Need some advice - PLEASE

[vgharibj]

Hi All,

After reading many posts, this is my first post on SDN. I have always had the itch to become a doctor in the back of my mind. Since graduation, I have had some time to reflect and realize that becoming a physician might be the only career that can satisfy my life's goals. I was planning to go to MBA school, but as applications for MBA's get closer I am finding myself having a change of heart. I need some advice to help me make a decision.

Here is my profile in its shortest version:

Academics:
UC Irvine Engineering: 2.2 GPA
OCC (Engineering pre-reqs): 2.8 GPA

UCLA extension(Non-Degree)
Math for finance A
Business Calc A
Accounting A

GMAT: 730 Q49 V42 (96%)

Professional Experience:
-Licensed Stock Broker with Series 7 & Series 66
-Published Inventor of mobile wireless technology

Why I did so bad in undergrad?
-Six family members pass away
-Worked two different part time corporate positions during engineering curriculum
-Was forced in to studying engineering

Whats different now?
-Things are more stable
-Because I am older, I have learned to appreciate academia and learning more than ever



What I am looking for is a realistic list of the steps I would need to take to become a practicing surgeon, regardless of how weak my profile stands as of now.

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[1289]

you need at least 2 years before you can even realistically apply to med school. so i would say you're looking at 3 years before you start your first year. Over the next two years:

1) take all pre-med requirements post-bacc. absolutely nothing lower than a B. preferably all A's.
2) in the meantime, start getting clinical experience. volunteer, shadow, try and find a healthcare related job if you can (this is just as important as taking your pre req classes, you have virtually no clinical experience right now)
3) plan to be ready for the mcat (at least a 3-4 month commitment beforehand of studying) by April/May 2014.

 

[FrkyBgStok]

mainly disagree with above but only because it isn't nearly enough. you have a 2.2 gpa. Your MD chances are basically forever nil. If you were willing to put in years, you may have a chance. But not 2 years. like 5. for example, I assume you have 120 credits for the sake of calculation. You would need 189 credits of 4.0 grades in order to raise to a 3.3 which is low but could be overlooked if you had 189 credits at 4.0. There are no "preferably As." you can't afford to get anything other than A. Ever again.

Your best bet is retake some bad grades and apply to DO schools as they allow for grade replacement. But you probably aren't interested in DO schools, so if MD it is, plan on either finding something else, or planning on 5 solid years of gpa repair. again, only As. Anything less than an A will be a huge problem.

 

[david199380]

OP, it really depends on just how bad you want it. You are looking at literally years of your life being spent working to repair your GPA. You will need exceptional EC's to offset the low three-point-something GPA that you are realistically able to attain. If you want it bad enough, I think you can do it. It's just going to take a lot of hard work. You need to demonstrate that you can handle the rigor of med school and that your previous undergrad years are in the past. Best of luck.

 

[1289]

mainly disagree with above but only because it isn't nearly enough. you have a 2.2 gpa. Your MD chances are basically forever nil. If you were willing to put in years, you may have a chance. But not 2 years. like 5. for example, I assume you have 120 credits for the sake of calculation. You would need 189 credits of 4.0 grades in order to raise to a 3.3 which is low but could be overlooked if you had 189 credits at 4.0. There are no "preferably As." you can't afford to get anything other than A. Ever again.

Your best bet is retake some bad grades and apply to DO schools as they allow for grade replacement. But you probably aren't interested in DO schools, so if MD it is, plan on either finding something else, or planning on 5 solid years of gpa repair. again, only As. Anything less than an A will be a huge problem.

true. I was only thinking of terms of getting things done, not repairing the gpa. but OP if you want to be competitive I agree with this.

 

[vgharibj]

mainly disagree with above but only because it isn't nearly enough. you have a 2.2 gpa. Your MD chances are basically forever nil. If you were willing to put in years, you may have a chance. But not 2 years. like 5. for example, I assume you have 120 credits for the sake of calculation. You would need 189 credits of 4.0 grades in order to raise to a 3.3 which is low but could be overlooked if you had 189 credits at 4.0. There are no "preferably As." you can't afford to get anything other than A. Ever again.

Your best bet is retake some bad grades and apply to DO schools as they allow for grade replacement. But you probably aren't interested in DO schools, so if MD it is, plan on either finding something else, or planning on 5 solid years of gpa repair. again, only As. Anything less than an A will be a huge problem.

Thanks for the reply...have a few follow up questions.

1. So my first two years at junior college, which includes many pre-med pre-reqs, is not part of my GPA?
2. A postbac, which is taken after a bachelors degree is finished, still some how re-averages your undergraduate GPA?
3. Other than retaking the required pre-med courses, what other courses make up the 5 years?

