How are undergraduate science grades considered compared to Post. Bacc grades?

[cozmokrmr]

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Maybe someone has or is going through this right now as they are applying in June. I previously took about 4 science courses at UC Davis in my undergraduate a few years ago, and got around a 3.0 gpa in them. Now that I have been in a post bacc. program in CA, and doing very well, I am wondering how my GPA will show up on the AMCAS application. Are all the science courses I have every taken added all together, or are they separated by undergrad. and Post. Bacc.. Does anyone know how GPA is reported?
Will doing poorly in those classes in the past hurt my chances?
thanks

 

[AlphaKi]

Like I said in another thread, the older your undergrad the less weight it holds, regardless of your major. Keeping this in mind, however, science classes in undergrad still count in your 'science gpa ' that medical schools want considered. You'll have to go back into the vault, so to speak, and calc your gpa in all science classes, gen ed sciences, pre-med, advanced science and electives. So, they will count and affect your gpa but when the admissions people look at your whole transcript they will keep these things in mind. One good way to adjust for an average output like that is to kick butt in postbac classes 🙂

😉

 

[samenewme]

Your GPA is broken out year by year in AMCAS, but the final undergrad GPA and final undergrad science GPA includes your undergrad and postbacc undergrad courses together.

Graduate level courses are considered separately in your graduate GPA.

 

[Ringo_Man]

Alright. I went through a similar process of thought. Can I get in if my most recent grades (Post Bac/Graduate) are good, but my under grad is bad?

Short Answer: Yes, it is possible. ( I did and my undergrad grades were VERY low)

How one can assess the risk of failing to enter medical school, after making a serious commitment? That is the tough part. There is no clear way to manage the risk. I think it would be a mistake to go about obsessing, as many post-baccs do.

Try to do your best to excel in every positive aspect of your application. You cannot do anything about your previous grades, but you can do your best to do well now. You can write a great essay. Get an editing service (I used ESSAYRX.COM, my editor (Mr. Wanger) actually helped several post-bacs.) Your focus your application on your strengths. You can get good clincal, research, and volunteer experience. You can prepare yourself in as many other ways as possible. I found it VERY helpful to read about doctors ( MOUNTAINS BEYOND MOUNTAINS and BECOMING A DOCTOR A BELLVUE were good.) Get your head around the idea of being a doctor and make it a reality. Focus on your instincts that got you this far.

P.S. Don't forget to enjoy your life.

 

[911Med]

Ringo Man - wow - good stuff. 🙂

This is how I am looking at it...
Perhaps because of my competitive nature, or possibly just because I'm motivated by cheesy things.
I had horrible grades in undergrad. I was a college swimmer and was either in the pool, sleeping, or walking around in a daze for most of my 4 years.
After graduation I took a job in pharma and took the next four years to determine if medicine was truly the career for me. I had essentially dug a hole for myself in undergrad, and it would now be twice the work to become a "competitive applicant."
As you get older, you realize that perhpas the worse feeling in the world is disappointing yourself. Mom/Dad, cultural expectations - it doesn't mean squat after age 25 - they just accept you as an adult.
There were a million reasons that I choose to go back into a post-bac and give this a 100% effort.
I could have stayed at my job and worked and taken the occasional evening class, - to me, I had to prove to myself I was 100% devoted.

So to stop my rambling - AND to tie this into the orginal thread...

I have not started my post-bac yet - this Fall.

But I'll tell you this. Whenever I think about how I'll perform in my post-bac, for some cheesy reason, I get the brief soliloquy at the start of "Lose Yourself" by Eminem playing in my head.
Why?
Because this is my absolute, last, and only shot at making this career option work.
Something that I wasted 7 years ago.
I have one shot left.
You bet your as$ I'm going to get all A's.

I'll keep you guys posted.

 

[jcg179]

I second that notion 911. I start my journey June 1. I share your sentiments 100%

Rock on

-J

 

[911Med]

"Look, if you had one shot, one opportunity
To seize everything you ever wanted-One moment
Would you capture it or just let it slip?"
-Eminem

You watch jcg179, we're gonna do it brother - You start June 1st, I start August 30th.

 

[jcg179]

But for now, I am sitting in my cubicle staring at a blank excel worksheet! I swear..any longer and my ass is going to fuse to the bottom of my chair. Oh, I can't wait to start classes and pretend I am cool undergrad again....

I digress...

 

[cher25]

I posted this on another one but it seems relavent to the topic:

I applied last year so I know how they do the GPA calculation. Post bac classes, if undergraduate, are averaged in with your undergraduate GPA. Graduate courses are completely seperate and have a completely seperate GPA calculation. So on AMCAS, the breakdown is this. Undergraduate GPA, Undergraduate Science and Math GPA (includes biology, physics, math, and chemistry), Other Undergraduate Classes GPA, Overall undergraduate GPA. And then they have an entire seperate section that has Graduate Overall GPA, Graduate Science and Math GPA, and Other Graduate Courses (non science) GPA. So if you do a post bac, it will average in with your undergrad GPA on AMCAS, provided that they are not graduate level courses. If you do a Masters, you get a whole new GPA but your undergrad doesn't budge. It depends on your situation on which you should choose. Me personally, post bac courses won't help my undergrad GPA much, (154 credit hours from undergrad already) So I'm going for a masters so that I can have a fresh new GPA. Also, as mentioned by another poster, it is broken down year by year as well. Hope this helps.