Need your precious advice...please

[free2ryhme]

Hi, I am 21 years old and a college dropout. I started college when I was 16 cause I had good grades in H.S. and I wanted to become a doctor just like everyone of you but once I got into College I started to screw around and as a result was placed on academic probation 3 out of the 4 semesters I attended and was finally dismissed. I appealed and got back in and did well for one semester but the following semester I screwed around again and once again went into probation status and lost my financial aid (it was cancelled since my GPA a 1.94).

I dropped out of college cause I could not afford school and I was wasting my time. I started working but knew that without an education I am not am worthless. So I enrolled in a CC and got straight A's and my associates degree. I also got accepted into another school and now I no longer feel the need for screwing around.

I was wondering if I could get some honest feedback; I want to get into med school but what are my chances, If I do have a chance what steps must I take to get into med school, and finally what MCAT score must I get in order to be considered a worthy applicant.

I thank you for your time and words

P.S. I recently received a letter from my first college saying that they made an error on one of my grades and as a a result my GPA went up to 2.10 and I am now eligible for Financial Aid.

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[redlight]

DO may be your best shot. hopefully you can retake many of the courses you did poorly in and then for DO apps they would only consider the retake (i believe). remember that anything below a C probably wont be considered a passing grade.

try and accumulate clinical experience as you improve your academic record.

 

[Stratego]

To tell you what MCAT score you'd need, we need to know what your cumulative GPA is including both schools you attended. Here is a calculator if you need help with that: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=450050

How many classes did you repeat?

How many more hours do you anticipate taking before you graduate?

 

[free2ryhme]

My GPA at the University was a 1.94

Repeated Courses
Math Course - 3 Times
Chemistry 1 - 2 Times
Physics 1 - 2 Times

At The CC GPA was a 4.0
and I plan to take 15 hours per semester

 

[Stratego]

My GPA at the University was a 1.94

Repeated Courses
Math Course - 3 Times
Chemistry 1 - 2 Times
Physics 1 - 2 Times

At The CC GPA was a 4.0
and I plan to take 15 hours per semester

If you don't want to put your GPAs together with the calculator I provided, I'll have to make some assumptions. After the first two years of college, your cGPA was about 2.0. Then you got an associates Degree at a CC, presumably two more years with a similiar number of credit hours at 4.0, making your current cumulative GPA about a 3.0. So with two more years of coursework taking the same number of credit hours each semester that you've taken so far, your cGPA with 4.0 in every class might be at 3.3. It will be a bit higher than that if you apply DO because they'll only use the final repeat grade in their calculation, so maybe a 3.4. Then you'd need an MCAT score of 26+ to have a decent chance of an acceptance.

If you wanted to apply to MD schools, a GPA of 3.3 is too low without an MCAT score of 34+ or a Special Masters Program to redeem the low GPA.

 

[free2ryhme]

As far as I am aware SMP require the same stats as DO school, now what would be the purpose of taking the SMP, is it to better my chances for MD? What about the BIG 3 or 4 Caribbean MD schools?

 

[camaras2480]

As far as I am aware SMP require the same stats as DO school, now what would be the purpose of taking the SMP, is it to better my chances for MD? What about the BIG 3 or 4 Caribbean MD schools?

This isn't true. Many SMP programs will take a 3.0/25 applicant. This candidate may not get into DO. I know candidates who entered SMPs with 2.8/22 type profiles too.

The SMP makes you a better candidate for US MD. Of course, it will be a huge help for DO school. I would recommend MD, DO, SMP, Postbac, and other Masters programs all before the Caribbean due to the very high rates of disaster down that route (attrition, residency, licensing). And plus, your situation is not bad enough to forego DO schools. Hell, you are probably a strong SMP away from being a candidate at 'low' tier MD schools in the US!

 

[free2ryhme]

What do you mean by the 2.8/22. It is GPA/MCAT? But what is my chances of getting into a SMP program/post bac programs?

The reason I ask is because my FIRST College try was A HUGE disaster so would that not affect me negatively?

 

[Stratego]

As far as I am aware SMP require the same stats as DO school, now what would be the purpose of taking the SMP, is it to better my chances for MD? What about the BIG 3 or 4 Caribbean MD schools?

Yes, an SMP would improve your chances at getting into a US allopathic program if that is your aim. I doubt you'd need the SMP to get into a Caribbean school, but it is the general opinion on SDN that DO>>>>Caribbean MD due to high attrition rates in the Caribe schools and International medical grad stats of a less than 50% match rate into a US residency program.

 

[camaras2480]

What do you mean by the 2.8/22. It is GPA/MCAT? But what is my chances of getting into a SMP program/post bac programs?

The reason I ask is because my FIRST College try was A HUGE disaster so would that not affect me negatively?

Yes it is GPA/MCAT.

Yeah, I read the whole thread before posting. Stratego already told you what he guesses your GPA would stand as, and I like his assumption, since you didn't use the calculator and figure it out yourself lol.

So your 1.9 over 2 years + 4.0 over 2 years (Associates Degree) = 3.0 GPA over 4 years. Yeah, so you did terrible in the first 2 years, but you excelled the second time around. Worst case scenario: retake the courses you did horrible in (C or below) in the upcoming year. Then, you will be fine for SMP and Postbac for sure (for SMP, you will need an MCAT or GRE, doesn't have to be stellar).

