I have 2 options before applying to DO. Which would be more beneficial?

[arc5005]

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Hi there,

I've been posting and reading a lot on these forums the past month or so. I'm really trying to prepare for DO school. The problem is a lot of the schools I'm interested in want a high GPA and a high MCAT:

NYITCOM, TuoroCOM-NY, PCOM, LECOM, UNECOM, NSUCOM, ROWANSOM. I am trying my hardest to fix my GPA and I'm hoping to do well on the MCAT (but that is over a year away).

I have two options ahead of me come the Fall of 2015, and I'm not sure which path would be most beneficial to the application cycle. My focus is DO schools.

I've been taking 15-17 credits both this past fall and this current spring, and given that I started with a cGPA: 2.98, and a sGPA of 3.02... the two options below are what I'm seeing as my most viable options this fall.

Option 1, Fall 2015:
Take full-time classes at my local community college in New York, $2000 for full-time
-Re-take Bio I(B grade), Bio II (B), and a gen. ed (C)
-Take Biochemistry at another local 4 year university - (my city has a program/agreement between all the colleges in the local area to allow you to take a course at another school for free as long as you are full-time (12 credits) at your current institution and your homeschool does not offer the course you need.)

Total, 13 credits from the CC and 3-4 credits from a Biochemistry course from a 4 year uni.

Expected GPA after this semester: cGPA 3.46, sGPA: 3.53

PROS:

• repair my GPA a lot.
• refresh my memory on Biology (it's been 5 years since I've taken it)
• cheap tuition, I get to practically take a biochemistry course for free.
• part-time Organic Chem tutor. I was offered this job starting in the fall if I'm in the area.
• My schedule would be pretty open, so I could easily volunteer at a hospital in the local area using connections.

CONS:

• rent, which is $400-700 a month here. (Parents might be able to help)
• long-distance relationship

Option 2, Fall 2015:
Work full-time at a health clinic or hospital in a large metropolitan city on the east coast.
-Take Biochemistry (night class if I can find one) at a 4 year university and pay full-price. $3,000 - $3500

Expected GPA after this semester: cGPA 3.39, sGPA 3.39

PROS:

• live with boyfriend, no long-distance
• rent-free, since bf owns his place.
• Work full-time, gain experience in healthcare field (currently have none)
• More opportunities to volunteer, but my networking/connections are more limited here.
• Having an income.

CONS:

• My GPA would be much lower, especially the science GPA
• I wouldn't be taking Bio I & II to refresh my memory, so I would have to self-study

 

[s5260205]

Take the option one, i.e. retake courses (especially pre-reqs) you did badly on (C/D/F grades) in community college. It will be a nice review for preparing your MCAT and will make you more competitive at the schools you listed.

 

[arc5005]

Take the option one, i.e. retake courses (especially pre-reqs) you did badly on (C/D/F grades) in community college. It will be a nice review for preparing your MCAT and will make you more competitive at the schools you listed.

The thing is the classes I did poorly in were not any of the pre-reqs. I have As and Bs in all pre-reqs, but I did poorly in other classes: Geography, Financial Accounting, Spanish 101, Parasitology, and an Environmental Science upper elective, and a math course from my freshman year of college. I was planning on re-taking 1-2 of those C's to bump the GPA up a little.

The Bio I and Bio II I would be re-taking would both replace B's to A's. I can easily get A's, I was just lazy when I first took these courses and didn't even study for exams. I wish I could go back in time to smack my 19 year old self.

 

[samac]

I wouldn't retake any B's. I would take some more upper level before I did that.

 

[arc5005]

I wouldn't retake any B's. I would take some more upper level before I did that.

Samac, I wish that was a realistic & financially-feasible option for me. Unfortunately, I haven't really had a real job, so I have 0 funds to my name. The only option I currently have is what is available at my local community college, and higher upper science electives are not available. I can afford another semester of full-time at my local community college (~$2000) or I can afford 1, 3-4 credit Biochemistry course at a 4 year university ($3000). I'm hoping that maybe I can afford 1 more class at a 4 year uni in the Spring 2016 as well. But that is a big if. It would be nice to be able to update them in early June with an A in Micro or Genetics after I send in the primaries in May 2016.

 

[s5260205]

Samac, I wish that was a realistic & financially-feasible option for me. Unfortunately, I haven't really had a real job, so I have 0 funds to my name. The only option I currently have is what is available at my local community college, and higher upper science electives are not available. I can afford another semester of full-time at my local community college (~$2000) or I can afford 1, 3-4 credit Biochemistry course at a 4 year university ($3000). I'm hoping that maybe I can afford 1 more class at a 4 year uni in the Spring 2016 as well. But that is a big if. It would be nice to be able to update them in early June with an A in Micro or Genetics after I send in the primaries in May 2016.

