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I am currently a senior chemistry major with a 3.0 GPA. Obviously, this GPA is terrible and applying to med. school with such a GPA would simply be a waste of money. I did horribly in my junior year and slaughtered my GPA. During my junior year the insomnia I had suffered from for years spun totally out of control essentially making any studying I did completely useful as my brain and body were barely functioning everyday. It was like living in hell. I?d be awake for 5 days a time week after week and it took almost the entire academic year to find a anything (medication, etc.) that could help me. In the mist of all of this there was major family trauma. In retrospect I shouldn?t have even bothered to show up to school that year. However, the insomnia is now under control and I have done much better this past semester.
Now I am trying to decide the next best step to take. I am considering staying at college for another year to finish a second degree in philosophy, to retake a few science courses to prove to the med. school admissions people that I am capable of doing science, and to take more science courses to help improve my science GPA. The problem is that I do not know if staying for another year will be useful in helping me to have a plausible chance at getting into a medical school or if I will simply be wasting my time. I hesitate to leave college with such a horrible GPA and an even more miserable science GPA.
I suppose I could also try to get into a post-bac. program or an accelerated medical science masters program somewhere. Personally I think staying for another year makes the most sense because it will give the opportunity to get another degree and raise my science and overall GPA simultaneously. Plus, I don?t think I would be a competitive candidate for the accelerated M.S. programs and according to the science professors I?ve spoken with getting a M.S. in something like chemistry would reflect negatively on me because people who leave doctoral programs with Masters generally do so because they have quietly been asked to leave because they were not doing well enough in the program. Also, if after I complete another year of college I feel as though perusing a M.S. would be beneficial I could do so, however, if I attempt to get the M.S. first my college GPA could never be improved.
Also, even if could get into a respectable Ph.D. program (which I don?t think is possible) I would really rather not spend 5 years of my life doing something I don?t have any interest in doing simply because I want to have a chance at getting into med. school. Also, I am ballet dancer and I would really like to dance professionally for a few years before I apply to medical school. I have had a few offers from companies but I could never accept them because as I found out in my sophomore year trying to manage a full time ballet career and school was simply not humanly possible. Plus if I entered a Ph.D. program I would be delaying the opportunity to apply to med. school by another five years, I if possible I would like to avoid doing that.
I have tried in vain to find information on which path (staying another year, doing a post-bac. program, getting a M.S. in medical sciences, or getting a M.S.or PhD in a science) leads to the best outcome with respect to gaining admission into medical school (however, they don?t gather statistics on people like me who have screwed up their undergraduate career).
I know what I am about to right is something that everyone who reads this has heard one hundred times before, but this is how I genuinely feel (as clich? as it might be). I want to be a doctor because I want to be able to help as many people as possible and make some sort of positive difference in others lives before I die. The only thing I?ve ever been really successful at in my life is taking care of other people, it?s the only thing I?m sure I can do. If I cannot find a way to eventually get into medical school and become a doctor I cannot think of anything else that I could do that I would sincerely enjoy doing for the rest of my life. But before I give up entirely I have to do everything possible to make my dream of becoming a doctor a reality and right now I?m just trying to figure out what plan will give me a better chance at turning that dream into reality.
I have to make this decision by January 22, 2003 (that?s this coming Wednesday) because if I am going to graduate there is one core class I will need to take and if I?m going to take the course I must add it by January 22. I am completely lost as to which path is the best to pursue. I have obviously made enough mistakes already I don?t want this decision to be another one. I would greatly appreciate any advice that any of you could give me!
Please accept my apologies for the length of this letter and the typos, grammar mistakes, and etcetera that surely exist throughout.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
Sadly and Sincerely,
Lileling
Now I am trying to decide the next best step to take. I am considering staying at college for another year to finish a second degree in philosophy, to retake a few science courses to prove to the med. school admissions people that I am capable of doing science, and to take more science courses to help improve my science GPA. The problem is that I do not know if staying for another year will be useful in helping me to have a plausible chance at getting into a medical school or if I will simply be wasting my time. I hesitate to leave college with such a horrible GPA and an even more miserable science GPA.
I suppose I could also try to get into a post-bac. program or an accelerated medical science masters program somewhere. Personally I think staying for another year makes the most sense because it will give the opportunity to get another degree and raise my science and overall GPA simultaneously. Plus, I don?t think I would be a competitive candidate for the accelerated M.S. programs and according to the science professors I?ve spoken with getting a M.S. in something like chemistry would reflect negatively on me because people who leave doctoral programs with Masters generally do so because they have quietly been asked to leave because they were not doing well enough in the program. Also, if after I complete another year of college I feel as though perusing a M.S. would be beneficial I could do so, however, if I attempt to get the M.S. first my college GPA could never be improved.
Also, even if could get into a respectable Ph.D. program (which I don?t think is possible) I would really rather not spend 5 years of my life doing something I don?t have any interest in doing simply because I want to have a chance at getting into med. school. Also, I am ballet dancer and I would really like to dance professionally for a few years before I apply to medical school. I have had a few offers from companies but I could never accept them because as I found out in my sophomore year trying to manage a full time ballet career and school was simply not humanly possible. Plus if I entered a Ph.D. program I would be delaying the opportunity to apply to med. school by another five years, I if possible I would like to avoid doing that.
I have tried in vain to find information on which path (staying another year, doing a post-bac. program, getting a M.S. in medical sciences, or getting a M.S.or PhD in a science) leads to the best outcome with respect to gaining admission into medical school (however, they don?t gather statistics on people like me who have screwed up their undergraduate career).
I know what I am about to right is something that everyone who reads this has heard one hundred times before, but this is how I genuinely feel (as clich? as it might be). I want to be a doctor because I want to be able to help as many people as possible and make some sort of positive difference in others lives before I die. The only thing I?ve ever been really successful at in my life is taking care of other people, it?s the only thing I?m sure I can do. If I cannot find a way to eventually get into medical school and become a doctor I cannot think of anything else that I could do that I would sincerely enjoy doing for the rest of my life. But before I give up entirely I have to do everything possible to make my dream of becoming a doctor a reality and right now I?m just trying to figure out what plan will give me a better chance at turning that dream into reality.
I have to make this decision by January 22, 2003 (that?s this coming Wednesday) because if I am going to graduate there is one core class I will need to take and if I?m going to take the course I must add it by January 22. I am completely lost as to which path is the best to pursue. I have obviously made enough mistakes already I don?t want this decision to be another one. I would greatly appreciate any advice that any of you could give me!
Please accept my apologies for the length of this letter and the typos, grammar mistakes, and etcetera that surely exist throughout.
Thank you for taking the time to read this.
Sadly and Sincerely,
Lileling
To me, it just sounds like you got nervous and it snowballed...so now that you are past it, I wouldn't bring it up or talk about it in your interviews.... it will only hurt you to do so....