 

[1289]

Thanks for the reply...have a few follow up questions.

1. So my first two years at junior college, which includes many pre-med pre-reqs, is not part of my GPA?
2. A postbac, which is taken after a bachelors degree is finished, still some how re-averages your undergraduate GPA?
3. Other than retaking the required pre-med courses, what other courses make up the 5 years?

2. yes, and undergrad gpa is what a lot of schools use when doing an initial "screen" of applicants. all courses, unless they are part of a graduate degree will be included in that regardless where or when they are taken

 

[Goro]

Thanks for the reply...have a few follow up questions.

1. So my first two years at junior college, which includes many pre-med pre-reqs, is not part of my GPA?
Oh yes it is!


2. A postbac, which is taken after a bachelors degree is finished, still some how re-averages your undergraduate GPA?

Nope, it modifies your cumulative GPA (cGPA). In our files, we are given cGPA, undergrad GPA and post-grad GPA.

3. Other than retaking the required pre-med courses, what other courses make up the 5 years?

I recommend the standard pre-med courses that will help you with MCAT, help you in medical school, and also show us AdComs that you can handle the intensive course load of medical school. So, stuff like anatomy, physiology, microbiology, biochem, genetics, cell biol.

 

[FrkyBgStok]

Thanks for the reply...have a few follow up questions.

1. So my first two years at junior college, which includes many pre-med pre-reqs, is not part of my GPA?
2. A postbac, which is taken after a bachelors degree is finished, still some how re-averages your undergraduate GPA?
3. Other than retaking the required pre-med courses, what other courses make up the 5 years?

1) yeah it would, but I don't know what your breakdown is for your gpa, so I used the worst case scenario so you can see the worst path. Take the time to figure out your cgpa which includes every class you have every taken. After we know the cgpa and how many credits you have taken, we can give better advice that is more accurate.

2) any class you take that is undergrad level will affect your ugpa. as long as you don't enroll in a grad program, you will be taking undergrad level classes.

3) take the obvious stuff like as many sciences as you can, but also take stuff you can get As in. It is a long time. If you are interested in DO schools, retake some of your lowest grades. but there isn't any specific stuff (other than science classes). the goal is not to get MORE well rounded, it is for gpa repair. so effectively, anything you want.

 

[vgharibj]

1) yeah it would, but I don't know what your breakdown is for your gpa, so I used the worst case scenario so you can see the worst path. Take the time to figure out your cgpa which includes every class you have every taken. After we know the cgpa and how many credits you have taken, we can give better advice that is more accurate.

2) any class you take that is undergrad level will affect your ugpa. as long as you don't enroll in a grad program, you will be taking undergrad level classes.

3) take the obvious stuff like as many sciences as you can, but also take stuff you can get As in. It is a long time. If you are interested in DO schools, retake some of your lowest grades. but there isn't any specific stuff (other than science classes). the goal is not to get MORE well rounded, it is for gpa repair. so effectively, anything you want.

Thanks for the feedback. So then, as an example, my UCLA extension courses would be considered as part of my cGPA? Without getting in to much detail, I think the average cGPA is probably around 2.5/6. So essentially I need to get A's in all the pre-reqs and then take other courses to get my cGPA up to the 3.0+ level..then nail the MCAT's with 32+? With all other soft factors included, would that give me a shot?

Is it recommended to do this through an official postbacc program? Or can I go ahead and take the classes myself, at my own pace, through UC extension.

 

[FrkyBgStok]

Your preference. Structured programs can sometimes get more preferential scheduling but are expensive. I took classes at 3 different colleges last year to get the classes I needed so do what works for you.

 

[vgharibj]

Thanks for the feedback. So then, as an example, my UCLA extension courses would be considered as part of my cGPA? Without getting in to much detail, I think the average cGPA is probably around 2.5/6. So essentially I need to get A's in all the pre-reqs and then take other courses to get my cGPA up to the 3.0+ level..then nail the MCAT's with 32+? With all other soft factors included, would that give me a shot?

Is it recommended to do this through an official postbacc program? Or can I go ahead and take the classes myself, at my own pace, through UC extension.

Any other thoughts here?

 

[kmb8]

The first thing you need to do is formally calculate your gpa. Include all classes. There are gpa calculators on this forum; I think I used this one: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=590424

Put everything in there year by year and see where you stand. MD schools count every single course you've taken, including any that you've repeated (i.e both count). DO schools have grade forgiveness whereby they will only count the retake in their gpa calculation (so it is easier/faster to make improvement in gpa). This will give you an idea of what lies ahead for you.

Hate to say this, but if you really want to be a physician, you won't care what the initials are after your name. Good luck.