Losing Confidence - Do I Still Have a Chance?

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prairiemusic

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Hey all,

I've seen a lot of posts about an upward trend and ~reinvention, but not many on what to do when you aren't doing well in those upper level bio courses that were supposed to prove you can handle this material. I bombed a biochem exam yesterday and I'm not doing so hot in genetics or bio ii either. My GPAs are already barely at a 3.0 and this likely won't help. I'd think that I wasn't cut out to be a doctor but I have a 95th percentile MCAT (which means I do know... things, right?). I'm not sure what's going on with me, although I've had a lot of distractions this semester (ranging from relatives almost dying to being misdiagnosed with cancer myself) and I've performed well in physics/calc and, yknow, the MCAT.

It's like I know I could perform well in the right circumstances (or maybe at a school without grade deflation...) but that clearly isn't happening right now. I have story after story for why certain semesters haven't gone well but I don't want to just have a string of excuses. I'm getting tired of myself. I don't want to spend the money for a post bac or SMP but it's looking like those are my best options...? I'm also worried that I'll shell out for one of those and just get a string of Bs again and not get in anywhere. Any advice is appreciated.

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What year are you currently in school? You're right that having a 3.0 GPA won't help your chances, but I think your MCAT score could do some heavy lifting for you, especially if you have an upward trend. As for your current GPA issues, are you doing anything outside of school? It may be time to drop some of your extracurriculars and focus completely on academics so that you can have as high a GPA as possible when you ultimately apply.
 
95th percentile MCAT will get you an admission somewhere if the rest of your application (other than GPA) is on point.

Just show an upward trend in the GPA.
 
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What year are you currently in school? You're right that having a 3.0 GPA won't help your chances, but I think your MCAT score could do some heavy lifting for you, especially if you have an upward trend. As for your current GPA issues, are you doing anything outside of school? It may be time to drop some of your extracurriculars and focus completely on academics so that you can have as high a GPA as possible when you ultimately apply.

95th percentile MCAT will get you an admission somewhere if the rest of your application (other than GPA) is on point.

Just show an upward trend in the GPA.

I'm a senior, so I'm pretty much out of time for an upward trend. My GPA last semester was a 3.27 and it looks like this semester will be similar. I'm on the board for one club and I volunteer 4 hours a week, but if I drop either of those my already borderline ECs will be lacking.
 
I'm a senior, so I'm pretty much out of time for an upward trend. My GPA last semester was a 3.27 and it looks like this semester will be similar. I'm on the board for one club and I volunteer 4 hours a week, but if I drop either of those my already borderline ECs will be lacking.

Might want to think about taking a gap year and doing some postbacc classes to give yourself that upward trend. Med school will be there a year later, and you only want to apply once.
 
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You could likely be competitive at some DO schools now, if you have good extracurriculars.

If you take a year+ to take some classes and raise your GPA as well as having good extracurriculars, you could become competitive for MD schools.
 
I'm a senior, so I'm pretty much out of time for an upward trend. My GPA last semester was a 3.27 and it looks like this semester will be similar. I'm on the board for one club and I volunteer 4 hours a week, but if I drop either of those my already borderline ECs will be lacking.
I bet you could be competitive at many DO schools right now, and you might be competitive at some MD schools because of the exceptional MCAT. It probably depends on the rest of your application and how competitive you are in terms of extracurriculars and so forth. You could always consider some sort of post-bacc program, especially one that's linked with a medical school in order to assuage concerns about the GPA.
 
Do you all mean a second gap year? I'm already taking one to boost my ECs but I was planning to apply this June with future hours. Should I also be taking classes next school year, or should I push my application back a year?
 
As far as I'm aware, taking classes during your application cycle year doesn't do much for your application.

For MD, I would probably say that you need a second gap year to get classes in. According to the AAMC, about 41% of people with GPAs between 3.0 and 3.19 and MCATs between 514 and 517 were accepted. That's probably contingent on have solid extracurriculars as well. For the best odds, you should likely try to take classes next year as well as do some extracurriculars and then apply in the 2019-2020 application cycle.

