low eng gpa from ivy league

[tgc6]

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HI,
I have a 2.6 from undergrad Cornell engineering and am retaking physics I and II as well as taking organic chem and chem for the first time. I also have over 3 years of research experience, but I'm really not sure if I should apply for 2006 or do an SMP.

Would it be crazy to apply to an MS or SMP right now AND apply to med schools for 2006 so that if I don't get in I won't be wasting anymore time?

Anyone else in the same boat?

 

[uclabruin2003]

i will have to say it will be quite difficult to get into medical school with a 2.6 regardless of where you went and what major you were.

maybe if you want to consider it...go DO....or apply for the postbaccs you mentioned. good luck.

 

[blankguy]

As a person having low GPA myself, the impression that I got from doing research for my situation was that just getting prereqs out of the way won't be enough but I would need to boost my GPA by taking additional courses. I would have a long circuitious route to take compared to somebody with a GPA of 3.5+.

 

[ltrain]

you might try contacting the pre-med office at cornell...they would probably be able to give you the stats of how others with situations similar to yours did in the application process. i'm in a situation similar to you and the pre-med office at my undergrad school was really helpful - they're even going to assign me an adviser.

 

[tgc6]

thanks for the advice. i am actually going to setup an appointment with a pre-med advisor at cornell in the next couple of weeks. I'm sure he/she will be brutally honest with me 😳

you might try contacting the pre-med office at cornell...they would probably be able to give you the stats of how others with situations similar to yours did in the application process. i'm in a situation similar to you and the pre-med office at my undergrad school was really helpful - they're even going to assign me an adviser.

 

[Peterock]

thanks for the advice. i am actually going to setup an appointment with a pre-med advisor at cornell in the next couple of weeks. I'm sure he/she will be brutally honest with me 😳

Switch schools. This process is ******ed and the challenge of schools is not at all comprable for a school like Cornell versus an average public school. Go to MDApplicants.com and look for people with mediocre MCATs (27-30) and high GPA's from weak ugrad's and you'll see they have great success. Honestly, if you really want to be a doctor you should just transfer out as you need to get your gpa up to at least a 3.3 to even have a shot.

This process is not fair or equitable, these universities are about padding their numbers to appear competitive and to acquire research grants. If URMs can do fine in medical school with <3.0gpa <25mcat scores, then it tells you that stats are kind of meaningless and it's simply about time spent working/dedication etc. Again, leave Cornell.

 

[El Chupacabra]

Switch schools. This process is ******ed and the challenge of schools is not at all comprable for a school like Cornell versus an average public school. Go to MDApplicants.com and look for people with mediocre MCATs (27-30) and high GPA's from weak ugrad's and you'll see they have great success. Honestly, if you really want to be a doctor you should just transfer out as you need to get your gpa up to at least a 3.3 to even have a shot.

This process is not fair or equitable, these universities are about padding their numbers to appear competitive and to acquire research grants. If URMs can do fine in medical school with <3.0gpa <25mcat scores, then it tells you that are stats are kind of meaningless and it's simply about time spent working/dedication etc. Again, leave Cornell.

Well said....

 

[BigJ77]

HI,
I have a 2.6 from undergrad Cornell engineering and am retaking physics I and II as well as taking organic chem and chem for the first time. I also have over 3 years of research experience, but I'm really not sure if I should apply for 2006 or do an SMP.

Would it be crazy to apply to an MS or SMP right now AND apply to med schools for 2006 so that if I don't get in I won't be wasting anymore time?

Anyone else in the same boat?

I am in a similar situation with a GPA just like yours and an engineering degree/political science degree from West Point. I am going to just try my luck and apply for the 2006 cycle after taking org chem.

 

[Peterock]

I am in a similar situation with a GPA just like yours and an engineering degree/political science degree from West Point. I am going to just try my luck and apply for the 2006 cycle after taking org chem.

Why waste your money? If you have such a low gpa unless you have a HUGE connection, you're not getting into an MD program. I think it's pretty much hopeless to apply to any MD program with <3.0. Go to amcas's site and check out the stats if you don't believe me.

 

[liverotcod]

Would it be crazy to apply to an MS or SMP right now AND apply to med schools for 2006 so that if I don't get in I won't be wasting anymore time?

Anyone else in the same boat?

What's your MCAT?

Why waste your money? If you have such a low gpa unless you have a HUGE connection, you're not getting into an MD program. I think it's pretty much hopeless to apply to any MD program with <3.0. Go to amcas's site and check out the stats if you don't believe me.

I don't know... I have a 2.95 overall GPA, applying this year. I got 30/30 secondaries, passing all screens. So far, 2 interviews and no rejections (although those will start coming in soon, I realize). I do have a good MCAT and 13 years between now and all my bad grades, but I don't think your blanket statement is always true.

