Is Medical School Acceptance Likely?

[Jun Zoa Shahs]

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Hello everyone,

I am seeking out some constructive and blunt opinions. I am striving to get into medical school. I have wanted to be a doctor since I was a little child.

However, I have had some downfalls in my Undergrad experience:
1. I had a horrific first year (both semesters).
2. I basically barely passed my courses. I got a C in P Chem 1, a D in Bio 101, a C- in History, and a D in Psych 101.
3. Second semester I got a C in Bio 102, a C in P Chem 2, a C- in abnormal psych, and an A+ in English I.

However, I made a rebound. I evaluated my goals and decided I needed to make a change in order to be successful. I joined the Bio Club and now I am the president of the club. I have a job as a medical scribe in the ER. Grade wise:
I retook Bio 101 and got an A, I got an A- in Anatomy I, an A in Orgo I and lab, and an A- in Biostats. I got an A in Anatomy II, an A in Orgo II and lab, an A in Cell Bio, an A in Biochem. I then retook Psych 101 and got an A-, and a B in Pharmacology.
I am currently in Genetics, Microbiology, Physics I, and Calculus. My semester is looking good, but I may get a few B's. My current GPA is a 3.22.

I will be taking the MCAT soon.

Any advice or pointers is much appreciated.

 

[el_duderino]

Try not to get any Bs. You certainly don't want that GPA to go down. It's circling the drain as it is. You would need some shadowing experience. Do you have any sort of volunteer or research experience? What other ECs do you have (not med-related)? Have you done any full-length MCAT tests as prep? How did you do on them?

 

[gyngyn]

With your gpa, an MCAT of 515-516 yields a 50% chance of success.

 

[Oh_Gee]

With your gpa, an MCAT of 515-516 yields a 50% chance of success.

lol you for sure have that chart as your computer wallpaper or tacked up in your office somewhere

 

[WedgeDawg]

lol you for sure have that chart as your computer wallpaper or tacked up in your office somewhere

Step 1. Google "aamc table 24" (2 seconds, maybe up to 4 depending on internet connection and speed)

Step 2. click first link (2-4 seconds)

Total time: 8 seconds

 

[Oh_Gee]

Step 1. Google "aamc table 24" (2 seconds, maybe up to 4 depending on internet connection and speed)

Step 2. click first link (2-4 seconds)

Total time: 8 seconds

I did not mean that to sound insulting in any way

 

[GiveMeThatMD]

Total time: 8 seconds

Ain't nobody got time fo' dat.

And to OP, does the 3.22 count a grade replacement or a combination of taken classes? DO is great for the former, MD schools count the latter.

 

[Goro]

Upward trends are always good. All we can advise is that you might be competitive or very competitive as a candidate to land an II, an acceptance is 100% on you.

Hello everyone,

I am seeking out some constructive and blunt opinions. I am striving to get into medical school. I have wanted to be a doctor since I was a little child.

However, I have had some downfalls in my Undergrad experience:
1. I had a horrific first year (both semesters).
2. I basically barely passed my courses. I got a C in P Chem 1, a D in Bio 101, a C- in History, and a D in Psych 101.
3. Second semester I got a C in Bio 102, a C in P Chem 2, a C- in abnormal psych, and an A+ in English I.

However, I made a rebound. I evaluated my goals and decided I needed to make a change in order to be successful. I joined the Bio Club and now I am the president of the club. I have a job as a medical scribe in the ER. Grade wise:
I retook Bio 101 and got an A, I got an A- in Anatomy I, an A in Orgo I and lab, and an A- in Biostats. I got an A in Anatomy II, an A in Orgo II and lab, an A in Cell Bio, an A in Biochem. I then retook Psych 101 and got an A-, and a B in Pharmacology.
I am currently in Genetics, Microbiology, Physics I, and Calculus. My semester is looking good, but I may get a few B's. My current GPA is a 3.22.

I will be taking the MCAT soon.

Any advice or pointers is much appreciated.

 

[mrspecialist]

I would focus on doing an SMP, since you retook basically all your classes...

 

[Munty]

Like others have hinted at, scoring very well on the MCAT will help. You might also taking some time to do a year or two of post-bacc work to show you can maintain that upward trend. Also good EC's, shadowing/volunteer hours, and diverse experiences will help you. With that I would suggest not focusing on just science or premed clubs, but also groups you are passionate about that help you stand out.

 

[goldy490]

OP, go read the Comeback Story by @DoctorLacrosse. He started in a similar position to you and reading his thread will probably provide good insight into what you need to do going forward. Its also just an awesome thread that reads like a novel.

 

[ivorypearls]

Somewhat unrelated question but how did you manage to take Physical Chemistry as a freshman?? That's like GPA suicide

 

[DoctorLacrosse]

OP, go read the Comeback Story by @DoctorLacrosse. He started in a similar position to you and reading his thread will probably provide good insight into what you need to do going forward. Its also just an awesome thread that reads like a novel.

thanks for the shout out! 👍

OP, you're definitely not down and out yet. one bad year can be overcome. what year are you currently in? you may want to consider not applying after your junior year as a traditional student, and perhaps push off applying until after your fourth year. This way you'll have an extra year of good grades (presumably) and more time to do well on the MCAT in order to prove to adcoms that you can handle med school. I actually took a fifth year in order to do this, and it worked out well for me.

Remember that DO programs allow the grades you got for retakes to be the only ones that count in your GPA. that means a HUGE lift in your GPA.

Also, you can get away with a B/B+ here and there, but you really should do everything in your power to get A's from here on out. the higher you can get that GPA the better, obviously. try to get those grades up for this semester, push yourself and you'll be surprised by what you can handle. best of luck.