LOW GPA/MCAT Success Stories (Posts by Nontrads Already Accepted to Med School)

[Chip N Sawbones]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
30 years old, 3.1 cGPA, 4.0 postbac GPA, 32P MCAT.

2. Your financial and work situation.
Just before starting my postbac I worked as a carpenter for a few months. Before that I was volunteering for two years in West Africa. I had a few people and churches sponsoring my volunteer work, but I was always broke. After the postbac I bought an old fixer-upper house that I've been remodeling. It will be ready to sell in a few weeks, and I'll make a nice profit.

3. Your family and significant other situation.
I'm single and realistically, I'll stay that way for a long time.

4. Your plan or your path to success.
I graduated from Fort Lewis College, Colorado in 2004 with a European History degree. After that I alternated between construction work and a total of more than three years of volunteer projects in Romania, China, New Orleans, Croatia, Germany, Gambia, Togo, South Africa and Sierra Leone. I returned to school in the summer of 2011 at Oregon State University and University of Alaska Fairbanks to take all the prerequisite classes and retake a statistics class I failed during my first round of college. I took the MCAT in April 2012 and got a 32. It was a good score but still a disappointment, since I had been averaging 35's in practice. I applied to 11 MD and 9 DO schools.


What I did right
I got perfect grades in a full schedule of the prerequisite classes. I was able to hammer this point home in my essays and interviews to show that my poor cGPA was not an accurate gauge of my ability to succeed in medical school. That seemed to work well for DO schools and some MD schools. All my volunteer work helped a lot too. I wasn't doing it with the intention of strengthening my application, but it certainly did work well. I must have been the perfect candidate for schools like VCOM that specialize in rural and international medicine.

What I did wrong
I needed at least a month of dedicated study time for the MCAT, and I didn't get it. The test was only available in April or July in my town. I chose April, but I'm certain that if I'd taken it in late May after college was finished my score would have been 3-4 points higher. When I chose schools to apply to I took the shotgun approach and sent applications to everything from top-notch MD (Mayo, UNC) to new DO (Campbell, PNWU). I should have tightened up the spread a little and added a few more lower-tier MD and top DO schools. With my weird stats it was hard to know what to apply for.

Results
Accepted to NOVA, VCOM Carolina and Tulane. Waitlisted at Western Lebanon. Withdrew from interview invites at KCOM, LMU and PNWU. Small-pooled at Rosalind Franklin. Rejected at Mayo after getting a LOR request, which is still a huge step. Rejected outright at UNC, VCU and Wake Forest. I'm waiting to hear from six schools but there are only two I would go to interviews at. Tulane was always one of my top choices, so I'm delighted to be accepted there.

Conclusion
It is possible to ignore your cGPA and get accepted DO and even some MD schools based on amazing ECs, a decent MCAT and a perfect postbac. However, even though this approach worked for me, I do not recommend it to others. Unless you enjoy smuggling Bibles into China, welding on a ship in Croatia or mixing concrete in Gambia and would do those things if you weren't applying to medical school, the established route of retaking bad grades and boosting the sGPA is going to be an easier, more reliable way to get accepted.

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[kalvin008]

Fellow Non-Traditional Future Physicians,

I just got accepted to Michigan State University (even with a sub-30 mcat score!) and wanted to share with you guys my story for some that maybe having doubts. (In no way am I trying to gloat and sorry for the long story!)

Like many non-traditional applicants, I didn't grow up thinking I would be a physician. I thought the word physician meant "someone who specialized in physics," until about two years ago.

I went to a high school in a pretty underserved area. About 40% of students were graduating during my year in ‘04. Some of my friends were teenage parents, dropouts, or graduated but worked dead end jobs. Although all of this was a norm in my community, for some reason, I knew that there was more.

Went to college at UCI, had no idea what I wanted to do. Took classes from several discipline and found a love in Asian American Studies. (Btw, super unprepared for college. Performed poorly on all of my placement exams and placed into remedial math and English at UCI). Still had no idea what I wanted to do but continued taking classes. Realized that education was elixir to mobility so I pursued education as a high school teacher to return back and serve within my community.

Got into a graduate education program at UCLA and began teaching in South Central Los Angeles. I felt like I was an athlete, getting paid to do what I love, which was helping and serving my community. As I taught algebra, I couldn't help my students in Bio or Chem. While it troubled me, it sparked an interest in the sciences. Considered taking some sciences classes. My entire family didn't support me. With my parents make minimum wage, I was helping them out financially on my teacher salary, so I understood their perspective but hated the fact that I didn't have their support. I encountered a lot of people that said that because I'm Asian, odds are against me. Though it may have been true, coming from an uneducated family with a household income that flirted with the poverty level motivated me even more.

After a pre-Chem course in the summer, I decided to put teaching on hold for a bit and wanted to take more science classes. Enrolled in a Bio and Chem course. That Fall semester, I had a really bad allergic reaction to Bactrim. My reaction was called Erythema Multiforme, a minor case of Steven Johnson. Worst part was not having health insurance, which supported my family's argument of not going back to school. Told my attending doctor to discharge me cause I couldn't afford it. He said he couldn't help me with my hospital bill but wouldn't charge me for his services. That moment was my wake up call to pursue a profession as a healthcare provider (despite a $10,000 hospital bill).

So I explored several professions. Realized that Pharmacy was like teaching, with communication as key. I pursued it. Applied to some pharmacy schools and got into UCSF. Despite this, I felt that my community needed a physician more. Withdrew my admissions from SF (hardest decision in my life) and decided to pursue med. Continued taking more classes. My first MCAT score was a 22Q. Decided to retake it after finishing Ochem and tutoring Chemistry and my second was a 27R (9 on each section). Applied to roughly 40 schools. So far got rejected to 4. Waitlisted on two (preinterview). Got an interview at LECOM in January and an acceptance at Michigan State University!!!!! I just wanted to say that I took all my prereqs at a community college, which included Bio, Chem, Ochem, Physics, Micro, Anatomy, Physio. I know that there are many applicants out there that encounter way much more adversity but I just wanted to say that if I can do it, I know that everyone can. I was never the best student. My SAT's, I got 910 out of 1600, below average and for GRE's I got 870 out of 1600!!

Last year I went to a pre-Med conference at UC Davis, while I didn't get too much out of it, the guest speaker, Dr. Richard Carmona, US General Surgeon, made my trip worth it. His speech was sooo motivational that I've probably watched it 10+ times. If you guys haven't seen it yet:

http://www.amsaarcucd.org/videos/#Con2011

First video on top left. Again sorry for the long story but I just wanted to say Good Luck to everyone!!

Calvin

 

[PurpleSmiley]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
24 years old, 3.5 cGPA and sGPA, 28S MCAT

I had significant difficulty with the MCAT. I took it a total of 3 times, with no improvement each time. This is bad! Don't do this!

2009: 28M
2010: 29O
2012: 28S

I was not mature enough to take it the first time, and I stupidly took it the 2nd time after incomplete preparation. I really hoped the 3rd time I would improve my score, especially because my practice tests were averaging around 34, but I had serious anxiety and insomnia the whole week before the test, so of course my brain just could not work properly.

2. Your financial and work situation.
After college I worked in a non-profit organization for 2 years, and this past year, as a research assistant. So I have a bit of money saved up from working for the last 3 years.

3. Your family and significant other situation.
I'm in a long term relationship, and my boyfriend is trying to find a job based on where I will be accepted, since I had to apply to a wide range of schools because of my low MCAT.

4. Your plan or your path to success.
I graduated from college in 2010, and wanted to take a few years off to improve my application, take a break from school, and to just live a little. I worked for a non-profit organization for 2 years, then as a research assistant for the last year.

I applied to a very broad range of schools, in a lot of different locations. I was only interested in applying to MD schools, due to my interest in global health and my knowledge of the difficulty of practicing medicine out of the US as a DO. I applied to 20 MD schools total.

What I did right
I am passionate about a lot of my extracurricularsL clinical volunteering, leading organizations, music, and research. I had several publications, both through research and through writing articles. In terms of volunteering, I stuck with 3 main organizations, and volunteered with each extensively. I volunteered for ~750 hours prior to submitting the AMCAS. I had a lot of clinical experience, through shadowing and volunteering, mostly because I really wanted to make sure that medicine was the career I wanted to pursue.

Also, taking off 3 years between undergrad and med school was one of the best decisions I have made. I enjoyed the break, and matured enormously during that time. I think that was one of the key reasons why I have been so successful so far during this application season.

Results
I applied to 20 schools (refer to MDApps for full list), and have received 7 interview invites so far. Accepted at Drexel, Rush, Robert Wood. Waitlisted at GWU. Withdrew from interview invite at Eastern Virginia, and have upcoming interviews at MCW and UVM.

I am completely shocked by the positive attention I've been getting from schools. I was expecting 2-3 interviews, maybe 1 acceptance. I would have been happy to attend anywhere I got in.

For interviews, I didn't prepare too much. I outlined my answers for the typical questions (Why be a doctor? Why did you study __? Greatest strength/weakness?) and practiced them in front of other people. I keep up to date with health policy on my own for fun, so I could easily give an informed opinion on a number of topics. I haven't been asked any particularly hard questions, but what I have learned from interviews, is that you really have the power to direct the interview. Most questions are open-ended, so I was able to talk about examples from my own life. I honestly really enjoy the interviews, because I loved seeing the schools, meeting the other applicants, and getting to talk about medicine to the interviewer instead of the bf or friends and watching their eyes glaze over.

 

[wanderedtoolong]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
30 years old, 3.3 uGPA, 3.9 gGPA, 37Q

2. Your financial and work situation.
Between being a graduate student for 2 years and now working a lab job, I'm basically breaking even every month. I lab tech full time right now.

