HELP! I'm NEW!

[dmtang2]

hi. so i am applying to medical school this year, but i am afraid that i won't get in because i only have a 27 MCAT (29 combined) and a 3.5 gpa. i'm considering post-bac programs as my alternative to help improve my credentials. so i was hoping some of you experienced students can help me out.

i will graduate in may 06 with a bachelors in bio. i have already completed all of the pre-med requirements. i preferably would like to go to a post-bac program that is like a pathway to medical school. i heard that students at the programs at drexel and georgetown actually take classes with med students.

however, i am totally clueless as to what TYPE of program i should be looking for. drexel has more than 3 post-bac science programs. so my questions:

1. what type of post-bac programs that can suit me and can you provide some schools?

2. i want to enter medical school as soon as i finish the post-bac program. so no glide year?

thank you so much in advance to anybody who responds!!

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[tacmrage]

hi. so i am applying to medical school this year, but i am afraid that i won't get in because i only have a 27 MCAT (29 combined) and a 3.5 gpa. i'm considering post-bac programs as my alternative to help improve my credentials. so i was hoping some of you experienced students can help me out.

i will graduate in may 06 with a bachelors in bio. i have already completed all of the pre-med requirements. i preferably would like to go to a post-bac program that is like a pathway to medical school. i heard that students at the programs at drexel and georgetown actually take classes with med students.

however, i am totally clueless as to what TYPE of program i should be looking for. drexel has more than 3 post-bac science programs. so my questions:

1. what type of post-bac programs that can suit me and can you provide some schools?

2. i want to enter medical school as soon as i finish the post-bac program. so no glide year?

thank you so much in advance to anybody who responds!!

Hey,
You numbers are really not bad. Based on numbers alone I think you should get some interviews if you apply early and to a broad range of schools. As far as the programs you mentioned, I think they are better suited for people with low GPA (<3.3) and higher MCAT's. I think re-taking the MCAT and getting an even better score will help your app more than a post-bacc. Good luck.

 

[dmtang2]

Hey,
You numbers are really not bad. Based on numbers alone I think you should get some interviews if you apply early and to a broad range of schools. As far as the programs you mentioned, I think they are better suited for people with low GPA (<3.3) and higher MCAT's. I think re-taking the MCAT and getting an even better score will help your app more than a post-bacc. Good luck.

thanks for your reply! i applied very early and applied to >20 schools. i haven't gotten any interviews yet. i got a 27 twice actually. the no interviews situation is making me worry and think more realistly about a backup plan.

i heard that there is a drexel postbac program where students take classes with med students and can get credit for it... so that when they enter med school, preferably drexel, theses post bac students wont be a year behind.

 

[tacrum43]

thanks for your reply! i applied very early and applied to >20 schools. i haven't gotten any interviews yet. i got a 27 twice actually. the no interviews situation is making me worry and think more realistly about a backup plan.

i heard that there is a drexel postbac program where students take classes with med students and can get credit for it... so that when they enter med school, preferably drexel, theses post bac students wont be a year behind.

I'm not sure how Drexel's programs work, but I think that it takes two years there to get a Master's degree. After the first year you just get a certificate, and then if you want to, you can take the second year during the "glide year" to get a Masters. This means that the soonest you could enter medical school would be in Fall of 2008.

However, there are a couple of one year Masters programs available. The main ones are Georgetown's SMP and Rosalind Franklin's AP. You take classes with medical students in these, and the advantage over Drexel is that it only takes one year and you're not thrown in a basement some place to watch televised lectures. Rosalind Franklin's program is basically a guarantee that you'll get into Chicago med so long as you get at least a 3.0, while Georgetown's is less of a guarantee, but you can get into a wider variety of schools (55% get in the first year to a U.S. allopathic school, and 85% within two years).

I have also heard good things about EVMS's program. You know, Phil_Anthropist recently made a big list of these:

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=234209

so check that out. Phil knows his stuff.

Oh yes, and a 27 is fine for both Georgetown's and Rosalind Franklin's program, especially since your GPA is higher than their averages. Just apply EARLY, like in January. Well, unless of course you already have a medical school acceptance.

 

[medstylee]

i agree that you're a good candidate for a special masters program. i just finished georgetown's program and it's helping a lot so far. although i didn't get in (to med schools) last year when i applied, i've already had two interviews this year at schools which did not interview me in the post. i'm not sure about the other programs, but georgetown is really starting to become influential. i recently interviewed at drexel med and i learned that, as long as you get a B or higher in a med course at georgetown, you can pass out of it at drexel during first year (i believe that counts for histology, physiology, and neuroscience). i also know that you can pass out of histology at george washington if you've taken it at georgetown. pretty sweet deals.

anyway, i got off topic, but best of luck.

 

[s2kray]

thanks for the info guys. i am in a similar situation except i still havent taken my mcats and am not a bio major. i have around a 3.5 and will be graduating in may. i didnt do so hot in the pre-med pre-reqs getting a mixture of Bs Cs and one A-. is it adviseable for me to do a SMP or to do something like UPENN's special sciences and boost my undergrad science gpa? thanks again in advance

 

[ASDIC]

your gpa sounds fine...u wud want to improve ur mcat score

however if u are considering post-bacc programs i recommend u apply to special masters programs.

 

[dmtang2]

thank you everyone to all that replied.

everyone's responses have been very helpful!

 

[tacrum43]

thanks for the info guys. i am in a similar situation except i still havent taken my mcats and am not a bio major. i have around a 3.5 and will be graduating in may. i didnt do so hot in the pre-med pre-reqs getting a mixture of Bs Cs and one A-. is it adviseable for me to do a SMP or to do something like UPENN's special sciences and boost my undergrad science gpa? thanks again in advance

Well I think it depends on what your science GPA is. If you have a 3.4 or above, you are probably fine. If you have several upper division classes that you've done well in, that's probably fine too. If not, you could probably do an informal post-bacc (= much, much cheaper) by taking some upper division bio classes, especially genetics, biochem, microbiology, immunology and cell biology. If you did well in those, that would should make up for your previous C's. You could take physical chemistry too, but I think that would be needless pain.

 

[dmtang2]

Well I think it depends on what your science GPA is. If you have a 3.4 or above, you are probably fine. If you have several upper division classes that you've done well in, that's probably fine too. If not, you could probably do an informal post-bacc (= much, much cheaper) by taking some upper division bio classes, especially genetics, biochem, microbiology, immunology and cell biology. If you did well in those, that would should make up for your previous C's. You could take physical chemistry too, but I think that would be needless pain.

well im a bio major, so i have taken a lot of bio and chem courses. i have already taken all the prereqs at my university.

my bcpm is a 3.45, but will definitely go up once i graduate and finish off my senior year. i have no Cs, but i do have a string of Bs. in my later years, my science grades really do improve to As.

so i probably would not want to re-take classes. i would probably do that rosalind franklin program or georgetown program? i heard that if u do their special masters postbac, then you can have a much better chance of beign admitted to their school..