Looking for some help with the Academic Fresh Start in Texas

[esob]

---

Members do not see this ad.

Unfortunately, I've had nothing but roadblocks so far with the process. Everyone wants to point the finger at someone else for "responsibility" but nothing is getting resolved.

What I'm really hoping for is someone in the DFW area who has gone through AFS at one of the local schools who can give me some guidance, as this is the only geographical area I can attend classes at for now.

I've applied to 3 schools under the AFS provision; UNT, TCC, and UTA. These are the three closest but I'll go to whatever school is necessary to get the job done.

The results thus far are:

TCC:

Was told by the registrar (the actual registrar, not an assistant), that TCC only applied academic fresh start if you had previously attended the institution. He said that because they don't transfer in grades from other schools, my transcript GPA will only calculated from TCC classes, and therefore there is "no reason" to mark "Student invoked his right to academic fresh start in the spring 2016 semester" or any similar statement on my transcript. Bottom line: it seems there is no way for me to get academic fresh start at TCC since I never previously attended the school

UNT:

Applied under the AFS provision and was accepted. The form I filed was very formal. It even lists the section of the Texas higher education code (THEA 51.931) that details and explains the AFS provision. I was told however by the registrar that, like TCC, they only mark "academic fresh start" on your transcripts if you previously attended UNT. They basically said, "it's admissions responsibility b/c they admitted you under AFS and you have no previous UNT work" and admissions is saying, "we have nothing to do with marking your transcripts once we've admitted you, its the registrar who needs to take care of it." 😡

I was however, able to get a letter from the registrar stating I have exercised my right to an academic fresh start. I sent this letter off to TMDSAS since they note that a letter can be used in lieu of the transcript statement. I was told no on the first letter because it "didn't indicate the semester" (it had the date instead). So I had the registrar change the letter to note the spring 2016 semester and resubmitted to TMDSAS and was told by the rep I had to wait for for the director to return to the office in mid December before I could get a response.

UTA:

Applied under the AFS provision and accepted. Was told to talk to the office of records about having my transcripts marked with the academic fresh start language.


Anyway, anyone who has been through the process that could provide some help or additional insight on how (or what school) to get this done would be greatly appreciated.

 

[ZPakEffect]

Sounds like you've got it worked out at UNT; you just need to get a letter that states exactly what TMDSAS wants.

 

[esob]

Hopefully. I really want to attend UNT b/c the drive is the best (22 minutes with almost no traffic ever). I did finally talk to someone at UTA and they said they DO mark your transcripts with fresh start. Now ofc whether or not that actually happens and happens to TMDSAS standard is another story, but I'm headed over there tomorrow to talk with the records office in person. Worst case scenario would be that if they do, I will just pay to take 1 class at UTA and that should fulfill the TMDSAS requirements and then finish my degree at UNT.

 

[esob]

So more bad news. Finally got clarification from UTA and they said the same thing "we don't put it on your transcripts if you didn't previously attend UTA." Now this is frustrating consider that TMDSAS itself is part of the University of Texas system. I'm waiting for the TMDSAS director to get back in the office on the 15th to hopefully shed some light on what can be done. If she can't help I guess I'll be left with contacting my representatives to see what can be done.

 

[BluMist]

lol, I thought you were done with this...

in any case, having TMDSAS clarification is probably ideal, but I don't see why your transcript needs to marked with fresh start.
when you apply to medical schools, you'll apply under the fresh start provision again, so they'll ignore classes >10 years anyway.

So more bad news. Finally got clarification from UTA and they said the same thing "we don't put it on your transcripts if you didn't previously attend UTA." Now this is frustrating consider that TMDSAS itself is part of the University of Texas system. I'm waiting for the TMDSAS director to get back in the office on the 15th to hopefully shed some light on what can be done. If she can't help I guess I'll be left with contacting my representatives to see what can be done.

 

[esob]

lol, I thought you were done with this...

in any case, having TMDSAS clarification is probably ideal, but I don't see why your transcript needs to marked with fresh start.
when you apply to medical schools, you'll apply under the fresh start provision again, so they'll ignore classes >10 years anyway.

