I Resisted Every Urge....

[Med-tallica]

But I need some sort of input, be brutally honest if you have to be.
I just finished my first year of undergrad and it sucked more than Jenna Jameson in a porno. I have 2 D's, 1 C, and A's and B's scattered across 31 first semester hours.(C and D in chemistry and B's in biology). Suffice it to say I sucked it up badly and I'm sitting at a 2.6ish. I had a lot of personal problems, mostly with depression (i'm not sure if it counts as a legitimate excuse) but it is what stopped me from doing well. I'm not stupid. I know I could've succeeded and done much better. But given how badly I've done, Is any amount of upward trend going to help or am I better off looking at a different field in the foreseeable future?

P.S. I know you guys get a ton of these thread topics, couldn't help myself. I'm in a state of nervous breakdown 24/7 lately. Needed some sort of assurance/feedback.

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[Doc Henry]

I think you're ok...well, not right now...but I think you can be.

You need a very strong upward trend and it needs to be consistent (no bad terms).

Also start early with EC's and try to work on standing out in other ways.

You might also consider re taking some classes this summer. GOOD LUCK! It was only your first year. It's no the end of the world.

On another note- If you haven't already, I urge you to deal with your depression. It wont go away magically and school isn't going to get any easier to deal with.

 

[pennybridge]

I thought Jenna only did girl-on-girl now?

damn, I gotta get my ass to Odyssey....

 

[OwnageMobile]

I will agree with Doc Henry. You've done damage but it's repairable. You'll have to kick it into high gear and work on getting that depression under control. Pick up some ECs too. It seems the best ECs are the ones that you really enjoy as well as spend significant amounts of time on. It doesn't have to be cleaning bed pans at the hospital. We all have tough times. Keep your chin up and hit it hard.

 

[146233]

My suggestion includes retaking courses as well, but not all of them. Retake the chemistry course in which you received a D. If you got C's or C+'s (NOT C-'s) in other pre-req science courses, do not retake them. Take higher level courses in the same department (i.e., physical chemistry, biochemistry, cell biology, genetics, etc.) and get A's. This will demonstrate that you can handle the more difficult material and be more convincing to adcoms that your bad year was indeed a fluke.

Retaking a course in which you received a passing (and good enough for medical school) grade is all fine and good, but it's not as impressive as taking more difficult courses. Think about the two ways an admissions committee could see this:

1. Retake a course you already got a C in, get an A. "Of course he got an A. He better have, he'd already been through it once!"
   
2. Take a harder course, get an A. "Okay, he messed up Gen Chem, but Physical Chemistry is some tough stuff. He got an A. He can do the work."

Best,
-z

 

[braluk]

I had a lot of personal problems, mostly with depression (i'm not sure if it counts as a legitimate excuse) but it is what stopped me from doing well.

If this is a documented issue with depression and you have sought help or have received treatment, make sure that this is documented. If it is documented, you may want to make a brief mention later on in your personal statement when you apply to medical school years from now, but do keep in mind that should you choose to discuss about depression that you do not dwell on it and that you show a legitimate recovery from it. If this isn't documented, your explanation of poor grades due to depression is not a very valid one. In terms of your grades, just keep your head up, and improve in your grades. Your first year, I feel, seems to be one that can be forgiven in terms of grades versus the grades of your remaining years.

 

[Green Pirate]

I thought Jenna only did girl-on-girl now?

damn, I gotta get my ass to Odyssey....

I thought I was the only one who find this to be the most pressing issue of OP's post.

 

[Davjc2009]

I thought I was the only one who find this to be the most pressing issue of OP's post.

Yeah, Briana Banks might have been more fitting.


...I mean...uhhh... so I've heard...

 

[Doc Henry]

I just saw some recent pictures of Jenna Jameson and man has she gotten skinny. It looks like her head is going to fall off. I don't think she could handle much more than girl on girl anymore

 

[emaj1n]

I don't want to say your first-year GPA is normal, but it's not uncommon. You are not out of the game with a few very solid semesters. Good luck!

 

[wasvsdal]

Pre-med students know more about porno actresses than the girls next door in their dorms.

 

[pennybridge]

Pre-med students know more about porno actresses than the girls next door in their dorms.

what if the girls next door are porn stars?

 

[MirrorTodd]

what if the girls next door are porn stars?

We'd still know more. OP try harder. It's not hard to come back. I'm slowly doing it too. At least you have an excuse, I was just plain lazy.

 

[crazy_cavalier]

Keep in mind that there are two different GPAs that med schools look at. One is your overall cumulative. The other is your science GPA. Since your performance in chemistry was weak, your poor science grades are most troubling... you must raise the science GPA at all costs.

Do not lull yourself into a false sense of security that your overall GPA can increase and redeem your bad science grades. Remember the science GPA is reported separately, so you're going to have to work hard on that.

 

[notaroche]

... Jenna Jameson in a porno. I have 2 D's

Reduce those puppies to B's at least.