Looking for Postbacc Program and General Info

[No1nfoProvided]

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Hey guys,

I was doing research on postbacc programs and I ended up finding good info on these forums. I was just wondering if a postbacc program is right for me. I have a 3.3 cgpa with a ~3.4 sgpa (my major was biological sciences) and I want to pursue an MD/PhD in the future. I haven't taken the MCATs yet as I have just decided that I wanted to pursue this path instead of pharmacy, dentistry, etc. I have volunteered in a local hospital for a year (200 hours) and am currently a lab assistant (I really like research, so I want the PhD as well). Could you guys recommend a course of action for me for the next year or so? Should I enter a postbacc program, and if so, does it matter which school's program I should apply to (I really want to stay local and my goal was CSULA's postbacc program, but I am willing to move the distance - read: anywhere - if it would better my chances for entering med school). TIA for any help/guidance you guys can offer.

 

[No1nfoProvided]

Bump. Also, should I consider an SMP? From what I've read on here, because my major was biology, a postbac program won't really help impact my GPA that much. Would it still help, or should I apply to SMPs (are there any SMPs that accept GREs instead of MCATS? I haven't taken the MCAT and haven't really studied for it, so I don't really wanna rush taking it in April)

 

[asli]

Hmm I am in a similar situation and am applying for postbaccs except I wasn't a bio major. If I were you, I would figure out how much you could raise your gpa (science and cumulative) with one year of coursework. Assuming you do well, it probably won't be higher than a 3.5 or maybe 3.6, which would put you around average. Thus, you really need a great MCAT score to offset your gpa. I would focus on the MCAT and make a solid study plan and basically beast it. Your gpa won't keep you out if you have a good score (30+).

 

[No1nfoProvided]

Thanks for the response asli. Do you know how to calculate GPA by AAMC standards? I search through and found several year old threads, but I don't know if they still apply.

 

[aSagacious]

Depends on if your school has a +/- (A+, A, A-, etc) or a decimal (4.0, 3.5, 3.0, etc) system.

As far as calculating your BPCM (science) GPA, here's a helpful link:
https://services.aamc.org/AMCAS2_2010/WebApp/Help/WebHelp/Course_Work_Course_Classification.htm

 

[No1nfoProvided]

Thanks aSagacious. My school has a +/- system. I'll try to recalculate my grades based on the info you linked me to.

 

[aSagacious]

My school has a +/- system.

Ok, the +/- system goes like this:
A = 4.0
A- = 3.7
B+ = 3.3
B = 3.0
... etc

 

[No1nfoProvided]

Yup. That's the same way my school does it, but how do I incorporate the units that the class takes? I assumed that classes with more units hold more of the grade weight. Will the .xls files that people have uploaded still work? http://medschool.ucsf.edu/postbac/pdf/AMCAS GPA_Calculator Version 4 Final.xls This one seems pretty good. It was on this site originally.http://medschool.ucsf.edu/postbac/eligibility/

 

[aSagacious]

...but how do I incorporate the units that the class takes?

Let's pretend that you took three classes over the course of your undergraduate career:
Biology - 3 credits - 4.0
Chemistry - 2 credits - 3.0
Physics - 4 credits - 3.5

GPA = grade point average, and it is precisely that... an average of 'grade points.' So let's calculate 'grade points' for each class:
Biology - 4.0 x 3 credits = 12 grade points
Chemistry - 3.0 x 2 credits = 6 grade points
Physics - 3.5 x 4 credits = 14 grade points

... now add up all of your grade points and divide by the number of credits take to yield a GPA (this takes weights into account):
(12+6+14)/(3+2+4) = 3.56 GPA

Hope that helps