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[kmmath]

Hi. I have lurked around the boards for awhile and have finally decided to introduce myself.

I am the 30 yr. old (gasp!) mother of three (5,4 and 1). My husband is finishing his fellowship in Infectious Diseases and I am in my last year of grad school (molecular genetics)

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I am planning on applying to medical school once we have settled and my youngest is in school...I must be crazy.

Here is my question. My first two years of undergrad I did quite miserably...probably only a 2.8...but I had all A's and 1 B during the last two years. My double major was Psychology and German. I studied as an exchange student in Germany for a year, lived over there for 4 and in Northern Ireland for 1...I have an interesting CV anyway. My overall for my undergrad ended up being a 3.44 although my last two years were a 3.9. I went back to school when I had two small children 2 and 6 months and started taking my hard sciences...back then, I was just sort of tinkering and not knowing what I thought I would do with it. My husband was doing his IM residency and so my focus was mostly on the family. My GPA was a 3.0...nothing stellar..and my grad school GPA is above a 3.5, so I guess that is ok...I haven't taken my MCATs yet...but does anyone think that I might have a chance?

Also, please recommend my website to your spouses...http://www.medicalspouse.com. It is part of my http://www.survivingresidency.com site. I promise not to mention it again!

Kristen

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[ana]

What kind of classes were you taking when you had a good gpa in undergrad? Where they psych & liberal arts or sciences? What classes did you take for "hard sciences?"

Unfortuntely, you will either need a very high MCAT (>/= 30), which is do-able by the way, or you should take more classes and try to get mostly A's.

The molecular genetics background is a plus, and so is your very interesting CV. However, you will need to get some good numbers to get your foot in the door so it can be noticed.

If it were me, I would definitely try it. If I did not get in the first time, then I would take more science classes (again, I would get mostly A's) and then try again.

Good luck. Nice to see a woman who actually has a life going into medicine! Any idea what field you want to pursue?

 

[kmmath]

I was taking a mix of courses at the time, although for the most part I think they were language and Psych....I think it is probably a good suggestion to take some more science course and get an A. My CV is interesting, but getting my foot in the door will be the issue I guess.

Any suggestions on getting a good MCAT?

I am not sure of what area of medicine I see myself in right now...my heart would tell me OB-GYN...but I don't think that that is an option because I have children. I have to think realistically about their needs as well. In the end, I would have to choose a more "family friendly" specialty.

Kristen

 

[ana]

Kristen,
You took classes related to molecular genetics, right? How did you do in those?

Basically, you need to show you are capable of tackling the first two years of med school (that's when the vast majority of drop outs occur) -- the first two years consists of basic sciences given to you at high volume/high velocity. If you had some tough science courses in your grad work, then that might work for you.

For the MCATs, I recommend taking lots of practice exams. Most people do just a little better on practice than actual test situations. You should try to get double digits on practice exams (mid 30's) and expect to do slightly worse on the actual.

The most representative book (in terms of content/complexity/coverage) for the MCATs is the Flowers book. However, I feel that Kaplan and Princeton have the best practice tests. Since you have been out of school for a while and have domestic & family responsibilities, give yourself at least 4-6 months to study. Try to not to do too much in one sitting. When I was studying (I had been out of undergrad for quite a while as well), I just tried to cover a 2-3 chapters in Flowers. Each time I sat down to study, I would review the last chapters from the day before, then I would study the next 2-3. When you finish the Flowers book, take lots and lots of practice exams.

If you plan on taking a commercial course, try to sit in on one session if you can (they allow this sometimes). Hyperlearning is very comprehensive, but may be too detailed for the MCATs (these days, the MCAT is more a reading comprehensive exam and requires less factual knowledge than many people would expect); Princeton focuses on test taking strategies (this is the one I took); Kaplan is somewhere in between.

Family friendly fields include Family Practice, Psychiatry, Dermatology, and Emergency Medicine. There is quite a vareity.

I wish you the best.

 

[spyyder31]

kmmath,
I really liked your site! Thanks!