How do I even begin to decide on which post bacc?

[baccpostcareer]

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So I've decided I want to go to medical school.

I completed a non-science undergrad (3.47 gpa) in 2010, did a graduate certificate in 2012 (3.6 gpa), and have worked in medical informatics since 2013.

My goal is to complete a post-bacc program in 12-18 months, get as high a GPA as possible, as high an MCAT as possible, and to get into any medical school.

How should I go about deciding which post bacc programs to apply to? I have some money set aside and want to give this my full attention, so work is not a primary concern for the duration of this.

Given the above considerations, which post bacc program should I apply to?

 

[olderbrooklyndoc]

I’m a current medical student and not on an admissions committee, but my sense is that schools do not care where you take your postbacc classes. If you are someone who needs structure to thrive and feel like you want to spend money on a formal program, you can, but it is absolutely not necessary. You can take premed classes at any univeristy where:
- you are in a location w/ a supportive community
-you can do well in your classes
-you have enough rigor and/or independent study skills to do well on the mcat
-you have access to clinical experiences or research experiences that help you articulate in essays and interviews why you want to become a physician, and why now

You should also know that doing a postbacc and applying to medical school successfully can often be a longer process than it seems on paper. Many formal programs, for example, advertise linkage programs that can save you the application year, but restrict those programs to students with extremely high GPA and MCAT targets and/or, you may find going through this process that you want the choice provided by the traditional application process.

Ask yourself what factors you want in a learning environment. Where do you think you can feel supported? Do you feel like you meed a formal program or could you be successful taking classes on your own? Think about what worked and didn’t work for you in undergrad and grad school, and use that to guide your decision.

Lastly, think about your life. Postbacc, med school, residency will be a long road, and your life outside the wards will not stop. Try to take classes somewhere where you feel like you are still living a full life (near family, friends, hobbies, or whatever is important to you) — that will help make this journey sustainable and FAR more enjoyable.

 

[baccpostcareer]

THANK you so much.

The part about being in a location with a supportive community really resonates with me.

So I travel full time for work right now. My family are in rural missouri near nowhere I could even take post bacc classes. There are maybe four cities in the United States where I have any kind of community: St. Louis, Kansas City, NYC, and DC.

And I definitely think that after being out of school for a while, I need a formal, structured learning environment with lots of built-in support. How can I get this from a program? Academic advisors? Tutoring?

As far as living a full life: I have not really had one for the past 6 years as I've been traveling full time for work. It's rough. I think that finding a location where I know people is important for that. So it seems like I need to stop traveling and pick a place.

I do have a couple job possibilities on the table in cities where I know at least one person and that has good options for post-bacc. I'm wondering if I should try to work while taking a couple classes at night just to ease into it or just devote myself completely to a full time program.

What do you think about this?

 

[Ad2b]

Formal post bacc is not required; taking the pre-reqs, however, is.

Of the standard pre-reqs, which ones have you taken?

Gen Chem 1 & 2
Biology 1 & 2
Organic Chem 1 (possibly 2)
Biochemistry
Physics 1 & 2

I traveled a lot for my career and when I knew I'd be in a certain location for longer than 4 months or so, I'd ask to get admitted as non-degree seeking student and take the class. Also, I used all that lonely hotel time to study... same for MCAT.

Oh, and I LOVED client whiteboards for drawing mechanisms out or pathways ... lol ... now I'm addicted to whiteboards; can't pass one without doing "something" 😳🙄