GPA and undergraduate institution

[michiganblue08]

I'm currently a Junior @ the University of Michigan and have a science and overall gpa of 3.3. My goal is to get accepted into any allopathic medical school however, this is lower than the avg. GPA of pretty much every allopathic school in the country, which very much worries me. I feel like if I went to a lower tier school and performed the same i could have cracked at least a 3.5 and not had to worry about my GPA regarding admissions. Disregarding EC's, MCAT and other decision factors, am I very much disadvantaged for having a lower GPA from a higher-tier school compared to someone with a higher GPA from a lower-tier school?

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[MadHopsMD]

I'm currently a Junior @ the University of Michigan and have a science and overall gpa of 3.3. My goal is to get accepted into any allopathic medical school however, this is lower than the avg. GPA of pretty much every allopathic school in the country, which very much worries me. I feel like if I went to a lower tier school and performed the same i could have cracked at least a 3.5 and not had to worry about my GPA regarding admissions. Disregarding EC's, MCAT and other decision factors, am I very much disadvantaged for having a lower GPA from a higher-tier school compared to someone with a higher GPA from a lower-tier school?

UofM is a md factory. I heard the largest number of premeds end up going to medicine who graduate from there...your 3.3 isnt that bad, if you ace the MCATS...which I am sure you will do, since all UofM students I know ace the MCATs.

 

[Dr. Pepper]

There have been many threads on this, but from your post count, I can see that you're a new member, so I'll just give you the concise, unofficial answer:
it depends.

Better undergrad institution are given preference. Objectively, I wouldn't expect you to get over a 0.2 GPA advantage (in other words your 3.3 might be comparable with a 3.5 at best from a lower-tier school), but nothing more. Subjectively, it really depends on the medical school. Some medical schools love to take students from prestigious universities. Others will see the MCAT as the deciding factor. Most take all things into account, and thus, your undergrad would probably give you a few bonus points, but nothing major.

The MCAT is very important in this scenario, so I suggest you dedicate yourself to it.

If it's any consolation, I don't think a 3.3 from UMich is bad at all, and if you do well in other areas (MCAT, extracurric.), I could definitely see you getting into a US allopathic school.
-Dr. P.

 

[MonkeyNuts!]

I'm currently a Junior @ the University of Michigan and have a science and overall gpa of 3.3. My goal is to get accepted into any allopathic medical school however, this is lower than the avg. GPA of pretty much every allopathic school in the country, which very much worries me. I feel like if I went to a lower tier school and performed the same i could have cracked at least a 3.5 and not had to worry about my GPA regarding admissions. Disregarding EC's, MCAT and other decision factors, am I very much disadvantaged for having a lower GPA from a higher-tier school compared to someone with a higher GPA from a lower-tier school?

Some schools do incorporate school difficulty as a factor, but it's usually really small. Just do the absolute best you can from here on out. I too had a low GPA, but I countered it with lots of things on my app. It will not kill you.

 

[juls811]

I graduated from UofM with a 3.5gpa....schools even think that is low...

 

[juls811]

...but if you do 30+ on the MCAT and show an upward trend in your science gpa in the last few semesters ...you should be able to get into Wayne State

 

[ADeadLois]

I'm currently a Junior @ the University of Michigan and have a science and overall gpa of 3.3. My goal is to get accepted into any allopathic medical school however, this is lower than the avg. GPA of pretty much every allopathic school in the country, which very much worries me. I feel like if I went to a lower tier school and performed the same i could have cracked at least a 3.5 and not had to worry about my GPA regarding admissions. Disregarding EC's, MCAT and other decision factors, am I very much disadvantaged for having a lower GPA from a higher-tier school compared to someone with a higher GPA from a lower-tier school?

The best answer I can give is: who knows. The MCAT is the great equalizer, so make sure you do well on that. Every school likely considers undergrad institution differently. Also, the definition of which school is top-tier, which schools inflate GPA and which schools are really tough is very blurry, contradictory and ambiguous. If everyone who's ever posted on SDN is correct, then 95% of universities in the country "have a reputation for being difficult."