I know it's very low GPA but will I be able to..?

[JustHoping]

So, I have a GPA of 3.2 right now finishing my sophomore year.
I know my gpa is very low for a medical school applicant.
I hope to get it up to 3.4 by the time I apply, which will be about a year from now when I finish my junior year.
Even with 3.4, I know it's pretty low. (and that's cgpa, sgpa is probably much lower.)
I'm hoping to get somewhere around 31-32 on the MCAT, more the better but I'm going to be realistic.

I'm going to list my ecs:

• Volunteered at a clinic helping low income families getting resources for 1 year.
• Research with a field biologist from my university for 1 year (4 credits) and will continue....
• ER/ED Scribe (now for about 2 months) and will continue....
• Just started volunteering with Red Cross and will continue....
• 1 year of work-study at my university.
• member of 2 club/society at my university.

wow... even my ECs are not impressive....

I'm hoping to get some more volunteering hours and maybe find a doctor to shadow (which I find it so hard because I don't know any doctors "personally" and feel as if doctors will be annoyed in a way if I ask them.)

I just want to get into a medical school straight out of undergrad....
I'm not looking into top-tier schools... how can I with my stats...
Just a mediocre school where I can graduate and become a decent doctor so I can help others and my family members when they need help and make my parents proud.
Is that too much to ask??? (I know some of you are going to say, "yea, that's too much to ask" or "not everyone is meant to be a doctor"......)
Also, I'm not looking into be a DO. I didn't even know what DO were till about a year ago. Not that DO is bad or anything, but I want that MD after my name.

I know my options if I don't get in. I'll most likely to postbac to get my gpa up but...

Any input will be helpful~

Oh and please do tell me if there is anyway of getting a doctor to shadow.
Thanks~

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[OREdwardsJR]

JustHoping - don't be so hard on yourself, you can become an MD if you do what you know what you need to do. You are only a Junior now so I assume that you have 60 hours completed. If you get straight As from now on you can end your undergraduate career with a 3.63. Kill the MCAT and continue to strengthen your ECs and you definitely will be able to get into medical school.

What is your science GPA? Also, from reading SDN, the best way to get shadowing opportunities is by asking any and every doctor that you can find. SDN says that it's a numbers game where you can ask 50 doctors and get only 1 to allow you to shadow. While I think that may be the extreme case, getting that 1 shadow opportunity is the most important part.

 

[Goro]

Get straight As and rock the MCAT.
Can you do it?

So, I have a GPA of 3.2 right now finishing my sophomore year.
I know my gpa is very low for a medical school applicant.
I hope to get it up to 3.4 by the time I apply, which will be about a year from now when I finish my junior year.
Even with 3.4, I know it's pretty low. (and that's cgpa, sgpa is probably much lower.)
I'm hoping to get somewhere around 31-32 on the MCAT, more the better but I'm going to be realistic.


I know my options if I don't get in. I'll most likely to postbac to get my gpa up but...

Any input will be helpful~

Oh and please do tell me if there is anyway of getting a doctor to shadow.
Thanks~

 

[JustHoping]

JustHoping - don't be so hard on yourself, you can become an MD if you do what you know what you need to do. You are only a Junior now so I assume that you have 60 hours completed. If you get straight As from now on you can end your undergraduate career with a 3.63. Kill the MCAT and continue to strengthen your ECs and you definitely will be able to get into medical school.

What is your science GPA? Also, from reading SDN, the best way to get shadowing opportunities is by asking any and every doctor that you can find. SDN says that it's a numbers game where you can ask 50 doctors and get only 1 to allow you to shadow. While I think that may be the extreme case, getting that 1 shadow opportunity is the most important part.

Thanks for the positive feedback.
I don't mind taking a year or two off to make my application better but I just don't want to fall behind my friends... I guess I should worry about them so much, and focus on myself.
Wow... 3.6... I wish I could get there. Only if these classes aren't so freakin ridiculous!

For the shadowing part, I just be timid and too afraid to ask a doctor straight up to see if I can shadow them......
I need to get to know an ER doctor really well so he/she can hook me up somehow....

 

[JustHoping]

Get straight As and rock the MCAT.
Can you do it?

Can I get few Bs in there plz......
Imma work my ass off.... but I've been saying that......

 

[JustHoping]

I thought my gpa would have got a bit higher this semester but
I packed on another job (scribe) at the end.
So I was working 2 part time jobs and research, equaling to about ~40hrs a week for the last 2-3 months of school.......
That killed me because my work hours were horrific and I couldn't study as much.....

