Military to Med School; The path forward?

[chemfantry16]

Hey everyone,

I'm currently an Army officer on active duty. I've got a little over two years until I transition back to being a civilian and I'm giving med school a hard look right now.

A little background: BS in Information Technology with a 3.6 GPA from a large state school. I did ROTC but little else in college other than a job with the university. I haven't taken many (any?) of the pre-reqs for med school so I anticipate doing some kind of post-bacc. Since I've been in, I deployed to the middle east and have performed well enough to get some strong letters of recommendation. I didn't really consider med school until I moved to my current duty station near my sister who is an MD. She tossed it out there and I think it might be a good fit if I can swing it.

My questions:
1) What can/should I be doing now to help figure out if med school is right for me and/or to bolster my application? I don't have a lot of free time but possibly I could do things on weekends.

2) Do I need to do a formal post-bacc program or can I self-direct one at a school closer to where I want to be upon separation from the military? Will self-directing put me at a disadvantage?

I'm sure I'll think of more but thanks for the help!

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[esob]

Hey everyone,

I'm currently an Army officer on active duty. I've got a little over two years until I transition back to being a civilian and I'm giving med school a hard look right now.

A little background: BS in Information Technology with a 3.6 GPA from a large state school. I did ROTC but little else in college other than a job with the university. I haven't taken many (any?) of the pre-reqs for med school so I anticipate doing some kind of post-bacc. Since I've been in, I deployed to the middle east and have performed well enough to get some strong letters of recommendation. I didn't really consider med school until I moved to my current duty station near my sister who is an MD. She tossed it out there and I think it might be a good fit if I can swing it.

My questions:
1) What can/should I be doing now to help figure out if med school is right for me and/or to bolster my application? I don't have a lot of free time but possibly I could do things on weekends.

2) Do I need to do a formal post-bacc program or can I self-direct one at a school closer to where I want to be upon separation from the military? Will self-directing put me at a disadvantage?

I'm sure I'll think of more but thanks for the help!

Shadowing is the best thing you can do, since nothing else will give you as good a glimpse into the daily life of a physician. You will need it anyway to apply, so you might as well get it. The TLDR on military service is that it helps, but GPA/MCAT are still king. Being ex-military will make your application stand out against someone with similar numbers, but won't compensate for poor numbers. Ace your science pre-reqs, do well on the MCAT, and you should have an excellent chance at getting in somewhere. Formal post bac's are not of any real advantage that I can see as long as you understand what courses you need.

 

[trev5150]

Hey everyone,

I'm currently an Army officer on active duty. I've got a little over two years until I transition back to being a civilian and I'm giving med school a hard look right now.

A little background: BS in Information Technology with a 3.6 GPA from a large state school. I did ROTC but little else in college other than a job with the university. I haven't taken many (any?) of the pre-reqs for med school so I anticipate doing some kind of post-bacc. Since I've been in, I deployed to the middle east and have performed well enough to get some strong letters of recommendation. I didn't really consider med school until I moved to my current duty station near my sister who is an MD. She tossed it out there and I think it might be a good fit if I can swing it.

My questions:
1) What can/should I be doing now to help figure out if med school is right for me and/or to bolster my application? I don't have a lot of free time but possibly I could do things on weekends.

2) Do I need to do a formal post-bacc program or can I self-direct one at a school closer to where I want to be upon separation from the military? Will self-directing put me at a disadvantage?

I'm sure I'll think of more but thanks for the help!

Given your resume you can probably diy but that’ll be more effort than a formal post-bacc since you need to ensure you have all the pre-reqs and other items (shadowing, research) suitcased. Plan hard, work easy.

See if you can’t get a bit of TDY to do some clinical observation, or burn some leave to do that. See if the sights and smells are what you’re into. That’s a big deal.

 

[Mt Kilimanjaro]

Agree with prioritizing shadowing to make the decision.

Also be aware of IPAP if you want to stay in and decide not to jump through all the med school hoops.

United States Army Recruiting Command (USAREC)

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

1) Shadow and clinical volunteering. You can start with shadowing, as it generally does not have a very large commitment and lets you really see what physicians do all day. If you decide to continue the process, you will need clinical volunteering or employment.

2) Formal or self-directed are both fine. Your grades in those courses are far more important than whether it's self-directed or not. It's preferable that you take the courses at a 4-year institution though.

As for your military experience, it will most definitely help. You still want to give yourself the best chance possible by killing your postbacc and MCAT, but I personally know multiple vets/active duty who got into med school with ~500 MCATs and sub-3.5 GPAs, and I'm talking about MD acceptances too. LizzyM has said numerous times to add ~5 points to your LizzyM score just for being a vet.

We were told by the Dean of Admissions at USUHS at orientation that there are schools who give huge boosts to vets, including some that consider all vets in state.