It'll be a ****ty year, where you won't have a lot of time to do anything except study and work, but it would be worth it in the long run.

If you plan on applying DO, I would say that you should work of ECs and apply in the 2018-2019 cycle.

I don't know your current ECs though, so having info on that would help a lot.
 
It seems like you've bitten off more you can chew with all these heavy science courses (never took genetics as a separate course, but heard it's quite difficult). Unfortunately you're almost done with college and slightly above a 3.0 isn't competitive. I think you're a strong candidate for a post-bac. But you need to examine your study habits and reflect on what has worked best for you. To optimize your chances, I recommend applying after one year of post-bac, taking a manageable course load with improved study habits.
 
As far as I'm aware, taking classes during your application cycle year doesn't do much for your application.

For MD, I would probably say that you need a second gap year to get classes in. According to the AAMC, about 41% of people with GPAs between 3.0 and 3.19 and MCATs between 514 and 517 were accepted. That's probably contingent on have solid extracurriculars as well. For the best odds, you should likely try to take classes next year as well as do some extracurriculars and then apply in the 2019-2020 application cycle.

It'll be a ****ty year, where you won't have a lot of time to do anything except study and work, but it would be worth it in the long run.

If you plan on applying DO, I would say that you should work of ECs and apply in the 2018-2019 cycle.

I don't know your current ECs though, so having info on that would help a lot.

I've heard the odds on that are a little higher since I'm a URM but I understand what you're saying. Here's my ECs (copied from my WAMC thread):

Clinical experience: None yet, planning to do clinical volunteering during my gap year
Research experience: None, willing to do during gap year if necessary but it's just not my thing
Shadowing experience: 75 hrs, about 25 in primary care (peds and ophthalmology) and 50 with a gynecological oncologist (clinic and surgery)
Non-clinical volunteering: 300 hrs, some Women's Health Clinic escorting, Political volunteering, majority of the hours crisis counseling
Other extracurriculars: SMDEP alum (which is SHPEP now?), 500 hrs in orchestra, 400 hrs working in fast food (during school breaks), 350 hrs with LGBTQ+ in STEM affinity group (co-founder and on Executive Board), 300 hrs with performance group
 
You really don't want to apply without clinical or research experience.

They don't consider gap year things as much as things you've done in the past. I had very low clinical experience (200 hours approx.) before applying and over 2000 hours of research experience and I still believe that the lack of clinical experience did a lot of damage to my application.

I did scribe for the first half of my gap year and get an additional 400 hours of clinicals, but most schools won't take that all into consideration. I really think that it would be best to work on your application before applying. But I would differ to @Goro @HomeSkool @gonnif or one of the other faculty members on SDN who have more experience. I don't really know much about URM.
 
I've heard the odds on that are a little higher since I'm a URM but I understand what you're saying. Here's my ECs (copied from my WAMC thread):

Clinical experience: None yet, planning to do clinical volunteering during my gap year
Research experience: None, willing to do during gap year if necessary but it's just not my thing
Shadowing experience: 75 hrs, about 25 in primary care (peds and ophthalmology) and 50 with a gynecological oncologist (clinic and surgery)
Non-clinical volunteering: 300 hrs, some Women's Health Clinic escorting, Political volunteering, majority of the hours crisis counseling
Other extracurriculars: SMDEP alum (which is SHPEP now?), 500 hrs in orchestra, 400 hrs working in fast food (during school breaks), 350 hrs with LGBTQ+ in STEM affinity group (co-founder and on Executive Board), 300 hrs with performance group
I think you should get DO shadowing experience, and focus your application on DOs. Getting research during your gap year isn't as easy as it may seem if you have no prior experience, unless you have a plan for obtaining it. You still have a chance for MD if you get your GPA up.
 
