I'm turning 20 in two months...Am I in the right direction? Need some advice

[JohnFe]

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I can't believe time just flies so FAST! I graduated last year and am now working.

Due to my downward trend of GPA and various things. ( 3.4cGPA / sGPA 3.55) I think it's best for me to delay applying and go for 2014-2015 cycle. I don't know which is best to improve my chances 🙁

I have some options to do:

1. Do a post-bac certificate and raise my GPA. Take a bunch of upper division bio classes and do some academic research.
Cons: No pay 🙁 I have to pay tuition. (5000$ for the whole program).
Pros: Raise my GPA and break the downward trend.

2. Continue working as an industrial microbiologist (possible promotion)
Cons: I can't work on my GPA
Pros: $$$, industrial and professional experience, I like the work environment here.

3. Clinical Science Training
Cons: I can't work on my academics/GPA, work may be repetitive
Pros: $$$, clinical setting experience


Some random thoughts:

Sometimes I feel that I'm wasting my time and drifting to nothingness at work.

Then, I realize. It is not a race. Almost all matriculants are around ~22 years old. But hey, most of them really don't have any real world experience and probably went straight to med school from undergrad. At least for me, I will have money to spare, travel the world, experience life and then go to med school.

I always say "I should've/could've/would'ves" but it's time for me to grow up and man it up. I accept my mistakes and try to make it work. I will do my best to get accepted and be a doctor. Be it MD or DO.

I know it's cheesy but I can't see myself doing something else beside medicine. I like microbiology, lab, and research but it doesn't give that "satisfaction" in the end of the day.

GAHHHH sorry for the randomness. I probably have to "grow up" and mature more.

Any thoughts, 0.02, or advice is greatly appreciated!

 

[ChartaBona]

Not knowing your MCAT and EC's, I can't really give you advice on the 3 options. As for your random thoughts...

I'm assuming you graduated HS @ 15/16, so 2-3 years ahead of the pack. You're obviously very smart. I have to ask, why did you blitz through college at the expense of your grades? Was it to reduce cost or were you just in a hurry to get through it all? I, myself, graduated a semester early, then realized I had no idea what I was doing with my life.My grades were fine, but I was lost... and boring. I eventually started to make myself a slightly more interesting person.

 

[FutureDocsWife]

Not knowing your MCAT and EC's, I can't really give you advice on the 3 options. As for your random thoughts...

I'm assuming you graduated HS @ 15/16, so 2-3 years ahead of the pack. You're obviously very smart. I have to ask, why did you blitz through college at the expense of your grades? Was it to reduce cost or were you just in a hurry to get through it all? I, myself, graduated a semester early, then realized I had no idea what I was doing with my life.My grades were fine, but I was lost... and boring. I eventually started to make myself a slightly more interesting person.

I totally understand the OP because I also graduated both high school & college.... I never found college or high school all that challenging & thus decided to just wing it and surf on by without putting much time or effort, and my grades did suffer somewhat.

OP, because I've also always been one of the younger ones, I say go back and do a post-bac to raise your GPA as that is going to be a big hurdle for you if you really want to go to med school. That said, a post-bac is really for those who were not pre-meds. If you were a pre-med, you can't really do a post-bac, but you can consider a SMP. If you were a pre-med, a post-bac isn't going to help you because you'd just be re-taking classes you already took. Also, you need to consider how many credits you have and determine if the post-bac will in fact help your GPA. Most likely it will since your GPA isn't THAT low, but if you have a lot of extra credits in there already, it can make it harder. It's also VERY important that you work on your ECs while you do a post-bac or SMP (or with any of the options you have presented). You will need some clinical experience & some non-medical volunteering. Research is also a big plus. Getting in ECs while doing a post-bac is probably easier than while working, since working will likely require more hours & be more exhausting.

If there is anything I've learned in life, it's not to be in such a rush. You're still VERY young, and you shouldn't be so worried about making money & rushing to get on with things right now. You have your whole life to worry about that. Right now, work hard on achieving your real dreams. You can take out loans for a post-bac too if you need. Once you're a doctor, you'll have no trouble paying them off.

Lastly, don't underestimate the importance of taking out time to study for the MCAT if you didn't already take it. Now is the time to get serious about your studies & preparing your application, and everyone else taking the MCAT is really taking the time to study how to Ace that thing (just look at the rising scores), so don't give them the leg up.

 

[Sir T]

As others have already suggested, your MCAT score is crucial in the admissions process right along with your GPA. That being said, the best way for you to proceed may be to enroll in a post-bac program to increase your GPA and re-learn some material to prep for the MCAT. Get a good score on an MCAT and improve your GPA, what more could one want? If you have been working after graduating for a little while now, some of your salary can pay for the post-bac program.

Be sure to pick a post-bac program that is suitable for you. Some focus primarily on the science courses and place less emphasis on research. A post-bac program should not only help "boost" your GPA, but should also provide opportunities for research, shadowing, and other EC experiences. It might feel like you are being set back time wise, but you are still young.

 

[Koosalagoosagoo]

You are a industrial microbiologist at 19...wat?

 

[JohnFe]

Thank you for the responses!