3. Your family and significant other situation.
Engaged, my fiance is a graduate student and will finish his PhD about a year after I matriculate

4. Your plan or your path to success.
I was a bio major as an undergrad, so I had all the pre-reqs done (some over 10 years ago but most schools don't seem to care). Unfortunately, my ugpa was pretty low, but having taught undergrad science classes as a grad student, I couldn't bring myself to take any more. It would have taken a LOT of credits to bump my sgpa up, so I thought I'd just kill the mcat to compensate.
I have some pretty interesting ECs including some grants for international field research and a ton of research. I didn't ANY clinical experience when I started preparing to apply so I started volunteering in an ED and did some shadowing.

What I did right
As soon as I realized I might want to apply to med school, I started gaining some clinical experience (I needed this to make my decision, as well as for the sake of my application)
I prepared thoroughly for the MCAT and made sure it would be a strength on my application.

What I did wrong
I also had a hard time knowing where to apply with my stats spread. I hoped some upper-tier schools might look at my graduate work and mcat and interview me, but I found that ugpa matters WAY more than I thought it would and I didn't make the cut at any of those schools.
I also scheduled interviews for some of my top choices very early on. I wish I had given myself a few more interview experiences before walking into my "most important" one.
I also should have volunteered in a "non medical" setting at some point. I started doing this in September just because I had the time once my apps were in, and I really enjoy it, and it has come up in interviews a lot, but it probably would have helped to have something similar on my AMCAS.

Results
Accepted to Tulane. "High Priority" waitlist at Cooper. Waitlist at University of Michigan (I think they only interviewed me because I went to grad school there). Still waiting to hear back from UNC Chapel Hill, Brody at East Carolina, University of Vermont, and Hofstra. Still haven't been rejected from a bunch of those upper tier schools, but I think by now I can assume most of them are "silent rejections"

Conclusion
Undergrad gpa matters a lot, even if you've had a ton of experience since then, are more mature, and have proven your academic chops in other ways. There are just too many applicants who DO have the 3.8 to justify giving an interview to someone who does not (at top tier schools). I'm thrilled to be in somewhere and know I'm going to med school, but I really would like to be able to go in state due to financial concerns, and I feel like I blew my UNC interview (which was 4 months ago). Take home advice- get your stats as high as you can and work from there. Check the boxes, jump through the hoops.

 

[Tadaaa]

Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
24 years old, had an undergrad GPA of 3.0, science GPA 2.9, and a 30 MCAT (10/10/10).

Your financial and work situation.
Worked almost always full time throughout college. Today I work in clinical for a big university. I work about 60 hrs per week. It was tough to study for the MCAT while working.

Your family and significant other situation.
Married.

Your plan or your path to success.
Had straight A's first semester. Then took a plunge as I became over-involved with activities such as research, community service, work, family, etc. GPA progressively declined as I placed less and less emphasis on my studies and more on work/family. Had 2 very bad semesters as a result then decided to regain control and GPA shot up for 2 semesters but the damage had been done. I had to prove myself to the admissions committee so I enrolled in an SMP and obtained a 3.7 GPA after 2 full semesters 16+ credit per semester of science graduate courses (same as those taught in most med schools such as anatomy, embryo, biochem, physio, clinical nutrition, immuno, neuro, etc.). Finished rather quickly and took the MCAT then started working in the research department as a research assistant for a few months before becoming the department's clinical research coordinator. Got great letters, gained clinical experience, more research, published, and applied to med school.

What I did right
Plenty, plenty, plenty research experience, interesting life story, great AMCAS primary (took about a month to really polish/fine tune), great secondaries, lots of EC, amazing LOR, work experience,, a lot of courage and commitment to continue, and descent interviewing skills.


What I did wrong
Didn't set up my priorities from the beginning, didn't have a mentor, and I took on too much I should have never taken such a heavy science load in undergrad every semesters. I should have applied early in June (it might have made a big difference). A big gap between the time I took those pre-med classes and the MCAT. Don't take your main pre-med classes (Bio/Chem/Phys) in the same semester of Freshman year, college courses are much different than high school so you need time to figure out new study methods, etc.

Results (re-posting from a previous post):
I completed the SMP in 2010 and received a 3.7, currently working at a big university/medical school, and I am applying to medical schools right now (2012-2013). I received 9 MD/MD-PhD interview invites.

So far I have received 2 acceptances and I'm just waiting for the rest of them to let me know my status, but I do know I will be a doctor!

Conclusion (re-posting from previous post):

There is no doubt that the reason I was able to interview at so many places as well as the 2 acceptances I have so far have been due to the fact that I was able to prove to the admissions committee through my SMP that I could do the work and I could do it well. There is very little information available as to whether medical schools are fond of taking SMP students after a low GPA such as mine so I applied broadly. I was praying for 1 interview and 1 acceptance. I had a far better turnout that I ever thought I would. I applied to 40 medical schools and I am waiting (with very little hope) on 10 more schools to reply for an interview. I felt it was almost a miracle that I was accepted into 1, let alone 2 programs. I don't want to be greedy, but I look forward to hearing back from the rest and making my decision before May 15 so I can finally move on with my life. Bottom line is you have to apply very very broadly when you are in the situation of low low GPA and average MCAT. Also you have to be a slave to the secondaries and turn them in within 2 weeks of receipt so that you have a better chance at interviewing, especially if you didn't turn in your AMCAS in June.

The only thing I would have done differently in terms of applications, would have been to submit EARLY in June because I didn't submit until August and was verified in September therefore my secondaries were not submitted until Sept/Oct. Interviewed Nov/Dec/Jan/Feb.

 

[abolt18]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
24 years old. 3.3ish GPA (2.19 after year 1. 3.6 the past 3 years)
MCAT 28O I was shooting for a 30 but was very limited on my time I could commit to the test. Reviewed a little with Chad's Videos for content in the months prior to the test. Really cracked down and studied/did tons of practice tests in the last 9 days before the test.
2. Your financial and work situation.
Worked 32-40 hours per week throughout all of undergrad. My wife worked also until we had our first child. Now I'm in my last semester of undergrad, and last few months of working for $13 an hour.
3. Your family and significant other situation.
Married to my beautiful wife for almost 3 years now. We have a 4 month old baby girl.
4. Your plan or your path to success.
First off, I'm VERY excited that when med school begins in July, I get to do ONLY school and not have to work full time at the same time.

My wife pushes me to work hard and be diligent. The plan is when school starts, study time is at school, family time is at home. I hope to keep the two separate and give enough time to both.

Applied only DO. Applied to 8 schools (really 9 but only did 8 of the secondaries). 5 Interview invites, 4 attended, 4 acceptances. One thing that I feel set me apart (it was mentioned in most interviews) was that I started a Pre-SOMA club at my school and have served as President for the past year. I learned a lot from the experience and it actually opened up several more service, shadowing, and leadership opportunities for me.

And the final, and possibly most important aspect to keeping me going, making time to go rock climbing. Or anything outdoors really, but even going just once every few weeks keeps the head clear and the body feeling good.

 

[lunalight]

First off, I'm VERY excited that when med school begins in July, I get to do ONLY school and not have to work full time at the same time.

Amen to that!! And congrats!

 

[phant0m0o0o]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
29 years old, ~3.00 cGPA, 27 first MCAT, 31 second MCAT.

2. Your financial and work situation.
120k+ in student loans(combined with my spouse). Worked odd jobs including delivery driver, computer repair, etc. After graduating I was a full-time ER scribe for a year, after getting the acceptance I eagerly quit to enjoy normal hours and enjoy a stress free job as a bank teller until matriculation.

3. Your family and significant other situation.
I am married to my spouse(1.5 years), have known for ~15 years. No children.

4. Your plan or your path to success.
My first step was to seek help with the depression that I was suffering from. It was destroying my life littering my transcript with whole semesters of F's and causing my personal life to fall apart. I went to counseling where I gained the tools necessary to deal with my condition, I was advised to start medications when I first started but declined as I wanted to deal with this without medications if possible. I soon realized the importance of following your heart/dreams during my sessions. I started by looking for an opportunity to learn more about medicine as I have always been fascinated with the field. I soon found a sponsored EMT-B course that I could take/was affordable and I had all the time in the world as I was on academic suspension due to failed academic progress. After attending therapy on campus I was able to have grades retroactively removed/suspension revoked due to my extreme depression allowing me to now take classes. This still left my GPA in a dismal state due to the multiple semesters of F's I had from community college prior to transferring to my university. I planned to take 1 semester to ease myself in which I successfully completed with a 4.0(16 credits + EMT-B course at night). I made sure to retake many of the F's I had received to improve my AACOMAS GPA, from there I ramped up and began taking more and more credits per semester in the attempt to prove that I could handle a rigorous curriculum. My academic adviser did not recommend this but I was out to prove myself and for the first time was engrossed in my classes. I continued to succeed with ~4.0 including 25+ credit hour semesters of all hard science. As far as extracurricular's the moment I began to school I threw myself in any/all activities and even started having a social life(though with those 5+ years younger). I found a volunteer position at a free clinic(required cert to triage/run labs) where I worked very hard and enjoyed. They could see how enthusiastic I was and soon offered me a position running the night clinics. I graduated, moved to Texas(wife accepted into a master's program) and began a job as a medical scribe.


What I did right
I got perfect grades while taking very rigorous course load demonstrating a clear difference from the me of old. I enjoyed the journey. I made awesome pre-med friends and had meaningful clinical/volunteering experiences that I could talk about with passion. I moved to Texas.

