I need serious GPA adivice

[BMWakaMD]

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I will be going into my junior year and I am very concerned about my gpa. Right now it is a 2.57 and my science gpa I dont even want to talk about . Everything else required to get into med school I have my Mock MCAT score was 30 so I am confident I will do well on the MCAT , I have research experience, community service, basically everything. I play in school that is why my gpa is so low but this year I am determined to focus. What should I do to convince medical school admissions officers that I am ready and capable for medical school, or should I consider going post-bac??????? Please respond

 

[imtiaz]

I was in a similar situation last year. I didn't wake up until junior year. This is the result of my application:

GPA
2.65 CUM ; 3.3 AO; 2.6 BCPM

MCAT
21 - (7V,8P,6B) on 04/00
31 - (10V,11P,10B) on 08/00

Applied to 28 schools. Sent back 8 secondaries. Zero interviews. Zero acceptances.

I'm now pursuing a master's degree and reapplying for 2002. This is just my scenario. Apply early is one thing that I would suggest, because I didn't. Take lots of credit hours and do well. Easy stuff like psychology and biology pays off and really boosts your GPA.

Good luck!

 

[MD-bound]

Hey BMWakaMD,

My advice is that you should really buckle down this year and try to walk away with as close to a 4.0 GPA for this year as possible. But that will not be the end of it. I would also suggest that you look into a master's program specifically designed to help people in your situation get into medical school--there are a number of programs around the country. Many are 1 year and some are 2 year.

Your MCAT is not in yet, so we can't even count that. Hopefully, you can break a 30, as your practice tests indicate and it won't be an additional obstacle.

As for the GPA, my friend, you have to turn this thing around quickly. However, do not get disheartened--it can be done. In fact, I am currently finishing my master's program and getting ready to apply.

Also your state of residency will be another issue as to how high your GPA must go--look up the stats, but use them as only a minimum--the higher your GPA the better.

I guess you just need to decide when and how serious you are about this ball-game, and then go after it with everything you've got. I know that is easier said than done, but where there is a will there is a way, not to sound cheesy--just make up your mind to do it and you will get there. It just may take you slightly longer, but that is all.

Best of luck champ!!!

 

[kutastha]

I was in a similar situation. I labored about as a Biophysics (aka Biopsychotic) major my first two years at UCSD. My GPA was around 2.9. At the end of my sophomore year, I bit the bullet and changed majors to a Chem-based Biochem (not much easier, but more suited for me). I raised that 2.9 up to a 3.3 in some pretty rough classes. So, a change of scenery may be an option for you. I probably should have switched to a straight Bio major (the dept was notorious for 'padding' grades for their premed students, whereas Biochem was slated for those who wanted to go into research). You just have to dedicate yourself. I had a physician once that was a Phys Ed major in school, so anything is possible, as long as you have your prereqs.

That GPA has been with me ever since - I got an MS in Chemistry, and out of 30 schools, I got five secondaries, no interviews with a 34S MCAT. It can stain you for life, so my advice to you is to turn it around ASAP. Good luck.

Andrew

 

[Popoy]

Try and meet with an academic advisor at your college.... Then ask them if they can help you see into the future.... That is, all academic advisors can help you calculate the chances of how much you gpa improves if you get a certain amount of units and grades.... this way, you can really make a decision as to whether or not you still have a chance for medical school.... Good luck

 

[imtiaz]

****. Even after you got an MS in Chemistry (just like I'm about to do) you still didn't fare well? Was this in California? That would be understandable. Your MCAT is also higher than mine. That says a lot about primary screening of applicants. But I got a whole lot of secondaries when I applied. It's weird how you only got 5/30. I had a return rate of about 19/28. That's really really weird. Probably a California thing. Anywho, I hope I fare better than you did with the MS under my belt.

Originally posted by ajr:
•I was in a similar situation. I labored about as a Biophysics (aka Biopsychotic) major my first two years at UCSD. My GPA was around 2.9. At the end of my sophomore year, I bit the bullet and changed majors to a Chem-based Biochem (not much easier, but more suited for me). I raised that 2.9 up to a 3.3 in some pretty rough classes. So, a change of scenery may be an option for you. I probably should have switched to a straight Bio major (the dept was notorious for 'padding' grades for their premed students, whereas Biochem was slated for those who wanted to go into research). You just have to dedicate yourself. I had a physician once that was a Phys Ed major in school, so anything is possible, as long as you have your prereqs.

