I Do Not Know What to Do

This forum made possible through the generous support of SDN members, donors, and sponsors. Thank you.
What if I went back and got a second bachelors (I'm interested in physics)? A physics bachelors would allow me to improve my science GPA and work on more ECs.
I'm actually good with physics- I think it would help my GPAs.

Physics isn't easy at all and it's definitely not an option if you're thinking about boosting your science GPA. Intermediate and upper level physics courses are extremely difficult and time consuming. I personally had to utilize office hours many times per week to understand basic concepts needed to do well in the courses. And a few Goldwater Scholar physics majors I know had like sub-3.6 GPA (although granted they also took graduate level physics courses and double majored in math).

Just a heads up before you pursue this route.
 
I don't understand your problem. Presumably you have a degree. Use it.
Get a job. Go for an academic job if you can, for the benefits, or sell out for the money in a higher paying industry job or finance, or whatever is appropriate for your degree.
Then get to work taking classes, or save for an SMP. Your grades are a colossal obstacle to overcome. It's not just the grade, but the downward trend. You need major damage control. Don't just go to graduate school unless you plan to seriously consider another career. You spend 3 years damaging your GPA. Whatever the cause, as you got more experience in school and classes got more specialized in a field you chose, instead of doing better you did worse. That's a very big red flag that will make them second guess your ability to succeed in medical school. A good mcat is great, but anyone moderately bright can study for months full time and do well on a single test.


--
Il Destriero
 
I'm at a loss as to how to proceed- I graduate this Summer and I have no prospects. My major is not even a traditional major (it's interdisciplinary) and I don't know if I'll even find a decent job, let alone one where I could take coursework. I thought most crappy jobs are 9-5- how do you fit coursework in there?

I'm not trying to get out of hard work but nothing proposed seems feasible.
You're just applying now. What did you plan to do for the 12-13 months before you matriculated????
 
I'm at a loss as to how to proceed- I graduate this Summer and I have no prospects. My major is not even a traditional major (it's interdisciplinary) and I don't know if I'll even find a decent job, let alone one where I could take coursework. I thought most crappy jobs are 9-5- how do you fit coursework in there?

I'm not trying to get out of hard work but nothing proposed seems feasible.

No, good jobs are 9-5. Crappy jobs are whenever.
 
I'm at a loss as to how to proceed- I graduate this Summer and I have no prospects. My major is not even a traditional major (it's interdisciplinary) and I don't know if I'll even find a decent job, let alone one where I could take coursework. I thought most crappy jobs are 9-5- how do you fit coursework in there?

I'm not trying to get out of hard work but nothing proposed seems feasible.

Most jobs are 9-5. Are all jobs bad to you? You can take night classes and/or work part time or weekends. We have to do what we can to make things work. Cmon man.
 
You're confused. If I even can find a job, this probably won't allow me to take coursework.
I just did an entire postbac sequence over the course of four years while working a really busy full time startup tech job. I had to move to a new city to be able to attend courses at night while working. If you want to go to med school, you can do it! Gonna be a lot of hard work and you'll have to really commit. If it seems too hard for you, it might just be. Good luck!
 
Last edited:
I don't understand your problem. Presumably you have a degree. Use it.
Get a job. Go for an academic job if you can, for the benefits, or sell out for the money in a higher paying industry job or finance, or whatever is appropriate for your degree.
Then get to work taking classes, or save for an SMP. Your grades are a colossal obstacle to overcome. It's not just the grade, but the downward trend. You need major damage control. Don't just go to graduate school unless you plan to seriously consider another career. You spend 3 years damaging your GPA. Whatever the cause, as you got more experience in school and classes got more specialized in a field you chose, instead of doing better you did worse. That's a very big red flag that will make them second guess your ability to succeed in medical school. A good mcat is great, but anyone moderately bright can study for months full time and do well on a single test.


--
Il Destriero
Disagree with your comments about the MCAT, for two reasons:

1). Lots of moderately bright people study their asses off for this test and can't pass it. Examples include my entire Princeton Review MCAT class (I think 2 of us got in?).

2). The OP's score will determine his plan of action. If he studies his hardest and is way above the matriculant average he could probably matriclate just a year late, either via an SMP or just by working for a year and applying broadly to DO schools.
If he gets around the matriculant average he might still get in, but likely needs several years of GPA repair. If he can't pass the MCAT either... well maybe he could try taking it one more time, but that might be a good sign to look for another career. Right or wrong the key to every door in this profession is a standardized test.
 