What I did wrong
I initially applied to AMCAS/TMDSAS prior to receiving my MCAT the first attempt where I scored a 27 and subsequently pulled my applications(3.0 + 27 does not scream acceptance). This made me a re-applicant the next round. I don't know if it is something I did wrong but I studied the MCAT for 3 months scoring 35+ on AAMC practice exams but only scored a 27 the first time. I then took the MCAT ~1 year later barely studying and somehow scored better(including an improvement of verbal from 6 to a 11). Maybe scribing helped with my verbal reasoning? Who knows.

Results
Accepted to Texas A&M Health Science Center via prematch 11/16. This was one of my top choices due to the area(very similar to my previous undergraduate institution where I was able to excel), football and being closer to my wife's family. I withdrew all other applications when I received news of my acceptance as I felt extremely grateful to be given this opportunity(almost feel like I need to make them proud).

Conclusion
It is possible to overcome an extremely low GPA and make it into medical school(MD/DO) as long as you can demonstrate that you now have the ability and have changed. I remember reading so many of these stories wishing I could one day give back and am happy to be doing that today! I did not think I would ever be able to get here and I want whoever reads this to know that it is possible no matter how hopeless it seems.


Sorry about my bad writing skills, it is probably why I got an L in writing on the MCAT.

 

[477552]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.

32; uGPA 3.04; gGPA 3.55; post-bacc 4.00; MCAT 32S

2. Your financial and work situation.

I was a chemist in pharmaceutical research after earning a BS and MS in chemistry. Started undergrad as pre-med, but as I like to say, a freak love affair with organic chemistry derailed the whole thing. After a few years in pharma, however, I realized that I loved organic chemistry, but not necessarily research. I continued to work full-time for most of my application process/MCAT/post-bacc and eventually had to move to a part-time basis to do post-bacc work. Then, I was laid off, but I'm lucky to have a spouse who can handle things for the short-term between the layoff and my eventual acceptance. Applying/post-bacc work sucked up a lot of my savings, but I squared away my debt before starting the process and am debt-free until I borrow the giant pile required to fund medical school this July.

3. Your family and significant other situation.

Married almost four years, together since college, so this guy's been there for all of it. He's not in medicine and after hearing tales of the ED/OR, he doesn't want to be.

4. Your plan or your path to success.

I planned to pursue a PhD, but I was battling both depression and an incredible sense of dissatisfaction with my job. The depression became better, but not the dissatisfaction, which led me to volunteering both in community and clinical areas. I was crazy-inspired by the volunteering and realized that I had to pursue medicine, even though my GPA alone (uGPA broken down into BCPM 2.84, AO 3.50 originally) was a major roadblock. I took the MCAT and did decently, but applying turned out to be quite a doozy. My low BCPM (thank you, p-chem, math, and physics for engineers) meant that many schools wouldn't look at my application and those that did insisted that post-bacc work was necessary.

My first-choice school said they wanted to see current coursework in upper-division biology, which was missing from my chemistry/physics-heavy education. I took 12 courses post-bacc (46 units) and... well, I kicked absolute ass. Loved my classes and ended up working part-time to get more classes done faster. I already had really strong research, volunteering, and extracurricular activities, so that helped a lot.

Even then, I continued to volunteer and had an "extracurricular" as a freelance food writer and organizing my city's food bloggers into a group. It was a long application process, but it really helped to have a fantastic support system. My hubby is the best and I have some of the best friends ever, including several in medicine who really helped with a lot of advice.

What I Did Right

• Kicked ass in post-bacc work- finished near the top of many of my classes and several of my post-bacc profs wrote letters for me. Had amazing profs and TAs and took full advantage of discussion sections and office hours, which I didn't do as an undergrad. It makes a huge difference.
  
• Worked to reach out to my first-choice school (updates, phone calls, etc.) and find out what they wanted and delivered on it.
  
• Volunteering/shadowing/other interests are really strong and diverse.
  
• Talked to friends in the profession and took their advice carefully... it helped a lot!
  
• Had a great support system- my family and friends are THE BEST and I could not have done it without them.

What I Did Wrong

• Waited to pursue post-bacc work- should have done that first and foremost.
  
• Took the MCAT before the post-bacc work- to be fair, I wasn't planning on much post-bacc work in the beginning. Thought my graduate grades would help. Turns out, the length of time I'd been out of school was a bigger concern than the grades.
  
• Applied too early. Should have waited for post-bacc grades, but was afraid of "bleeding" time.
  
• Did not take advantage of Interfolio to bank LORs- very helpful if you need to reapply!

Results

Accepted at first-choice school (midwestern MD program). In the end, I essentially put my eggs in one basket and didn't apply to a lot of other places. It's not something I recommend, but it was a gamble that worked for me.

Despite the quote in my signature being from Scrubs, I believe it summarized my application experience. It was hard and definitely scary. I had many moments where I wondered if I was bat**** crazy for pursuing something that seemed futile. But I kept going... and that acceptance letter made every single moment worth it. It can be done!!

 

[sgemmell]

First, congrats to everyone who will be starting med school soon.

Second, I'm an OMS3, and like the rest of you a non-trad

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
I was 32 when I started medical school. Unlike a lot of non-trad's on here, I went straight from undergrad to medical school. In undergrad my gpa was 3.96 (stupid OChem I dropped me from a 4.0). My MCAT was a 29 - not great, but not as bad as it could have been. I was accepted on my first application.

2. Your financial and work situation.
During undergrad I worked as a work-study in the microbiology lab - which made micro in med school a breeze as I already knew most of the bugs really well. I have been living off student loans in medical school; in undergrad, I was able to do almost all scholarships - so, when I graduate, it will pretty much be med school student loan debt only (yay!!)

3. Your family and significant other situation.
I am divorced, my divorce was finalized right at the beginning of undergrad. I have two boys that I have full custody of. When I was in undergrad, I lived in the same town as my parents, so I had a lot of help with my boys through undergrad. This was a good thing as my youngest was a toddler and then in pre-school through this time and because he is on the autism spectrum - so having that help was truly appreciated. I now live 15 hours away from the closest family - this makes medical school a bit more difficult, but before we moved here, I made sure I had looked into and began getting services set up for my son. I also moved to the area where I go to school about 2 months earlier so I could get my son in for all of his intake appointments and get everything in place before the start of school.

4. Your plan or your path to success.
Time management has been key - keeping a balance between family and school is tough at times, but do-able.

Currently, I'm focusing on doing well on shelf exams (they help with studying for Step 2) and learning as much as possible of every rotation. I go into each rotation with an open mind and try to focus on doing the best I can everyday. Read a little bit everyday - especially on cases that we are working on.

What I did right -- well, I'm not really sure. In undergrad, I was the president of Beta Beta Beta. I did several different research projects (one of them in particular I presented at several conferences). Shadowed both MD's and DO's. Volunteered at the local hospital.

What I did wrong - I never had good study skills until medical school - which made for a tough start. I was one of those people that never really had to study that much in undergrad. I simply paid attention during lecture, took notes during class and rarely reviewed the notes before taking an exam. The first few weeks of medical school were a struggle because I simply didn't know how to prepare for the exams. Medical school is a lot of information at a lot faster pace than undergrad - so, studying is required (at least it is for me). For anyone still in undergrad or post bacc, I would strongly recommend studying, even if the material comes easily to you. Building those study skills will help you so much in medical school.

 

[SoWasRed]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it:

30 years old; amcas stats = 3.0 cgpa, 3.88 sgpa, 3.88 postbacc gpa (52 credits), 31 MCAT (11 ps, 10 vr, 10 bs)

2. Your financial and work situation:

I was 28 years old and working as a district manager for a fortune 500 company when I decided to go after my newfound dream with the support of my then girlfriend, who is now my wife.

3. Your family and significant other situation:

Married to the most amazing woman in the world

4. Your plan or your path to success:

I originally graduated from college in 2005 from a state school as a communication studies major, having taken no science classes. I knew that I would have a long road ahead of me since I graduated from college with a gpa of 2.65, having cared more about being an NCAA football player then being a student. I went back to school full-time in January of 2011, attending my undergraduate college for a do-it-yourself Post-Bacc. With my wife's support and some savings, I was able to leave my job in order to give my venture everything I had. I took 52 credits of Post-Bacc work over 18 months consisting of all the pre-req's as well as a few mid/upper level classes. In addition to this I was able to accumulate just over 200 clinical hours of volunteering and research during this time at a large urban hospital.

5. Results:

I applied to 37 allopathic schools, receiving 4 interview invitations in which I have earned 2 acceptances and 2 waitlist spots. I am going to be an MS1 in August and could not be more excited to begin the next step in this journey. I had a lot of doubts before starting this journey but derived a lot of inspiration from this forum, and I hope to do the same for others that are thinking about going down this path. For those doubting that you have "what it takes", I am living proof that passion, hard work, and reasonable intelligence is what is needed.

 

[paperc]

Hi everyone! I'm a long-time lurker but new member and thought I'd contribute to this thread since I've definitely found some really useful stuff here over the years. So this is going to be really long--sorry!

First of all, congrats to everyone who's been accepted this cycle!

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.

25 y/o; cGPA: 3.4, sGPA: 3.12 right out of undergrad, cGPA: 3.6ish, sGPA: 3.4ish after postbac; 29R (PS9, VR10, BS10) then 34R (PS11, VR13, BS10)

2. Your financial and work situation.

I'm doing some clinical research at a hospital affiliated with a university and saving money while waiting for school to start.