That GPA has been with me ever since - I got an MS in Chemistry, and out of 30 schools, I got five secondaries, no interviews with a 34S MCAT. It can stain you for life, so my advice to you is to turn it around ASAP. Good luck.

Andrew•

 

[jdm]

ajr - let me get this straight: you got an ms in chem, have a 3.3 gpa, a 34S on the mcats and and and you didn't get a single interview, never mind acceptance? You know, I hear stories like yours and I'm so baffled/disgusted by this whole process that I contemplate chucking the whole thing out the window. Better luck to you!

 

[Jon Davis]

I'm just curious, but to the people who had low gpa scores and such, what was the reason why it took a massive dive? Imitiaz said "I finally woke up in my junior year." What do you mean by waking up? Did you not study? Hard time understanding tests? Please clarify your situtation because by learning from your mistakes others, including myself, can learn from them.
Thanks. 🙂

 

[CoffeeCat]

Ack! I hate reading things like this. I just graduated with a 3.38 gpa and I think overall it's because I overloaded myself and couldn't devote enough attention to each subject. I took fourteen units one quarter and came away with a 4.0 whereas I took 22 units last quarter and got 1 3.3 (b/c of a c). I think I should have learned how to balance and not to overload. I hate feeling that this bad gpa will follow me forever. I'm going to take a few more classes before I apply, but posts like this depress me!

 

[kutastha]

'Waking up' refers to coming to terms with the fact that your career choice requires that you commit yourself wholeheartedly, rather than slacking off. Some people can slip by with some Bs and Cs by barley studying, but when those people 'wake up' they redirect their attention to what they have to do to succeed, and then get the As and Bs.

As for being discouraged and baffled - join the club! I was so much in fact that I contemplated that maybe medicine just wasn't for me and went for a PhD. Problem is that after four years that desire hasn't died. So I'm reapplying for 2002 after I graduate. And yes, it was and still is in California.

Andrew

 

[Medic171]

For those that are baffled, remember that there is more to an applicant than the numbers. Those of you that were denied with decent stats..did you volunteer?, have health care experience?, job shadow physicians?, have good rec letters?, ect.ect.ect. A person with a 3.9 and 35 MCATS will get denied if they never bothered to learn about the profession, health care, and community service.

Also, I have to ask, how could you get a gpa that low and an MCAT score that high(i.e. above 30). If you learned enough to score that high on the MCATS than you must have known enough to get fairly decent test grades on school, right? Explain that because I am curious.

 

[sandflea]

there are many reasons why a high GPA doesn't automatically translate into a high MCAT score, or vice versa. for example, i went to a top-tier, very competitive college for undergrad where there was no grade inflation, so it was extremely difficult to pull off A's in my pre-med courses simply because the competition was so cutthroat. because of this, many of my grades in my pre-med courses don't even come close to reflecting my effort or how much i learned. a very large number of pre-med students i knew during undergrad pulled mostly B's (and even some C's) in the pre-med courses, but went on to rock the MCAT.

it could go the other way, too. the MCAT is just a one-day thing and if you happen to have a bad day, you could blow the MCAT, even if you know the material well and did well, grade-wise, in your courses. plus if you are just not a good standardized test-taker, you may score a lot lower on the MCAT than you might predict based on your GPA.

this is why they call the MCAT the 'great equalizer'!

 

[Barton]

I'm one of those poor mofos who has a low gpa (3.34) and a decent mcat (35). It's easy. I had one bad semseter in my junior year where I hung out and played nintendo too much. Picked up C's in two zoology classes and a math class. It totally ruined my GPA. After that, I kicked myself in the ass, studied hard and got decent grades. more importantly, I made myself study for the mcat for 3 hours a day, five days a week for three months (no prep course, though). I had a good test day.
Now that is one easy recipe for a sh***y gpa and a decent mcat. Think it'll save me?

ps-i'm also taking a boatload of post-bac science courses next year to bring up the gpa in case I don't get in this time around

 

[Olsen]

Hey ADJ,

How did your masters work out? Did you decide to stay for your Ph.D.? What is it in? How did you do in your classes? I am in almost the exact same situation as you thus my interest.....what schools do you suggest?

