Need some guidance with premed track and what classes I should take

[potatopuncher]

Some background: Been an ICU RN for almost 10 years now. Was in a crna program but withdrew voluntarily on good standing and had a 4.0 gpa as well as good clinical evals. Long story short, I wasn't fulfilled with my path as a crna and becoming a mid level provider. I'm ready to challenge myself for med school and want to be able to take care of patients with full autonomy and expertise. I have much more I could go into with that but I'll save it for applications and personal statements. Financially, I have GI bill benefits so medical school won't be a toll on me so this is a realistic goal of mine.

Stats are as follows:

• cGPA 3.07 (193 hrs)
• bcpm/sGPA 2.80 (77 hrs)
• Grad GPA 4.0 (60 hrs)
• ~20,000 clinical hours (10 years RN exp.)
• Leadership exp. as military officer
• No research hours (have read not that essential)
• No non-clinical volunteering hrs (but will work on getting some)
• MCAT pending

I still have to take Ochem 2, Physics 2, and Biochem. This would be 11 credit hours. I would need 16 credit hours to put my science GPA at a 3.0.
I calculated that I would need 27 credit hours to get to a 3.1 science GPA. Would it be worth it or me to take on those extra classes to raise my science GPA by 0.1 points? Or would 16 credit hours to raise my sGPA to a 3.0 be enough? I would essentially be doing a DIY-post bacc at that point and possibly retaking other science classes I made C's in the past.
Any other advice would be appreciated as I embark on this journey.

Side question I have is would I need to take biochem even if I took it through crna school? Would any of the grad level science courses I took through crna school count toward the science GPA?

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[potatopuncher]

bump. Can provide any additional information if needed.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I think you need to take those prerequisites anyway if you never took them before. Don't obsess over your sGPA that includes your classes from a decade ago. Do well with your most recent premed classes.

What is your grad school coursework in?

Retake biochemistry for medical school and the MCAT.

 

[potatopuncher]

Would you recommend I take additional courses on top of the pre-reqs? Should I try to retake some of my more arbitrary bio classes that I made C's and/or D's in?

My grad school coursework consisted of:

• Biochemistry
• Advanced A&P and Pathophys 1 and 2
• Pharmacology 1 and 2
• Health care informatics
• Research statistics
• Regional and PoCUS anesthesia
• Advanced health assessment and diagnosis
• Research evidence into practice

Did about 150 cases in the OR as well.

 

[gyngyn]

My grad school coursework consisted of:

• Biochemistry
• Advanced A&P and Pathophys 1 and 2
• Pharmacology 1 and 2
• Health care informatics
• Research statistics
• Regional and PoCUS anesthesia
• Advanced health assessment and diagnosis
• Research evidence into practice

Did about 150 cases in the OR as well.

Was this post bac or graduate?
Graduate grades are not included in the calculation of AMCAS BCPM or AO gpa's. MD schools basically expect all A's in grad school and they appear on an entirely separate line.

DO schools see things differently and average them together.

 

[2324applicant]

I’m not sure that most medical schools would accept biochem from a crna program (bc many are picky about what the syllabus entails). That said, I would reach out directly to a couple schools to see what they say as well as any premed advisors from your grad program. Likely youll need to send them a syllabus to know for sure

 

[potatopuncher]

Was this post bac or graduate?
Graduate grades are not included in the calculation of AMCAS BCPM or AO gpa's. MD schools basically expect all A's in grad school and they appear on an entirely separate line.

DO schools see things differently and average them together.

Those were graduate level courses I took while enrolled in a nurse anesthesia program.

 

[gyngyn]

Those were graduate level courses I took while enrolled in a nurse anesthesia program.

These will not be seen as equivalent to undergrad (non-vocational) classes at MD schools.

 

[potatopuncher]

Follow-up question if anyone could shed some thoughts on. I took a "contemporary" Biology 1 & 2 course my freshman year, made A's in. Then the following sophomore year of college, I took "Introduction" Biology 1 & 2 and made a C- and C, respectively, in. Reason I took Biology twice was because the contemporary biology courses I originally took did not count toward the science degree I was pursuing. If my memory recalls, they were biology course for non-science majors. Was undecided freshman year, then sophomore year switched degree plan to science. This was 14 years ago.

Would the "contemporary" bio courses count toward MD & DO science gpas?

Would I need to retake science majors Biology 1 & 2? Due to the C's that I made in those courses?

I also made Cs in Precal and Calculus. Should I retake those?

Appreciate any thoughts and insight.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Follow-up question if anyone could shed some thoughts on. I took a "contemporary" Biology 1 & 2 course my freshman year, made A's in. Then the following sophomore year of college, I took "Introduction" Biology 1 & 2 and made a C- and C, respectively, in. Reason I took Biology twice was because the contemporary biology courses I originally took did not count toward the science degree I was pursuing. If my memory recalls, they were biology course for non-science majors. Was undecided freshman year, then sophomore year switched degree plan to science. This was 14 years ago.

Would the "contemporary" bio courses count toward MD & DO science gpas?

Would I need to retake science majors Biology 1 & 2? Due to the C's that I made in those courses?

I also made Cs in Precal and Calculus. Should I retake those?

Appreciate any thoughts and insight.

Technically, transcript verification will likely classify your Bio 1 and 2 courses as biology/science courses, even if they were gen-ed level. It's the responsibility of the schools' admissions committees to discern those courses are gen-eds. You technically took appropriate Bio 1 and 2, so you don't need to retake them. Furthermore, you shouldn't need to retake C's since you didn't fail the courses (sometimes your registrar won't let you).

 

[potatopuncher]

Technically, transcript verification will likely classify your Bio 1 and 2 courses as biology/science courses, even if they were gen-ed level. It's the responsibility of the schools' admissions committees to discern those courses are gen-eds. You technically took appropriate Bio 1 and 2, so you don't need to retake them. Furthermore, you shouldn't need to retake C's since you didn't fail the courses (sometimes your registrar won't let you).

Thank you for the advice, even after a year from my original post.
I just reviewed Goro's "reinvention" post. He/she recommends retaking any prereqs that are C- below. Since I made a C- in Biology 1, would you recommend that I retake that? Even though you said I shouldn't retake C's. I've been out of school for a long time so I don't know if a "-" and "+" grade mark is just getting into the weeds or something specific that med school look at.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Thank you for the advice, even after a year from my original post.
I just reviewed Goro's "reinvention" post. He/she recommends retaking any prereqs that are C- below. Since I made a C- in Biology 1, would you recommend that I retake that? Even though you said I shouldn't retake C's. I've been out of school for a long time so I don't know if a "-" and "+" grade mark is just getting into the weeds or something specific that med school look at.

Yes, you should retake C-minuses on prerequisites when you can. It's a technicality that C-minuses confer a numeric grade below 75%, so for med school admissions, that's failing.