3. Your family and significant other situation.
Currently single and probably will be for the forseeable future lol

4. Your plan or your path to success.

I gradated from a large state university in 2009 with a BA in Psychology and a minor in Japanese. What really messed me up were the grades from the first two years of undergrad--got a couple of Cs in there (also, up until college, even though I had done well in the sciences, I was convinced I was going to art school or something). I was young and still adjusting to the change in environment and I bit off more than I could chew: I took more units than I should have and I got too involved in extracurriculars. My grades in upper division science courses were way better but when I graduated, I knew that I wasn't a competitive applicant.

I worked for about a year before figuring out that I should do a postbac or SMP to show that I could handle the workload. I eventually settled on a local postbac and took a full course-load of upper div science classes for about a year and a half. I also knew that a 29R, while not terrible, wasn't competitive either so after I ran out of classes to take, I really buckled down and studied for the MCAT like it was my job.

What I did right:

- Did a postbac and really focused on doing well. I examined how I study most effectively and ended up with a postbac GPA of 4.0.

- I got involved in a summer internship, at a clinic, and have been involved in the clinic since graduating from high school. It's what originally got me interested in medicine and I've completed 500+ Also, I built a very good relationship with the MD who coordinated the internship.

- I did activities that I was interested so they're pretty consistent. I volunteered at another clinic that serves underserved populations and have also a lot of tutoring/teaching.

- I made sure to really focus on getting a good MCAT score and whenever I took diagnostics, I did my best to mimic the testing environment as closely as possible.

- Although there were times I felt really discouraged, I didn't give up because I knew this is what I wanted.

What I did wrong:

- Didn't finish some of my secondaries until really late.

- I wasn't as on-top of getting my committee letter as I should have been.

- Having the mindset of just wanting to get into medical school as soon as possible.

- Not figuring out my study-style and refining my study habits until junior year.

Results:

Applied broadly to 35 allopathic schools (only one or two top-25 schools in there). I only got one interview but that turned into an acceptance so I'm very very thankful. Again, though, I did some of my secondaries really late so definitely don't do what I did--I really thought I would have to reapply next cycle.

Conclusion:

Personally, I'm pretty glad that I ended up taking the non-traditional route (though, it's kind of a mix between traditional and non-trad, I guess). I've definitely matured a lot in the past 4 years. I was also able to save some money travel a bit and have some time to do things that I hadn't had a lot of time for while in school. Doing the postbac coursework really helped me to continue building my confidence in myself after those first two disastrous years of undergrad.

I think the most important thing is to keep trying and to not give up but realize that it takes a lot of work. I may have taken longer to get to medical school than my former classmates but I kept working hard and it paid off. I think it's also important, if you were premed in undergrad but need to do a postbac or SMP, is to really examine what happened in the past and how you can use what you've learned about yourself to improve.

Good luck to everyone who is applying next cycle!

 

[sr1226]

I've been waiting for the last ~6-7 years to post in this thread!

I graduated college a few years ago with a 2.6 (sGPA 2.77). Long, ugly transcript with several colleges, a bunch of failed classes for high school credit early on, a bit of an upward trend in the middle (as high as 3.5 or so), and back down to a 3.1 for senior year. Not very promising.

I took 2 years off to work in research and absolutely loved it. It was a productive time and I ended up on 2 publications and 2 more in submission by the time I applied this year. None first author, but second on 3 of them.

Took the MCAT, got a balanced 32 - solid, but clearly not enough to undo the GPA damage. I was a little disappointed because I had been in the 32-38 range in practice exams, so I felt I could do better.

I then applied to SMPs and somehow managed to get into one of the Boston ones. I think the solid research track helped, and the decent MCAT too. I had read on these boards to pull the uGPA to a 3.0 but that wasn't really a possibility for me, so I threw out some applications and hoped for the best.

Went through the SMP, got a 3.8. Not too bad, but I had heard that people with my undergrad record should do better, so I was still pretty worried.

Retook the MCAT over the summer and got a 38 (11P didn't budge from last time, 14V, 13B). Saved a screen shot when I got my score because I literally couldn't believe it and I was afraid it wouldn't be there when I logged back in!

I sent my primary out after the MCAT - mid-August. I know I should have applied earlier, but I spent the summer studying for it and didn't have it in me to finish my primary as well. Secondaries were finished between mid-September and mid-October.

At the end of October, I received 2 interview invites within 48 hours. I attended the Cincinnati interview the following week. And guess what?

This past week, I was accepted to the University of Cincinnati College of Medicine! I could not possibly be more thrilled! It almost seems surreal, because it's always said on these boards that people with my GPA simply do not get into MD schools (and they're lucky if DOs give them a second look). However, I am proof positive that if you work hard, have a compelling story and show several years of dedication (and the ability to succeed academically), your undergrad GPA will not completely destroy your chances.

I would also like to comment on the claim that most schools "pre-screen" for a 3.0:
I applied to 5 schools that openly pre-screen. I received secondaries from 4 of them (all except UCLA). I also got an interview at one of these.
I really don't think that most schools throw out your application if you have <3.0 - you just need a good reason for them to look closer. A high MCAT helps!

I think that the really important thing is the ability to keep at it for several years and maintain the faith in yourself that you have what it takes. And it's also important to enjoy the years you spend working towards your goal - I sincerely loved my job in research, and I loved my SMP coursework, so I didn't feel like I was wasting time as a pre-med with no guarantees at the end of the road.
It's not easy and it's not pretty, but if it's what you want, it can definitely be done. Good luck!

I saw this post and I immediately created a profile to ask you a few questions. I am in this same situation and every advisor has told me I'm wasting my time with medical school. This is absolutely what I want to do. What research programs were you affiliated with that took you? Every one denies me the minute they see my GPA. Im practicing for my MCAT now and thats pretty much my deciding chance...

 

[ajh1983]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
29 years old
UG cGPA (according to AACOMAS/AMCAS): 2.85
Junior/Senior GPA (Once I turned my life around): 3.7
MCAT: 14bs/11/11/Q = 36Q

2. Your financial and work situation.
Active duty veteran, school was covered in full. Worked part time throughout my last 3 years of school to pay for living/hobbies/etc.

3. Your family and significant other situation.
Girlfriend for the last 2 years is now my fiance, getting married next summer after MS-1

What I did right:
-Smart and gifted.
-Veteran.
-High MCAT first time around.
-Old enough to truly know medicine is what I want in a career/life.
-UG biochemistry research that I knew like the back of my hand and could describe for interviews.
-I overcame a severe slump in my life where I was getting C/D/F grades freshman/sophomore years.
-Three days of true "shadowing", but I knew what the medical world was like and could talk the part.

What I did wrong:
-Had a busy summer and only studied MCAT for 17 days. I could have had 40+.
-Had a severe slump and shouldn't have started college when I did. Bad GF at the time, bad work ethic, depression, given up on trying, and a bad video game addiction totally ruined my grades.
-Knew what I wanted in life, but wasn't ready to put forth the required effort until Junior year, and that is just too late.
-Didn't seek out enough ways to counter my bad GPA, other than a high MCAT. No volunteering, no clinical time, no mission trips etc.

Results:
No post-bac, no grade repair, just went for it.
Applied (foolishly) to 18 allopathic schools
Applied to 3 osteopathic schools.
1 interview invite (which went really well) at AZCOM
1 immediate acceptance at AZCOM

Conclusion:
Being really smart can make up for being lazy, but I wouldn't recommend you test the waters. I regret not being more mature and dedicated to my dream early on. I take my single interview/acceptance as a sign that my goals were meant to be. I am very humbly grateful that a school was willing to look past my numbers and meet me face to face, and was able to see what a compassionate and genuine person I am.

I will be published in ophthalmology through U-Wisconsin in about 4 weeks prior to starting medical school. I begin my program on July 31st. In 2017 I will be a physician on my way to a solid residency and a fulfilling life.

 

[sr1226]

I am very happy for your success. I can only dream of that feeling. I am very happy life turned around for you in time to make some changes.

 

[Jumoke]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
Just turned 31. MCAT 30N (with an 8 in VR). My cGPA was 3.3something. My sGPA was lower, I think 3.2something. I took postbac classes (prereqs) on my own and got straight A's so in the end both GPA was up to 3.4 (exactly on the fence). I applied to one school only because we couldn't relocate (2 mortgages, my family, my parents, my sisters, my husband's job couldn't just be uprooted and moved).

2. Your financial and work situation.
I was a software engineer for about 7 years. I got bored with my job and its bureaucracy/politics so about 2 years ago, I decided to try to apply to med school. It took me almost 2 years to finish prereqs (chem/bio/ochem) and do my EC's (pretty average). Set aside some savings to take care of tuition. I got into a state school so tuition is not too bad (right now 27K and hopefully will not go up anymore), and I seriously hope that by the time I practice medicine, I will be debt-free. Whatever I will make in residency will go into paying my school debt (thank god for husbands who support their wives in school).

3. Your family and significant other situation.
Since i plan to dedicate the next decade for school, I needed to plan for kid(s) before school and thankfully it worked out. The only down side was that studying for MCAT while being pregnant was not fun. I think I could have scored higher had I had more energy to study but I guess my current score was good enough. My baby is 3.5 months old now, and I just got news that I'm accepted. YAY! My husband is very supportive. He got a decent career in management at a nuclear power plant and can comfortably take care of our family on his salary alone. As part of my grand scheme to go to med school, I brought my parents from overseas to stay next to me, so I virtually have a daycare center installed next door to my house . All and all, I believe my situation is pretty stable and planned out well.

4. Your plan or your path to success.
I'm gonna start school in the summer, taking advantage of the summer anatomy program to get that class out of the way. I'm doing some research to buy anatomy books/atlas/flashcards to study on my own before the summer to get a head start (I can't wait to start school). I will also absolutely plan to spend time with my baby boy as much as I can in school. Do well, but also try to balance school and family. I know I'm lucky to have a great support system. Let's hope everything will go smoothly as planned, as it has always been.

