Medical Is it possible to transfer after second year of medical school?

[gyngyn]

Hello! I am a second year medical student who has been struggling badly with depression this year. I am currently attending a top 40 medical school and really want to transfer to the state medical school in my home state, university of Maryland. I have family in the area and can become a Maryland resident again. I know that being close to family will be a huge help and more than anything my quality of life will improve drastically. I am currently about the middle of the pack grade wise at my current medical school. I had a 518 MCAT and a low undergrad GPA of 3.1 but a 3.8 Masters GPA and a research publication in a solid journal with years of extracurricular and research experiences.
Is there any chance I might be able to transfer? I know that the availability of positions is a critical factor but that’s out of my control.

i would love to transfer to Maryland to be with my family or to Tufts School of Medicine to be with my significant other.
Can anyone give me any advice? Is there any hope for me?

Tufts considers transfers on a "case by case" basis. Their contact for information is: John Matias (617) 636-6571.
Maryland does not consider transfers.

In general, you will need a compelling reason for transfer to a school with a similar year to year curriculum, strong grades (if applicable) and Step 1 score and the support of your Student Affairs Dean.

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[MusicDOc124]

Yes, it is possible. I transferred medical schools myself.

Whether you try to transfer between 1st/2nd or between 2nd/3rd, each has things about them that are easier than the other. For instance, between 1st/2nd, curriculums need to line up, but you don't need a step score. Between 2nd/3rd curriculum is irrelevant, but you need a step score, and more often than not, you need to meet what has been average or better for the given school you're trying to go to.

In addition, you must be in good standing, without any failures at any point (for the schools I looked into at least while I completed my transfer).

One set of factors that may be considered are MCAT/GPA, which you mention yours. For transfers (more so between M1/M2, but still somewhat for between M2/M3), they often will still look at these to see if they fit with what they would at least consider at their school if you were a regular applicant in the first place.

Another factor is space in the class. If a school has a rising 3rd year class of 99, and maybe they started with (approved for) 100, then there is possibly 1 seat, but that seat could be filled by a repeating 3rd year, etc. So there needs to be a seat.

Some schools outright do NOT take transfers for any reason at all. Others have clear guidelines/requirements for be able to do so. Some have a formal application, and for some it's just a series of emails/phone calls.

Some schools will consider applicants, HOWEVER, the some of which I'm referring here will NOT consider someone for transfer IF they previous applied to the school and were denied.

Start visiting websites (including FAQs), and calling and talking to schools where you'd have a support system in place, be it Tufts, Maryland, or any other school that is within a reasonable distance to said system where it would appear somewhat obvious as to "why this school?" for said transfer.

Bare in mind, you must get the depression in order one way or another because if you feel you are suffering and it's weighing you down, success in med school will be difficult, and if you are unsuccessful with the rest of this year and/or with boards, transferring will be out of the question.

I hope this gets you started. If you have any questions, feel free to continue commenting, tag me, or message me if absolutely needed.

Good luck!

 

[MusicDOc124]

Thank you, both so much! I really appreciate it. I’ve been contacting schools but most have no room at all or accept no transfers due to their curriculum (like Maryland). I will keep trying.

Early is good, but this is too early. There will be people inevitably who fail by the end of this fall semester and/or by spring, not to mention the possibility of people leaving for whatever other reason, or decide to take a gap year be it for person reasons/medical reasons/research/etc, or those who just don't feel strong enough yet for Step 1/Level 1 who may end up also taking the year due to delaying their exams.

When I transferred, I hadn't begun to reach out until I believe late March-mid April timeframe.

I'd continue the search at a later date, such as in at least Jan/Feb if not March, and definitely reach back out to all of the programs you already contacted, sans the places that just simply don't take transfers.

Good luck!