Hey everyone, first time posting on SDN so thank you in advance for your help!
Going to give a backstory so you guys get the full picture of my situation. I graduated from UT Austin about two years ago with a pre-med non-science degree and cGPA of 3.05 and sGPA of 2.57. I also took the MCAT about three and a half years ago and got a 26. I was pretty confused with what I wanted to do in college so I didn't try very hard and just went through the motions of passing my classes although I accept full responsibility. For what it's worth, I did shadow for about two months, did some basic research for a semester and served as a preceptor for my Genetics class for one semester. I was working in tech for the past year and a half and realized I truly do want to do medicine, so I moved back home to start preparing.
I still need to take one more undergrad prereq as a postbac class which would bring my sGPA up to 2.66 with an A. I will also be studying full time for the MCAT over the next couple months and am shooting for 512-518. I’ve been doing a lot of research the past few weeks and think my only shot at medical school at this stage is going the route of a "true" SMP where I'd be taking classes alongside medical students, so I see Georgetown, Cincinnati, Tufts and BU as my main options.
The way I see it I have three possible scenarios if all goes well:
(1)
March 2017: MCAT
April 2017 - July 2018: postbac classes and ECs
Summer 2018: apply to med school
August 2018 - July 2019: SMP
August 2019: med school
(2)
March 2017: MCAT
April 2017 - July 2017 - ECs
August 2017 - July 2018: SMP
Summer 2018: apply to med school
August 2018 - July 2019: postbac classes and ECs
August 2019: med school
(3)
March 2017: MCAT
April 2017 - August 2018: postbac classes and ECs
August 2018 - July 2019 - SMP
Summer 2019: apply to med school
August 2019 - July 2020 - ECs
August 2020 - med school
Questions:
1. I know my current sGPA is very low especially for these higher ranked SMPs. If I take at least six more postbac classes besides the one I already have to, I could probably bump up my sGPA just above 3.0 and get my cGPA to 3.17. Does it make sense to spend time and money on taking these additional classes or would that be better served by focusing on ECs? Is 3.0 a good cutoff to get to or something higher or lower?
2. Is scenario 1 possible for me? In this case I would be applying to med school before having started the SMP although I'd be keeping the adcom up to date as I go through the program, obviously. Is this possible if I’ve bumped up my sGPA above 3.0 and had good ECs? I'd like to go to a Texas MD school if at all possible.
3. Is scenario 2 possible for me? In this case I would be applying to the SMP with my current GPAs. Is this possible if I’ve scored well enough on the MCAT? In addition, because I obviously didn't do that well in my BCPM classes in undergrad I don't know which professors I could ask for LoRs for the SMP.
4. I have one C- in a prereq and I know most SMPs and med schools require Cs as a minimum grade - I'm assuming this class would need to be retaken?
5. Please let me know if I’m missing any true SMP.
6. Will my previous MCAT score hurt me in any way even though it's expired?
7. What are some good suggestions for ECs? I was thinking either becoming a scribe or EMT and doing research as well.
8. Scenario 3 is probably my best bet although if there is any way to matriculate in med school before 2020 I’d prefer that obviously. Any advice on this?
I know my stats are pretty poor at the moment, but I'm more than willing to put in the time and effort to succeed in all this so any constructive help would be greatly appreciated! I'm committed. Thank you!
Going to give a backstory so you guys get the full picture of my situation. I graduated from UT Austin about two years ago with a pre-med non-science degree and cGPA of 3.05 and sGPA of 2.57. I also took the MCAT about three and a half years ago and got a 26. I was pretty confused with what I wanted to do in college so I didn't try very hard and just went through the motions of passing my classes although I accept full responsibility. For what it's worth, I did shadow for about two months, did some basic research for a semester and served as a preceptor for my Genetics class for one semester. I was working in tech for the past year and a half and realized I truly do want to do medicine, so I moved back home to start preparing.
I still need to take one more undergrad prereq as a postbac class which would bring my sGPA up to 2.66 with an A. I will also be studying full time for the MCAT over the next couple months and am shooting for 512-518. I’ve been doing a lot of research the past few weeks and think my only shot at medical school at this stage is going the route of a "true" SMP where I'd be taking classes alongside medical students, so I see Georgetown, Cincinnati, Tufts and BU as my main options.
The way I see it I have three possible scenarios if all goes well:
(1)
March 2017: MCAT
April 2017 - July 2018: postbac classes and ECs
Summer 2018: apply to med school
August 2018 - July 2019: SMP
August 2019: med school
(2)
March 2017: MCAT
April 2017 - July 2017 - ECs
August 2017 - July 2018: SMP
Summer 2018: apply to med school
August 2018 - July 2019: postbac classes and ECs
August 2019: med school
(3)
March 2017: MCAT
April 2017 - August 2018: postbac classes and ECs
August 2018 - July 2019 - SMP
Summer 2019: apply to med school
August 2019 - July 2020 - ECs
August 2020 - med school
Questions:
1. I know my current sGPA is very low especially for these higher ranked SMPs. If I take at least six more postbac classes besides the one I already have to, I could probably bump up my sGPA just above 3.0 and get my cGPA to 3.17. Does it make sense to spend time and money on taking these additional classes or would that be better served by focusing on ECs? Is 3.0 a good cutoff to get to or something higher or lower?
2. Is scenario 1 possible for me? In this case I would be applying to med school before having started the SMP although I'd be keeping the adcom up to date as I go through the program, obviously. Is this possible if I’ve bumped up my sGPA above 3.0 and had good ECs? I'd like to go to a Texas MD school if at all possible.
3. Is scenario 2 possible for me? In this case I would be applying to the SMP with my current GPAs. Is this possible if I’ve scored well enough on the MCAT? In addition, because I obviously didn't do that well in my BCPM classes in undergrad I don't know which professors I could ask for LoRs for the SMP.
4. I have one C- in a prereq and I know most SMPs and med schools require Cs as a minimum grade - I'm assuming this class would need to be retaken?
5. Please let me know if I’m missing any true SMP.
6. Will my previous MCAT score hurt me in any way even though it's expired?
7. What are some good suggestions for ECs? I was thinking either becoming a scribe or EMT and doing research as well.
8. Scenario 3 is probably my best bet although if there is any way to matriculate in med school before 2020 I’d prefer that obviously. Any advice on this?
I know my stats are pretty poor at the moment, but I'm more than willing to put in the time and effort to succeed in all this so any constructive help would be greatly appreciated! I'm committed. Thank you!