Aim to retake classes where you did badly in (the classes you listed). What you need now is to boost your GPA. Retaking pre-reqs when you already received a B is just a waste of money. If money is an issue, consider working and taking courses part-time.

 

[DetectiveAlonzo]

May wanna get on the MCAT. The MCAT doesn't care what your GPA or ECs are... a poor score can sink your app. Study hard and retake any courses AFTER you score what you want on the MCAT and get some clinical experience at the same time.. after you've tackled the MCAT hurdle.

 

[MedNation907]

I second this guy ^^

I would suggest something along these lines (in order of events):
1. study and sit for the MCAT
2. work and save up money for rent for when you are retaking classes at the community college in NY
3. if the job isn't in the healthcare field then factor in volunteering/shadowing/whatever else you can get your nose into
4. Remediate your GPA
5. Apply to schools for the 2018-2019 cycle

With the exception of Biochemistry, you have already taken all of the pre-reqs for the MCAT. Seeing how the classes you need to remediate aren't pre-reqs, you would be making it harder for yourself to re-learn those physics/gen.chem concepts by waiting to prep for the MCAT.

 

[arc5005]

I second this guy ^^

I would suggest something along these lines (in order of events):
1. study and sit for the MCAT
2. work and save up money for rent when you are retaking classes at the community college in NY
3. if the job isn't in the healthcare field then factor in volunteering/shadowing/whatever else you can get your nose into
4. Remediate your GPA
5. Apply to schools for the 2018-2019 cycle

With the exception of Biochemistry, you have already taken all of the pre-reqs for the MCAT. Seeing how the classes you need to remediate aren't pre-reqs, you would be making it harder for yourself to re-learn those physics/gen.chem concepts by waiting to prep for the MCAT.

So, what am I missing here? I'm confused as to why people are recommending me take the MCAT before I'm fully prepared nor have taken Biochemistry? This actually seems like bad advice. If I re-take classes until December 2015, that gives a solid 3-4 months to study, take a KAPLAN course, and prep for the MCAT in April with having had bio I/II refresher and biochemistry under my belt.

I was actually thinking about...

1. Take classes. Re-take the classes I need. Get my GPA up to a 3.4ish
2. Volunteer & shadow while re-taking classes now to May 2016.
3. Study and sit for the MCAT in April 2016. If, I do extremely poor, then re-take in the summer.
4. Apply for the Fall of 2017.

 

[PKA<0]

How does one A in a biochem course jump your GPAs from 3.0ish to 3.4ish?

 

[MedNation907]

Okay, so I misread your proposed timeline. I thought the community college would be 1 semester and biochem at the university was another, but now I see. My timeline also played towards your financial situation, you said your parents might be able to help with the $700 a month rent. I mean only you could know how that'll work out, but from the outside that seems financially unstable so I was just incorporating some time you could save some money.

I think your plan is good, taking biochem first sounds best with all things considered.

 

[arc5005]

How does one A in a biochem course jump your GPAs from 3.0ish to 3.4ish?

It doesn't. Sorry if that was misleading. At the time of completing my bachelors in 2013, I was sitting at a 2.9 - cGPA, 3.02 - sGPA.
After this summer, I'll have taken an additional 44 credits post-bac, which will have brought my 3.31 - cGPA, 3.42 - sGPA. This is mostly speculation, but based on how I am doing this semester, and how I've done since I started taking classes last summer, I doubt I will have a lower GPA than this.

Option 1: 16-17 more credits towards my GPA, which boosts it up a 3.4/s 3.5
Option 2: 3 more credits (biochem only), which boosts it up a 3.39/3.39

Okay, so I misread your proposed timeline. I thought the community college would be 1 semester and biochem at the university was another, but now I see. My timeline also played towards your financial situation, you said your parents might be able to help with the $700 a month rent. I mean only you could know how that'll work out, but from the outside that seems financially unstable so I was just incorporating some time you could save some money.

I think your plan is good, taking biochem first sounds best with all things considered.

Ahh, okay, I understand. Yeah, I'm only discussing the fall semester 2015. I'm fairly sure that my parents would continue paying my rent, if I really need it to boost my GPA. It's a pretty big burden on them, but they know how serious and devoted I have been to this since I started taking classes again, so I can most likely get help from them. And, then I'd have the 3-4 months to review/study for the MCAT in spring 2016.

 

[Goro]

With Option 2, you're still competitive for nearly all the DO schools.

Hi there,

I've been posting and reading a lot on these forums the past month or so. I'm really trying to prepare for DO school. The problem is a lot of the schools I'm interested in want a high GPA and a high MCAT:

NYITCOM, TuoroCOM-NY, PCOM, LECOM, UNECOM, NSUCOM, ROWANSOM. I am trying my hardest to fix my GPA and I'm hoping to do well on the MCAT (but that is over a year away).