Last edited:
Do EMT and get a solid MCAT and some gpa repair. Worst case you get some clinical hours and better GPA and can try for PA school or something along those lines.
 
I DO WANT to pursue medicine but if I'm as hopeless as everyone one here suggests, what is the point?

This is a sure sign that you definitely need to get help with your depression. People tend to make split-second decisions based on emotion when they're dealing with mental health problems. Trust me, I've been there. I had depression in high school after a friend of mine died from cancer. It was almost like pulling teeth to get me to go to a psychologist, but my family made me do it. Let me tell you that it was the best decision of my life and it got me back on track to go to college (I was hopeless before then and didn't think that I had the scholastic ability to go). Needless to say, I applied to college (with a lower GPA than I wanted because of the depression), got in, and ended up graduating summa cum laude. There's no shame in taking time with this process of going to medical school (I'm taking two years off myself) if you really need the time (which it sounds like you do). Like others said: medicine will always be there, and sometimes life happens. Time is on your side. Take those opportunities to mature from them. I know for a fact that I look back at that situation I was in and I think: what the hell was I thinking? But, you know what, I ended up growing from it and it even helped to even further fuel my passion for medicine. You're not a failure. You just need TIME to get yourself well and back on track. It's not impossible and you're not expected to do it alone. If you're having difficulty finding a job, reach out to your school's pre-med advisor or their career advisor. Just utilize something because it's only going to get tougher in med school and beyond. Now's the perfect time to take some time off, mature, and learn those necessary coping skills that you need to power through medicine. I hope this helped.
 
I'm at a loss as to how to proceed- I graduate this Summer and I have no prospects. My major is not even a traditional major (it's interdisciplinary) and I don't know if I'll even find a decent job, let alone one where I could take coursework. I thought most crappy jobs are 9-5- how do you fit coursework in there?

I'm not trying to get out of hard work but nothing proposed seems feasible.

You don't need a traditional major to get into med school. All you need are the pre-reqs. From what I've heard, some med schools even like it when you don't have the traditional Biology or Chemistry major. You're beating yourself up too much when you should be working to improve yourself. And PLEASE don't just suddenly decide to go graduate school if you're not seriously considering another career. That's a surefire way to shoot yourself in the foot.
 
You people are very unrealistic- you know how hard it is to get a job let alone one at a specific place?

Forget this, I'm going to grad school.

Thanks!

I feel like you're not giving yourself a chance. You're being very inflexible. You have this idea that either immediately going into an SMP program or continuing to apply to med school when (from what I can tell) you're not emotionally ready is going to help you when others have stated repeatedly that these are not good choices for you. The last thing you want to do is apply to an SMP program when you don't have your mental health in check, as that could easily result in the same or worse grades that you have now. And if you mess up an SMP, there's no going back. You also don't want to apply anywhere just to take a chance. Like I said, take time to get the mental health issues sorted out and THEN worry about what you can do to fix your stats.
 
Jesus christ this thread is insane. OP, everyone in here is giving you solid advice but you seem hellbent on getting in this cycle... Ignoring the fact that you don't even have an MCAT score, your choices are:

A- Fix your GPA formally via masters/postbacc take a loan if you have to. You're already going to be hundreds of thousands of dollars in debt, whats another 30k if it means getting in?

B- Get a job/university job and take night courses. Getting a job is not that hard if you apply broadly enough, go to w/e resume workshop your university offers and spruce your resume/CV up. I work at an NIH analytical chemistry lab and had no background in chemistry when I applied.

C- Ignore everyone and apply anyways and see how it pans out for you.

I have never seen a clearer example of the idiom: You can lead a horse to water, but you can't make it drink.
 
Last edited:
What does verified mean? What year are you? What extra curricular? What's your base practice MCAT score? Have you shadowed? How much? What makes you unique? If you don't have answers to these then you really need to decide if you can handle medical school because you aren't prepared at all. Does your school have a pre-med advising center? Have you met with them? I would say you aren't prepared for the 2017 application cycle, but could potentially apply for the 2018 cycle. You have a long way to go before you are prepared.

Sent from my SM-N910V using SDN mobile
 
I think that you may want to put your concerns in order. From reading your posts I think that you may have financial success and job track on top. These are very important but the best advice that I see in these posts address more basic worries like stress level and priorities. I hope that you have good support and advice in the real world. Online information is helpful but won't get you where you are trying to get.


Sent from my iPhone using SDN mobile
 
I would definitely suggest that the OP work for a couple of years. I am honestly thinking that part of the problem is an immaturity issue.
 
Top