Non-trad: here's where I am now

[GoPens]

I’m a non-traditional student getting back into pre-med mode and trying to figure out where my weaknesses are/what I need to focus on the most as I finish my pre-reqs. I was pre-med for a while in college, but ended up going to grad school and have been in the professional world since then. Recently decided to finish everything up and finally apply to med school.

Undergrad (BA in psychology with biology minor):
cGPA: 3.56
sGPA: 3.43

Grad (MPH in infectious disease & emergency preparedness):
cGPA: 3.70 (only one hard science course, which was a doozie and I got a B-)

MCAT: not yet taken, as I am finishing pre-reqs. Will be taking well after the new version, unfortunately. I need a good MCAT school to offset my GPA, but I’m not sure how high I need to get.

I still have 4 pre-reqs to take, which should help my GPA. I got a C in second semester gen chem, and C+ in first semester biochem, so may retake one or both of those.

Research experience: Independent masters research which I ended up presenting at a national conference. Also have some random research assistant experience on a nationwide HIV study (~10 hrs/wk for 1.5 yrs), and co-authored a couple publications from another research assistant job.

EC: Corps of Cadets program at a military college for 4 years and a student public health outbreak response group in grad school (leadership positions in both). Also, I’m a painter and marathoner. Not sure if those are worth mention.

Work: I currently work in public health as an emergency planner and infectious disease epidemiologist. I feel like this is getting me a lot of experience that will help me in med school apps. Currently no actual clinical experience, but I intend to shadow and possibly volunteer at a hospital over the next few years while I finish pre-reqs/take MCAT.

I live in Ohio, and plan to apply to Ohio State, Case Western, NEOMED, and Johns Hopkins (as my long-shot dream school). I'm mostly wondering what my chances are looking like with what I have so far, if re-taking my chem courses is absolutely necessary, etc. I'm hoping my work experience will boost my app a lot, but I know I still have work to do on the numbers.

Thanks!

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[jordan789]

Don't know much about NEOMED but for Case, John Hopkins, and OSU to consider you, you will need to get an excellent MCAT score given that your GPA is much lower than their averages. I'd say 95th percentile at least. Good EC's.... you'd be an interesting applicant. Good luck!

 

[zzxxzz]

I live in Ohio, and plan to apply to Ohio State, Case Western, NEOMED, and Johns Hopkins (as my long-shot dream school). I'm mostly wondering what my chances are looking like with what I have so far, if re-taking my chem courses is absolutely necessary, etc. I'm hoping my work experience will boost my app a lot, but I know I still have work to do on the numbers.

1) No offense, but did you just pick the three geographically closest schools and the school with the best reputation you could think of? You need a longer - and more varied - list. At the very least, apply to the other programs in Ohio. They're all better than NEOMED, and that includes OUHCOM. Invest in the MSAR, it's worth it.

2) I'm not going to tell you not to apply to any schools, but you should know that 90% of students admitted by Hopkins had at least a 3.7 GPA. The remaining 10% are mainly URMs, veterans, etc. Similarly, your GPA is fairly low for Case and OSU. I'd still apply as you have a fairly unique app, but just have realistic expectations. Hopkins, Case, and OSU are all very competitive programs.

3) As far as MCAT goes, you're basically looking at 95th percentile (which would be a 35 on the old MCAT) as a baseline target to balance your GPA. Case in particular is known for liking relatively high MCAT scores, and OSU, Case, and Hopkins all have medians at/above 95th percentile. Again, you might get consideration with a lower score, but your app probably won't even get read with anything below a 90th percentile. Your work experience is good, but you need to be able to show MD schools you'll be able to handle the course load and do well on your boards, too.

4) Absolutely shadow and volunteer. Your ECs look good, but try to get some direct patient contact.

5) You went to a military college? Do you have any active/reserve duty experience? If so, that'll help.

6) I'd consider retaking your Cs, especially with the new MCAT requiring lots of biochem.

Good luck!
- a fellow Ohioan

Don't know much about NEOMED

NEOMED is an IS-only school with a 29 median/mean MCAT score. It does not have a great reputation.

 

[ProudMD]

1) No offense, but did you just pick the three geographically closest schools and the school with the best reputation you could think of? You need a longer - and more varied - list. At the very least, apply to the other programs in Ohio. They're all better than NEOMED, and that includes OUHCOM. Invest in the MSAR, it's worth it.

2) I'm not going to tell you not to apply to any schools, but you should know that 90% of students admitted by Hopkins had at least a 3.7 GPA. The remaining 10% are mainly URMs, veterans, etc. Similarly, your GPA is fairly low for Case and OSU. I'd still apply as you have a fairly unique app, but just have realistic expectations. Hopkins, Case, and OSU are all very competitive programs.

3) As far as MCAT goes, you're basically looking at 95th percentile (which would be a 35 on the old MCAT) as a baseline target to balance your GPA. Case in particular is known for liking relatively high MCAT scores, and OSU, Case, and Hopkins all have medians at/above 95th percentile. Again, you might get consideration with a lower score, but your app probably won't even get read with anything below a 90th percentile. Your work experience is good, but you need to be able to show MD schools you'll be able to handle the course load and do well on your boards, too.

4) Absolutely shadow and volunteer. Your ECs look good, but try to get some direct patient contact.

5) You went to a military college? Do you have any active/reserve duty experience? If so, that'll help.

6) I'd consider retaking your Cs, especially with the new MCAT requiring lots of biochem.

Good luck!
- a fellow Ohioan





NEOMED is an IS-only school with a 29 median/mean MCAT score. It does not have a great reputation.

Strongly concur. Your GPAs are on the low side, but coupled with a 35+ MCAT, you should have good chances at even some of the more competitive schools. I know someone with a 3.6 cGPA, 3.3 sGPA, and 35 MCAT getting into Case Western.

 

[alpinism]

Agree with the above. Just remember, a 35 MCAT is easier said than done, especially if you have an sGPA on the lower side.

Most people end up with a high 20s score and maybe lower 30s if they study their ass off and get lucky. All you can do is try your best and do as many practice questions as possible.

Realistically you need to apply early (June) and broadly (20+ schools all over the country) including all the Ohio schools.

 

[GoPens]

Thanks for the feedback everyone! I wasn’t sure if this was important info when writing my original post, but it seems it is: I am somewhat limited geographically to schools in cities where my SO can be transferred within his company. This includes a couple Ohio cities, as well as a couple on the east coast. However, staying in-state is vastly preferable for this reason.

Based on the above feedback, I do plan to expand my search within the other possible cities. However, I wonder if anyone knows much about NEOMED and their graduates (that may be a question for another thread). I plan to pursue a residency in the northeast Ohio area, and from NEOMED’s match list, they seem to have a lot of people match there, and in residencies that I would be happy with. I assume if they have an accredited MD program, that they must at least turn out competent physicians? While I anticipate being able to do some decent GPA repair with my final pre-reqs, it seems that this may be my most realistic option, both grade-wise and location-wise.