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Hey all,

I've seen a lot of posts about an upward trend and ~reinvention, but not many on what to do when you aren't doing well in those upper level bio courses that were supposed to prove you can handle this material. I bombed a biochem exam yesterday and I'm not doing so hot in genetics or bio ii either. My GPAs are already barely at a 3.0 and this likely won't help. I'd think that I wasn't cut out to be a doctor but I have a 95th percentile MCAT (which means I do know... things, right?). I'm not sure what's going on with me, although I've had a lot of distractions this semester (ranging from relatives almost dying to being misdiagnosed with cancer myself) and I've performed well in physics/calc and, yknow, the MCAT.

It's like I know I could perform well in the right circumstances (or maybe at a school without grade deflation...) but that clearly isn't happening right now. I have story after story for why certain semesters haven't gone well but I don't want to just have a string of excuses. I'm getting tired of myself. I don't want to spend the money for a post bac or SMP but it's looking like those are my best options...? I'm also worried that I'll shell out for one of those and just get a string of Bs again and not get in anywhere. Any advice is appreciated.
Take a few years off.
 
You really don't want to apply without clinical or research experience.

They don't consider gap year things as much as things you've done in the past. I had very low clinical experience (200 hours approx.) before applying and over 2000 hours of research experience and I still believe that the lack of clinical experience did a lot of damage to my application.

I did scribe for the first half of my gap year and get an additional 400 hours of clinicals, but most schools won't take that all into consideration. I really think that it would be best to work on your application before applying. But I would differ to @Goro @HomeSkool @gonnif or one of the other faculty members on SDN who have more experience. I don't really know much about URM.

They didn't look at what you did your gap year at all? I guess I'm wondering what the point of doing anything towards admissions during that year is then. I've been applying to scribing jobs as well as Medical/Clinical Assistant positions for after graduation and those would start in the end of May so wouldn't those hours count?
 
They didn't look at what you did your gap year at all? I guess I'm wondering what the point of doing anything towards admissions during that year is then. I've been applying to scribing jobs as well as Medical/Clinical Assistant positions for after graduation and those would start in the end of May so wouldn't those hours count?
They would if you start before you apply and put in projected hours into your application. Also get clinical volunteering. If you do apply this upcoming cycle, without doing a post-bac or an smp, I'd recommend applying broadly to DO schools and your perhaps your in-state MD schools. Being a URM with a 95th MCAT may open doors despite the low GPA.
 
What would you recommend I do in that time? Also, I'm worried about my MCAT expiring.
Work, save up some money and continue volunteering.

You're between a rock and hard place with the MCAT. You say that you don't want to do an SMP/Post-bac, but you have to in order to prove that you can handle med school, especially if you're boning for MD schools. As of right now, there are some DO schools that you'd get some love from, mostly the newest ones.
 
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apply MD, and then Apply DO. Your mcat expiring is going to be terrible for you since rocking out another 95th percentile will be difficult. You could overload on classes and get 4.0's which could also help.

What state are you from?
 
Work, save up some money and continue volunteering.

You're between a rock and hard place with the MCAT. You say that you don't want to do an SMP/Post-bac, but you have to in order to prove that you can handle med school, especially if you're boning for MD schools. As of right now, there are some DO schools that you'd get some love from, mostly the newest ones.

I really just don't know where I'd get the money for one, especially since it would only be for getting into med school... guess I'll have to read through some MD vs DO threads and sort that out for myself.

apply MD, and then Apply DO. Your mcat expiring is going to be terrible for you since rocking out another 95th percentile will be difficult. You could overload on classes and get 4.0's which could also help.

What state are you from?

The problem is that I'm not getting As right now, and I think part of that is due to extenuating circumstances but part of it could just be poor study habits or not grasping the material? But I grasped it okay for the MCAT, which is throwing me off. I don't want to do an SMP/Post-bac just to keep getting mediocre grades but I worry that things like weird health conditions I have and family stress aren't just going to go away. Very much between a rock and a hard place right now.