I thought I was done with it as well. Seems pretty cut and dried but apparently that is only if you are re-attending a university that you attended 10+ years ago. If my prior grades had come from UNT or UTA this would be a simple process and they would notate my transcripts accordingly, but since the work comes from other schools they don't do it. Apparently TMDSAS's answer to this is the letter from the registrar's but when I provide them a letter from the registrar stating exactly what they want it to say I'm told "that won't work, but we can't tell you why, wait for the director to return from vacation." So all I can do at this point is wait for her to return and hopefully she can provide some clarity as to what the letter needs to say. I will say that I'm thankful that at least the UNT registrar has been very accommodating thus far with regard to providing a letter that TMDSAS will accept.

I do think that even if this resolves itself quickly, I'll be writing my senators and asking them to introduce some legislation to standardize this process. It's Texas, we have standardized forms for everything 🙂

 

[psychic_detective]

I am using academic fresh start, at UNT. My old coursework was over 10 years old, and like you would expect it does not count toward my GPA here. If you have any questions hit me up, I just now saw your thread.

So far, as I understand it, during undergrad two things happen. For the university you attend they list all old coursework on your transcript and zero it out. This is what you need I believe, so that it shows you reported the coursework to not count against you. It's all or nothing so know that. Second, the old classes do count against you for federal financial aid, but you will only run in to a problem if it comes to over hours or if you are not making satisfactory academic progress (SAP). The SAP part has been a pain some times. Since my old coursework at the registrar is all zeroes, they put down every semester that I am not eligible for aid, and I go in to correct it. It gets fixed, but it is annoying.

Now for TMDSAS, I believe the next part goes like this. You will have to submit another form and it will just be like the one UNT offered. It will be straight forward and those classes should not count.

 

[esob]

I am using academic fresh start, at UNT. My old coursework was over 10 years old, and like you would expect it does not count toward my GPA here. If you have any questions hit me up, I just now saw your thread.

So far, as I understand it, during undergrad two things happen. For the university you attend they list all old coursework on your transcript and zero it out. This is what you need I believe, so that it shows you reported the coursework to not count against you. It's all or nothing so know that. Second, the old classes do count against you for federal financial aid, but you will only run in to a problem if it comes to over hours or if you are not making satisfactory academic progress (SAP). The SAP part has been a pain some times. Since my old coursework at the registrar is all zeroes, they put down every semester that I am not eligible for aid, and I go in to correct it. It gets fixed, but it is annoying.

Now for TMDSAS, I believe the next part goes like this. You will have to submit another form and it will just be like the one UNT offered. It will be straight forward and those classes should not count.

Did you have previous coursework at UNT or was it from another school that you are wiping out the grades from?

 

[psychic_detective]

It was all from other schools. Recently I did an audit and I received a copy of it in the mail today. It states the same thing, all coursework claimed under academic fresh start is void for the purposes of my GPA.

 

[esob]

It was all from other schools. Recently I did an audit and I received a copy of it in the mail today. It states the same thing, all coursework claimed under academic fresh start is void for the purposes of my GPA.

OK great. I Talked with the director of TMDSAS today. Firstly, I must say they are fast about responding, I'm actually really impressed with that. Secondly, she said my letter from UTA looks sufficient and told me how I needed to modify my letter from UNT. I was told it needs to state I was "admitted under the Academic Fresh Start Provision for the Spring 2016 semester." From what I understand from TMDSAS, you will likely need the same. I guess the good thing is that they will be infinitely familiar with it after dealing with me 😀 Ask to speak with Babette, she's really nice and has been very helpful.

On a side note, have you taken Dr. Benjamin for any of your bio's?

 

[esob]

Update: Finally got a letter from the registrar that TMDSAS said was acceptable, so onward and upward now 🙂

 

[jl lin]

Update: Finally got a letter from the registrar that TMDSAS said was acceptable, so onward and upward now 🙂

Congratulations! 🙂

 

[WGSgrad]

Congratulations! That's definitely an enviable position from which to work...you're not repairing a poor GPA, you're building a great one.

