Newbie Takin' Her Sweeeet Time

[AishaMousgoy]

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Hi all, new here.

I consider myself a non traditional student because of my age (27, but will be pushing 30 when I apply to med school) and because I have a BA in theatre arts (UC Santa Cruz 2003), as opposed to a degree in sciencey stuff.

This whole pre-med adventure began when I was accepted into the Peace Corps as a community health educator. While serving in Cameroon (2004-2006), I realized my truest calling in life was to become a doctor and work to serve the underserved (hopefully working in Africa again). So when I got back to the States in late 2006, I began the long and winding road of Going Back to School. I have since been attending Seattle Central Community College to take prerequisites.

So far, I have taken:

Calc 1, Calc 2, Statistics, Bio 1, 2, 3, Gen Chem 1, 2, and English Comp 1 and so far have a 3.8ish GPA in those classes.

I think I will eventually run into some trouble during the admissions process because of my BIG FAT DIRTY SECRET: I do not have a GPA for my BA from UCSC (at the time, I had no idea I would ever want to apply to med school, but now I'm sorry!)

On a brighter side, I work as a "tech" (basically a CNA with expanded duties, including sheath pulls, d/c IVs and Foleys) and by the time I apply to med school, i will most likely have several strong LOR, and at least a year or two of clinical experience.

I don't give a fig where I get accepted to med school, be it DO or MD, US or the Caribbean.

What do ya'll think o' that? I'd appreciate your opinions/advice. Thanks!

PS- why is it that getting into med school seems to be a race? I don't have a problem with people going from high school to college to med school via the express route, but I wonder why it's viewed in a negative light if you take the scenic route? After living in Africa for two years, I think one of the best lessons I came away with was that sometimes it's important to slow down a little, enjoy life, and spend time with those you love...

 

[NTF]

Your EC's already sound stellar. Your post bac GPA also excellent. I think you'll have plenty of schools to pick from on your current trajectory.

And actually, non-trads are almost the norm now, so I rather think the scenic route is preferred these days.

I'm not sure what to make of the no GPA thing. How did that happen? Did you take your entire BA pass/fail?

 

[ruraldr]

Hi there,

Kudos to your progress thus far...a few thoughts for you.

1) You may want to consider applying to the UW as a post-bacc. This would allow you to demonstrate your abilities in a non-community college, which will be important for some MD schools.

2) Taking your time is definitely a good idea. Make sure you are getting the scores you want on your practice MCATs before taking the actual test.

Good luck!

 

[packofneurons]

I think your plan seems very logical. I, too am hoping to do the 'scenic route.'

I was thinking about taking a semester off to go abroad (Africa was actually my first choice) before I shift into MCAT gear. This would mean that I would have to wait another year until I can apply to medical school, but I think it may end up being worth it.

With your experiences and grades, I feel like you will be able to get into many competitive MD programs. You seem to have everything in order, so props! 👍

And I had the same question as the previous poster: Was your previous bachelors pass/fail? I don't understand why it wouldn't count. I'm assuming you'll still have to send that in to AMCAS.

 

[AishaMousgoy]

UC Santa Cruz offers narrative evaluations in place of, or in addition to, letter grades. So I had pass/fail, and a written evaluation by the professor about my performance in each class. 99% of these "evals" give the impression of an A.

I wonder if there is anyone else out there with a similar grading situation to mine.

At the time, it seemed like a good idea (I had no intention of persuing a science-y career). Now that I've grown up a bit, and changed my mind about careers, I see the errors of my ways!

But hey, no one's perfect. I'm also hoping that my ability to speak Spanish, French, and Fulani will help out a bit, if only to make the adcoms scratch their heads and want to know more!

 

[AishaMousgoy]

I know I am biased when it comes to Africa, but I highly recommend you go there if you are at all interested!!! It will change your life forever.

 

[packofneurons]

I know I am biased when it comes to Africa, but I highly recommend you go there if you are at all interested!!! It will change your life forever.

Thanks! I have a few friends here in the States that are from Africa, and they've told me many stories about living there. It seems like something I want to experience. 🙂

 

[elizabetta]

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[bradt9881]

I was wondering if anyone here could give me some advice about my situation. I'm 28, and 3 semesters into a post-bac (Just finishing up organic chemistry and physics).....I spent 3 years working with the UN in Africa, mostly Ethiopia but also in Tanzania. I did my Master's degree in international relations with a focus on humanitarian affairs at Georgetown.....now here's the bad part....My undergrad GPA is about a 3.25 and my post-bac GPA so far is a little higher, maybe a 3.4......do I have any chance for medical school? I also "don't give a fig" about where I go.....but I would like to stay inside of the U.S. if possible....I haven't taken the MCAT yet (April) but can someone tell me how much these grades are going to hurt me? My lowest post-bac grade is a B, but let's face it...I get mostly Bs.......I'm looking forward to starting the application process to see what happens but I figured maybe some of you on here would have more perspective than the 18 year old undergrads at the university I currently attend.....

