MPH vs. post bacc program?

[Azalea]

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I need some advice on a decision that i cannot seem to make. I have a low gpa 3.15, and low mcat scores 22 first time, and 21 the second time (cruel isnt it). My first two years of undergrad really messed up my gpa, and my science gpa is probably in the 2.5 range. I applied to a few mph programs thinking that this would be a good route for me to strengthen my application. I have been accepted into the ones i wanted, and have chosen boston (international health) (i got into gw and dartmouth). I have recently learned about post bacc programs and am thinking that they may be the better choice since my stats are so low. I was wondering if anyone had any advice on what i should do in this situation. I am due to enroll in boston in a few weeks, i am from florida, so i need to make a decision fast. I may have to take a year off and retake the mcat, and then apply to post bacc programs, or should i just join the mph program? I would appreciate any advice, thanks for reading this long post 🙂

 

[jwongdr]

if you asked me, do the post-bac. here is a direct statement from a director of admission at one of the UC school when I asked him the same question,

" Yes, I suggest that you return to school (4 year
college/university) to complete a MINIMUM of 30-40 semester hours of
upper-division undergraduate biology coursework BEFORE applying to
medical school. Admissions Committees will not overlook undergraduate record because an applicant has earned a graduate degree. Focus should be on UG courses primarily. If you are able to squeeze in CORE SCIENCE graduate courses then that's fine. 38 units of 4.0 will be noticeable"

i followed his advice to heart. Listen, i wish I have someone to take my hand and walk me through this when i was in your shoe, confused on what I should do since there are so many different routes. The truth is what matters most is that:

1) the undergrad GPA have to be highest as possible
2) improve your MCAT score. I studied for 5 months for mine, about 4 hours a day, take every test possible out there. I didn't have much time during undergrad to be involve with my general chem and physics clsses, hence, when I started practice tests, I was scoring 12's !!!!!!! I didn't have the foundation knowledge so I know I have to study harder than everyone else. I know that the MCAT will go a long way to carry me through this, so I study very hard. it is hard to be discipline but it's something that we all have to do. Think about this one, nothing, I mean NOTHING will get you through this process better than your GPA and MCAT scores so make sure they are high as possible. Who cares if you have research, EC's , etc. according to the director of admission, they are secondary. Spend your time and energy improving the PRIMARY weakness, then take it one step at a time.

SO do the post-bac like finch, GT, or just take upper division. Take 3-4 classes per quarter =36-48 units and make sure you get A's, nothing less. Here, it will take alot of discipline too. don't think it will be easy, it's alot harder than graduate schools to get A's in. Trust me, I know.

I hope you will take the long difficult road and good luck!

 

[MoosePilot]

I agree with the previous poster. Here's why - AMCAS calculates your Ugrad GPA separately from your Grad GPA. So ADCOMS are likely to compare apples to apples, comparing your Ugrad GPA to others' Ugrad GPAs. Your grad work won't help that at all.

 

[KevJones]

I did an MPH in EPI, and did fairly well in it (3.75 GPA). Fortunately, it worked for me, but I had a bunch of other strong points in my app. At interviews, the weakness of my science grades were repeatedly pointed out to me. On several occaisions, the interviewer specifically advised me that were I not to get in, I should go back and pound out some "hard science" courses to strengthen that aspect of my app.

That being said, I think the MPH will suit you better in your long-term career, assuming you get into medical school. Do any of your programs offer an MPH in Biomedical Sciences? That would be a way to combine the MPH with some hard science.

 

[ball372]

Hey, just a note from my own experience. I had a poor undergrad GPA. So, when I was thinking of what field to pursue a Master's in: an adcom person told me to do a "hard science" field, specifically, because my GPA was so low, the person told me instead of going into public health, I should do a "hard science."

As for Master's vs. post-bac - I'm not sure. I chose to pursue a Master's with the thought that in case I didn't get into medical school, I would still have other options open to me. I've heard that it may not be so with a post-bac that is only geared towards getting acceptance to med school. GOOD LUCK.