What I'd done right:
- I knew I only want to get into this particular school, so I made an appointment to see an adcom at this school in 2009. Since then, I made an effort to show up at openhouses, shadow day event, or whatever event offered by the school. I made my face seen and known. I kept in touch with adcom through the years, with my life and school updates. Of course I backed it up with good progress and results.

- I took classes whenever I could (ended up with 4 transcripts from different universities for my prereqs), did extremely well and got LORs from my professors. Made good effort to go see my professors often to get them to know me. I asked them early on for my LOR, and for one prof., it was 2 years before application and the other was 1 year early . I kept sending update emails every semester to both professors so that they could remember who I was. When it was time for LORs, I wrote a long document (mini autobiography) summarize my life, dreams, and effort and send it to them so that they had something to write about me.

- Enrolled with a health advising center, even though I wasn't enrolled in the school . It's a long story, and in the end, I had to file a petition to have them keep me in their program even though I didn't go to school there (right before application cycle start) but it was so worth it. I got wonderful advice from the staff, and was introduced to a new member of the staff, who is a semi-retiring doc at the school that I was applying to. Needless to say, this doc was a tremendous help to my success.

- As a nontrad, it was NOT easy finding shadowing opportunity. It took a long time for me to eventually get to shadow my primary physician (and get LOR from her). Key is persistence. Kept going back, leaving notes/messages until I got in (not in a harassing way, but more like polite follow-ups). I overheard someone's conversation about observing a heart surgery, and I shamelessly jumped in asking if I could observe too. Well, it only took 5 months of follow-up emails before I got to observe, but it was worth it. After reading SDN, it seems like this small EC of mine was very small since almost everyone on SDN has very impressive EC's. Nonetheless, I'm glad I got this under my belt.

- Bought a house for my parents (while I was still having my fulltime job) next to my house. My mom has always been a SATM all her life, so it's great to have my mom watch my kid when I'm in school, and perhaps cooking delicious meals on the weekends.

What I did wrong

- Didn't study enough for the MCAT. I should have started it earlier, but I guess I'm gonna blame it on my pregnancy (extreme fatigue in the early months). Got an 8 on my VR on the MCAT. I thought I had to reapply, and was mentally prepared for that. Thank god I didn't have to.

- Didn't do well in undergrad. I wish I was more focus in undergrad school and got higher GPA. Thankfully I was a nontrad applicant so undergrad GPA was a little more forgivable coupling with steep upward trend.

- Didn't save more $$ while I was still having a job. Wish I didn't spend so much on random things... In the end, I still had decent savings, but if I saved more, I could have paid for med school w/o getting loans.

- Had kids earlier. If I did, I would have had 2 kids (my goal) by now. Oh well... but look at it this way, if I had kids early, I might not have the energy and drive to get into med school.

It has been a long 2 years since I decided to follow a dream. Now, I'm at the entrance of that dream (or nightmare?) and I sincerely hope that I can get to the end. I always tell myself getting in successfully doesn't mean getting out successfully. Now I have a few months to put my feet up and relax before starting another academic marathon. One way or another, I'm determined to come out on top.

Your post gives me hope We have very similar circumstances

 

[OldMemphis]

I got in. 3.2 and a 26.

What I did wrong:
Took the MCAT in September and barely made deadlines. Flunked out of college my first go round. Took Chem 1101 3 times.

What I did right:

I was 36 when I went back to college and took the prereqs. So I had military experience. And a long work history between my poor performance in school and when I went back. I did well in these classes.
I have a lot of life experiences, been a medical device engineer, teacher, etc.. I think that went well with the school I got into.
I tailored my personal statement for the school I wanted. I spent a lot of time on it. I had 4 reviewers comment on it. MDs , English teachers, etc. I spent a lot of time on secondaries.
I ignored advice from professors and other applicants. There is no magic formula, TALK to the adcom!. I skipped the committee letter (I had never taken any classes with the members) and I had professors write individual letters.

But I think above all. I knew I was going to get in. If not on the first try.

 

[Qoubster88]

Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
24 years old, had an undergrad GPA of 3.0, science GPA 2.9, and a 30 MCAT (10/10/10).

Your financial and work situation.
Worked almost always full time throughout college. Today I work in clinical for a big university. I work about 60 hrs per week. It was tough to study for the MCAT while working.

Your family and significant other situation.
Married.

Your plan or your path to success.
Had straight A's first semester. Then took a plunge as I became over-involved with activities such as research, community service, work, family, etc. GPA progressively declined as I placed less and less emphasis on my studies and more on work/family. Had 2 very bad semesters as a result then decided to regain control and GPA shot up for 2 semesters but the damage had been done. I had to prove myself to the admissions committee so I enrolled in an SMP and obtained a 3.7 GPA after 2 full semesters 16+ credit per semester of science graduate courses (same as those taught in most med schools such as anatomy, embryo, biochem, physio, clinical nutrition, immuno, neuro, etc.). Finished rather quickly and took the MCAT then started working in the research department as a research assistant for a few months before becoming the department's clinical research coordinator. Got great letters, gained clinical experience, more research, published, and applied to med school.

What I did right
Plenty, plenty, plenty research experience, interesting life story, great AMCAS primary (took about a month to really polish/fine tune), great secondaries, lots of EC, amazing LOR, work experience,, a lot of courage and commitment to continue, and descent interviewing skills.


What I did wrong
Didn't set up my priorities from the beginning, didn't have a mentor, and I took on too much I should have never taken such a heavy science load in undergrad every semesters. I should have applied early in June (it might have made a big difference). A big gap between the time I took those pre-med classes and the MCAT. Don't take your main pre-med classes (Bio/Chem/Phys) in the same semester of Freshman year, college courses are much different than high school so you need time to figure out new study methods, etc.

Results (re-posting from a previous post):
I completed the SMP in 2010 and received a 3.7, currently working at a big university/medical school, and I am applying to medical schools right now (2012-2013). I received 9 MD/MD-PhD interview invites.

So far I have received 2 acceptances and I'm just waiting for the rest of them to let me know my status, but I do know I will be a doctor!

Conclusion (re-posting from previous post):

There is no doubt that the reason I was able to interview at so many places as well as the 2 acceptances I have so far have been due to the fact that I was able to prove to the admissions committee through my SMP that I could do the work and I could do it well. There is very little information available as to whether medical schools are fond of taking SMP students after a low GPA such as mine so I applied broadly. I was praying for 1 interview and 1 acceptance. I had a far better turnout that I ever thought I would. I applied to 40 medical schools and I am waiting (with very little hope) on 10 more schools to reply for an interview. I felt it was almost a miracle that I was accepted into 1, let alone 2 programs. I don't want to be greedy, but I look forward to hearing back from the rest and making my decision before May 15 so I can finally move on with my life. Bottom line is you have to apply very very broadly when you are in the situation of low low GPA and average MCAT. Also you have to be a slave to the secondaries and turn them in within 2 weeks of receipt so that you have a better chance at interviewing, especially if you didn't turn in your AMCAS in June.

The only thing I would have done differently in terms of applications, would have been to submit EARLY in June because I didn't submit until August and was verified in September therefore my secondaries were not submitted until Sept/Oct. Interviewed Nov/Dec/Jan/Feb.

Hi Tadaa! This is such an amazingly similar story/situation as compared to mine. I tried to PM you however I wasn't able to see that option. I was wondering what sort of list of schools you applied to and what state you were applying from? I'm in the same boat and I could definitely use some guidance. Congrats again on your acceptance!!

 

[Healingtouch]

That's amazing! Congrats!

Congratulations! That is awesome! I am so happy for you!

 

[Healingtouch]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
24 years old. 3.3ish GPA (2.19 after year 1. 3.6 the past 3 years)
MCAT 28O I was shooting for a 30 but was very limited on my time I could commit to the test. Reviewed a little with Chad's Videos for content in the months prior to the test. Really cracked down and studied/did tons of practice tests in the last 9 days before the test.
2. Your financial and work situation.
Worked 32-40 hours per week throughout all of undergrad. My wife worked also until we had our first child. Now I'm in my last semester of undergrad, and last few months of working for $13 an hour.
3. Your family and significant other situation.
Married to my beautiful wife for almost 3 years now. We have a 4 month old baby girl.
4. Your plan or your path to success.
First off, I'm VERY excited that when med school begins in July, I get to do ONLY school and not have to work full time at the same time.

My wife pushes me to work hard and be diligent. The plan is when school starts, study time is at school, family time is at home. I hope to keep the two separate and give enough time to both.

Applied only DO. Applied to 8 schools (really 9 but only did 8 of the secondaries). 5 Interview invites, 4 attended, 4 acceptances. One thing that I feel set me apart (it was mentioned in most interviews) was that I started a Pre-SOMA club at my school and have served as President for the past year. I learned a lot from the experience and it actually opened up several more service, shadowing, and leadership opportunities for me.

And the final, and possibly most important aspect to keeping me going, making time to go rock climbing. Or anything outdoors really, but even going just once every few weeks keeps the head clear and the body feeling good.

Congratulations!

 

[TheophaniaBee]

This post has been a long time in coming.....

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
31 years old (Male)
Freshman GPA of 1.37 including 2 F's 2 W's 4 D's a C and a B.
A five year break followed by an associates degree at community college (3.7gpa)
followed by 2 more transfer years to University (3.4gpa for those two years)
My MCAT score was 28O (8ps,10v,10bs)

2. Your financial and work situation.
I worked full time for the whole lot of it as an electronics/computer repair tech and later as a research chemist. We've been perpetually broke for a long, long time.
3. Your family and significant other situation.
Married with two kids (Now aged 5 and 3)
4. Your plan or your path to success.
Once I made the decision to go to medical school, the plan was to do whatever it took to get there. I knew that with my poor performance with my first attempt at college would be a black mark on my record, so I set out to prove that I wasn't the same person that got those terrible grades.