Here is my background:

Background:
Personal:
Age - 19
Under Represented Minority - (Mexican/Filipino)

Education:
Pharmacy Technology Certificate - 2009
BS in Microbiology - 2012 (GPA: 3.40)
Clinical Laboratory Science Training (Will start in July 2013 and will end July 2014) OR
Post-Bac 2nd Bachelors and Certificate in Cell Molecular Biology and Biotechnology (22 semester units)

Work Experience:
Pharmacy Tech (600 hours)
Private Tutor (150+ hours)
TA (60+ hours)
Youtube Partner (Video game reviewer 200,000 subscribers+)
Industrial Microbiologist in medical/pharmaceutical company (Current)

Volunteering:
Hospital Volunteer (330 hours)
HIV/AIDS Clinic (60 hours)
Sporadic Club/Org volunteer events (100+ hours)
Hospice Care (60+ hours) - current
HIV/STD Testing Counselor (10+ hours) - current

Organizations:
Pre-Pharmacy Club (1 year)
Associated Students (6 months)
Honors Program (2 years)
Phi Theta Kappa (2 years)

Shadowing:
ER Doctor - ~30 hours
Orthopedic Doctor - ~15 hours
Doctors in the ICU - ~15 hours
Primary Care Physician - ~10 hours

Artistic Endeavors:
Piano - 4 years (might be certified to teach)
Origami/Paper Sculpting

Research:
Microbiology/Genetics Research. No publications. (1.5 years, 400 hours+)
______________________________________________

You are a industrial microbiologist at 19...wat?

Yea, I was hired fortunately 🙂

Not knowing your MCAT and EC's, I can't really give you advice on the 3 options. As for your random thoughts...

I'm assuming you graduated HS @ 15/16, so 2-3 years ahead of the pack. You're obviously very smart. I have to ask, why did you blitz through college at the expense of your grades? Was it to reduce cost or were you just in a hurry to get through it all? I, myself, graduated a semester early, then realized I had no idea what I was doing with my life.My grades were fine, but I was lost... and boring. I eventually started to make myself a slightly more interesting person.

Yes, I graduated at 15-16 and it took me 3 years to finish college.
I didn't have the luxury to spend my sweet time in college. I had to finish in less than 3 years. I'm the eldest son and my parents are getting old and have some major medical complications. I took the responsibility to finish college and help out right away, which is what I'm doing right now. What did you end up doing?

I totally understand the OP because I also graduated both high school & college.... I never found college or high school all that challenging & thus decided to just wing it and surf on by without putting much time or effort, and my grades did suffer somewhat.

OP, because I've also always been one of the younger ones, I say go back and do a post-bac to raise your GPA as that is going to be a big hurdle for you if you really want to go to med school. That said, a post-bac is really for those who were not pre-meds. If you were a pre-med, you can't really do a post-bac, but you can consider a SMP. If you were a pre-med, a post-bac isn't going to help you because you'd just be re-taking classes you already took. Also, you need to consider how many credits you have and determine if the post-bac will in fact help your GPA. Most likely it will since your GPA isn't THAT low, but if you have a lot of extra credits in there already, it can make it harder. It's also VERY important that you work on your ECs while you do a post-bac or SMP (or with any of the options you have presented). You will need some clinical experience & some non-medical volunteering. Research is also a big plus. Getting in ECs while doing a post-bac is probably easier than while working, since working will likely require more hours & be more exhausting.

If there is anything I've learned in life, it's not to be in such a rush. You're still VERY young, and you shouldn't be so worried about making money & rushing to get on with things right now. You have your whole life to worry about that. Right now, work hard on achieving your real dreams. You can take out loans for a post-bac too if you need. Once you're a doctor, you'll have no trouble paying them off.

Lastly, don't underestimate the importance of taking out time to study for the MCAT if you didn't already take it. Now is the time to get serious about your studies & preparing your application, and everyone else taking the MCAT is really taking the time to study how to Ace that thing (just look at the rising scores), so don't give them the leg up.

I have a lot of units. 126 graded semester units + 40 units of AP. About ~90 units are science classes. It's not like I failed or anything. I got 5 Cs, mostly Bs and some As. You can look at my ECs. 🙂 I'm studying 2 hours every day and 4~5 hours every weekend. I think I'm a good test taker (I got 4s and 5s out of my 9 AP exams). I am scheduled to take in June 20th or maybe later. But I kind of feel I need to get it out of the wayso I can focus on my ECs and artistic endeavors.

As others have already suggested, your MCAT score is crucial in the admissions process right along with your GPA. That being said, the best way for you to proceed may be to enroll in a post-bac program to increase your GPA and re-learn some material to prep for the MCAT. Get a good score on an MCAT and improve your GPA, what more could one want? If you have been working after graduating for a little while now, some of your salary can pay for the post-bac program.

Be sure to pick a post-bac program that is suitable for you. Some focus primarily on the science courses and place less emphasis on research. A post-bac program should not only help "boost" your GPA, but should also provide opportunities for research, shadowing, and other EC experiences. It might feel like you are being set back time wise, but you are still young.

The material is still fresh. I find the MCAT somewhat easy but you need to learn "test taking techniques" I've been scoring 30~32 in my practice exams and I've only been studying for a month. I still have 2 months to spare to study.

The post-bac I'm referring to is a Biotechnology/Stem Cell Research post-bac. It has 5 upper division science classes, 3 units of academic research and 3 units of stem cell research internship (paid).

 

[JohnFe]

shameless bump 😛

 

[Fatalis]

for your youtube channel...what video game do you review?

 

[JohnFe]

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