I have two options ahead of me come the Fall of 2015, and I'm not sure which path would be most beneficial to the application cycle. My focus is DO schools.

I've been taking 15-17 credits both this past fall and this current spring, and given that I started with a cGPA: 2.98, and a sGPA of 3.02... the two options below are what I'm seeing as my most viable options this fall.

Option 1, Fall 2015:
Take full-time classes at my local community college in New York, $2000 for full-time
-Re-take Bio I(B grade), Bio II (B), and a gen. ed (C)
-Take Biochemistry at another local 4 year university - (my city has a program/agreement between all the colleges in the local area to allow you to take a course at another school for free as long as you are full-time (12 credits) at your current institution and your homeschool does not offer the course you need.)

Total, 13 credits from the CC and 3-4 credits from a Biochemistry course from a 4 year uni.

Expected GPA after this semester: cGPA 3.46, sGPA: 3.53

PROS:

• repair my GPA a lot.
• refresh my memory on Biology (it's been 5 years since I've taken it)
• cheap tuition, I get to practically take a biochemistry course for free.
• part-time Organic Chem tutor. I was offered this job starting in the fall if I'm in the area.
• My schedule would be pretty open, so I could easily volunteer at a hospital in the local area using connections.

CONS:

• rent, which is $400-700 a month here. (Parents might be able to help)
• long-distance relationship

Option 2, Fall 2015:
Work full-time at a health clinic or hospital in a large metropolitan city on the east coast.
-Take Biochemistry (night class if I can find one) at a 4 year university and pay full-price. $3,000 - $3500

Expected GPA after this semester: cGPA 3.39, sGPA 3.39

PROS:

• live with boyfriend, no long-distance
• rent-free, since bf owns his place.
• Work full-time, gain experience in healthcare field (currently have none)
• More opportunities to volunteer, but my networking/connections are more limited here.
• Having an income.

CONS:

• My GPA would be much lower, especially the science GPA
• I wouldn't be taking Bio I & II to refresh my memory, so I would have to self-study

 

[arc5005]

With Option 2, you're still competitive for nearly all the DO schools.

You think GPA alone is still competitive for schools like PCOM, Tuoro-NY, NYCOM, LECOM, ROWANSOM, CCOM, NSUCOM, & LECOM?

Obviously it is difficult to say without MCAT scores, but I imagine I will get average, or better than average. & ECs should be average, LOR will be good. I know a DO who knows me well and will write me a great LOR. Same with my professor who wants me to be an Organic Chem tutor.

 

[UBC2014]

Samac, I wish that was a realistic & financially-feasible option for me. Unfortunately, I haven't really had a real job, so I have 0 funds to my name. The only option I currently have is what is available at my local community college, and higher upper science electives are not available. I can afford another semester of full-time at my local community college (~$2000) or I can afford 1, 3-4 credit Biochemistry course at a 4 year university ($3000). I'm hoping that maybe I can afford 1 more class at a 4 year uni in the Spring 2016 as well. But that is a big if. It would be nice to be able to update them in early June with an A in Micro or Genetics after I send in the primaries in May 2016.

3000$ for 1 course?!

That is nuts.

Here: http://www.athabascau.ca/course/fees.php

This is an in-person university with an online component based out of Canada that i have taken a few upper level online courses at - even the most expensive fees for international students, is still only about 1000$ per 3cr course. The university is fully accredited and well respected(Unlike Phoneix and all those other for profit online unis in the US), courses without labs will be zero issue for you. The freshman level courses have virtual labs, and again will be a non-issue. Many of the upper level science courses without labs, will also be no issue.

The US really rips you all off with tuition at 4 year universities, its nuts.

 

[PlaqueBuster]

Option 2 all the way!

 

[Goro]

I do.

You think GPA alone is still competitive for schools like PCOM, Tuoro-NY, NYCOM, LECOM, ROWANSOM, CCOM, NSUCOM, & LECOM?

Obviously it is difficult to say without MCAT scores, but I imagine I will get average, or better than average. & ECs should be average, LOR will be good. I know a DO who knows me well and will write me a great LOR. Same with my professor who wants me to be an Organic Chem tutor.

 

[arc5005]

3000$ for 1 course?!

That is nuts.

Here: http://www.athabascau.ca/course/fees.php

This is an in-person university with an online component based out of Canada that i have taken a few upper level online courses at - even the most expensive fees for international students, is still only about 1000$ per 3cr course. The university is fully accredited and well respected(Unlike Phoneix and all those other for profit online unis in the US), courses without labs will be zero issue for you. The freshman level courses have virtual labs, and again will be a non-issue. Many of the upper level science courses without labs, will also be no issue.

The US really rips you all off with tuition at 4 year universities, its nuts.

This is pretty cool. I'm going to bookmark and add it as an option. Thanks.