Help with a Road Map to Medical School?

[Aunistee]

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Hello! Going to tryyy and keep this short haha:

I'm having a hard time determining how to go about pursuing medical school. I have a few time constraints and was wondering if anyone had some advice on how to make this happen?

Here's a brief picture of what my life looks like right now:
* Working full time with with unpredictable hours (RN)
* Miss ______ USA 2014 (I'm competing)
* Child Ambassador for a non-profit organization (flexible hours, I host events)
* Currently in the process of publishing a literature review
* Active Network Marketer
* Active member of my Church
* In the process of starting own non-profit/grant/organization
* 23 years old, no kids/family constraints
* University, Double major, Undergrad grade: 3.2
* Currently taking Chemistry at a community college (attempting a post-bacc program at a university)

Here are my main questions:
1. Should I go to a university and pursue a 3rd bachelor's degree? Or continue with a post-bacc program? Online classes? What is the best way to complete the pre-requisites for medical school when my schedule is as crazy as it is? What would look best to impress a medical school? I've heard of people just taking the required classes from a community college and then going from there, others recommend another bachelors degree at a university. Which one?
2. Is it possible to aim to go to a specific medical school?
3. I guess I'm generally just feeling overwhelmed on how to map out my life as a "pre-med" um... person. I feel both excited, but nervous because I don't want to miss anything or screw something up. I plan on doing this preparation within the next 3 years. Is that possible?

 

[Mars41]

3 years is very practical.

Take prereqs at your local college (4yr if finances aren't an issue but community college is fine if you aren't planning on attending a top 25 school).

Study for 2-3 months and rock your MCAT.

Don't rush, do well in your prereqs, and have fun.

Good luck.

 

[Aunistee]

3 years is very practical.

Take prereqs at your local college (4yr if finances aren't an issue but community college is fine if you aren't planning on attending a top 25 school).

Study for 2-3 months and rock your MCAT.

Don't rush, do well in your prereqs, and have fun.

Good luck.

Thank you so much! That's really encouraging 🙂 yay!

 

[Mars41]

Ps... Avoid the online courses because a lot of the schools will not accept them.

 

[Mars41]

No worries at all.

Another ps because I'm not busy right now...

Research DO schools. Great option for lower GPA applicants.

Lots of great inspiration on the nontrad board as well.

 

[FutureDrB]

Ps... Avoid the online courses because a lot of the schools will not accept them.

@Aunistee What Mars said is true, but I know plenty of people who took online courses, including sciences and labs. (Myself included.)
This may sound shady, but if it's not stated on your transcript that they were online courses, they won't know.
I certainly don't recommend this route to everyone, but for those of use who work full-time and cannot attend in-person courses, it's the only option. (Schools around here also don't offer night labs.)

 

[AkGrown84]

1. Absolutely do not go to the university and pursue a 3rd degree. This will not necessarily make you look any better on your apps. Neither will minors in anything, for that matter. Go to the cheapest community college that has the classes you need that will work well with your schedule. Most schools (unless you're aiming for Top 10/Top 20 type schools) could care less where you got your credits, as long as it's at an accredited school and in the US. I wouldn't do a formal post-bac, just take the classes you need on your own schedule. Do not do online classes....it will limit the schools you can apply to.
2. You may absolutely "aim" for a specific school, but DO NOT bank on it. Know that it's where you want to go, research the school to be able to tailor your application to what they look for, but do not put all your eggs into one (or even 2/3/4/5) baskets. You will need to apply to more than a few schools to hope that you'll be accepted to SOMEWHERE. Even those with the BEST STATS can't cherry pick most of the time.
3. Three years is absolutely possible. Assuming you're currently taking Chem, then do Bio1/Chem2/Phys1 in the fall, Bio2/Phys2/OChem1 in the spring (assuming you do well in the fall and feel you can handle the courses together), and then OChem2 and whatever else you want to take (upper division Bio maybe?! I don't know what you've already done) next fall (2015). Give yourself 3-5 months of MCAT prep after all this, take it, and apply that spring. Realistically, if these are your only courses you need, you can do this in 2 years for matriculation in 3 years.