NEED ADVICE: what gpa do i need in a masters program medical science (not PhD)

[jakefsu]

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Ok, so right now, I have a low gpa 3.3. Think I can get it up to about a 3.45 by graduation.

Mcat score wise, I did well 34.

I am thinking about doing grad school, there are one year masters of medical science that take many of the classes as med schools. I think there is one in MS and one in Miami. But what kind of GPA do I need coming out of the program?

I just read if you did bad, than this will pretty much kill your shot at med school. But no talk of GPA. And someone I talked to through private messages said she had straight Bs in one of these programs and still got into Med school so it helped her.

(and i am not thinking about applying to schools outside the US, and not really looking at D.O. (just not my first choice right now) if I can do a 1 year masters program and get into M.D. I'd rather do that)

 

[MiniMoo]

is that GPA your science or overall or both? Assuming it's both, a 3.45 and 34 MCAT is not bad. I don't think you even need an SMP which can be expensive and risky. If you can stay in school a little longer and pull the GPA up to a 3.5, even better. Apply broadly and early and I think you have a decent chance at getting in provided the rest of your ECs and such is solid.

 

[jakefsu]

yeah, SMP is the name.

I don't even think it'd be a 3.45. If I get a 4.0 this semester and next year, than it'll be a 3.45. If I get a 4.0 this semester alone, It'll be around a 3.37 when I apply so I am thinking I need it. Plus I don't think I'll have a 4.0 every semester, hoenestly I am thinking 3.4 at the end.

But I am from a competitive state.
my shadow/volunteer/EC is below average to average.

Does anyone know what happens if you take an SMP but drop out like in a month (say it's really hard)

basically i am 90% sure i need to reapply
and I thinking of going down the SMP route, but i want to be able to drop out and it not affect me (i guess like before the drop deadline?), if it doesn't work out. Than do more volunteer, shadowing, lab work to bring those to above normal.

 

[MiniMoo]

yeah, SMP is the name.

I don't even think it'd be a 3.45. If I get a 4.0 this semester and next year, than it'll be a 3.45. If I get a 4.0 this semester alone, It'll be around a 3.37 when I apply so I am thinking I need it. Plus I don't think I'll have a 4.0 every semester, hoenestly I am thinking 3.4 at the end.

But I am from a competitive state.
my shadow/volunteer/EC is below average to average.

Does anyone know what happens if you take an SMP but drop out like in a month (say it's really hard)

basically i am 90% sure i need to reapply
and I thinking of going down the SMP route, but i want to be able to drop out and it not affect me (i guess like before the drop deadline?), if it doesn't work out. Than do more volunteer, shadowing, lab work to bring those to above normal.

You don't need an SMP because you have both the time and resources to pull up your GPA by just staying in undergrad an extra year. Take more classes and pull up your GPA to at least a 3.4. You can also use this time to beef up your volunteering, shadowing, and research since you said these areas are weak anyways.

An SMP is a LAST ditch effort. You already have the wrong attitude by approaching it as an "I can drop out if I have to" situation. You do realize that an SMP can be up to $30-40k a year right? For example, the Georgetown Special Master's Program is $43,402 for the 2010-2011 school year. Some of the cheaper ones are maybe in the low $20k range, but if you drop out, that's still a huge chunk of money down the drain and another year wasted. Not to mention that med schools are going to know you dropped out and your chances of acceptance are going to be tanked. An SMP is high risk, high reward. But it's stupid to take that risk if you dont' have to.

Stay in undergrad. Take more classes. Apply when your GPA and ECs are more solid.

 

[jakefsu]

hey, thanks for your reply.

I am gathering info at this stage and probably will heads toward an SMP. I am not really considered about money, if it helps, I am for it.

I am a double major so I already have a lot of courses, thus it's going to be hard to pull up a gpa, when you've taken a lot of classes. I do have a positive trend (was a mostly B student with a few Cs, to a A student with a few Bs).

But the state I live in the public schools MCAT is a 30 and GPA is 3.79.

I was planning on doing SMP fall and spring. And do maybe 4 hours of volunteer/shadowing a week. Than over the summer go hardcore volunteer/shadowing.

I am mostly just looking for GPA avgs of students that did SMP that got into med school. That will help me better with a decision.

 

[MiniMoo]

hey, thanks for your reply.

I am gathering info at this stage and probably will heads toward an SMP. I am not really considered about money, if it helps, I am for it.

I am a double major so I already have a lot of courses, thus it's going to be hard to pull up a gpa, when you've taken a lot of classes. I do have a positive trend (was a mostly B student with a few Cs, to a A student with a few Bs).

But the state I live in the public schools MCAT is a 30 and GPA is 3.79.

I was planning on doing SMP fall and spring. And do maybe 4 hours of volunteer/shadowing a week. Than over the summer go hardcore volunteer/shadowing.

I am mostly just looking for GPA avgs of students that did SMP that got into med school. That will help me better with a decision.

I don't know about GPA data regarding successful applicants from SMP programs. You might get more help by asking in the post-baccalaureate/SMP forum. It would also be a good idea to ask how demanding an SMP program actually is. I would imagine it would be significantly more difficult to balance volunteering and other extracurriculars compared to an undergraduate course load. But others who have gone through it would be better able to advise you.

 

[DrMidlife]

Does anyone know what happens if you take an SMP but drop out like in a month (say it's really hard)

Yeah, you pick another career. An SMP is about 2/3 of the first year of med school. If it's too hard, then you shouldn't go to med school.

basically i am 90% sure i need to reapply
and I thinking of going down the SMP route, but i want to be able to drop out and it not affect me (i guess like before the drop deadline?), if it doesn't work out. Than do more volunteer, shadowing, lab work to bring those to above normal.

The point at which you can drop out and get tuition back is well before the first exam, at least at EVMS.

What you're supposed to prove in an SMP is that you're above the average medical student. So if the med student curve peaks at 70, you want to be at 75 for that school. For using the SMP to get into other med schools, you'd want to get straight A's, or you don't get the benefit of the SMP. At EVMS, if you want to stay at EVMS after the SMP, you want to honor all your classes during the SMP so that you don't have to repeat them 1st year.

Are you sure you want to go to med school? Do you know what you're getting yourself into? It's freaking hard work and it never stops.

The postbac forum gets a TON of traffic from past & future SMP students. Highly recommended.

Best of luck to you.