Kind of new to this

[rescue1]

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Hi everyone,

I'm an EMT from the Philly area who has been considering med school (not a DO) as an option for advancing my career (the only other real options for advancement being PA/Nursing or the fire service). I'm a bit new to the process and was wondering if anyone could give me a hand.

I have a BA in Economics with a 3.29 GPA from a liberal arts college. My only poor (C) grades are in my advanced math courses (vector spaces, discrete math,multivariable calc), as I kind of took a math minor on a whim and didn't perform as well as i should have. My (5 year old) SAT was a 1340 on the old scale. I've been working or volunteering as an EMT-Basic for 3 years now, with god knows how many patient contact hours.

Obviously I'd need to attend a post-bacc program, as I have no relevant science courses at all. I was wondering what kind of PB program I would be looking at with my kind of grades...I'm assuming not top tier like Bryn Mawr, but I'm not really sure what the other levels of post-bacc programs are. Especially those in the Philly/NYC area, which I'm trying to stay near. Is it worth it apply to programs like Temple or Drexel, or are they out of my league?

As a follow up, what kind of competitiveness for med school would I be looking at with my mediocre UG GPA assuming I had a sGPA of >3.7-8 during my post-bacc years?

I know these kinds of questions get asked all the time, but I appreciate any help you all could give me.

 

[deleted248403]

You should be competitive for all but the top tier post-bacs, and then its worth a shot - you never know how much your life experience will make up for slightly lower than average grades. Send in an app to Bryn Mawr - it doesn't hurt.

You should apply to UPenn Pre-Health as well if you wanna stay in the Philly area/NYC area. That being said - if you want to go part-time then you could keep your EMT job and take classes at any 4-year school (i.e. Rutgers-Camden, St. Joseph's...).

If you rocked your post-bac classes, and ended with a science GPA around a 3.6-3.7, and a cGPA around 3.5, an MCAT of 31, and your ECs - then you should have a competitive chance at most MD schools

 

[rescue1]

Thanks for the advice, that's good to hear. I guess I better get crackin' in these applications then.

 

[Goucher2013]

I'm in a blunt mood today: I wouldn't expect too much from the highly structured postbac programs. They get a significant amount of EMT-qualified and -experienced applicants, including at the EMT-P level, with significantly higher GPAs. SAT also probably isn't at the top end. If you think you have a really standout life story, do go ahead and apply. Otherwise, maybe consider Peace Corps for 2-3 years to boost your story, with some A-grade coursework from a well-regarded distance education program on the side.

On the other hand, robflanker is dead on about your actual med school application chances, so I would question why it's even worth expending any time or emotional energy on the highly structured postbac programs. It's not too late to register for at least one pre-med class this spring at any number of Philly schools and just get the ball rolling.

 

[rescue1]

I'm in a blunt mood today: I wouldn't expect too much from the highly structured postbac programs. They get a significant amount of EMT-qualified and -experienced applicants, including at the EMT-P level, with significantly higher GPAs. SAT also probably isn't at the top end. If you think you have a really standout life story, do go ahead and apply. Otherwise, maybe consider Peace Corps for 2-3 years to boost your story, with some A-grade coursework from a well-regarded distance education program on the side.

On the other hand, robflanker is dead on about your actual med school application chances, so I would question why it's even worth expending any time or emotional energy on the highly structured postbac programs. It's not too late to register for at least one pre-med class this spring at any number of Philly schools and just get the ball rolling.

So you're suggesting just an unstructured program may be better for me then a post-bacc? I guess trying both and seeing what happens can't hurt, come to think of it.

 

[Goucher2013]

I'd focus either on adding some life stories or on getting started at someplace reputable as quickly as possible. If you can do UPenn's program, or similar, all the better.

 

[geckcgt]

I applied with a 3.27 GPA, Chemistry Major and got into the Drexel post-bac. Had no significant life story whatsoever.

 

[rescue1]

That's comforting, thanks. I'm working on several applications for post bacc now, if somehow I don't get in I'll look at an unstructured program.
Thanks for the advice, everyone.