Help planning when to apply+more

[lilqu]

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i need some help getting things in order before i apply.
firstly i plan on taking my MCAT april on 2010 (as it was recommended) as i finish my prerequisites this coming spring and i finish my degree this coming fall (fall '10, if not ill have a few credits to finish in '11 spring).
so fall i have done some notable things - i have been part of the pre-medical club at my school, and lead it as president for a while and i quit last semester as i had too much of a heavy course load, i have been shadowing the chief of cardiogoly at my local hospital and got to see amazing procedures!
i am also a TA (teacher's assistant with grading), and i have tutored middle and preschoolers in math and science 1 and a half years ago for an after-school program at a church (should i include this in my personal statement?) i am planning also in tutoring next semester and volunteering at my local hospital ( i heard hours doesnt matter, just that you did it as you don't note down the hours?).

amongst the above questions...

1)when should i start my application?

2)am i taking the MCAT at the right time for the 2011 cycle? or can i take it in june/july?

3)how many letters of recommendation do i need (2 right?) and when do i send it in?

4)can i apply to schools as long as i have done my MCAT even without having completed my bachelors or my science pre-req's? (i have phy2, calc, ochem2, biochem2)

5)should i take calculus, if i am taking pre calculus now? does my statistics, and college algebra grades affect my science GPA?

6)do i need any additional activities additional to the ones i meantioned? (TA, shadowing, tutoring, involved in pre-medical club, volunteering) or am i fine if i keep it up?

7) My current GPA is 3.67 overall i should be able to increase it to 3.75/3.8 hopefully before i graduate, and my current science classes i have the following:

Bio1+lab B+ (should i retake this to boost to an A+)
Bio2+lab B+
chem1+lab A-
chem2+lab A-
ochem1 A- lab A-
ochem2+lab (yet to take)
phys1 A- lab A
phys2+lab(yet to take)
biochem1+lab (taking this now)
biochem2+lab (next sem)

what is my calculated SGPA? (i did one online just want to double check)

8) what are my chances?

9) any suggestions?


i know this is alot, but any help is appreciated.

 

[Dr McSexy]

i am also a TA (teacher's assistant with grading), and i have tutored middle and preschoolers in math and science 1 and a half years ago for an after-school program at a church (should i include this in my personal statement?)

Sure. You can put whatever you want to in your personal statement. It's advised to you correlate events in your life that helped you make your decision to enter the field of medicine. If this particular event helped ensure your decision, then mention it.

i am planning also in tutoring next semester and volunteering at my local hospital ( i heard hours doesnt matter, just that you did it as you don't note down the hours?).

No, it doesn't really matter, since you have the option of not filling in the blank. But I would advise that if you do know the average amount of hours that you spend per week in these activities, that you include them as part of the application. If you are doing these activities next semester, you should gain a rough estimate of how many hours per week you spend doing it before you fill out your AMCAS.

1)when should i start my application?

You will not be able to start it until the 2010-2011 AMCAS is released, which will be in May of 2010. The earliest you can submit is in June. If you want to be prepared, you can have a look at this cycle's application to give an idea of what it looks like. But realistically, from the time that it is released to the first day of submission (~1 month), you will be able to do everything. Ahead of time, if you want to make things easier and not a rush, you can start contacting professors for possible Letters of Recommendations and you can work on your personal statement. Again, I did not do either until May and still managed to get my application submitted pretty early (mid-June).

2)am i taking the MCAT at the right time for the 2011 cycle? or can i take it in june/july?

I think you are taking it a good time. You'll be able to see your scores before you submit your application. If you bombed the MCAT for some reason, you still have time to take it again. You can take the MCAT as late as Sept (for most schools, others may be Aug), but by the time you get your Scores, submit your MCAT, and then have it verified, you'll be "late" by SDN standards.

I would only NOT take it, if you felt you didn't adequately prepare for it. No reason to waste the money nor bomb the MCAT. You should take it as if it's the only time you are going to take it.

3)how many letters of recommendation do i need (2 right?) and when do i send it in?

I would check with each individual school that you are applying to. Most as far as I know, require 3. Generally, at least 2 science and 1 non-science. Mine were all 3 science, so this isn't a hard-fast rule.

If you have a pre-med committee at your school, it is likely that they will also provide you a letter. In addition, they may even take care of everything for you, as far as submitting letters to AMCAS and such.

Otherwise, I think most people advise you sign up for Interfolio or VirtualEvals and have your writers send their letters to these services, where you can then send them to AMCAS or schools that don't use the AMCAS letter system. And store them for later, if you need to reapply (I would assume?)

4)can i apply to schools as long as i have done my MCAT even without having completed my bachelors or my science pre-req's? (i have phy2, calc, ochem2, biochem2)

Yes and Yes. Most people do not have their bachelor's degree by the time they apply. And as long you finish the pre-reqs by the time you matriculate into medical school, you should be fine.

5)should i take calculus, if i am taking pre calculus now? does my statistics, and college algebra grades affect my science GPA?

Yes, they do affect your BCPM GPA. I would check with each individual school that you want to apply to. If they require Calculus, then of course you should take it. Otherwise, if none of your schools you plan to apply to require it, then I wouldn't take it.

6)do i need any additional activities additional to the ones i meantioned? (TA, shadowing, tutoring, involved in pre-medical club, volunteering) or am i fine if i keep it up?

Anything that you want. You've got the pre-med "checklist" down. you should consider doing things that you want to do. All of pre-med shouldn't be doing typical pre-med things. Do some stuff that's fun as well. Unless, you really do enjoy all of these things.

7) My current GPA is 3.67 overall i should be able to increase it to 3.75/3.8 hopefully before i graduate, and my current science classes i have the following:

Bio1+lab B+ (should i retake this to boost to an A+)
Bio2+lab B+
chem1+lab A-
chem2+lab A-
ochem1 A- lab A-
ochem2+lab (yet to take)
phys1 A- lab A
phys2+lab(yet to take)
biochem1+lab (taking this now)
biochem2+lab (next sem)

what is my calculated SGPA? (i did one online just want to double check)

Retaking would only average the grades of the classes and not replace (unless you are applying DO). So no, it's stupid to retake a class you got a B in.

BCPM also includes math as well. That and don't feel like figuring everything out for you.

8) what are my chances?

Well, without a MCAT, it's hard to realistically gauge what your chances are. Everything looks great from ECs and GPA. But there are lot a intrinsic factors involved in the medical school application process (your intentions, your interviewing skills, experiences, residency, etc.).

So, short answer, your chances are as good as anyone else at this point in time.

9) any suggestions?

Have fun.

 

[lilqu]

thank you for the reply! will sticky to my brain!