 

[OREdwardsJR]

Thanks for the positive feedback.
I don't mind taking a year or two off to make my application better but I just don't want to fall behind my friends... I guess I should worry about them so much, and focus on myself.
Wow... 3.6... I wish I could get there. Only if these classes aren't so freakin ridiculous!

For the shadowing part, I just be timid and too afraid to ask a doctor straight up to see if I can shadow them......
I need to get to know an ER doctor really well so he/she can hook me up somehow....

I understand your timidness, and I empathize with you, but you have to realize that there will be no time for timidness as a physician. Right now is the perfect time to start defeating your timidity - reward yourself for calling and asking a certain number of doctors or punish yourself (no TV or something that you enjoy) if you can't conquer your fears. I'm about to begin volunteering in a local hospital (hoping to cross paths with a doctor) but I've yet to find a doctor to shadow so I can't help you too much with that.

I thought my gpa would have got a bit higher this semester but
I packed on another job (scribe) at the end.
So I was working 2 part time jobs and research, equaling to about ~40hrs a week for the last 2-3 months of school.......
That killed me because my work hours were horrific and I couldn't study as much.....

^You see what the problem is so fix it. Cut back on the hours that you are working so that you can dedicate more time to getting those As. Once you start getting the grades then you can (gradually) increase the number of hours that you are working. I don't know your specific situation, however, so that may or may not work for you. Just sit down, have a talk with yourself or start jotting down the numbers if you're math oriented like I am, and figure out what adjustments need to be made.

 

[MedBound1]

You still have 2 years left. The answer to "What are my chances?" is completely up to you, not us. Rock the last two years of school and pull a good MCAT score and you could be a great applicant.

 

[technopoly]

.... I just don't want to fall behind my friends... I guess I should worry about them so much, and focus on myself.
Wow... 3.6... I wish I could get there. Only if these classes aren't so freakin ridiculous!

For the shadowing part, I just be timid and too afraid to ask a doctor straight up to see if I can shadow them......
I need to get to know an ER doctor really well so he/she can hook me up somehow....

Three thoughts fwiw.

1. I agree that you should lose the timidity, and as someone who is an introvert and had VERY low self-confidence when I was in college, I empathize completely. Medical school was a pipe dream for me 3 years ago when I graduated and the three years I took off to work in a professional job completely changed me. I am still a little uncertain of myself socially, but I have no trouble asking for what I need. Confidence and stating what you want will get you EVERYWHERE. Many doctors love having people shadow them in my experience because they get to talk about what they love to a captive audience. Some don't, but don't let "No's" deter you.

2. Nothing is more important than doing well in your classes in my opinion. Nothing. It is not only important for the admission process, but the pre-med curriculum and any sciences you take prepare you to cope with the classwork once you are in. Anything else should take a backseat to doing well in school.

3. Screw everyone else. Some of the people I went to college with, including people who were a few years behind me, are already in medical school. This weekend I am attending the graduation of my best friend from college who is finishing her doctor of physical therapy. In spite of this, I don't regret my time off. Do what is right for you. Get in the habit of doing what is right for you, because no one else will do it for you.

Good luck! Stay focused and true to yourself!

 

[drshoes]

What state are you from? If you can get your GPA up to a 3.4 or 3.5 and get a nice MCAT score you would have a nice chance at your state schools depending on where you're from. MCAT will be very important for you to counterbalance your GPA.

 

[MedPR]

I don't think research for college credit counts as an EC.

Extracurricular means outside of your curriculum. So if you're getting credit for it, it's just like another class.

 

[Mazdave]

I don't think research for college credit counts as an EC.

Extracurricular means outside of your curriculum. So if you're getting credit for it, it's just like another class.

It's still listed as Research on the AMCAS, because it's technically the Activities section, not the Extracurriculars section. You should also list it under your coursework. Whether your compensation for doing the research was course credit or hourly pay is irrelevant to the actual work you were doing in the lab.

 

[TriagePreMed]

Also, I'm not looking into be a DO. I didn't even know what DO were till about a year ago. Not that DO is bad or anything, but I want that MD after my name.

If that's the case, you're looking at having to score 34+ on the MCAT (assuming it's 3.4 science GPA).

 

[TriagePreMed]

I don't think research for college credit counts as an EC.

Extracurricular means outside of your curriculum. So if you're getting credit for it, it's just like another class.

No, it wouldn't be the same as "any other class." Research is regarded as outside of your curriculum at most institutions since it's not a requirement for graduation.