be looking at the bigger picture.

 

[chiddler]

thanks for the very helpful response, and the description of the reality of these programs. i'm very confident in my ability to study now. though what you wrote is a bit unnerving, i'd like to think that i fill these two requirements.

so they all have the same relative rigor? then it doesn't matter which program you enter as long as you do well, right?

 

[DrMidlife]

so they all have the same relative rigor? then it doesn't matter which program you enter as long as you do well, right?

You shouldn't go to an easy SMP. That would be a sign that the host med school is about to lose its accreditation. A program that isn't hosted at a med school can call itself an SMP, but I reserve the right to mock it.

It matters which program you enter, because it matters where you go to med school. Among things that are important in med school is cost. I recommend a strategy that maximizes your chances at your state's public school(s). The difference could be a couple hundred thousand extra in student loans, and that's life-choice-limiting money. If you're in the market for an SMP, you're not likely getting much free money to go to med school. So pre-tallying your student loan total is a really good idea.

From what I've seen (at EVMS and on SDN), and I'm over-generalizing here, there are three categories:
1. Your MD app is almost good enough to get you into your state school(s) or a biggish name school; maybe you got waitlisted last round. The SMP gets you in, either same-year-as-SMP or the year after. The "smug" category.
2. Your MD app isn't good enough to get you in, but you get into the SMP at EVMS/Cincy/TulaneACP/Temple, and you stay there for med school and pay OOS tuition. The "parked" category.
3. Your MD app isn't good enough to get you in. It's good enough to get you into the SMP, but not good enough to get you into the host med school, such as Gtown/Boston/Tufts/Loyala. You get in somewhere, maybe same year-as-SMP, maybe the year after, or maybe DO. The "hail mary" category.

Best of luck to you.