What I did right:
I spent five years in the Navy where I got some focus and learned dedication. I worked twice as hard as the 20 somethings around me. I built good relationships with good professors, bosses and doctors who wrote me good letters of recommendation.

What I did Wrong:
I waited until August to take my MCAT, which led to me not meeting an application deadline for one of the state schools I was interested in.

The Result:
I applied to Southern Illinois University, University of Illinois at Chicago, George Washington University and the Uniformed Services Medical School.

Got secondaries to all but UIC (Due to not making application deadline as mentioned above)

Interviewed at SIU
Received Acceptance to SIU today!

Your story is exactly what I needed to read. Your first year of college GPA vs. where you are now. That is absolutely amazing, congratulations & I hope to one day be where you are in life.

 

[Deekle]

Your story is exactly what I needed to read. Your first year of college GPA vs. where you are now. That is absolutely amazing, congratulations & I hope to one day be where you are in life.

Glad to hear it! You can do this. I'm in year two now and still going strong!

 

[malaika]

There is so much awesomeness in here

Congrats all! You can only go up from here. Continue to work hard.

 

[petyr_baelish]

This has got to be the best thread I've read on SDN. It gives me hope that I will be back next year to update with my own story.

 

[supergirl09]

Hey everyone,

this thread is helpful and inspiring. To the people who did SMPs/Post Baccs, could you list the program that you did?

 

[nyc1990]

I'm gonna shamelessly bump this, as I know there are stories even from this cycle so far that could definitely inspire some people. I'm waiting (somewhat)patiently to be able to post in here myself at some point.

 

[QuantumJ]

-

 

[JimTex]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
24 years old. 3.3ish GPA (2.19 after year 1. 3.6 the past 3 years)
MCAT 28O I was shooting for a 30 but was very limited on my time I could commit to the test. Reviewed a little with Chad's Videos for content in the months prior to the test. Really cracked down and studied/did tons of practice tests in the last 9 days before the test.
2. Your financial and work situation.
Worked 32-40 hours per week throughout all of undergrad. My wife worked also until we had our first child. Now I'm in my last semester of undergrad, and last few months of working for $13 an hour.
3. Your family and significant other situation.
Married to my beautiful wife for almost 3 years now. We have a 4 month old baby girl.
4. Your plan or your path to success.
First off, I'm VERY excited that when med school begins in July, I get to do ONLY school and not have to work full time at the same time.

My wife pushes me to work hard and be diligent. The plan is when school starts, study time is at school, family time is at home. I hope to keep the two separate and give enough time to both.

Applied only DO. Applied to 8 schools (really 9 but only did 8 of the secondaries). 5 Interview invites, 4 attended, 4 acceptances. One thing that I feel set me apart (it was mentioned in most interviews) was that I started a Pre-SOMA club at my school and have served as President for the past year. I learned a lot from the experience and it actually opened up several more service, shadowing, and leadership opportunities for me.

Nicee Congratss!!!!....How long did you wait for the interview calls or emails after you sent you secondaries and when did you sent them? Sorry for too many questions, but I am almost on the same situation as you were. Thanks.

And the final, and possibly most important aspect to keeping me going, making time to go rock climbing. Or anything outdoors really, but even going just once every few weeks keeps the head clear and the body feeling good.

 

[abolt18]

Did you write nothing? Or did you write "Nicee Congratss!!!!....How long did you wait for the interview calls or emails after you sent you secondaries and when did you sent them? Sorry for too many questions, but I am almost on the same situation as you were. Thanks."???

If the part I quoted (which I believe I did not write) was you, I had interview invites from 3 of the 5 schools within about a month of submitting secondaries. DMU took 60 days exactly, and KCOM was almost 3 months before I was invited to interview. I submitted secondaries in July and August but wasn't complete until end of August.

 

[jones4campn]

Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
34 years old; GPA: overall – 3.22, science – 3.49, post bach – 3.78, grad (MBA in Health Care Mgt) – 3.23; MCAT – 23

Your financial and work situation
For the past decade, I have been a leader in the private, for-profit education industry. I married young, started a family, and began moving up the ranks in business fairly quickly. At the time of my decision to take the necessary steps to finally do what I’ve always wanted to do (be a surgeon), I was a Director of Operations making well into the six figures (I’m sorry – I don’t mean to sound pompous; simply trying to provide insight into my sincere desire).

Your family and significant other situation
I have been married for 13 years. My wife and I have four daughters, ages 10, 8, 6, and 4. My wife, fortunately, recently obtained a teaching position at the elementary school where our daughters attend – and will continue to teach there through med school – so they all run on the same schedule.

Your plan or your path to success
For as long as I can remember, I have wanted to be a surgeon. After marriage, my wife and I bounced around the country for random opportunities in VA, MO, ID, and AZ. Before I settled down to earn my undergrad and graduate degrees, I had already attended six different institutions and had sold myself on the thought that I was too late to follow my dream of becoming a doctor. Plus – I was experiencing success. My life was filled with service opportunities through church, Boy Scouts, and university/public relations events through my employer, so I convinced myself I was on the right “path.” But as years passed, I could never shake the feeling that I wasn’t doing what I was meant to do.
I finally lost the emotional battle with my conscience and took the necessary steps to take med school prereqs. I worked my butt off – traveling sometimes 100+ miles per day between work, classes at schools in different ends of the city, home, and volunteer locations. With four children and a stay at home wife, I worked diligently to remain successful in a demanding position at work while balancing the needs of home/church/service/school. I established and maintained very positive relationships with anyone who crossed my path – and stayed in touch with as many people as possible who had the potential to help me in my goal.
As you can tell, I was not always successful. My MCAT was a disaster (I took it before taking physiology, organic chem 2, anatomy, and microbiology – oops), and I earned a C in OChem. But I kept at it, remaining as positive as possible. I visited the schools where I wanted to attend and explained my desire to prove to them that I was more than what they saw on an application or computer screen. This effort and consistency paid off, and I was recently accepted MD to the top school on my list.

Why I believe I was accepted:

1. I have a very long history of service. As the oldest of nine siblings, I have a natural tendency to want to care for and aid others.
2. I also have a long history of leadership and team work. My medical school of choice encourages diverse experiences and non-traditional students, so I fit well into their mold.
3. The relationships I established and maintained led to VERY strong letters of recommendation and indescribably helpful support during difficult times.
4. I was assertive. My visits to the schools led to interview invitations that likely would not have happened based on my “stats” on paper. I researched the schools, their histories and curriculum, and asked questions that were not easily found on the schools’ websites.
5. I interviewed very well.

Work hard - push yourself - and be happy. Good things happen.

 

[cabinbuilder]

Hey everyone,

this thread is helpful and inspiring. To the people who did SMPs/Post Baccs, could you list the program that you did?

I did my own post bacc at University of Alaska in Fairbanks.

 

[Staffsy77]

@ChE04 @irJanus @bluv1212 - All three of you, thanks for the incredibly inspirational posts. I find some of the details from all three stories resonating with my own, and it really helps in terms of motivation. Glad to have others out there that have really struggled through this to remind the rest of us getting ready to apply that the hard work can pay off.

 

[snr23]

I'm finally ecstatic that I can contribute to this thread!

1. I am 31 years old and graduated in 2001 with a GPA of just about 2.34 after taking an immature approach to school. My MCAT was taken last Fall and was a 29O.

2. From the 2002 until when I start medical school I had been working as a critical care flight paramedic for a major medical center in MD. 3 years ago when I started my post-bac in NY I was asked to become an instructor for a biology lab at my univ. and have done so for the past 2.5 years.

3. When I started the program/path I was a single, as of this past summer I now check the married box. My wife is incredible and has been supportive of the effort. When I moved back home with my parents at 27 to go back to school she didn't make fun of me (too much!) but was interested in my pursuit.

4. While I knew I was intelligent enough and more then dedicated, I understood the mountain ahead of me. I enrolled in all of the pre-reqs that I hadn't taken, or had taken over 10 years earlier. I earned nothing less then a A- (both in orgo) while taking 2-3 classes a semester. I did this while working on a per-diem status in MD and teaching at the hospital, teaching 2-3 sections of bio lab, and volunteering as a mentor. Once the pre-req's were done I enrolled in extra courses (biochem, cell bio, neuro...etc) and Aced those.

At the end my GPA probably made it over 2.75 but barely (overcoming 150 credits at a subpar GPA is not easy). But I was able to convey my dedication and hunger for medicine in my personal statement. And as of yesterday afternoon I had 1 acceptance and waiting on 3 other previous interviews. And just so people know and don't use this as an excuse: NO, I am not a minority. I am a white male raised by middle income parents. So I got no special treatment.

For those that are starting the struggle, don't give up. Sometimes its rough and upsetting. But if you persevere, the reward is well worth it! Good luck to everyone!

Wow your post is like pure gold for my motivation...thank you.

 

[snr23]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.

27 (28 when I start)

AMCAS cgpa: 3.29
AMCAS sgpa: 3.12

I took 2 science courses in the application summer so they are technically a bit higher, but this is what went to my schools.

MCAT: 28Q (10 BS, 10 VR, 8 PS)

2. Your financial and work situation.

AP Chemistry teacher at Medical Prep High School, 3rd year teacher.

