Med School Game Plan

[Hammster]

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Hello!

I am a PhD candidate in political science. I'm actually looking for a change in career path so I'm considering medical school now. Because both my bachelor and master degree are in non-science discipline, I know that I'll have to retake some of the undergraduate-level science classes in order to meet the prerequisites of most medical schools. I'm planning to make as many As as possible in those classes and (hopefully) no Cs. My GPA from both B.A. and M.A. is about 3.45

Do I have a chance for any med school?

Also, I'm an international student even though I obtained all my degrees from US universities.

I'd greatly appreciate if someone could give me an advise (or tell me if it's worth it, etc.)

Thanks!!

 

[sullen-burger]

Hey, great question.


So it's tough for us to say what your chances are for med school this far out. You are correct in that you need pre reqs like science courses and the MCAT, which you need to do better than average on the MCAT to outweigh a less than average GPA; but also some non academic factors are paramount:

Why do you want even want to go to med school?
Specifically for you, Why change careers? This might come up as a question if you're a non traditional applicant.

Then there's also:

Have you done clinical and non clinical volunteering?
Shadowing physicians?
In general, demonstrated maturity in making this decision.


Sorry if this isn't as satisfying an answer as "you'll be fine" but there are lots of variables to this. Fortunately most of the variables are still in you control. So it's totally up to you and your motivations. Let me know if you need any other tips.