Low uGPA in Psych, what's my option?

[VerryCherry]

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Long story short, I did really bad in my last two years in my undergrad.

I went to a big public school(UMass), did fine there(3.7 gpa), then transferred out to high-tier school(UMich) and bombed everything (below 3.0 gpa).

I got BA in Psych and Philosophy. I never really took any science course, so in order to meet course requirements for med school, I have to go back to school and take more classes. I'm currently working in human services field(<2y), working for children and teenagers with psychological and behavioral problems. The rate is 16/hr, so I don't make much. (I'm single, btw)

Although I want to be in mental health field, I want to get more involved in patient care, acquire more in-depth scientific knowledge, learn more about treatment and medication, face more challenges, and be surrounded by intelligent people.

But now, med school sounds just too far away from me. I applied to nearby community college(pre-nursing) and small 4-year public uni(second bac) for this fall to take some more classes, though haven't decided what I'm going to do. I've been thinking few different options like,

1. comm college(pre- and nursing) - take science courses (to meet requirements) - become RN, make more money, and explore the field - apply for med school (down: take longer. Initially, it's the path to become nurse.)
2. comm college - take science courses(biology as major) to meet requirements - apply for med school (down: only AA degree, risky)
3. 4-year uni - take science course(biology as major) to meet requirements - apply for med school (down: money)
4. postbac premed (down: money, school with the program is very far)

They all sound very naive and ambiguous to me, so I want to get some advice here from people who have been or are now going through the similar situation. The cost of going to school does matter and I do understand that, whatever choices I make, it will take long time, but I just don't want to waste my time being unhappy with current circumstances and worrying about my future.

Any advice will be appreciated. Thank you.

 

[Siromas]

Personally speaking, I'd suggest that you start off with shadowing/volunteering. This will expose you to the different aspects and dynamics and (hopefully) give you the chance to chat with people already in the industry about their experiences so far. That should help you identify what's best for you and what fits your personal goals.

If that's not feasible at this time, I'd also suggest that you read, with a grain of salt, the success stories and griefs/grievances posted here (and elsewhere on reputable sites on the interwebz) by people currently in the field. At a minimum that'll get you somewhat started in having an idea of what to expect from whichever path you decide to pursue.

Since money is tight, I believe these two budget-friendly options are great ways to get started without facing hard financial commitments.

Sent from my SM-G920P using SDN mobile

 

[OChemSlayer]

Post-Bac! Post-Bac! Post-Bac! If you really want to be a physician get into a Post-Bac program and study hard. You can do it!

 

[precisiongraphic]

I think that you have your options outlined pretty well.

Another option would be a BSN to NP, specifically a Psychiatric Mental Health Nurse Practitioner, which is a masters-level advanced practice nurse. There is a shortage of psychiatrists and there is expected demand for this specialty. The salaries for this specialty average $120,000 nationwide (and some make $200,000)and PMHNPs can practice independently in a lot of states and semi-independently in many others. Even states with limited independence offer practitioners an exciting, challenging career. In fact, I would recommend PMHNP instead of med school for those who are interested in psych as a specialty - the ROI is much higher - shorter time to complete, much lower costs generally. Plus many NPs work as RNs while they study part-time and thereby run up less debt - a part-time NP degree would be 2-3 years. In addition, many hospitals offer tuition reimbursement so the masters' portion might be completed with little or no debt. There are two year programs for NPs that take those without BSNs (but with a prior bachelor's degree) and while they are pricey, they save the student an additional year or two of school and get the student out there in the workplace earning six-figures faster, which reduces the "opportunity cost" of returning to school.

But in any event, I think taking some of your basic prerequisite classes at the local community college or four-year (cheaper) school is a good way to go.

I do not think you should go to a nursing program with the idea to apply to medical school later. Adcoms here recommend against it and it just adds extra years of school and costs to the journey.

I suggest the following steps:
1) Start some clinical volunteering and shadowing as Shiromas said.
2) Look at some nursing programs and write down the prerequisite classes.
3) Look at some medical schools and write down the prerequisite classes.
4) Compare the two lists - see the overlap! Biology, Chemistry, Physics, Math/calculus. Even English, Psych, Sociology. Some of these you may have from your bachelor's degree. But if you don't have much already that means you'll need less grade repair, so that's good.
5) Start with the basics but make sure that you take the "med school" version of chem, bio, not the "nursing school" version. (Not all schools have two versions.) If you are unsure of what I mean, look at the prerequisites of Organic Chemistry and Biochemistry - the nursing level classes may not qualify the student to take higher level science classes and/or apply to med school. Do not take nursing "lite" classes until and unless you are sure that you don't ever want to go to med school. You can also talk to a school counselor (though some aren't very good...) to make sure that the classes you're interested in will work as medical school prep classes.
6) Start slow and get really good grades while you continue working. If you are unsure, take Intro to Bio before Bio to get your feet wet for example.
7) After you have the first few classes done, you'll have done some volunteering. Try to talk to a NP, shadow some MDs and DOs and see where you might fit and where you see yourself.
8) Decide at this point if you want to try for a real post-bacc (like Drexel's MBS, UofLouisville's post-bacc or something like that with direct linkage to med school) or if you want to continue at a four year university for a do-it-yourself post-bacc or if you want to go the BSN/NP route.

Good luck!