 

[free2ryhme]

ok now if i redo my courses at an other university, is there any negative marks against me?

 

[camaras2480]

ok now if i redo my courses at an other university, is there any negative marks against me?

No, but try to stay at a state school as a minimum. You have enough to explain in your past, no need to explain more stuff.

 

[free2ryhme]

Does SMP or any of those programs look at the LEVEL of the University you attented.

 

[camaras2480]

Does SMP or any of those programs look at the LEVEL of the University you attented.

Not really, unless there is a reason to look, and there generally is not. SMPs generally base their admission on numbers, and they take at a glance at your ECs.

 

[free2ryhme]

Does the Research i did almost 3 years ago count or is it time to update...also I started volunteering at a hospital yesterday and wonder how many hours must i do in order to look good.

P.S. I just want to thank you and EVERY single one of you in here for helping me out...I really am thankful for you guys and your words.

 

[free2ryhme]

<Quote>Not really, unless there is a reason to look, and there generally is not</Quote>

what would cause them to look?

 

[Mobius1985]

How much research did you do thre years ago? As long as it was during the college years, it won't expire.

Are we talking clinical volunteering? Adcomms would expect to see about a year of ongoing clinical experience at a rate of 3-4 hours/week, though applicants seem to have about 1.5 years in average. Since you are a volunteer it also counts for community service.

 

[Mobius1985]

Do you have any other extracurriculars already? Teaching, leadership, other community service, shadowing?

 

[camaras2480]

what would cause them to look?

They would look if someone had been on academic 3 of 4 semesters (lol) and had NOT gone into school again after that and gotten straight A's. The fact that you have made the effort to remedy your mistakes will go a long way.

 

[free2ryhme]

I did research for about 6 months and I have no publications. I also Highly doubt I would receive any kind of letter from him because he had a bias towards the HIGHER GPA kids. I worked in the project 40 percent of the time and 60 percent of the time I would be cleaning up after them...so i left that.

As far as volunteering I plan to do about 8 hours a week at the Hospital but cannot do anymore due to work commitments.

 

[free2ryhme]

They would look if someone had been on academic 3 of 4 semesters (lol) and had NOT gone into school again after that and gotten straight A's. The fact that you have made the effort to remedy your mistakes will go a long way.

Aah, but will they consider the TIER of the school? Cause I started at a REALLY HIGH tiered school and now I am going to a mid to low tiered school so I was wondering if they would be all "Oh at the Hard school he sucked, but the easy one he excelled."

 

[free2ryhme]

Do you have any other extracurriculars already? Teaching, leadership, other community service, shadowing?

When I initially started school, I worked at a hospital for a total of 50 hours over the course of 5 weeks, I tutored a kid, and I was working

 

[Stratego]

So the research you have already is fine. You have a start on the clinical volunteering. The tutoring is a good thing to list. Eight hours per week at the hospital is more than you need to do if you are pressed for time. I'd agree that 3-4 hours per week is sufficient. Adcomms look more aat the period of time you were gaining experience, not so much the actual hours, but everyone totals their hours and it seems that about 150 hours is average.

Don't worry about the "tier" of the school. It doesn't matter as much as you think. Adcomms consider more the rigor of the school. And even that isn't important so much if you have a great MCAT score proving that you "got it."

 

[camaras2480]

Aah, but will they consider the TIER of the school? Cause I started at a REALLY HIGH tiered school and now I am going to a mid to low tiered school so I was wondering if they would be all "Oh at the Hard school he sucked, but the easy one he excelled."

Nooooo oneeeee cares Good luck!

 

[free2ryhme]

I'm sorry for being a pain in the ass with all my questions but I initially went to DUKE. Oddly, the semester I did well was with physics, ORGO 1 and CALC 2 and my grade for this semester was A,B,A....but all my other suky semesters were C or D...now at a hard school I did sucky. In the Easy school if I get all A's and such will they think I am someone who can't handle the RIGORS of med school?

 

[camaras2480]

I'm sorry for being a pain in the ass with all my questions but I initially went to DUKE. Oddly, the semester I did well was with physics, ORGO 1 and CALC 2 and my grade for this semester was A,B,A....but all my other suky semesters were C or D...now at a hard school I did sucky. In the Easy school if I get all A's and such will they think I am someone who can't handle the RIGORS of med school?

No. Your classes at Duke were just classes, not medical classes. You just need to explain yourself well in your personal statement/at your interview.

 

[free2ryhme]

that is interesting to say the least...i am not sure how to put that i screwed around in writing without making them think that I may do it again. Regardless, I the is a way I will find it.

camaras2480, Stratego, and Mobius1985 I want to thank you all for your advice.

 

[camaras2480]

that is interesting to say the least...i am not sure how to put that i screwed around in writing without making them think that I may do it again. Regardless, I the is a way I will find it.

camaras2480, Stratego, and Mobius1985 I want to thank you all for your advice.

There is a way, and it is up to you to find it. Namely, ask yourself if you think you have matured, and learned from your mistakes. Literally, ask yourself. And when you answer "Yes," ask yourself why. And then write down the next answer.

Glad to help - good luck!