 

[esob]

1)

We were told by the Dean of Admissions at USUHS at orientation that there are several schools who give huge boosts to vets, including some that consider all vets in state.

Oh really, any idea what schools give vets the same weight as in-state candidates?

 

[trev5150]

BTW: If using VA benefits, all veterans are considered in-state for the purposes of tuition.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Oh really, any idea what schools give vets the same weight as in-state candidates?

I’ll look at my notes, but I know off the top of my head that Quillen does.

 

[Skiiiiiing]

Military is huge plus - nontraditional status is a minus at some schools but another plus at others. Get a 3.8 or better in the prereqs, do well on the MCAT, shadow, apply broadly, shower and smile at your interviews, and I bet you have multiple acceptances.

Also, it's a 10+ year process: 2 for prereqs, 1 for application, 4 for medical school, at least 3 for residency. There are far easier and quicker career paths with similar outlooks.

 

[chemfantry16]

Thank you all for your advice and knowledge. I will talk to my sister (an MD who lives and attended med school in the area) and see if she can link me up with some doctors from different specialties. In the meantime I'll continue to research my options as far as completing prereqs and see if I can't do some self-study to get a leg up since it's been a few years since I was in an academic environment.

Military is huge plus - nontraditional status is a minus at some schools but another plus at others. Get a 3.8 or better in the prereqs, do well on the MCAT, shadow, apply broadly, shower and smile at your interviews, and I bet you have multiple acceptances.

Also, it's a 10+ year process: 2 for prereqs, 1 for application, 4 for medical school, at least 3 for residency. There are far easier and quicker career paths with similar outlooks.

This is certainly something I'm aware of and is part of my considerations. I have no problem making a long-term commitment and money isn't one of my biggest considerations. For me it's more about personal and professional fulfillment and the path towards those goals - regardless of time or money invested. I do appreciate your caution, though.

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

Not sure where you're at, but many hospital systems have organized shadowing programs. The hospital system around me has an online app where you sign up to shadow different specialists.

 

[Keri]

Oh really, any idea what schools give vets the same weight as in-state candidates?

If you are exiting with 100% GI Bill benefits, you will be considered in-state for any public school (so long as you begin to use the benefits w/in 3 years of your discharge).

I can't post the full link, but google "post-9/11 resident rate requirements."

 

[Matthew9Thirtyfive]

If you are exiting with 100% GI Bill benefits, you will be considered in-state for any public school.

benefits.va.gov/gibill/post911_residentraterequirements.asp

That's for tuition purposes. I think you'd still be considered IS or OOS depending on which state you consider your residence (could be wrong, but that's how I read it), but some schools will consider you IS for admissions purposes if you're a vet or active duty.

 

[Keri]

That's for tuition purposes. I think you'd still be considered IS or OOS depending on which state you consider your residence (could be wrong, but that's how I read it), but some schools will consider you IS for admissions purposes if you're a vet or active duty.

Ah, touché. Re-reading with that in mind does paint a different picture now.

 

[BC_89]

Oh really, any idea what schools give vets the same weight as in-state candidates?

They made a change to the post 9/11:

If you utilize your GI bill within 3 years of active service you automatically qualify for in-state tuition in all 50 states (private schools as usual have their exceptions). They’re also ammending (and may actually be taking place) that the BAH coming with this is based on zip code of actual school your enrolled in (not your place of living if it happens to be different) with a 95% coverage rate. That last bit was still in the making and I cannot validate if that’s bound by new enlisted soldiers this year or everyone that already has the GI bill.

 

[Gastrapathy]

Your sisters connections are helpful. Do some shadowing now. If you are near a MTF with housestaff and have time to waste, you want to do some research. You can call the GME office, introduce yourself and tell them you'll volunteer your time to help a resident with a research project. Get anything published but make it clear that you are volunteering your time for an opportunity at authorship. Then get out.

Do an informal post-bacc and establish residency in a state with good public options (and by good, I really mean less competitive).

Treat the MCAT as a job. Take a prep course. Invest in a single successful attempt.

Good luck

 

[esob]

They made a change to the post 9/11:

If you utilize your GI bill within 3 years of active service you automatically qualify for in-state tuition in all 50 states (private schools as usual have their exceptions). They’re also ammending (and may actually be taking place) that the BAH coming with this is based on zip code of actual school your enrolled in (not your place of living if it happens to be different) with a 95% coverage rate. That last bit was still in the making and I cannot validate if that’s bound by new enlisted soldiers this year or everyone that already has the GI bill.

I was referring to selection preference, not tuition rates, which is what I think the original post was referring to as well.

 

[BC_89]

I was referring to selection preference, not tuition rates, which is what I think the original post was referring to as well.

You’ll have to excuse me. Currently on CQ and attention-to-detail is not a high moment for me at this time.