Hello everyone, I graduated university a year ago and here are my stats:
oGPA: 3.00 (in university), GPA right now: 2.92
sGPA: 2.40 (went back to community college to fix but messed it up)
No MCAT yet
80 of hours volunteering
20 hours of shadowing (2 doctors)
I know I won't get into any med school with my stats, I'm looking for a program that will help me enhance my stats. Right now I just feel like a failure, I'm unemployed (currently looking for a job at a mall, didn't get the scribe job i applied for). I don't have the money to waste on applications for schools that'll end up sending me a rejection letter. I've finished all of my pre-med pre reqs but I'm still not good enough. My question is what do i do? I don't mind going into nursing or any other program at this point as long as I end up in somebody's med school by 2017 latest. Please feel free and let me know what you think.
All of the following factors are important, not just one of them.
GPA - Your best shot at medical school in 2017 is to do some post-bacc work or graduate work with an excellent, near 4.0, GPA. Without asking nosy questions, you are the best person to determine if that is possible or not. Common reasons that people have severe GPA damage includes undiagnosed learning disabilities (check with a neuropsychologist if that might be you), lousy instruction (consider finding a tutor), and crisis in personal life.
BACK DOOR - Another possibility might be medical schools that automatically offer admission to people who do "so well*" in an affiliated program, usually a post bacc program or special masters program (SMP) offered by either the medical school itself, or a closely affiliated university. (*"So well" will vary from program to program. Different programs have different requirements.)
MCAT - A really high MCAT score will help your situation. AAMC practice test scores are the best way to determine if you need more preparation or are ready for the real test.
EXPLAINING - Consider explaining somewhere on your application what factors lowered your GPAs. And if you get a high MCAT score, remember to be communicative, and ideally explain how it is that the MCAT is good and not the GPA. (In general, concise statements that fully explain matters are optimal for many reasons, not the least of which, it will allow you room to focus on more positive things.)
Your goal is to show ADCOMs that, 1. You will not get slaughtered in medical school, and 2. You are intellectually capable of being a doctor.
SCRIBE/NURSE/ETC.(response to OP question) - If your ultimate goal truly is to be a doctor, then finding an alternate job in medicine is fine so long as it doesn't require so much time (and other resources) that it significantly hinders your progress toward your medical school application, including post-bacc/graduate GPAs. GPAs and MCAT scores rule.
IF ALL ELSE FAILS - Since this is the MD forum, and given the competitiveness of getting into an MD program, I would like to point out that if all else fails, I've heard of a few MD programs that are not listed in the MSAR (you might have better luck there), podiatry, gaining Texas residency (possibly an option to some people, maybe not others), checking to see if you're mission and history align with mission-based MD schools like Meharry and Morehouse, and maybe D.O. programs. (DO programs are generally fine if there are lots of D.O.s practicing where you want to live, in your specialty, AND you don't mind the D.O. curriculum. Some people love it; some can't stand it.) The one caution I would provide is if you ever consider a program in the Caribbean, make sure - and absolutely sure - that a reasonable number of graduates from that school get residencies, and if they don't, don't go.
Good luck!