As a non-traditional student, are you at all worried about how long it will take you to complete the 90 credit hours necessary to apply to medical school? Or, since your academic fresh start (which would not include any coursework taken since Spring 2006) have you completed enough credits that you don't need to complete the full 90?

 

[esob]

Congratulations! That's definitely an enviable position from which to work...you're not repairing a poor GPA, you're building a great one.

As a non-traditional student, are you at all worried about how long it will take you to complete the 90 credit hours necessary to apply to medical school? Or, since your academic fresh start (which would not include any coursework taken since Spring 2006) have you completed enough credits that you don't need to complete the full 90?

I've actually got 87 hrs @ 3.93 that are not wiped out, so the 90 hr requirement is not really an issue. The prereqs unfortunately are, since I have none of them completed. Since I'm starting in the spring rather than the fall it means that in order for me to complete biochem before I take the MCAT, there is only really 1 of 2 paths I can take. I can either kill myself and take 5 - 6 classes per semester plus 1 -2 per summer while trying to prepare for the MCAT and working full time and be done in 3 years, or I can take 3 -4 classes per semester and be entering med school in 4. The first option gets me in a year earlier but drastically increases the probability of lowering my GPA and/or MCAT. So I've resigned myself to spending the next 3.5 years in undergrad again. I'll be 44 when I apply but I have a few things in my back story that are fairly compelling. I think coupled with a high GPA + High MCAT my chances will be pretty good even if I do face some age bias. Conversely, If instead I were to apply at 43 with lesser GPA and MCAT numbers, I think my chances would be lower: the 1 year of age difference won't amount to much but a few points on the MCAT will.

In truth, my GPA isn't all that bad even w/o the academic fresh start (3.38, and bound to go up as I do my prereqs), but sadly only 1 of those courses I took actually counts toward med school prereqs. It is a bit frustrating considering that while on active duty I was nationally certified as both an EMT and a med lab tech. I did everything from ACLS to assisting pathologists with autopsies. One would think somewhere in that extensive training and experience there would be at least a single course that counted for med school prereqs, but alas that is not the case. So I had no good reason not to just throw everything considering that I gain nothing by keeping those old hours.

 

[WGSgrad]

I've actually got 87 hrs @ 3.93 that are not wiped out, so the 90 hr requirement is not really an issue. The prereqs unfortunately are, since I have none of them completed. Since I'm starting in the spring rather than the fall it means that in order for me to complete biochem before I take the MCAT, there is only really 1 of 2 paths I can take. I can either kill myself and take 5 - 6 classes per semester plus 1 -2 per summer while trying to prepare for the MCAT and working full time and be done in 3 years, or I can take 3 -4 classes per semester and be entering med school in 4. The first option gets me in a year earlier but drastically increases the probability of lowering my GPA and/or MCAT. So I've resigned myself to spending the next 3.5 years in undergrad again. I'll be 44 when I apply but I have a few things in my back story that are fairly compelling. I think coupled with a high GPA + High MCAT my chances will be pretty good even if I do face some age bias. Conversely, If instead I were to apply at 43 with lesser GPA and MCAT numbers, I think my chances would be lower: the 1 year of age difference won't amount to much but a few points on the MCAT will.

In truth, my GPA isn't all that bad even w/o the academic fresh start (3.38, and bound to go up as I do my prereqs), but sadly only 1 of those courses I took actually counts toward med school prereqs. It is a bit frustrating considering that while on active duty I was nationally certified as both an EMT and a med lab tech. I did everything from ACLS to assisting pathologists with autopsies. One would think somewhere in that extensive training and experience there would be at least a single course that counted for med school prereqs, but alas that is not the case. So I had no good reason not to just throw everything considering that I gain nothing by keeping those old hours.

Ahhh...

