Harder for 5 year graduates?

[Bwesternn]

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[Giovanotto]

Not one bit. Keep going.

 

[Vermilion_Parish]

I don't think anyone cares as long as the rest of your application is solid. I'm a six year bachelors applicant, and while I have a lot of other factors going on, I have four acceptances (Two MD, two MD/PhD). It's what you did with the time not really how long it took.

 

[ProspectiveKidd]

The key is to always be productive and make good use of your time regardless of how long it takes you.

I've only taken 12-13 credits each semester but I've also been working 40 hours/week and volunteering. Probably throw in some additional volunteering and shadowing next semester as well.

 

[Lucca]

As long as you do well, it will not hurt you to take an extra year, especially if you were using that year to make sure you were prepared to apply

 

[NachoPlatter]

I'm not sure if people even notice, assuming it was continuous. I took five years simply because I changed majors/direction to premed my junior year as well and nobody mentioned it. It just makes entering the grades into AMCAS that much more frustrating as you have another year of them.

 

[f4reignbeauty]

Hey guys, new member here.

Quick backstory, my younger brother passed last summer after fighting Ewing's Sarcoma for 17 tough months. My ambitions to becoming a chemical engineer changed drastically towards medicine. This may be a stupid question, but due to my late switch to pre-med, would graduating in 5 years hurt my chances of getting accepted into med school?

Appreciate the help and happy holidays!

Sorry to hear about your brother, and thank you for sharing that with us. Personally, it took me 5 1/2 years to finish, and I don't think it affected my chances of getting in. Just stay focused, do what you have to do and good luck!

 

[ImmunoLove]

First off-- sorry for your loss. Regarding your question: there is nothing hindering you if you take more time. If anything, your story (and hence time to achieve your goals) are quite interesting.

 

[Mad Jack]

No, it won't hurt at all. Sorry about your bro, bro. Good luck moving forward.

 

[bwc]

Medical schools don't frown upon taking more than four years, provided that you are not frequently withdrawing from classes or taking only minimum credits (you are going to want ~15 credits per semester).

 

[22031 Alum]

Sorry for your loss. Don't spend another moment wondering whether taking 5 years to graduate will affect your application. It's not uncommon.

 

[johnnytest]

5-year engineering graduate here who also took 1-gap year.

 

[deleted738762]

Don't sweat it, so manyyyyyyy people take gap years/ graduate within 5 years. I can understand why the experience with your brother pushed you towards medicine.
Good Luck!