Low GPA and Low MCAT, Chances or Masters program?

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maina2319

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HI all, I just wanted to get your opinion.
I have a low CGPA of 3.02, and around the same if not lower for science. I did my mcat for the first time without using any external help from a program and got a score of 485. I know I wanted to go to med school, but i don't think ill get in applying to a Canadian school or even American with these numbers. Should I go to a Caribbean school (Ross or Saba) or finish my Masters for 2 years aim for a high mark and re-write the mcat and apply again for a Canadian school in 2 years. What will be my chances then in two years, will a Masters help? Keeping in mind, i'll finish my masters at the age of 25 and then start medical school which means i'd graduate at age 29/30 and start looking for residencies.OR having an opportunity I can go straight to Ross or Saba, because whats the guarantee that even after completing my masters I'll get into a Canadian school? If i don't get in then, it would just mean that I "wasted" 2 years doing a degree that in the end isn't really worth it because it won't help me get any major jobs leading me to try to apply to the Caribbean again, something I could've done 2 years prior (Age 23). IS it really worth waiting to re-try in two years post my masters or should I just go straight to the Caribbean, put in hard work and try my luck. God forbid if I don't do good on the step exams or even the school exams during basic sciences I'll not only have no degree within the 2 years of basic sciences, ill be in debt by 200K+ and be back to the position I am in today.
Please do be kind in your responses and for all help.

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Blunt truth time, some individuals "make it" via the Caribbean route, but with that MCAT I do not think you'd be one of those very few people. So ignoring the 400K island vacation, let's turn to that MCAT. Honestly assess where you think you went wrong. Lack of studying? Test day mishap?
 
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Unless your year-by-year breakdown is something like 2.0, 1.8, 3.8, 4.0, you have absolutely no chance at a Canadian school, even after completing a Master's with perfect grades (which at best provides only a slight benefit). Sorry.
 
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And as far as American schools, as an international applicant you have to have stats way higher than US applicants. And you don't. Your GPAs are too low for MD and awfully low for DO and your MCAT isn't competitive for anything. On the old scale a 485~16. A Masters won't cure your problems. The Caribbean schools would probably take you, take your money and then fail you out. You'd be left with a big pile of debt. Maybe it's time to work on Plan B. Not everyone can be a doctor.


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Unless your year-by-year breakdown is something like 2.0, 1.8, 3.8, 4.0, you have absolutely no chance at a Canadian school, even after completing a Master's with perfect grades (which at best provides only a slight benefit). Sorry.

Glad to have you around for discussing about Canadian admissions. Always curious to know more about how it works.
 
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I saw Gary Trudeau interviewed a couple of nights ago and the interviewer shared his comic strips from the late 80s. It was quite scary to see how Trudeau even used Trumps language and style and persona 30 years ago. I was fascinated.


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Yes, some do but overall with student attrition before earning a degree , residency match rates, and an incredibly high proportion that may earn the degree but who effectively drop out of the match process, it just isnt something as an advisor I can recommend to a student. Success rate (starting students who earn a degree and get any residency placement) at the "big" schools run below 50% at best.

Oh I don't disagree with any of that. I was more so speaking to the OP in such a way that "if you're thinking you can go to the Carib and be one of the few people who make it, please don't".
 
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The Carib diploma mills prey upon marks like you.


HI all, I just wanted to get your opinion.
I have a low CGPA of 3.02, and around the same if not lower for science. I did my mcat for the first time without using any external help from a program and got a score of 485. I know I wanted to go to med school, but i don't think ill get in applying to a Canadian school or even American with these numbers. Should I go to a Caribbean school (Ross or Saba) or finish my Masters for 2 years aim for a high mark and re-write the mcat and apply again for a Canadian school in 2 years. What will be my chances then in two years, will a Masters help? Keeping in mind, i'll finish my masters at the age of 25 and then start medical school which means i'd graduate at age 29/30 and start looking for residencies.OR having an opportunity I can go straight to Ross or Saba, because whats the guarantee that even after completing my masters I'll get into a Canadian school? If i don't get in then, it would just mean that I "wasted" 2 years doing a degree that in the end isn't really worth it because it won't help me get any major jobs leading me to try to apply to the Caribbean again, something I could've done 2 years prior (Age 23). IS it really worth waiting to re-try in two years post my masters or should I just go straight to the Caribbean, put in hard work and try my luck. God forbid if I don't do good on the step exams or even the school exams during basic sciences I'll not only have no degree within the 2 years of basic sciences, ill be in debt by 200K+ and be back to the position I am in today.
Please do be kind in your responses and for all help.
 
Either work your butt off to retake the MCAT and fix your GPA issues and go DO or just focus on a MCAT retake, aim for a 500 or so, and aim for podiatry. Good stable career, solid pay, and nice hours while still being able to do medicine and surgery
 
Not sure if anyone has said this yet, but most Canadian med schools rely very heavily on GPA and imho are actually harder to get into than most US schools since they really don't look at your ECs at all. McGill and a few other schools don't even require that you take the MCAT when you apply to their med school (if you went to uni in the US though, they do require MCAT). As one of my friends said to me a while back, "I've never heard of a single person with below a 3.6 getting into McGill." Also, unless you have Ontario residency, it's going to be extremely difficult to get in anywhere since Canadian med schools are hugely biased towards in-province applicants. I say Ontario is the "best" residency to have since they have the most med schools.

Considering all of this, I would do what some people above said and try to get into DO through grade replacement and studying your a** off for an MCAT retake, if medicine is really what you want to do.
 
Thank you all for your information. Having gone to a Canadian University they don't allow you to take courses again to increase your GPA if the course has been passed. In this situation, because I have already graduated, what should my next step be to improve my pre-req grades which will strongly affect my GPA?
 
Thank you all for your information. Having gone to a Canadian University they don't allow you to take courses again to increase your GPA if the course has been passed. In this situation, because I have already graduated, what should my next step be to improve my pre-req grades which will strongly affect my GPA?
I also go to a Canadian University and they do let you retake classes, just not for credit/towards the 120 credit degree requirement. I had AP credit for general biology so still had to take that class since most med schools don't accept AP credit. The grade still shows up on my transcript, there's just an "E" under credit hours. I would find out if DO schools would accept grade replacement that way - retaking the class for "no credit" but still earning a grade in it. Otherwise, I would find out if it's feasible to do 2 years of post-bacc work, but you'd have to absolutely kill it (mostly A's, 3.8+) for it to have enough of an effect.
 
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