Just Starting and ... scared/nervous.... *seeking advice*

[jojo827]

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I have made the final decision that I want to go to medical school, and to do that, I know I have to complete a postbac program (I'm a psych and advertising major). I graduate in May 2009 and need to know what I should be doing now in order to be a candidate for postbac programs...
Currently I'm looking into volunteer opportunities at local hospitals, am reading various forum discussions in order to get names of postbac programs, and of course am working on bringing up my GPA. My greatest concern is that my SAT scores were not high (I just barely hit 1200). Unfortunately I do not have a helpful adviser at my University so I'm basically looking for some guidance...

 

[Lokhtar]

Your SAT scores don't matter. If you are graduating in '09, then you probably don't need a post-bac. Just take the courses in your undergrad! You can probably finish all, or at least most, of them in time, especially if you go during a summer session. There is absolutely no need to waste an extra year if you have that much longer to go at your school. And getting some clinical volunteering & shadowing will be helpful for both post-bac and medical school.

Also, what is your overall and science GPA exactly? You'll get more help from people here if we know the specifics so we can give you advice on what you might need 🙂.

 

[jojo827]

I was thinking of doing all it undergrad as well but I am unable to because I have a lot of gen ed's to complete and degree requirements (I had a medical leave that put me back quite a while and did an internship (not at a health related field). Also I feel like doing a postbac program will better prepare me for getting into medical schools, the mcat's, etc.
As of right now my GPA is a 3.4, I won't lie, I slacked off freshman year, and the year I had to take a medical leave my grades weren't phenomenal either. until I took my first science class and realized I want to do medicine - then started getting all A's.

 

[Lokhtar]

I was thinking of doing all it undergrad as well but I am unable to because I have a lot of gen ed's to complete and degree requirements (I had a medical leave that put me back quite a while and did an internship (not at a health related field). Also I feel like doing a postbac program will better prepare me for getting into medical schools, the mcat's, etc.
As of right now my GPA is a 3.4, I won't lie, I slacked off freshman year, and the year I had to take a medical leave my grades weren't phenomenal either. until I took my first science class and realized I want to do medicine - then started getting all A's.

You have what, three semesters left? Getting all A's or close to it will get you to above a 3.5 most likely, maybe close to a 3.6. After that, doing well in your post-bac will improve your GPA further, so if you do all that, GPA won't be a problem. Doing a separate post-bac won't really help or hurt you. I would just do whatever is more convenient and cheaper for you - stay an extra semester or year at your own university. If you use the summer sessions, you may just have to stay an extra semester, and at most, a year.