Low GPA, high MCAT, high research

[ayalachemgrl]

Hi all,
I am posting here to ask if I should limit my applications to only DO schools, or push my application another year. I am in my 3rd gap year as an R&D organic chemist in industrial chem. I have wanted to be a physician my entire life, but I knew after undergrad, that I needed more experience before I could apply.
I have ~3000hrs of independent research, and ~100hrs of clinical experience in shadowing, ambulance ride outs, and volunteering at a sexual wellness clinic.
~250hrs of volunteering at homeless shelter as well as tutoring organic chemistry, volunteering as a HS chemistry mentor, and leading underrepresented student tours in the chemistry lab for Oklahoma students.
My MCAT is pretty average at 511, my sGPA is 3.3 and cGPA is 3.0. I majored in chemistry at a tier 1 research college, while also working 20hrs a week to financially support myself.
I am reluctant to do a postbacc due to the financial strain that it would cause. I am already paying off loans I accumulated in undergrad and really don’t want to pile on more. I am also 25, and would be applying for matriculation in 2026, and turning 26. This is what I am meant to do in life, I am a problem solver, a bleeding heart, and an academic. I just need ADCOMs to see that too.
Should I continue to beef up clinical hours? Or write a killer PS to fully encapsulate my “why medicine”. Or should I bite the bullet and take another year, or just do post bacc.

Thanks,
- Emma

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[einvincible12]

Sorry but how is a 511 MCAT "high"? I would say lifeguarding is not clinical experience.

 

[ayalachemgrl]

Sorry but how is a 511 MCAT "high"? I would say lifeguarding is not clinical experience.

Yeah, I mentioned it was average. I would consider lifeguarding clinical because it utilizes some patient assessment, minimal treatment, and emergency response training. Similar to EMT but less rigorous.
Thanks for the response.

 

[Lakers$]

Sorry but how is a 511 MCAT "high"? I would say lifeguarding is not clinical experience.

511 is a great score. If you have an upper trend on your grades. Apply it’s worth a try. Apply early. Have multiple people go over your written part of your app. Make sure you show instead of tell.

 

[Lakers$]

511 is a great score. If you have an upper trend on your grades. Apply it’s worth a try. Apply early. Have multiple people go over your written part of your app. Make sure you show instead of tell.

Also if you will be writing your ps my biggest advice is don’t brag for example “ I want to be a doctor bc I know everything about vital signs”. If you want to talk about your skills always show it with a story ex as a emt I met BOB and help him understand vital signs averages etc

 

[ayalachemgrl]

Also if you will be writing your ps my biggest advice is don’t brag for example “ I want to be a doctor bc I know everything about vital signs”. If you want to talk about your skills always show it with a story ex as a emt I met BOB and help him understand vital signs averages etc

The bulk of my PS is about overcoming problems in research and development. Even PhD chemists don’t know everything about how orgo works. Some is about the virtues I have seen from physicians I shadow. Why it’s important/what I learned.
Sharing what I know about clinical care seems poser-y bc I don’t know very much beyond basic prevention and observation.

 

[Lakers$]

The bulk of my PS is about overcoming problems in research and development. Even PhD chemists don’t know everything about how orgo works. Some is about the virtues I have seen from physicians I shadow. Why it’s important/what I learned.
Sharing what I know about clinical care seems poser-y bc I don’t know very much beyond basic prevention and observation.

I would answer the question “why medicine”. Talk about your research probably 2-5 sentences max. If you were applying phd/md then I believe for those programs they have research proposal ps.

 

[LizzyM]

Lifeguarding is NOT clinical. You will be the laughingstock of the application cycle if you classify it as such. It was non-clinical employment.

 

[LunaOri]

Definitely include DO schools when you apply.

 

[Goro]

I have ~3000hrs of independent research, and shadowing experiences, and volunteering in a homeless shelter clinic.
~250hrs of volunteering at homeless shelter as well as tutoring organic chemistry, volunteering as a HS chemistry mentor, and leading underrepresented student tours in the chemistry lab for Oklahoma students.
My MCAT is pretty average at 511, my sGPA is 3.3 and cGPA is 3.0. I majored in chemistry at a tier 1 research college, while also working 20hrs a week to financially support myself.
I am reluctant to do a postbacc due to the financial strain that it would cause. I am already paying off loans I accumulated in undergrad and really don’t want to pile on more. I am also 25, and would be applying for matriculation in 2026, and turning 26. This is what I am meant to do in life, I am a problem solver, a bleeding heart, and an academic. I just need ADCOMs to see that too.
Should I continue to beef up clinical hours? Or write a killer PS to fully encapsulate my “why medicine”. Or should I bite the bullet and take another year, or just do post bacc.

Thanks,
- Emma

Your GPAs are not competitive for MD schools.
A 511 MCAT school is a point below median for MD acceptees.
You're fine for DO schools.
The bolded above is not clinical exposure.
No golden PS is going to get someone into medical school. We need to know that one can handle med school, and MCAT is just part of the picture. On top of that, it's a seller's market, except for the newest of the DO schools, which you should be avoiding.

The bulk of my PS is about overcoming problems in research and development. Even PhD chemists don’t know everything about how orgo works.
This will make screeners and interviewers think that you should go for a PhD, or into industry.

So work for a few years, save up some money, and go for more patient contact experience (like scribing, which can count as shadowing AND employment AND clinical exposure).

Read this:
Med School Rx: Getting In, Getting Through, and Getting On with Doctoring Original Edition by Walter Hartwig
ISBN-13: 978-1607140627
ISBN-10: 1607140624

Med schools aren't going anywhere. If you're gunning for MD, read this:
Goro's advice for pre-meds who need reinvention (updated for 2021)

 

[chilly_md]

Obtain 200 or more hours of real clinical experience. Can be patient facing hospital volunteering, CNA, scribe, MA or EMT etc. Shadowing is separate. You can apply DO after that, and I suggest:

Oklahoma State
KCU
KCOM (Kirksville)
DMU
PCOM (all campuses)
ACOM
VCOM
Campbell
Marian
NYIT AR
Touro NV
WCU
LECOM (all campuses)
WVSOM
UIWSOM

 

[ayalachemgrl]

A little more background, I am a Texas native and have lived there my entire life up until 2024.
Can Tx DOs be considered?

 

[chilly_md]

A little more background, I am a Texas native and have lived there my entire life up until 2024.
Can Tx DOs be considered?

UIWSOM is a Texas DO. If you are still a TX resident, you can try Sam Houston on TMDSAS. Otherwise no. Sam Houston accepted very few non-residents in past years.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I know there is such a thing as "wilderness medicine," but I'm unsure why "beach medicine" doesn't exist.