I messed up... 3.3 SMP gpa.

[sharpieLIFE]

Hey,
Just looking for some feedback.
I did a SMP program and effectively messed up.
I'll probably end this semester with a 3.3 SMP GPA.
My uCGPA is 3.1

Do you guys think I should apply this coming June or wait till June 2015?

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[yessirMD]

Can you give us details? Was it a bad grade? Bad midterm? What do you think went wrong?

This'll allow us to give better feedback.

 

[sharpieLIFE]

It was a series of bad midterms... and consequently I spent a lot of time reflecting and panicking about what happened.

 

[deleted248403]

3.1 undergrad GPA, and a 3.3 SMP GPA.... sounds like you are off to the Carib to be honest.

Try DO, but if you want MD then Carib is your route.

Whats your MCAT

 

[type12]

3.1 undergrad GPA, and a 3.3 SMP GPA.... sounds like you are off to the Carib to be honest.

Try DO, but if you want MD then Carib is your route.

Whats your MCAT

What about doing another SMP?

 

[deleted248403]

What about doing another SMP?

Lol no. You do one SMP - you don't get to do two. And any good SMP will look at you and run the other away. An SMP is a way to prove yourself ready for med school, if you fail to achieve the grade then it moves you prob aren't cut out for this. No other SMP is going to give you a 3rd chance when there are hundreds of other candidates who are looking for a 2nd chance.

 

[sharpieLIFE]

Well my SMP program is 2 years... I can take course work during the second year and bring my SMP GPA up to a 3.6 would that be good enough for US MD?

 

[darklabel]

Well my SMP program is 2 years... I can take course work during the second year and bring my SMP GPA up to a 3.6 would that be good enough for US MD?

Is the SMP connected to a medical school? What does your advisor said?

Also, SMPs aren't supposed to be like undergrad. As rob said, its meant for people to realize their ugrad mistakes and to excel in every way, not make a comeback or upward trends in the program.

3.6 may be enough, but it sounds like you're assuming that you'll get straight A's and it seems like you can't achieve that based on your past grades. SMPs only get harder along the way, just like medical school, except medical students can get straight B's and be fine while straight B's or mostly B's in an SMP is a death-knell.

Also most importantly, what is your MCAT?

 

[sharpieLIFE]

Yes my SMP is connected to a med school. My MCAT is a 33.

 

[withoutlyrics]

I got a 3.3 in my SMP and got into 2 DO schools and many DO interviews. I only applied to 1 MD school and got an interview there as well. Anecdata, but still...don't think that you are not fit for medical school.


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[DrMidlife]

Anecdata

<whacks forehead for not thinking of "anecdata" first.>

 

[sharpieLIFE]

Did you get into that MD program?
Do you guys think that with a 3.6 I have a decent shot? Or should I cut my losses and go DO or Caribbean?

 

[withoutlyrics]

I have not heard back from the MD school yet.

I see you are still at the stage when you think DO and Caribbean are interchangeable...



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[sharpieLIFE]

Have no fear... I know they are not. The Caribbean is only an option if DO doesn't work out (get an acceptance).

Any other SMP students care to chime in on a possible 3.6 SMP GPA if that would be enough for a US MD?

 

[deleted248403]

Any other SMP students care to chime in on a possible 3.6 SMP GPA if that would be enough for a US MD?

Get the 4.0 next semester, then one can speculate about it.

 

[bigloley]

3.6 SMP gpa will probably be good enough...if you achieve it. You have a good MCAT so you should be able to go DO. Just apply very widely and early (like 40+ schools) when you do apply - you might be able to get into somewhere.

 

[TyrKinase]

I did considerably worse in my SMP (>3.0 but not by a whole lot), did another year of coursework at a different institution and was subsequently accepted to a USMD program.

I'm still not quite sure how that happened (the getting accepted part) but it's possible.

 

[type12]

Thanks for the story, TyrKinase. May I ask which two programs? Feel free to PM me if you are uncomfortable in sharing!

 

[sharpieLIFE]

What were the two programs if you don't mind me asking?

 

[TyrKinase]

I shouldn't offer such words of encouragement. I don't know how it worked out, but it did. I did Drexel IMS, then Tulane's ACP.

Doing well in your first (and only) SMP should be your goal. Every other approach is more of a gamble than you want to take. Also, another year of your life and mucho $$$.

Now go study!

 

[DrMidlife]

SMPs are changing FAST. Tyr was my hero 5 years ago. Folks in the SMP market now need to be paranoid about what's changed. Such as: Tulane has a legit anatomy 1 year masters now - we don't have any info on how that's impacted ACP, but it didn't help. Such as: EVMS takes 4x as many med masters as it did in '10-11, and it's no longer your EVMS MD seat to lose. Such as: watch for RFU to follow EVMS & Drexel into a diluted, low-results model.

tl;dr: get A's in your SMP. It's an audition: don't fail it.

 

[TyrKinase]

Tyr was my hero 5 years ago.

Because I was such a terrible SMP student the first time around? I kid, I kid... but really folks, @DrMidlife is right -- it's been a while since my experience so please don't take it as advice. I wouldn't wish the stress of those years on anyone, even though my story had a happy ending. Better to do well in your SMP than gamble on a second program.

Tulane has a legit anatomy 1 year masters now - we don't have any info on how that's impacted ACP, but it didn't help.

I kept up with some of the Anatomy Masters students. Again, we see federally-guaranteed loans for a degree of questionable value. I love Tulane, but I recall only a couple of the ~15 members of the first Anatomy Masters students getting interviews at TUSOM. I believe only one matriculated from the first class, although that student has done very well.

It's easy to see from the point of view of a university looking to increase revenue that there are a lot (a whole, whole lot) of eager students pursuing a dream of becoming a physician. You can market your programs strengths including "preparing students well for future success" without guaranteeing anything, and applicants still line up.

Good luck out there!

As a postscript, ACP is still very legit despite perennial rumors of it's imminent demise. For example, last year's class (i.e. my ACP class) had a stellar match (ophtho, rad onc, ortho, anesthesia, all in competitive locales) and a few members who were AOA, begging the question, "is there any sanity in the med school application process?"

My answer is a firm "no".