Grew up in a family with an income of about 25k a year (until I was about a Sr. in high school). Currently doing decently finance wise, thankfully

3. Your family and significant other situation.

Married for 6 years, no kids. Planning on waiting until around 35ish for kids. I'm lucky enough to have the most awesome and supportive husband in the world.

4. Your plan or your path to success.

Honestly, I messed up my first year of college at Duke. I had serious health and family issues, and I should have deferred a year, but I was desperate to leave for school. Things went downhill and I ended up on bed rest for about 8-9 months and had to leave school completely.

I thought my dreams of med school were done (freshman cgpa was 2.0, and since I was an engineering student I had a lot of sciences, so sgpa 1.2). My advisers told me I obviously wasn't cut out for science and should continue with what I was good at, language and writing. So when I went back to college that's what I did. I majored in German, but wasn't happy with it.

After graduating, I set my sights on trying for med school once again so I could at least be happy knowing I tried. 2 years of ft school, ft work, and tons of volunteering later, here I am.

I'm so happy with my choice to buckle down and pursue this. I've spent the last 10 years saddened by the doors I've slammed on my future, and when I got my acceptance all of that just melted away.

Got chills reading your post, what an inspiration.

 

[ChE04]

@ChE04 @irJanus @bluv1212 - All three of you, thanks for the incredibly inspirational posts. I find some of the details from all three stories resonating with my own, and it really helps in terms of motivation. Glad to have others out there that have really struggled through this to remind the rest of us getting ready to apply that the hard work can pay off.

Happy it helped. Good luck!

 

[Shotekk]

I'm definitely going to post my story once the time is right. I can't wait to start my postbac journey this summer. Good luck my fellow postbac travelers don't stop at the rest areas on the interstates just keep on driving toward your destination.

 

[LabratABQ]

WOW, ok I am floored with y'all determinations and dedications. Such a motivational thread!

 

[LifetimeDoc]

Just a "little" update. Switching from general surgery to EM, long road even longer LOL.

 

[WhippleWhileWeWork]

Just a "little" update. Switching from general surgery to EM, long road even longer LOL.

What's going on here? Would love to hear why, thanks.

 

[WhippleWhileWeWork]

What I did right:
-Smart and gifted.

Halarious.

 

[LifetimeDoc]

What's going on here? Would love to hear why, thanks.

Well going into medicine, and what got me interested in medicine in the first place, was the wide variety and "jack of all trades" part of emergency medicine. As I went through medical school, I gravitated towards general surgery and emergency medicine, two fields where I felt that you needed to have a wide base of knowledge and worked hard for your patients. Looking back, I went the general surgery route but found that I was missing out on the rest of medicine. So I made the switch after two years in residency, wasn't easy...switching specialities is getting harder nowadays with increasing numbers of medical students with no corresponding increase in residency spots. I'm very happy to be going into EM, and will re-start as an intern again this July.

 

[nontrad1986]

*************

 

[nontrad1986]

So I can't believe I get to finally write in one of these posts! I'd like to share my story to motivate people who are in my position. Not too long ago I would read these posts and it would give me a glimmer of hope.

Here it goes...

It's hard to write my story in the format above so I wont. I am 27 years old and graduated college with a 2.89 gpa. During my last year, I realized that I really wanted to go into healthcare. I always wanted to become a doctor but thought my chances were slim to none and so after college, I considered dental school and began re-taking courses. During the first course I retook, I also shadowed a dentist and realized I wasn't passionate about it. I next considered becoming a physician assistant but again, I didn't follow through. Finally someone told me, "Why don't you just go to medical school", and that stuck. I considered going to the Caribbean because it was an attainable goal. With this in mind, I continued re-taking courses (in total I took 44 credits and achieved a 3.96) at my local community college and even though I knew taking the classes at a community college would be an issue, I had to because I was paying for it myself. This lasted about 3 years, and during this time I also volunteered in a hospital. I worked full-time throughout this process and believe me it was tough. Then, I met someone who encouraged me to try to get into a school in the US. I though, psh, that's impossible. But again, the idea stuck and I realized I wanted to try. So I took my mcat (29Q) and applied to a dozen schools. I didn't get into any. I was working in a lab at the time and one of my co-workers mentioned doing a special masters program so I applied to a few and decided to go to the Drexel IMS program (it was the most affordable and it offered a guaranteed interview if you met certain requirements, one of which was having a minimum of 9 in each section or a 30). I also started volunteering and shadowed a doctor. Because I didn't fulfill the requirements for the guaranteed interview (8 in verbal reasoning ) I knew I had to retake the MCAT. I took it a couple months before the program started and thought I BOMBED it. I'm not exaggerating, I was extremely distraught afterwards. A month later I found that I didn't do so bad (so if you think you've done terribly, it's easier said than done, but RELAX); I ended up with a 31 (PS- 12, Verbal- 8, BS-11). Anyhow I got accepted into Drexel's med school and will be actually going to a US MD school and becoming a doctor (5 years later).

I can't tell you how many people discouraged me; SOOOOO many people were negative. I worked in a lab and a couple of the older people there would basically treat me like I was a joke (despite working extremely hard to overcome 2 years of bad grades). And when 4 years passed by and it still didn't happen, people were really losing faith in me, as if I was working towards an unattainable goal and they didn't know how to tell me to give up (even my parents). However, there were a few people who really had faith in me and told me to continue trying, I held on to that and knew in my heart that I was going to be a great doctor and that I would beat myself up for the rest of my life if I didn't achieve this goal and develop into who I wanted to be. It's a big sacrifice, I never went on a vacation and I was broke all the time but let me tell you, it feels SOOOOO amazing when you've accomplished your goal. Be serious, be nice to people (even when they're mean to you) and build good connections. You'll need good letters of recommendation and you need to know that you can overcome all the haters, it'll give you strength and help you mature.

Good luck to whoever's reading this, you can do anything if you're willing to put in the time and effort, I'm a testament to that!

 

[nyc1990]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.

Age: 23; will be 24 as I start medical school in August.
undergrad: 3.2 cgpa, 2.85 sgpa
graduate (SMP): 3.65 cgpa/sgpa
MCAT: 31Q (taken once)

2. Your financial and work situation.

Graduated college in 2012, did an SMP/worked part time from 2012-2013, research job from 2013-2014. Working has allowed me to pay back a great deal of the SMP already.

3. Your family and significant other situation.

Single. I guess this part is more pertinent for those who are more non-trad than I am (graduated college in 2012).

4. Your plan or your path to success.

I've decided to write one of these up to serve as a guide - perhaps even a wake-up-call - for the many students like myself. Having grown up with a privileged sort of lifestyle, I didn't put much thought into my future. I think I believed that things would just "work themselves out" no matter what; just as I had excelled in high school and was accepted to a well-respected college, I assumed that everything in the future would be similarly straightforward.

Not so, my friends. I was far too apathetic in undergrad. I partied way too hard. I didn't take my classes seriously at all. I was pulling B's and even occasional C's when I could have - and absolutely should have - been pulling A's. I wish so badly that someone would have kicked me in the gut and told me how foolish I was being. It was only in my senior year, after meeting with several guidance counselors, that I realized how grim my chances were of getting into ANY medical school. So I decided to get serious about it.

That spring/summer after I graduated I studied intensely for the MCAT. While I did slightly worse than I was averaging on my practice tests, I still scored a solid 31. I applied to SMP programs, and ended up choosing the Master's in Basic Medical Sciences (BMS) at Wayne State University School of Medicine. Now, this is not as traditionally well-known as other SMP's, such as that of Georgetown's, Tufts, or BU's, for example. Definitely take a look at the excellent Post-Bac forum on SDN, and decide which SMP is the right one for you.

During my SMP I studied my butt off. I ended up teaching high school physiology (created and taught the class by myself) AND working part-time as a scribe during my SMP. DON'T DO THIS!!! This nearly ended up costing me my opportunities to get into med school. My SMP gpa could have surely been 3.8+, which is ideally want one should be aiming for. Indeed, I was convinced that adcoms would want to see that I was juggling a lot, in addition to my SMP coursework. But that isn't how it works. Your number 1 priority once you get into an SMP is your grades. Period. I was lucky enough to grind out a 3.65 in the program, given how much else I was doing. For those reading: if you decide to do an SMP, give it your full and undivided attention. I developed really essential study habits that will absolutely help me in medical school.

Results

-Applied early (first week AMCAS opened) to 35 MD schools.
*A note on this: you must must MUST apply early if you are a borderline applicant, and you must apply broadly. As the saying goes, beggars can't be choosers. MSAR is a necessary resource, and will help you apply strategically to schools.
-Interviewed at 4 MD schools
-Waitlisted at 3, and was just accepted yesterday to Wayne State University School of Medicine.
-Still waiting to hear from other waitlists

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions. The application process is brutal, and I'm happy to answer any questions (about secondaries, interviews, waitlists, etc). Best of luck to those reading this, and just know that if I can do this, SO CAN YOU!

 

[TwinsFan]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
30-35 years old, non-URM, non-disadvantaged
before postbac: 2.7 cGPA / 3.1 sGPA
3.0/3.4/3.5 cGPA (AMCAS/AACOMAS/TMDSAS), 3.5 sGPA (all app services)
4.0 postbac GPA (60+ credits), 34 MCAT (took once)

2. Your financial and work situation.
Was a full time engineer before starting my postbac, worked as a TA during and then an ER scribe after finishing and during my app cycle year. Still have some undergrad debt.

3. Your family and significant other situation.
I've been married for 7+ years to an amazing woman

4. Your plan or your path to success.
I thought I might be crazy and so did some who knew me best when I started to investigate medicine. So I threw myself into the fire and started 2 medical volunteering experiences and shadowing as well as retaking a few old classes that I never bothered to show up to my first time around, all while working full time as an engineer. I knew this would really test me and it proved to myself and my wife that this was for real. During that first year I really discovered what I wanted to do with my life, planned what I needed to do over the next few years and made a 100% commitment to succeed.