 

[Olsen]

Sorry,

I, of course, meant AJR.

 

[amayer24]

imtiaz,

How did you go up on the MCAT so much? Can you tell us what was your technique that you used second time around in order to improve so much?

Thanx 🙂

 

[kutastha]

My Masters worked out fine and it was in Chemistry at UCSD. I took a year off with some postbac classes to try and boost my GPA, then once I failed to get in again, I started a PhD (in molecular genetics) at USC. My grad GPA is very decent (3.6), yet all I hear is that adcoms only look at UG GPA, so I take that with a grain of salt. I wrote my personal essay to highlight all of these things, including the turnaround in my GPA. I made certain to address the PhD and how I didn't look at it as a backdoor into med school. In addition, I let them know my desire for pursuing academic medicine and also discussed that in my vision essay. As for schools, the ones with a strong dedication to research would be a good start. I applied to UCSF, UCSD, Wash U, Stanford, just to name a few.

Originally posted by Olsen:
•Hey AJR,

How did your masters work out? Did you decide to stay for your Ph.D.? What is it in? How did you do in your classes? I am in almost the exact same situation as you thus my interest.....what schools do you suggest?•

 

[imtiaz]

I've been asked this question about 50 times. Search through my old posts.

Originally posted by amayer24:
•imtiaz,

How did you go up on the MCAT so much? Can you tell us what was your technique that you used second time around in order to improve so much?

Thanx 🙂•

 

[wolferman]

I'm in the same boat as well.
2.53BCPM 2.8AO 2.66CUM
24 MCAT April'00
28 MCAT August'01
Needless to say, but I'm in GPA repair mode right now myself. For my poor academic performance during two semesters at MIT, I've been sentenced to 2 years of post-bac at Boise State Univ. I don't mind though, the girls are hotter and I'm getting more conjugal visits than I ever did before.

 

[Pandora's Box]

During one of the premed events here at UCI, the dean of medical school admissions brought up the subject about post-bac programs in regard with med school admissions. It appeared that before recent years, the medical admissions community are critical of post-bac programs becasue they believe that the GPA is inflated. However, there seems to be a change in their opions, and I think you'll have a lot better chance now than a few year ago. At least in this school's medical admissions. 🙂

 

[ChronoTrigger 2K3]

I hear all these posts.

I've got a 3.4~ overall right now, but no MCAT yet. I may get a 3.5 overall but a 3.0 BCPM, (man I love humanities). The MCAT is so important... Better go study TPR so I don't get burned again.

 

[Elysium]

All you guys from CA:

I feel so bad for you guys. There are so many other applicants that haven't put in the time, money, energy, and effort that you have and get in (simply because of what state they're from!)
I just wanted to say that I'm hoping you guys do well this year!
I'm very impressed with your effort. I pray you guys will achieve your goals. You deserve it.

 

[El Jefe]

*sigh* Why do they hate their own so much? I really wanted to go to school in Cali too. Now I'm still fighting to get in anywhere. <img src="graemlins/pity.gif" border="0" alt="[Pity]" />

 

[A. Caveman]

i'm obviously in the same position. you've heard me bitch..you know the story. it's amazing how much those facking undergrad grades stick. no matter how well you do in grad school, which is much much harder, you barely get consideration if your UG was subpar. i think maybe they do it because accepting you might bring down their average gpa down, so they don't care what else you've done. if you don't prove it in a place where it can help them (they love their avg. gpa/ avg mcat/ yield, etc) then you're not playing the same game, and you can't use their ball. phuckers. good luck to all of you. your hard work will take you there! this is the stuff chief residents are made of.

PS. somethign interesting i read...i think i saw that ~20% of st. george's graduates go on to become chief residents in their areas. those people sacrifice, and work hard, and if all the doors are closed, they find a sewer and come up inside the building. our commitment will make us successful physicians.