New to this forum but i need help please!!!!

[M__]

---

Members don't see this ad.

ok i'm currently a student at OSU and i dont know what to do about my general chemistry.... the story is i took 121 my freshmen year and i got a C- in it then i waited for ever to take 122 (twice) dropped once and got an A the second time but i didnt earn the right way and now i am kicking myself for that and i got a C in 123... I'm 20 years old i have takin all my prereqs and my maths and bio's that are are required for my major....now i need to take biochem and physics.....my question is, is it worth it for me to retake the whole general chem series (121,122,123)and do good in them or should i take the grades i got and not waste a year on it. My current GPA 2.5...oh and i took my 122 and 123 at a community collage and i havent trasfered them so its like i never took them...pleas please please help me with your advise b/c i am totaly stressing out...thank you guys/girls in advance

 

[UseUrHeadFred]

My current GPA 2.5.

This is not good. Do you have a lot of credit hours? If so, this is going to be an uphill battle. If not, pull this up PRONTO. Do whatever you have to do.

If you aren't willing to do what it takes to get 3.4+ overall, you need to realize that being a physician requires constant academic work - for the rest of your life! The studying never goes away - it is not temporary!

If you can pull this up, the general chemistry thing won't be a problem. The chem thing can be explained in your application. But the GPA is a stark problem.

If you are committed, and able to act, you can do it. This will require a veritable revolution in the way you are approaching academics. But people have done it before.

I beg you to be honest with yourself - are you willing to do what it takes?

I'm only saying this because I hate to see people suffer when it isn't necessary. Don't fall in love with an illusion of what medicine is.

Anyone else have input?

 

[M__]

i think i have around 110 credit hours

 

[UseUrHeadFred]

Have you always been pre-med, or did you have another major?

 

[M__]

Have you always been pre-med, or did you have another major?

yea always a bio major wanting to get into pre med

 

[derf]

I would try to get to a 3.1/3.2 range and hammer the MCAT. Good Luck!

 

[Code Brown]

i think i have around 110 credit hours

I hate to break it to you, but you will need to boost your GPA up to at least the 3.0-3.2 range for DO schools and the 3.4+ range for MD schools. With 110 units, this may be a stretch, because with another 110 units at a 4.0 level, you would still only be at a 3.25. You probably need to contact some medical schools directly and sit down with them and look at your options. A really high MCAT score won't help you with a 2.5. Maybe a Graduate degree may make a difference, or you could always go the Carribean route.

 

[M__]

well my other question is should waste another year retaking my general chems? i only have a grade for the 1st one

 

[UseUrHeadFred]

If you are an Under Represented Minority, that will help.

My recommendation would be to complete your degree with a 4.0 in your remaining classes, then go into a Master's degree program and pull a 4.0 in that. Do well on the MCAT.

Don't sweat the general chemistry, so long as you have 8 hours of credit including labs.

It's that easy... right?

BUT... remember what I said... please carefully assess the reality of what being a physician entails.

 

[IllinoisStudent]

I think yea.. It will help you reinforce gen chem concepts. I don't know if u should take it for GPA though.

Just my 2 cents. See wat other ppl have to say.

 

[Code Brown]

well my other question is should waste another year retaking my general chems? i only have a grade for the 1st one

Just so you know, med schools don't replace your grades like your undergrad school may do. They all count. Sorry, but this is probably something that needs to be addressed by a really competent advisor and not by us folks (who really mean well) on SDN.

As for not reporting your grades from JC, that could work too, but you will be lying on your application, which could get you thrown out of medical school.

 

[derf]

I hate to break it to you, but you will need to boost your GPA up to at least the 3.0-3.2 range for DO schools and the 3.4+ range for MD schools. With 110 units, this may be a stretch, because with another 110 units at a 4.0 level, you would still only be at a 3.25. You probably need to contact some medical schools directly and sit down with them and look at your options. A really high MCAT score won't help you with a 2.5. Maybe a Graduate degree may make a difference, or you could always go the Carribean route.

the agree with the above statement in general, but I really think you can be competitive ( to some lesser competitive MD schools) by getting your GPA to at least a 3.1 and getting a 31+ on the MCAT. That would show upward trend (very important in the admissions process and will be looked upon favorably). don't give up...

