GPA trend/ MSAR help

[MawbleIM]

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Not sure if anyone can be of help here but I have two quick questions I am a little confused about!


First, does anyone know if there’s a list of schools that look at the most recent credits? I know some schools have the 32 hour rule but I see every now and then that some schools look at either the last 20, 40 or 60 credits to see trend or use that as the GPA.

My second question is how would I go about using MSAR for those schools? I just calculated my gpa from my last 40 credits which include 20 credits (31 quarter units) of a postbac @3.96 and the overall GPA is 3.5 through my last 40 semester or 60 quarter units. Would I use this gpa or would I still need to use my overall gpa when using MSAR??

 

[deleted1037524]

Every school will look at the most recent credits and every school will look at the credits earned before that. Some schools reward reinvention and might weigh newer credits more.

I would recommend using your overall GPA (edit: Goro suggestion to use 40 credits is below). Congrats on your strong post-bac! The upward trend is nice and bolsters your earlier performance somewhat but won't get rid of it entirely, especially in pre-req courses. Target schools where your GPA is above the lower 10th percentile.

If your MCAT is competitive for higher-tier schools, you could add a few to your list even if your GPA is outside their bottom 10th (check out the resources for re-invention/recommended schools for that). Apply broadly to cover your bases, and consider DO as well (average overall MD GPA was ~3.6 for matriculants iirc). Best of luck!

 

[Goro]

Not sure if anyone can be of help here but I have two quick questions I am a little confused about!


First, does anyone know if there’s a list of schools that look at the most recent credits? I know some schools have the 32 hour rule but I see every now and then that some schools look at either the last 20, 40 or 60 credits to see trend or use that as the GPA.

My second question is how would I go about using MSAR for those schools? I just calculated my gpa from my last 40 credits which include 20 credits (31 quarter units) of a postbac @3.96 and the overall GPA is 3.5 through my last 40 semester or 60 quarter units. Would I use this gpa or would I still need to use my overall gpa when using MSAR??

Use the GPA from your last 40 credits.
Also note which schools have the highest number of matriculants who have taken post-bacs or have graduate degrees. This is a tip off that they reward reinvention.

 

[MawbleIM]

Use the GPA from your last 40 credits.
Also note which schools have the highest number of matriculants who have taken post-bacs or have graduate degrees. This is a tip off that they reward reinvention.

Hi Goro! Thanks for the response!! Sorry I haven’t been on SDN for some time but how would I see which schools accept the most postbacc? Should I just guesstimate based off of age of matriculants in MSAR data?

 

[Goro]

Hi Goro! Thanks for the response!! Sorry I haven’t been on SDN for some time but how would I see which schools accept the most postbacc? Should I just guesstimate based off of age of matriculants in MSAR data?

In MSAR there is data on the number of matriculants who have either post-graduate degrees or have post-bac classes. The higher these numbers, the more likely the school is to be reinvention friendly.

 

[MawbleIM]

Every school will look at the most recent credits and every school will look at the credits earned before that. Some schools reward reinvention and might weigh newer credits more.

I would recommend using your overall GPA (edit: Goro suggestion to use 40 credits is below). Congrats on your strong post-bac! The upward trend is nice and bolsters your earlier performance somewhat but won't get rid of it entirely, especially in pre-req courses. Target schools where your GPA is above the lower 10th percentile.

If your MCAT is competitive for higher-tier schools, you could add a few to your list even if your GPA is outside their bottom 10th (check out the resources for re-invention/recommended schools for that). Apply broadly to cover your bases, and consider DO as well (average overall MD GPA was ~3.6 for matriculants iirc). Best of luck!

Sorry for such a late reply lol but thanks for the advice!! I feel weird using the last 40 credits but Goro is a credible source! I am still going to error on the side of caution with my gpa tho.

As far as MCAT I got a 514 (130/125/130/129) (damn cars) so it’s not amazing but it’s not terrible! I will be applying to some top tier just because I’m a CA resident so hoping for home field advantage lol, but outside that I am trying to tailor my list to schools where my MCAT is > or = to 75%

 

[Morningnight]

I will be applying to some top tier just because I’m a CA resident so hoping for home field advantage lol

Cannot tell you what will work, but I can mention my experience as a currently applicant. Goro's reinvention school list has yielded many interview invites for me, so that's a great place to start! I absolutely did not believe I could get IIs from some of the T20s on that school list, but here we are.

CA has been incredibly rough for me so far, but surprisingly OOS public schools have sent me quite a few IIs. If your stats fit, vibe well with the missions/goals, and are well enough financially to afford it, then take a look at those OOS public schools.

 

[MawbleIM]

Cannot tell you what will work, but I can mention my experience as a currently applicant. Goro's reinvention school list has yielded many interview invites for me, so that's a great place to start! I absolutely did not believe I could get IIs from some of the T20s on that school list, but here we are.

CA has been incredibly rough for me so far, but surprisingly OOS public schools have sent me quite a few IIs. If your stats fit, vibe well with the missions/goals, and are well enough financially to afford it, then take a look at those OOS public schools.

Hey can I pm you by chance?

 

[Morningnight]

Hey can I pm you by chance?

Go for it!