For what it's worth, I think you have made the correct decision. I think protecting your GPA is considerably more important than aging one more year. Even if you apply at 44, and matriculate at 45, you still have, at minimum, fifteen years to practice medicine (including residency) assuming you retire at 65; depending on the specialty, a lot of people retire a lot later...my gynecologist is 72 and in great shape. In any instance, if you score decently on the MCAT, with your background (I've read some of your other threads) I don't think you should have a problem getting in somewhere in Texas.

I turned 30 this month and have really struggled with the idea of doing my prerequisites part time while working or taking a year off and going full time. I am currently in graduate school and have tuition remission which I could use to get a full semester of credits for free (probably 4 classes) and then I could probably wrap up my courses in a summer and two semesters. There is a part of me that thinks I should just suck it up and be broke for one more year and get it done. However, unlike you, I haven't had a real career up to this point (kind of the requisite millennial meandering: I opened a restaurant, taught abroad, worked in a corporation for a couple of years, etc.) and I worry about the effect of another year 'off' on my finances and any career I might have to take up should I fail to gain admission to medical school.

In any instance, congrats again! You are starting from a great place. I look forward to following your journey.

 

[esob]

Well, you are still young by comparative standards. My mentality is to evaluate the risk of which scenarios could cause catastrophic failure (I do this as a software engineer daily). For me, it was either tanking my GPA or doing poorly on the MCAT, so I weight the avoidance of those scenarios most heavily. For you, it sounds like in addition to GPA and MCAT (which everyone faces), you also could face problems if your finances were to fall short. So I would add that to your catastrophic failure list and do whatever is needed to avoid it. If that means taking an extra year or two to get in, then so be it. Med school is going to be tough and you don't want to get accepted only to have to fail out your first year because of financial issues (or the real life issues that accompany them dealing with relationships). Failing, from what I've read at least, should be added to the catastrophic failure list as well, since failing out of one med school pretty much kills any hope of ever becoming a doctor.

And as for retiring, well all my grandparents worked into their 80's 🙂 I say I will retire at 70 but truth be told I could retire now at 40 and I'm still working 60+ hrs per week so I'll probably just work until someone forces me to retire....and then I'll find something else to do 😀

 

[WGSgrad]

Well, you are still young by comparative standards. My mentality is to evaluate the risk of which scenarios could cause catastrophic failure (I do this as a software engineer daily). For me, it was either tanking my GPA or doing poorly on the MCAT, so I weight the avoidance of those scenarios most heavily. For you, it sounds like in addition to GPA and MCAT (which everyone faces), you also could face problems if your finances were to fall short. So I would add that to your catastrophic failure list and do whatever is needed to avoid it. If that means taking an extra year or two to get in, then so be it. Med school is going to be tough and you don't want to get accepted only to have to fail out your first year because of financial issues (or the real life issues that accompany them dealing with relationships). Failing, from what I've read at least, should be added to the catastrophic failure list as well, since failing out of one med school pretty much kills any hope of ever becoming a doctor.

And as for retiring, well all my grandparents worked into their 80's 🙂 I say I will retire at 70 but truth be told I could retire now at 40 and I'm still working 60+ hrs per week so I'll probably just work until someone forces me to retire....and then I'll find something else to do 😀

You are correct; my greater concern is less about making money (as I am relatively young) but more about not going into considerable debt before I get to the door, given that there is always a real chance the door never opens. Thus, I want to do it as cheaply and strategically as possible. However, I count myself fortunate in that, at the moment, there are no relationships to consider (no partner and no kids). So doing well and my finances are my primary focus.

I am always impressed with people who go back to school who are more established in their career, with partners, and children. There is so much more to negotiate. If I need a day to study, I just go to the library and turn my phone off. People with families have to balance relationships in addition to the demands of school. It is impressive.

 

[esob]

Haha, yeah, I have 3 children, including two with asperger's, so its a challenge. Anyway, my final piece of advice would be not to sell yourself short. If you want to be a doctor, then make plans to be one. Believe that you are smart enough to do it and commit to it and you'll be fine.