Medical Making plans for reapplication next cycle, what can I do to improve my application? Post-Bacc or enroll in SMP?

[TheBoneDoctah]

Hi Folks,
I am a current applicant in the 2020-2021 cycle and have not received any interview invites this year, and am now thinking about a reapplication is going to look like. My stats are as follows:

MA resident, graduated with Biology degree May 2020. I took a gap year after High School to work for Americorps in a Boston elementary school.

GPA: 3.53 sGPA: 3.20 aoGPA: 3.95
MCAT: 521 (130/131/131/129) August 2019

Paid Clinical Experience: 1300 hours - mix between EMS and Medical Assistant
Volunteer Clinical Experience: 4100 hours - very involved in campus EMS agency, with leadership position for 2 years
Non-Clinical Volunteering: 1800 hours w/ Americorps
Research: 700 hours in basic science cancer lab, no publications

I know that my sGPA is possibly what is hurting my chances of getting an interview, and I want to know what I can do to remedy that before I apply again. Right now, I am leaning towards taking some upper division BCPM classes. If I take 3 classes, 3 credits each, this spring, it would boost my sGPA to a 3.30. Will this be enough to warrant starting another application cycle next year? Or should I consider enrolling in an SMP? I think I would be competitive for an SMP due to my MCAT score, but I know they are high risk / high reward, so I don't know if that is the path I need to take yet. They are also very very expensive, which is something I need to consider. I will also be adding DO schools to my list next year, I did not apply to any this current cycle.

Any advice about shaping up my application, the Post-Bacc classes vs. SMP, or anything in general is greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance!

I think you would be a strong applicant next year if you completed a post-bac and did very well. You’re correct that your GPA is what is keeping you from getting interviews. A good showing in an post-bac will help.

What exactly did you do in your Americorps? This was before undergrad? Did you have any non-clinical volunteering during undergrad helping the less fortunate? For example, soup kitchen, etc?

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[TheBoneDoctah]

Thank you for your input! Regarding Americorps, I worked as a second person in a 4th grade classroom in an underserved school district in Boston. We targeted students who were high risk of not completing high school and I worked with them during traditional classroom hours, as well a few "pull-out" sessions a week, as well as providing emotional and social support from within the school system. I did this for a year after high school, I deferred my college admissions by a year.

For the Post-Bacc, do you think this needs to be an entire year long, or could I have success if I took classes this upcoming spring, and perhaps the summer? Thank you again, I do appreciate the feedback!

I think you need more non-clinical volunteering DURING medical school. The Americorps is great and counts, but it was before medical school.

We usually advise students to do a full year of courses to really prove to ADCOM that you have changed your study habits and can handle the rigor of medical school-like courses.

 

[Goro]

Any rising GPA trend? If so, for how long?

Apply to DO schools and you won't need the SMP.

But for MD, either ace a post-bac or SMP. Aceing three classes won't be enough. This is going top be a solid year long venture.

Read this:

• Goro's advice for pre-meds who need reinvention

 

[TheBoneDoctah]

Don't rush this. Go through the proper steps to get the GPA to match your stellar MCAT score and you could be a doctor in the future. If I were in your shoes, I would take the year though and apply MD after the post-bac.