low cGPA, high sGPA, non-trad. Chances at MD if retake MCAT?

[msmathteacher]

Will MCAT retake help me get into an MD school, even with lower cumulative GPA, but higher science GPA? Or am I destined to go to DO? I'm also wondering what schools to consider who might like non-trads with strong service backgrounds and my stats. I am not a URM nor do I consider myself disadvantaged.

I think my experiences show I have a strong background working with underserved populations, and I would like to work with underserved populations in the future. Thanks!

• Year in school: Grad (non-trad)
• Country/state of residence: NY
• Schools to which you are applying: Unsure yet. Would preferably like to go somewhere near Los Angeles (where I'm from) or NYC, but I know those are very difficult to get into. Would love insight on this.
• Major: Economics
• Cumulative GPA: 3.39 (3.18 / 3.14 / 3.18 / 3.51 / 3.79 postbac)
• Science GPA: 3.66 (3.00 / 3.70 / none / 4.00 / 3.79 postbac)
• Postbac GPA: 3.79 (all science prereqs except Gen Chem 1, which I got A- in undergrad)
• MCAT Scores: June 2018 (502), August 2018 (505), retake ~Feb-March 2020
  • The first time I took it, I was very sick and should not have taken it (503). Second time was two months later, I just rushed to take it again even though I still had symptoms which was really dumb (505). I know med schools won't care about that whole story, but wanted to give you all context. It has now been a year since that whole fiasco, and I have since recovered, and this time I would take an in-person class that I've heard great things about, while also doing a bunch of prep (practice questions, more practice exams) on my own of course. I'm ready to take it on now and am confident I would get ~515, if not higher.
• Research: 100 hours, (non-hard science, one semester in college, no abstracts/posters/publications)
• Volunteering (clinical): 1800 hours
  • 1700: AmeriCorps - Health Educator @ Federally Qualified Health Center serving homeless families
  • 50: Rounded with cardiology unit at hospital, navigated them to next room and paged team members (nurse, etc) needed for next room
  • 50: Hospital volunteer
• Physician shadowing: I shadowed a lot in AmeriCorps and when I volunteered with cardiology unit, but not sure how to explain that. Just shadowing is 40 hours:
  • Emergency Medicine: 10 hours
  • Internal Medicine: 20 hours
  • Adolescent Medicine (Pediatrics): 10 hours
• Non-clinical volunteering: 1200 hours
  • White House Summer Intern - 450 hours
  • Site Director for free SAT program serving low-income students - 500 hours
  • Afterschool tutoring for low-income students - 250 hours
• Extracurricular activities: TFA Corps Member Leadership Fellowship, Fundraising Volunteer for college (still involved), Academic Peer Advisor at college, Transportation Advisory Committee at college
• Employment history: Teach For America (high school math teacher @ low-income school for 2 years), Site Coordinator for summer reading camp for low-income students (3 months over summer)
• Immediate family members in medicine? (y/n): yes, sister in ob/gyn, mother in radiology, father in cardiology
• Specialty of interest: Pediatrics (maybe adolescent med), in underserved populations
• Graduate degrees: MS in Urban Education
• Interest in rural health (y/n): no

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[msmathteacher]

@Goro I would appreciate any advice you have to give!

 

[msmathteacher]

@Faha I would love your advice too.

 

[Goro]

@Goro I would appreciate any advice you have to give!

As of right now, chances lethal for MD; fine for any DO.

Get a 515+ on a retake to undo the damage you've done. And make better choices in the future. The MCAT is as much a test of judgement as it is of competency.
Quoting the wise Homeskool: Taking the MCAT is like getting married: ideally you only do it once, and the more times you do it the worse you start looking to suitors with good judgment.

 

[Faha]

@Faha I would love your advice too.

I suggest these DO schools with your stats:
NYIT-COM
PCOM
LECOM (all schools)
VCOM (all schools)
CUSOM
MU-COM
UIWSOM
Your chances for a MD acceptance are only 1/3 but you could try these schools:
All 4 SUNY's
Albany
New York Medical College
Vermont
Quinnipiac
Seton Hall
Drexel
Temple
George Washington
NOVA MD
Oakland Beaumont
Wayne State
Medical College Wisconsin
Rosalind Franklin
Loyola
Creighton
TCU-UNT
Loma Linda

 

[msmathteacher]

I suggest these DO schools with your stats:
NYIT-COM
PCOM
LECOM (all schools)
VCOM (all schools)
CUSOM
MU-COM
UIWSOM
Your chances for a MD acceptance are only 1/3 but you could try these schools:
All 4 SUNY's
Albany
New York Medical College
Vermont
Quinnipiac
Seton Hall
Drexel
Temple
George Washington
NOVA MD
Oakland Beaumont
Wayne State
Medical College Wisconsin
Rosalind Franklin
Loyola
Creighton
TCU-UNT
Loma Linda

Thanks for your reply. How about Western in LA? And you think even if I retook the MCAT and ended up getting 515+, I would still have a 1/3 chance at MD?

 

[Faha]

Thanks for your reply. How about Western in LA? And you think even if I retook the MCAT and ended up getting 515+, I would still have a 1/3 chance at MD?

Western is more competitive but you could try it. It is unlikely that you will increase your MCAT score to 515+ considering what your 3 previous scores are.

 

[Walter Raleigh]

Then again, if OP's scoring 515+ on official AAMC practice tests, taken under conditions approximating Test Day, they have a solid shot.

 

[candbgirl]

Then again, if OP's scoring 515+ on official AAMC practice tests, taken under conditions approximating Test Day, they have a solid shot.

Where did OP say this?

 

[Walter Raleigh]

They're confident they can get 515+; that confidence is misplaced unless they're doing that well on official AAMC practice tests, taken under conditions approximating Test Day.

 

[candbgirl]

They're confident they can get 515+; that confidence is misplaced unless they're doing that well on official AAMC practice tests, taken under conditions approximating Test Day.

Lots of people are sure they can score 515 if not higher. This person says he is confident but hasn’t done anything to make that happen (“. It has now been a year since that whole fiasco, and I have since recovered, and this time I would take an in-person class that I've heard great things about, while also doing a bunch of prep (practice questions, more practice exams) on my own of course. I'm ready to take it on now and am confident I would get ~515, if not higher.) so until he comes up with a real 515+ he needs to deal with his 502 and 505 that are already on his record.

 

[Walter Raleigh]

@msmathteacher: the million dollar question is this: how well have you been doing on AAMC practice exams?