It's a long post, but please help me out! thanks a lot :)

[silverlinings0618]

HI everyone, I’ll first bombard you with my stats:
Stats:
1st year: 2.86
2nd year: 2.85
summer session 1 : 2.85
summer session 2: 2.81
3rd year: 2.77
summer session 1: 2.81 (with upward trend starting this summer till my 5 th year with A’s and B’s)
4th year: 2.95
5th year: 2.99
Cumulative GPA: 2.99; BCPM GPA: 2.654
Note: i was a pre-med in college and became a non-traditional pre-med student after college.

Background: I understand my grades are abysmal, and while there shouldn’t be any excuses, I was struggling with taking care of my family and maintaining grades along with tons of other problems: not knowing how to study efficiently, not having support, being emotionally unstable, etc. I have always been a pre-med but wasn’t sure i wanted to do medicine until I met my amazing mentor in the summer of my 3rd year and started volunteering at a clinic and doing research. I changed my studying habits drastically, especially during the last year of college, but i was still struggling with test taking skills. Anyway, long story short, I graduated from a UC in 2016 and spent a year a half on taking care of family matters, dealing with unfortunate events, and improving myself physically, mentally, and emotionally. I buckled down to study for the MCAT in Jan 2018, but i’m going to void the exam score this 9/19 cause as of right now, my AAMC FL 2 is 126/120/125/126.

Calculation: it takes 77 units to bring my BCPM GPA (NOT cumulative GPA) from 2.654 to 3.00 (which is an equivalent of 2 years of classes).

Plans: 1st step) do a DIY post bac starting in Winter 2019 till Fall 2019 next year at a UC - an entire year of upper division science courses of about 37-39 units.
-during this year of my DIY post bac at a UC: i’m going to apply to the UC post bac consortium and other programs in CA
2nd step) If i don’t get in the UC post bac program, I will continue taking classes at Sacramento State University. During this year, once I’m used to doing well in upper division courses, I’ll add volunteering work and others back to the curriculum.

Questions:

1. What do you think of first doing a DIY post bac for only one entire year to raise my BCPM GPA to be more competitive for post bac programs?
2. What do you think of continuing a DIY post bac (second DIY post bac year) at Sac State afterwards if i don’t get into a UC post bac? By then I’ll be having about 2-year DIY post bac, hence my BCPM would be at 3.0 and the cumulative GPA would be above 3.0. I would like to apply to medical schools in 2020. Thanks to the MCAT, I finally am able to think more critically, study and take tests more effectively, and especially stay calm under pressure.
3. I also have a second thought that if i’m going to do a DIY post bac the second year at sac state (after doing my first DIY post bac at a UC), shouldn’t I be spending money at a linkage post bac program instead? Are there any programs with linkages or trustworthy programs that are not so expensive?
4. Some people advise me to do a formal post bac program and a SMP after 2-year DIY post back, but I’m wondering if I should give it a shot and apply to medical school in 2020 after 2-year DIY post bac instead? Of course, once I’m used to the curriculum, I’ll work on my CVs as well.

I’m sorry for such a long post and thanks for bearing with me. Any advices would be greatly appreciated. )

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[Goro]

1. What do you think of first doing a DIY post bac for only one entire year to raise my BCPM GPA to be more competitive for post bac programs?

Good plan

1. What do you think of continuing a DIY post bac (second DIY post bac year) at Sac State afterwards if i don’t get into a UC post bac?

This is also fine. Cheaper too

1. I also have a second thought that if i’m going to do a DIY post bac the second year at sac state (after doing my first DIY post bac at a UC), shouldn’t I be spending money at a linkage post bac program instead? Are there any programs with linkages or trustworthy programs that are not so expensive?

Yes, they're called Special Masters Programs.

Some people advise me to do a formal post bac program and a SMP after 2-year DIY post back,
this is overkill.

Read this:
Goro's advice for pre-meds who need reinvention

 

[silverlinings0618]

Hi Goro,

THANK YOU SO MUCH for that post and your quick replies here. I appreciate them a lot. I have a couple questions if you don't mind answering them via message. I know you are super busy, but any advices would be appreciated