 

[M__]

first i want to thank everybody for there feedback so far i really really appreciate it...then i had another questions...so to lift my gpa up i obivously need to do very good the next several quarters...so should i take 1 major course like for example physics 111 (part of a 3 course series) and like three really dumb easy A classes...or does is not work that way?

 

[Code Brown]

first i want to thank everybody for there feedback so far i really really appreciate it...then i had another questions...so to lift my gpa up i obivously need to do very good the next several quarters...so should i take 1 major course like for example physics 111 (part of a 3 course series) and like three really dumb easy A classes...or does is not work that way?

Your GPA is broken down into two components, your science and your non-science, so you need to address both sides. That said, take the easy ones, cause no one will know if they were hard or not. Also, check out www.ratemyprofessor.com for advice on this one for your school.

 

[Kazema]

First figure out why you're not doing well. Until you fix that it doesn't matter how easy the classes you take are. Talk to your advisor, talk to academic advisors, get tutoring, etc. Figure out how you learn best, and do that for every class.

When you know how to get A's, you'll get A's, even with difficult courseloads. You can ease into it with a difficult class plus some easy ones, but eventually you will have a difficult semester; you have to know how to handle that too.

 

[UseUrHeadFred]

first i want to thank everybody for there feedback so far i really really appreciate it...then i had another questions...so to lift my gpa up i obivously need to do very good the next several quarters...so should i take 1 major course like for example physics 111 (part of a 3 course series) and like three really dumb easy A classes...or does is not work that way?

Take whatever you're best at. It's gonna take more than that, I think, so I'd plan on graduate school - probably a master's program - prior to medical school.

If you truly believe that this is, in fact, your calling - DO NOT GIVE UP.

 

[SlopinMunkyDude]

Don't D.O. schools replace your old grades if you retake them?

If so, that might be the best route for our young Buckeye if he wishes to pursue a career in medicine in this country. Just retake and erase your past. Plus Ohio University has an in-state osteopathic school that will give him in-state tuition and favor him as a resident. Not a bad deal if the OP is willing to go D.O.

Of course, you might want to take some upper-level science courses to prove your yourself. And you had BETTER get As in these classes. Slash into the social life/wasting time and get to work. If you want to get into med school, you've got to be a machine through the rest of your undergrad education.

You're probably out of luck for allo schools (okay, maybe not, but the odds aren't good unless 1) really jack your gpa up or 2) go out and work for a few years and then do post-bacc stuff). Make sure you shadow a D.O. physician and get a letter of rec.

EDIT: Correct me if I'm wrong (I didn't apply to D.O. schools, so I could be), but doesn't the AACOMAS (is that it?) select the course with the best grade, regardless of where it's taken? For instance, the grades this guy received at his community college will replace his grades from Ohio State in gen chem, right?

And young Buckeye, you will have to report your community college grades when you apply to med schools.

 

[M__]

Don't D.O. schools replace your old grades if you retake them?

If so, that might be the best route for our young Buckeye if he wishes to pursue a career in medicine in this country. Just retake and erase your past. Plus Ohio University has an in-state osteopathic school that will give him in-state tuition and favor him as a resident. Not a bad deal if the OP is willing to go D.O.

Of course, you might want to take some upper-level science courses to prove your yourself. And you had BETTER get As in these classes. Slash into the social life/wasting time and get to work. If you want to get into med school, you've got to be a machine through the rest of your undergrad education.

You're probably out of luck for allo schools (okay, maybe not, but the odds aren't good unless 1) really jack your gpa up or 2) go out and work for a few years and then do post-bacc stuff). Make sure you shadow a D.O. physician and get a letter of rec.

EDIT: Correct me if I'm wrong (I didn't apply to D.O. schools, so I could be), but doesn't the AACOMAS (is that it?) select the course with the best grade, regardless of where it's taken? For instance, the grades this guy received at his community college will replace his grades from Ohio State in gen chem, right?

And young Buckeye, you will have to report your community college grades when you apply to med schools.

what are the main differances between a DO and an MD

 

[neoncandle]

A really high MCAT score can help you with a 3.25 though.. and experience.. it is going to take a LONG time to pull up your GPA.. some people do this by going to graduate school which might be better than retaking chem..