With an old string of Fs, a criminal record from young adulthood, and no "in" into the field I was certain my battle to med school was about as uphill anyone's could get. So I prepped like I needed to be a solid top tier med school candidate hoping that some school could see past the old me of my youth and look at the last 8-10 years of success. I needed straight As, a 90+% MCAT, solid exposure to the field in several settings over a couple years, to continue doing the other things I enjoyed in life, and an articulate way to describe my circuitous path to medicine.

What I did right
I aced all my classes, getting the top scores on many of them
I had focused plans for studying for each class with regular evaluations and adjustments to get the most from my time
I studied intensely for the MCAT, prepping for a 40, then kind of bombing it but still ending up with a solid 34
I made detailed plans for my time and managed it wisely to accomplish everything I wanted before applying
I was involved in my community and volunteering over half a decade before I ever considered medicine
I let myself enjoy learning new things!
I volunteered in a number of medical settings over a long period of time, shadowed several specialties, and read up on the profession
I volunteered in new non medical settings I enjoyed
I continued making some time for hobbies/relaxation
Planned my personal statement and essays to really give my life a 3d voice
Used AACOMAS grade replacement and TMDSAS fresh start to cast a wide net
Had success in engineering (placing in competitions and winning an industry award)
Talked to several adcoms along the way to get fresh perspectives on my candidacy
Strengthened all the weakest areas of my app
Submitted early apps within the first few days with most things pre-written
DIDN'T APPLY UNTIL I WAS READY

What I did wrong
I got so worried about being rejected everywhere for my past mistakes that it was a heavy burden, I responded with too much perfectionism to "make up for it"
Didn't trust the positive feedback I was receiving and over applied

Results
Applied to 21 schools (13 MD/8 DO), received 13 interview invites (6 MD/ 7 DO) by November, attended 11 interviews (2 OOS MD/ 4 OOS DO/ 1 IS DO/ 4 IS MD) with 10 acceptances (2 OOS MD/ 3 OOS DO/ 1 IS DO/ 4 IS MD, all in the first batch of each school's acceptances) along with 2 scholarship offers
Among these was an acceptance to my top choice school, UTSW, which I will be starting at in August

Conclusion
I barely graduated high school and can still remember one of my teachers telling me "I would never amount to anything." I was involved in the wrong life after and briefly ended up in jail. I eventually got my crap together and had success in engineering, never dreaming the old skeletons in the closet would matter again. Then I discovered medicine and realized they did.
It was a punch in the gut.
But I fought back.

For those of you looking for inspiration, it can be done. I still in shock and denial but it is for real and it is a great privilege. I want to thank Jesus for giving me this dream and the strength to start living it.

 

[amberlynnp13]

1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.

Age: 23; will be 24 as I start medical school in August.
undergrad: 3.2 cgpa, 2.85 sgpa
graduate (SMP): 3.65 cgpa/sgpa
MCAT: 31Q (taken once)

2. Your financial and work situation.

Graduated college in 2012, did an SMP/worked part time from 2012-2013, research job from 2013-2014. Working has allowed me to pay back a great deal of the SMP already.

3. Your family and significant other situation.

Single. I guess this part is more pertinent for those who are more non-trad than I am (graduated college in 2012).

4. Your plan or your path to success.

I've decided to write one of these up to serve as a guide - perhaps even a wake-up-call - for the many students like myself. Having grown up with a privileged sort of lifestyle, I didn't put much thought into my future. I think I believed that things would just "work themselves out" no matter what; just as I had excelled in high school and was accepted to a well-respected college, I assumed that everything in the future would be similarly straightforward.

Not so, my friends. I was far too apathetic in undergrad. I partied way too hard. I didn't take my classes seriously at all. I was pulling B's and even occasional C's when I could have - and absolutely should have - been pulling A's. I wish so badly that someone would have kicked me in the gut and told me how foolish I was being. It was only in my senior year, after meeting with several guidance counselors, that I realized how grim my chances were of getting into ANY medical school. So I decided to get serious about it.

That spring/summer after I graduated I studied intensely for the MCAT. While I did slightly worse than I was averaging on my practice tests, I still scored a solid 31. I applied to SMP programs, and ended up choosing the Master's in Basic Medical Sciences (BMS) at Wayne State University School of Medicine. Now, this is not as traditionally well-known as other SMP's, such as that of Georgetown's, Tufts, or BU's, for example. Definitely take a look at the excellent Post-Bac forum on SDN, and decide which SMP is the right one for you.

During my SMP I studied my butt off. I ended up teaching high school physiology (created and taught the class by myself) AND working part-time as a scribe during my SMP. DON'T DO THIS!!! This nearly ended up costing me my opportunities to get into med school. My SMP gpa could have surely been 3.8+, which is ideally want one should be aiming for. Indeed, I was convinced that adcoms would want to see that I was juggling a lot, in addition to my SMP coursework. But that isn't how it works. Your number 1 priority once you get into an SMP is your grades. Period. I was lucky enough to grind out a 3.65 in the program, given how much else I was doing. For those reading: if you decide to do an SMP, give it your full and undivided attention. I developed really essential study habits that will absolutely help me in medical school.

Results

-Applied early (first week AMCAS opened) to 35 MD schools.
*A note on this: you must must MUST apply early if you are a borderline applicant, and you must apply broadly. As the saying goes, beggars can't be choosers. MSAR is a necessary resource, and will help you apply strategically to schools.
-Interviewed at 4 MD schools
-Waitlisted at 3, and was just accepted yesterday to Wayne State University School of Medicine.
-Still waiting to hear from other waitlists

Feel free to PM me if you have any questions. The application process is brutal, and I'm happy to answer any questions (about secondaries, interviews, waitlists, etc). Best of luck to those reading this, and just know that if I can do this, SO CAN YOU!

Omg congrats!!! I've been stressing about GPA!!! When I was 18 I didn't care about grades!!! I have a 2.9 at a cc and at wu I have a 3.6 and at another cc I have a 2.7 but I'm taking classes and retaking classes to bring up my GPA... So glad to read this I have hope

 

[MirrorTodd]

Great thread! Hopefully these stories will convince people not to give up!
1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
31 now, applied starting around 28, I got in when I was 30. 3 application cycles. My cumulative undergrad GPA was 3.18 (science GPA wasn't much more than that)and I had a 31 MCAT.
2. Your financial and work situation.
Financially poor, never did any real saving, even with the good money I earned in the Army. I was in the Army reserves throughout college and got deployed twice having to take leave of absences from school both times.
3. Your family and significant other situation.
I'm single but dating at the moment. Most likely be engaged once I get the money to buy a ring. We're doing long distance, I'm in Alabama and she was in California, now New Jersey
4. Your plan or your path to success.
I don't really know if I had a plan to success or anything like that. I did much better my last two years of college in the upper division classes. The first two application cycles I had only been interviewed by my home school (JABSOM) in Hawaii and had gotten no love from the mainland, not even USUHS. I talked to the University of Hawaii and they said to do a post bacc program. I did that at KGI in California. I don't know if it helped me get in or not, but it was an expensive extra to my application.

 

[amberlynnp13]

Great thread! Hopefully these stories will convince people not to give up!
1. Your age and GPA and MCAT if you have it.
31 now, applied starting around 28, I got in when I was 30. 3 application cycles. My cumulative undergrad GPA was 3.18 (science GPA wasn't much more than that)and I had a 31 MCAT.
2. Your financial and work situation.
Financially poor, never did any real saving, even with the good money I earned in the Army. I was in the Army reserves throughout college and got deployed twice having to take leave of absences from school both times.
3. Your family and significant other situation.
I'm single but dating at the moment. Most likely be engaged once I get the money to buy a ring. We're doing long distance, I'm in Alabama and she was in California, now New Jersey
4. Your plan or your path to success.
I don't really know if I had a plan to success or anything like that. I did much better my last two years of college in the upper division classes. The first two application cycles I had only been interviewed by my home school (JABSOM) in Hawaii and had gotten no love from the mainland, not even USUHS. I talked to the University of Hawaii and they said to do a post bacc program. I did that at KGI in California. I don't know if it helped me get in or not, but it was an expensive extra to my application.

What school did you get into?

 

[MirrorTodd]

What school did you get into?

ACOM, I still didn't have much luck on the mainland with interviews. ACOM was the only school that interviewed me besides Hawaii. I'm still not sure why I didn't get more interviews, besides my low GPA, which was admittedly very low, my application was pretty solid. My best extra-curricular being an Army Medic for 8 years with 2 deployments under my belt. I really don't think one could ask for better medical experience aside from going to a third world country and delivering babies or something (not trying to sound like I was the best applicant ever, I'm just a little saddened that more schools didn't really give me a chance). Nevertheless, I just finished my first year in the inaugural class and am doing well.

 

[amberlynnp13]

ACOM, I still didn't have much luck on the mainland with interviews. ACOM was the only school that interviewed me besides Hawaii. I'm still not sure why I didn't get more interviews, besides my low GPA, which was admittedly very low, my application was pretty solid. My best extra-curricular being an Army Medic for 8 years with 2 deployments under my belt. I really don't think one could ask for better medical experience aside from going to a third world country and delivering babies or something (not trying to sound like I was the best applicant ever, I'm just a little saddened that more schools didn't really give me a chance). Nevertheless, I just finished my first year in the inaugural class and am doing well.

Hey at least your in school now!! Congrats I'm glad your doing well