3.25 is sub-par for MD but possible with your background and a good MCAT. DO is very doable IMHO.

 

[elizabetta]

thanks for the insight...i'm pretty bummed that my MD application will be judged on a 3.25 undergrad gpa from eight years ago.....

 

[notdeadyet]

UC Santa Cruz offers narrative evaluations in place of, or in addition to, letter grades. So I had pass/fail, and a written evaluation by the professor about my performance in each class. 99% of these "evals" give the impression of an A.

Med schools will not read your evals for the first cut (deciding whether or not to interview you). Your interviewer may or may not be provided with them.

I wonder if there is anyone else out there with a similar grading situation to mine.

Yes. Former slug here myself. No grades except for post-bac.

Ironically, it works GREATLY to your favor. Not because of the narrative evals (two med schools I interviewed at flat-out admitted they'd never looked at them) but because your entire GPA they will talk about and decide about you with is determined by postbac grades.

This gives you a big advantage because you are being judged only on classes pertaining to MEDICINE and only since you've decided on medicine. Most non-trads have some ugly grades buried back there. Yours will not.

So don't sweat the narrative evals. Just make sure you keep a strong GPA and (very important) do very well on the MCAT, which is the great equalizer.

I had 5 interviews that lead to 3 acceptances and 2 waitlists. The issue of my transcript not having grades was not brought up once.

Good luck!

 

[MDToBeInNC]

Hey Aisha!

Just wanted to say hello. I served with Peace Corps in Togo from 2004 to 2006 and am now also on the pre-med track as a non-trad. I was also a health volunteer; I worked with an Assoc of People Living with HIV.

I really wish I could have your attitude about taking it slow but aren't you impatient?! My husband (who is Togolese) keeps telling me "lentement" and "soit patiente" but I'm just biting at the bit.. I just want to get started already!

I'm hoping to apply next cycle... Depends on how the mcat goes this spring.

 

[AishaMousgoy]

Ahhk! Hi!! I wonder if we were in the same staging thing in Philadelphia? Mine started Sept 22, 2004. It was Cameroon and Togo together until we got to Paris, then we took different planes obviously... I'm so happy to hear from you! Remember, petit a petit l'oisseau fait son nid! Yes, I am chomping at the bit here and there, but I know if I take it slow, I will do better and have a better chance of Getting In. Plus right now I'm working full time at ye ole hospital, so that puts a damper on all things scholastic. I guess you could say I'm focusing on my LOR this year 🙂

 

[AishaMousgoy]

Yay! I'm so happy I'm not The Only One. Thanks so much for your reply.

 

[Barfalamule]

You might want to talk to QofQuimica. I believe she went through the whole issue of interviewing and getting into medschool without an ugrad gpa.

Yes, I find that if you've had the opportunity to travel a bit sans worldly possessions, it really changes the focus on what is important in life. You find yourself taking your time. I was reading the Earthsea trilogy and came across this quote:
"But each deed you do, each act, binds you to itself and to its consequences, and makes you act again and yet again. Then very seldom do you come upon a space, a time like this, between act and act, when you may stop and simply be. Or wonder who, after all, you are."

I believe that very few people actually get this chance or if they do, it really is a pseudo-chance, and they wind up hurrying down a path they can't see. You see the destination and it makes your path certain, leaving you the opportunity to enjoy the scenery.

 

[QofQuimica]

I think I will eventually run into some trouble during the admissions process because of my BIG FAT DIRTY SECRET: I do not have a GPA for my BA from UCSC (at the time, I had no idea I would ever want to apply to med school, but now I'm sorry!)

I'm a third year med student who applied with no UG grades, credit hours, or GPA from my major institution. (Everything, including all of my prereqs, was P/F). It is definitely possible to get into medical school without grades if the rest of your app is up to snuff. You will need to do extremely well in your postbac (aim for 3.8+ GPA) and also on the MCAT (ideally 33+). I wrote a post about my app experience; you can find the link to it in the sticky. (Look for the Nontrad Secrets of Application Success link.) Best of luck to you; feel free to PM me if you have any other questions about applying w/out grades.

 

[MSmentor018]

I am a 3rd yr med student also, don't worry about the gpa thing. being a non trad with a degree, it wasn't an issue. they only looked at my med school pre reqs. all the other grades were a mixed bag of traditional grades and P/F (some were military). your background is a great bonus, as long as your pre reqs grades are good, do decent on the mcat, you should have no problem. having strong LOR's always help. apply broadly and go from there. good luck!~