I'm from a Midwestern state with one school that's In-State friendly, but they require orgo II in addition to genetics and biochem and I didn't have enough room in my schedule this semester for all three. Many schools allow biochem instead of orgo II and it seems much more relevant to the med school curriculum so I decided to go that route. I'm not sure if orgo II would be going any better this semester than biochem is. At least I have the amino acids memorized I guess.
 
I really just don't know where I'd get the money for one, especially since it would only be for getting into med school... guess I'll have to read through some MD vs DO threads and sort that out for myself.
Honestly, the cost of an SMP/Post Bacss isn't too high if you regard it as an investment in your future. You'll spend something like 15K over the year and it could drastically change your future.

The problem is that I'm not getting As right now, and I think part of that is due to extenuating circumstances but part of it could just be poor study habits or not grasping the material
You'll need to sort out those study habits eventually. If you're having trouble learning the undergraduate materials, you'll have much more difficulty with the much faster paced medical school curriculum. A post-bacc could likely help you sort out any study problems you have an show you materials you'll learn in medical school.

I'm from a Midwestern state with one school that's In-State friendly, but they require orgo II in addition to genetics and biochem

It sounds like an extra year of classes would help you in more ways than one.
 
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Hey all, I've seen a lot of posts about an upward trend and ~reinvention, but not many on what to do when you aren't doing well in those upper level bio courses that were supposed to prove you can handle this material. I bombed a biochem exam yesterday and I'm not doing so hot in genetics or bio ii either. My GPAs are already barely at a 3.0 and this likely won't help. I'd think that I wasn't cut out to be a doctor but I have a 95th percentile MCAT (which means I do know... things, right?). I'm not sure what's going on with me, although I've had a lot of distractions this semester (ranging from relatives almost dying to being misdiagnosed with cancer myself) and I've performed well in physics/calc and, yknow, the MCAT. It's like I know I could perform well in the right circumstances (or maybe at a school without grade deflation...) but that clearly isn't happening right now. I have story after story for why certain semesters haven't gone well but I don't want to just have a string of excuses. I'm getting tired of myself. I don't want to spend the money for a post bac or SMP but it's looking like those are my best options...? I'm also worried that I'll shell out for one of those and just get a string of Bs again and not get in anywhere. Any advice is appreciated.

How are you taking Bio 2, Genetics, and Biochemistry together as a senior?
 
How are you taking Bio 2, Genetics, and Biochemistry together as a senior?

TBH no one stopped me? I had to withdraw from bio ii when I took it my sophomore year due to health issues at the end of the semester but I know most of the content and I passed the entrance exam for biochem.
 
I really just don't know where I'd get the money for one, especially since it would only be for getting into med school... guess I'll have to read through some MD vs DO threads and sort that out for myself.

You say that you're applying for gap year positions? Try to look for one at an academic research center. I work for one affiliated with a university and I can take 2 classes (undergrad or grad) for free per semester as a perk of the job. Most schools have something like this, but I'm sure it varies.
 
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You say that you're applying for gap year positions? Try to look for one at an academic research center. I work for one affiliated with a university and I can take 2 classes (undergrad or grad) for free per semester as a perk of the job. Most schools have something like this, but I'm sure it varies.

I didn't know about this! I'll definitely look into it, thank you!
 
So much of this depends on the school(s) to which you are applying. At a lot of in state schools, grades and GPA are used more to get you in the door to an interview if you meet the minimum requirements. As others have said, certainly do work to improve the lower areas in your application, such as GPA and clinical experience). Just my opinion here, based on years of conducting interviews and reading applications: The key is to acknowledge and explain those low areas and show what you did to improve them. I always appreciate it if an applicant proactively says something like "I realized that I had a low GPA, and that I hadn't taken enough Biology courses. I know that being a physician is all that I want to do with my life, so I decided to take a year off to learn better test taking strategies and take additional classes. Through my school's student services, I discovered that I have text anxiety; I learned strategies to overcome that and was able to achieve a 4.0 in my gap year." A statement like that shows self awareness, maturity, and a proactive spirit that is always very refreshing to hear in an interview or on an application.
 
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