 

[tgc6]

Hey,
Um I graduated in 2002 and very much value my cornell education. the question was mostly about whether to give it a shot or get a master's and then try again. I have been dong research at harvard med school for about 2.5 years now with a very well known doctor, so i'm ok with rec letters.

 

[Peterock]

What's your MCAT?

I don't know... I have a 2.95 overall GPA, applying this year. I got 30/30 secondaries, passing all screens. So far, 2 interviews and no rejections (although those will start coming in soon, I realize). I do have a good MCAT and 13 years between now and all my bad grades, but I don't think your blanket statement is always true.

I am having a hard time not condemning you. 1) you have a 39 MCAT, you went to Harvard (and did poorly MANY years ago), you have a post bacc w/ higher more recent grades. You are not in the same boat as the people who are in their 2nd or 3rd year of college.

http://www.career.cornell.edu/HealthCareers/acceptedApplied.html

Go look at the number of people w/ <3.0's.

I think the false hope you hand out is really quite cruel.

 

[no-see-um]

HI,
I have a 2.6 from undergrad Cornell engineering and am retaking physics I and II as well as taking organic chem and chem for the first time. I also have over 3 years of research experience, but I'm really not sure if I should apply for 2006 or do an SMP.

Would it be crazy to apply to an MS or SMP right now AND apply to med schools for 2006 so that if I don't get in I won't be wasting anymore time?

Anyone else in the same boat?

I could attest to the fact that Cornell Engineering aint a cakewalk. Ithaca aint so 'gorges' for the Engineers. Anyone who knows Cornell knows the battering that students in certain majors face when it comes to classes. GPA has a different meaning at Cornell. You need to do well on your MCAT to point out this fact of CU life even more.

I think it may be prudent to try a 1-yr MS in a science-related field if you have the money and inclination to do so. I trust that you will end up doing very well in those classes- also consistent with my above statements.

Are you doing your recommendations through HCEC? It's important to keep those updated. You may want to call them up and ask for some advice as well. HCEC's been very good to me and they know their stuff. 👍

Good luck tgc.

-Fly '04

 

[no-see-um]

I am having a hard time not condemning you. 1) you have a 39 MCAT, you went to Harvard (and did poorly MANY years ago), you have a post bacc w/ higher more recent grades. You are not in the same boat as the people who are in their 2nd or 3rd year of college.

http://www.career.cornell.edu/HealthCareers/acceptedApplied.html

Go look at the number of people w/ <3.0's.

I think the false hope you hand out is really quite cruel.

None of those students had a 35+ MCAT score, first of all. Second of all, these are only the students at Cornell who registered with HCEC and who have reported their acceptances/rejections.

The stats just aren't there to deter or to promote any specific action in this situation. This is a unique applicant. And truthfully, in any one person's case, one would like to be that 1 of 1 or it's all for naught.

 

[Peterock]

None of those students had a 35+ MCAT score, first of all. Second of all, these are only the students at Cornell who registered with HCEC and who have reported their acceptances/rejections.

The stats just aren't there to deter or to promote any specific action in this situation. This is a unique applicant. And truthfully, in any one person's case, one would like to be that 1 of 1 or it's all for naught.

Uh, so don't you think the people who did NOT report probably got rejected?! I bet there are even more people with sub 3.0's who did not post back. I personally might not. Also, there are few students with a <3.0 35+ (like one in 2002, 1999, etc). None of the students with a sub 3.0 and a 30-34 get in. The reality is that most people with these awful gpa's don't go to schools that are as hard as Cornell or Harvard etc. and they cannot just drop a "39" with a few months of studying.

 

[no-see-um]

Uh, so don't you think the people who did NOT report probably got rejected?! I bet there are even more people with sub 3.0's who did not post back. I personally might not. Also, there are few students with a <3.0 35+ (like one in 2002, 1999, etc). None of the students with a sub 3.0 and a 30-34 get in. The reality is that most people with these awful gpa's don't go to schools that are as hard as Cornell or Harvard etc. and they cannot just drop a "39" with a few months of studying.

Maybe, maybe not. Point is to be in it to win it, and the stats shown by Cornell itself don't show anything statistically significant at all due to the low number of people in the OP's situation to conclude that the OP won't have a shot based on his GPA/MCAT combination. In this case, it's important to be a 1/1 in the applied/accepted chart versus a 0/1. It's all about being 100%. I have seen many things that are not doable in the applications process, but I believe that this is.

 

[Peterock]

Maybe, maybe not. Point is to be in it to win it, and the stats shown by Cornell itself don't show anything statistically significant at all due to the low number of people in the OP's situation to conclude that the OP won't have a shot based on his GPA/MCAT combination. In this case, it's important to be a 1/1 in the applied/accepted chart versus a 0/1. It's all about being 100%. I have seen many things that are not doable in the applications process, but I believe that this is.

