HELP! Dropout returning to undergrad for shot at med school

[Koeeoaddi]

hey ya'll. i've decided to return to school and i just stumbled upon this forum whilst frantically scouring the internet to help me decide which route to take. this is a good thing goin on here, and ill be mighty grateful for any advice or opinions. i went to University of Tennessee for two years out of high school working on a biochem degree. in the last semester i became really disenchanted with college and stopped going to most of my classes, then left and traveled for a few years and cultivated a lot of life experience; i don't regret my decision, except that i wish i would have dropped some of those classes before it was too late! that semester i ended up with 3 D's and an F, dropping my GPA from a 3.85 to a 3.0.

it has been 4 years since then. i am going on 25 now and i have a strong resolve and desire to attend university and apply to med school - something that was missing originally during my first sojourn through the academic realm. back then i was on cruise control, doing what i thought i was supposed to and trying to please my parents. i didn't really care all that much, you know? i didn't have the perspective that allowed me to care and appreciate the opportunity in the way that i can now.

so this is my situation: i was originally thinking of attending CSU - Chico, but it seems that might put a hamper on my med school ambitions. i would really like to attend a school in the University of California system - ideally Berkeley or Davis. i reckon there is no chance of me transferring into either of those universities right now having a 3.0 and no recent classwork. what is it gonna take to get into one of these schools? right now my plan is to attend a community college in cali for a year or two and maintain upwards of a 3.8, fluff up my extracurricular resume, and give UC a shot. i dont mind sacrificing the 50 credits i received originally and re doing a full four years. is this my best option?

also, say i am able to get into UC and graduate with a nice GPA and an impressive MCAT score and the works. is that 3.0 i got in my first go around going to weigh heavily on my chances of getting into med school? for what its worth, i am hoping to specialize in psychiatry, which i hear is one of the easier concentrations as far as acceptance into med school goes.

thanks for reading. cheers!

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[HereIgo2011]

You will have along road ahead of you but you can only take one step at a time. If you really want to attend UCB, I suggest that you enroll at Berkeley city college. It is a good feeder school for UCB. Even if you do well and get into UCB, you will have to disclose your grade at UT for AMCAS verification purpose. If you work hard, I am sure you can make it to Med. school. Good luck.

 

[aSagacious]

Moving to the 'what are my chances' forum.

 

[Beekachu]

for what its worth, i am hoping to specialize in psychiatry, which i hear is one of the easier concentrations as far as acceptance into med school goes.

The specialty you are considering doesn't affect your chances of acceptance into medical school. An interviewer might ask out of interest, but choosing psychiatry won't make applying to medical school easier.

One thing to consider too, is that if you don't have a preference on earning an M.D. or a D.O., you could retake the courses you failed in your final semester and DO schools will allow grade replacement (not sure on all the rules for that). But that would be a quicker way to recover your GPA instead of going back to school for another 4 years.

I don't think that semester of bad grades will be a barrier to medical school if you can 1) pull that GPA back up, 2) get involved in E.C.'s that you enjoy, 3) do well on the MCAT, and 4) find a concise and professional way to explain your terrible grades/dropping out a few years back.

 

[Catalystik]

One thing to consider too, is that if you don't have a preference on earning an M.D. or a D.O., you could retake the courses you failed in your final semester and DO schools will allow grade replacement (not sure on all the rules for that). But that would be a quicker way to recover your GPA instead of going back to school for another 4 years.

Each class that one retakes must have the same credit hours as the original course, or greater in order to invoke the AACOMAS grade forgiveness policy. The retake need not be at the same school. The course name needn't be identical so long as the course content is demonstrably similar per the course catalogs.

When one retakes, only the most recent grade is included in the calculation of your application GPA by AACOMAS. I agree: This is the fastest way to redeem a low GPA.

For AMCAS, all the previously earned grades will be calculated in with all newly earned grades, but with extraordinary success, if you had a 3.0 after 4 semesters, then adding in 4 more semesters of 4.0 would get you to a 3.5. With a high MCAT score and steep upward grade trend, you'd have a decent chance of an MD acceptance somewhere. And a fifth year of college could get you to a reasonably competitive 3.6.

 

[Koeeoaddi]

wow ya'll, great advice, thanks so much to each of you for taking the time to reply. i have no familiarity with the D.O. program, and wasn't even aware of its existence until now. as long as it will give me license to practice clinical research and psychology and administer medication (some quick research just proved that it indeed would) it seems like a good route to take. the idea of grade replacement is glorious, beyond my expectations of how i could approach this dilemma of mine.

and i appreciate the reference to berkley community college. if i retake some of those courses i dropped the ball in during my last semester, will the grade replacement still be valid even from a community college? i still reckon its best to go to community college for a year and transfer to a UC or Cal Poly instead of going straight to CSU.

edit:

the more i read about this the more things im discovering that i need to think about. if i went to a more competitive school like UC Berkley or Davis it would be harder to keep up a good GPA as opposed to attending somewhere like Chico. what looks better in the eyes of an adcom, a 4.0 from CSU or a 3.5 from UC? is there maybe some middle ground to be found at Cal Poly? im not sure how important the prestige of a college is and how much i should be concerning myself with it. really i would be happy to go to Chico but if graduating from a UC college would make a huge difference then id certainly like to give it a shot.

 

[Koeeoaddi]

so after doing a lot of reading ive decided that im going to go to a CC for a year, retake some classes and complete all the pre reqs i need, then try to transfer over to a UC or Cal Poly to complete the rest of my undergraduate work. im definitely open to anymore advice, but otherwise wish my luck, and thanks again for taking the time to help me out!