 

[rockstar2525]

The difference between DO and MD is a question that hopefully won't be answered here, as it seems to bring up too much controversey.
I don't know the specific website but do a google search on AACOMAS and it will bring up a site on DO schools and give you a definition of osteopathy, and the difference in curriculum between DO and MD schools.
My 2 cents on your situation: don't take gen chem over again, take an upper level chem class instead. Taking classes over again doesn't look great; it makes it seem like you had to take it TWICE before you were able to grasp the concepts, and there is not time to take things twice in med school. If, however, you take an upper level chem class and kick a$$, adcoms will see that you are capable of learning the material, and may just chalk the C- up to immaturity, bad timing etc.

 

[SailCrazy]

oh and i took my 122 and 123 at a community collage and i havent trasfered them so its like i never took them...

Sorry, but you have to report ALL grades from ALL schools that you've attended. Your current school may not know that the CC grades exist, but AMCAS will...

 

[jeatmonkey]

Sorry, but you have to report ALL grades from ALL schools that you've attended. Your current school may not know that the CC grades exist, but AMCAS will...

lying on your apps.. thats kind of scary that someone would conciously do that. med schools wont look past that.. they will throw your app out..

 

[rtmcad2319]

first i want to thank everybody for there feedback so far i really really appreciate it...then i had another questions...so to lift my gpa up i obivously need to do very good the next several quarters...so should i take 1 major course like for example physics 111 (part of a 3 course series) and like three really dumb easy A classes...or does is not work that way?

You need to realize that Medical school requires one to EXCEL in science courses! So I feel that it would be better for you to finish your degree with upper division courses in the subjects that you sucked in prviously. Then knock out the MCAT and think about a post-bacc even though your undergrad is what counts!!

 

[nina512]

Hate to say so, but it's going to be a long, up-hill battle to redeem that gpa. But the first thing you need to do, is identify why you were doing poorly in your science classes. If you don't, it's unlikely that you'll show any improvement. My suggestion is to finish up your degree and take some time off to get things in perspective. Consdering your track record so far, it's doubtful you have attained the study skills required to do well and jumping into a post-bacc without learning from your previous mistakes would be disasterous. Post-baccs/masters programs are like second chances and med schools would frown on a poor performance a second time around.

I speak from personal experience. I graduated with a 3.2, and no matter what I did, I just couldn't get As in any of my classes. For me, I needed time to figure out how to study (I only learned how when studying for the MCAT 2yrs after graduating).

However, if medicine is what you really want, don't let a low ugrad gpa keep you from pursuing your goal. There are ways to redeem a low gpa in the eyes of adcoms, but keep in mind they tend to be one-shot deals.

 

[sistahnik]

just check the allopathic forums list and the DO forums list and you will see some threads titled DO vs MD and that will give you all the feedback that you need to see the differences, which are very MINIMAL!!

 

[M__]

you see i have had it easy all my life with getting by in school stuff and all kinds of stuff...so like an idiot i get into OSU thinkin it would be the same their and once i got in at first i goofed off then i tried but then i goofed of some more so basically i finally realized that i have been slacking off all this time.... so what i have been doing wrong to get bad grades is not doing my HW and not going to all my classes.... so i know that i can get A's and do good in my classes having said that is it a good idea to take physics 1 a forgien lang and 2 easy classes and get a 4.0 this quarter or should i take physics 1 ochem 1 a forgein lang and an easy class.....the most important thing now is to lift up my gpa...i am thinking of taking the foreign lang and physics so i can gurantee a 4.0 and so i can lidft my gpa....

 

[M__]

bump

 

[nina512]

If you know you can get A's, then I suggest taking a bunch of science classes. Doing well in those will boost your sci gpa and overall gpa. Your goal should be to bring your gpa up to at least a 3.0.

I did a crude calculation and it looks like even if you do get a 4.0 in all your classes your overall gpa will still be below a 3.0

2.5(3yrs)+4.0(1yr)/4=2.88 OR 2.5(110 credits)+4.0(46 credits)/156 total credits=2.94

It looks like you still might have to do some post-bacc/grad work to get into most allopathic schools