We can go to mdapplicants too... and just look at white/asian/indian stats etc. It's pretty bleak for those guys too. I really think the people who get in w/ gpa's of <3.0 pretty much HAVE to have a connection or a super MCAT score (36+), and even then it's a long shot.

 

[sidewalkman]

HI,
I have a 2.6 from undergrad Cornell engineering and am retaking physics I and II as well as taking organic chem and chem for the first time. I also have over 3 years of research experience, but I'm really not sure if I should apply for 2006 or do an SMP.

Would it be crazy to apply to an MS or SMP right now AND apply to med schools for 2006 so that if I don't get in I won't be wasting anymore time?

Anyone else in the same boat?

Boy, so many varied responses.

Yes, your major and school were hard, but you can't do anything about that now, and your GPA is really what is looked at over all else.

The first thing you should do is take 15 minutes to calculate your science GPA. If you've taken few science credits (what type of engineering did you major in?), your science GPA can be easily raised. This is the boat I'm in. Furthermore, if you're thinking DO (are you?), you can retake all those crummy classes and replace the grade, further boosting the ol' GPA.

Unfortunately, I beleive you won't really know when to apply until you get your MCAT score. I wouldn't apply outright to MD schools unless you got a 35 or above. If you do fine, but don't kill it, then look into graduate work. (Pick a master's where you're taking med school classes; it's probably the most convincing thing you can do that says you deserve a spot in medical school, plus you may be able to do a research thesis.) If you do kill the MCAT, also apply to master's programs anyway as a backup.

All of these things are factors toward deciding when to apply.

 

[liverotcod]

I am having a hard time not condemning you. 1) you have a 39 MCAT, you went to Harvard (and did poorly MANY years ago), you have a post bacc w/ higher more recent grades. You are not in the same boat as the people who are in their 2nd or 3rd year of college.

http://www.career.cornell.edu/HealthCareers/acceptedApplied.html

Go look at the number of people w/ <3.0's.

I think the false hope you hand out is really quite cruel.

Looks like you were unsuccessful in your attempt not to condemn. In general, I think my approach to advising this type of question is fairly balanced. I have already noted that I am not your typical 2.95 applicant, but then neither is the OP.

 

[Peterock]

Looks like you were unsuccessful in your attempt not to condemn. In general, I think my approach to advising this type of question is fairly balanced. I have already noted that I am not your typical 2.95 applicant, but then neither is the OP.

One line of how I see your poor analysis as being harmful, that was it. I did not condemn you and your skin cannot possibly be that thin that you took offense to someone disagreeing w/ u. When people shuck diet pills that don't work and give people hope, I find it cruel... I think you're doing the same thing (though with an earnest intention of being helpful). The number of people with gpa's trully below 3.0 and MCATs over 36 probably range could not be more than 50 people each year. He needs to switch schools as well as majors and get his gpa up.

 

[no-see-um]

Cornell is hell on wheels.

 

[joy77]

Peterock- I believe the the OP has already graduated from the Cornell engineering program and can't "switch schools and majors" like you keep saying. He/she is merely trying to figure out the best way to improve the total package to gain acceptance, whether it's this year or sometime in the future.

good luck tgc6!

 

[liverotcod]

I did not condemn you and your skin cannot possibly be that thin that you took offense to someone disagreeing w/ u.

I didn't take offense; I was just pointing out a little irony.

MDApplicants.com might be a better source than Cornell's internal data, given its larger sample size, but beware - it's not really representative. To the OP, I agree that you are better off not applying this cycle. If you can make ~50 credits post-bacc at near 4.0, and do well on the MCAT, you will be OK.

 

[Peterock]

Peterock- I believe the the OP has already graduated from the Cornell engineering program and can't "switch schools and majors" like you keep saying. He/she is merely trying to figure out the best way to improve the total package to gain acceptance, whether it's this year or sometime in the future.

good luck tgc6!

In that case, post bacc in biological sciences you have never taken before (ie physiology, immunology, biochemistry etc)... classes that will be covered in medical school. And retake the classes you got a C+ or below in. And do it in a school you know you can get an A with the other stuff in your life.

Take a Kaplan/PR/Berk/EK etc course for your MCAT and block off as much time as you can for it.

Start up some community service/shadowing.

 

[tgc6]

Thanks for your help everyone,
I have decided to apply for master programs, so far both special master's programs and bioengineering master's programs.

I'll take the mcat in april 2005 and if I do really well, i'll apply to med schools, but i'll probably end up waiting til the next cycle.

does anyone know about the new york medical college master's program???? noone seems to mention it
or about any other inexpensive medical science master's programs in new york

i guess i should search the threads for this info.