Marginal grades and residency applications

[uglyduckie]

Hey guys!

So this has probably been beaten to death.... I am currently a 1st year at a top 10 med school (got lucky), but had a pretty rough 1st semester. I've been pretty worried about my grades from classes and was wondering if you guys knows know whether or not marginal pass grades during the preclinical years will really hurt someone's chances of applying for competitive residency programs. I know the school's name will maybe help me get a few raised eyebrows, and hopefully the rest of my application will be very strong. At our school, these grades are noted in the dean's letter.

Thanks so much guys. I appreciate any input.

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[blabbyblab]

Step 1 >>> first two years

doing well the first two years supposedly helps you do better on Step1, but you can alternatively study hard and beat the odds.

 

[silas2642]

Hey guys!

So this has probably been beaten to death.... I am currently a 1st year at a top 10 med school (got lucky), but had a pretty rough 1st semester. I've been pretty worried about my grades from classes and was wondering if you guys knows know whether or not marginal pass grades during the preclinical years will really hurt someone's chances of applying for competitive residency programs. I know the school's name will maybe help me get a few raised eyebrows, and hopefully the rest of my application will be very strong. At our school, these grades are noted in the dean's letter.

Thanks so much guys. I appreciate any input.

As nbjmd always says, you have a lot more med school ahead of you than behind you. If you have a few marginal pass grades on your transcript, that isn't great, but there is certainly nothing you can do about it now. The good news is that you haven't failed anything. However, if you're not doing well in your coursework, that indicates that you may need to rethink your study strategies.

Like the other poster mentioned, the most important factors in matching are your clinical grades and step I scores, but you need to make sure you don't have any red flags (i.e. failed coursework). Keep your head up, think about whether or not you can rework some of your studying to be more efficient, and good luck.