NYU BIOETHICS MA - good choice?

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cocodoctor

cocodoctor

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I've been accepted to NYU Bioethics program, the M.A. is only one year. I am hoping to raise my GPA and look for networking opportunities up in NYC.

I am from Houston (MCAT (30), GPA (3.3)). If I stay here in Texas I can only get into State schools. I want something different. Any thoughts? or experiences about this program?


Edit* - I changed to 'something different' because of the controversy. My point is that I want to get out of Texas for a while.
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I am not familiar with that program but I have some reservations about your plan.

Texas is one of the best states to be from. NY, not so much. Don't give up your TX residency. Texans get in everywhere, not just TX but your gpa does need repair.

Grad school programs are notorious for grade inflation. An excellent gpa will be chalked up to grade inflation and a low grad school gpa (<3.6) will be the kiss of death.

Unless your science gpa is >3.7 and your total gpa is being dragged down by non-science courses, the MA in bioethics will do nothing to show that you can manage the science curriculum of medical school and that's most likely where you need your gpa boost.

The MA in bioethics without something else (RN, MD, JD, PhD) is not very marketable. You'll acquire skills but not any that anyone is likely to pay you for.
 
Why do you think that you are too good for a texas med school?
 
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His 3.3 and 30 are just too awesome for those schools!
 
Is everyone here from Texas? 😕. I didn't mean it like that. My goal is to hopefully get in to a top 10 medical school. I will be retaking the MCAT at the end of this summer. My MCAT goal is 35. Do guys think I can make it then? + NYU MA? Make your bets :laugh: and if no....what do you guys recommend?
 
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Your gpa needs repair; a 3.3 is not going to turn heads at any top 10 institution no matter your networking connections. You also need some research & publications if you don't already have that experience although it might be argued that research and publications in bioethics might be interesting and acceptable although it will be difficult to pull off while in a one-year program. Some schools will average your 30 and your next score so even a 35 will put you below average for top 10 schools.

If you really want to be a physician, stay in Texas. It is your best shot.
 
Does this seem to be the general consensus on masters programs in bioethics? I have been looking into a few at Columbia, UPenn, and NYU, too. I am really interested in these topics and thought it would be a great way to begin professionally developing in this area, to possibly serve on bioethics committee once I earn my MD in the future.

I was really excited, but now have serious reservations. Many opinions seem to be that it does not boost your app for med school. I don't need a GPA booster (3.98), but thought it would be a unique, thought-provoking experience, that couldn't hurt. Maybe stronger LOR? Interesting research?

Academics/GPA are stronger points of my app, while ECs tend to be a little weaker. I guess it would be better to beef up ECs and avoid 45k on something that doesn't directly strengthen your app/further your career?
 
Bridget21 said:
Does this seem to be the general consensus on masters programs in bioethics? I have been looking into a few at Columbia, UPenn, and NYU, too. I am really interested in these topics and thought it would be a great way to begin professionally developing in this area, to possibly serve on bioethics committee once I earn my MD in the future.

I was really excited, but now have serious reservations. Many opinions seem to be that it does not boost your app for med school. I don't need a GPA booster (3.98), but thought it would be a unique, thought-provoking experience, that couldn't hurt. Maybe stronger LOR? Interesting research?

Academics/GPA are stronger points of my app, while ECs tend to be a little weaker. I guess it would be better to beef up ECs and avoid 45k on something that doesn't directly strengthen your app/further your career?
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There are a number of schools that offer combined MD/MA programs. Northwestern has one that can be completed in 4 years and there are others including Louisville, Pittsburgh, NYU and Loyola. (google MA MD bioethics for more). The combined degrees are usually less expensive than doing one degree & then the other.
 
cocodoctor said:
Is everyone here from Texas?.........😕 I didn't mean it like that. My goal is to get in to a top 10 medical school. I will be retaking the MCAT at the end of this summer. My MCAT goal is 35. Do guys think I can make it then? + NYU MA? Make your bets :laugh: and if no....what do you guys recommend?
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This attitude that TX schools aren't good enough for you is really naive and I would strongly recommend examining yourself and getting some humility before interviews roll around, lest you be sorely disappointed. Eventually you will realize that where you go to medical school will not define your career or life's direction. The sooner you realize this, the more stress & lost money you will avoid trying to get into a "top 10" school.
 
Bridget21, As you know I've been accepted to NYU Bioethics for this coming Fall. I've decided to dot it because like you, I am very interested in these topics and I know Bioethics will play a HUGE role in future medicine.

I mean, with new health care laws, the sky-rocketing prices of healthcare, new technologies (like genetic engineering, aging, singularity, among many others) there will be a HUGE need for doctors with common sense and medical training in Bioethics. I've been encouraged by many people (prominent DOCTORS) to take the Bioethics path before medschool and I can guarantee you that if that is what you want to do, any school will find it very attractive.

There are many doctors that will successfully engage in current ethical debates, however, some doctors don't really care about learning more about the ethical principles that will guide us to develop science while protecting human beings and the environment.

I studied philosophy for a year in Europe to fulfill my Honors requirements while in undergrad + I have plenty of research experience from one of the ~top 10 institutions for research in the country (BCM) where I contributed to 3 publications so far. Moreover, everyday I found in this institution a new research project that may be subject to ethical dilemmas. *For example, there is a new gene found in the Hispanic populations that makes them more prone to develop fatty liver and later become obese. So, the ethical predicament would be - should the researcher find a way to activate or deactivate that gene with drugs so that people can eat whatever they want, or if we should tackle the problem of fatty liver and obesity by teaching the population not to eat crap and keep the gene discovery for education and prevention purposes. Sometimes scientist are too busy with their research projects that they lose track of what is morally correct and there is where MDs with a Bioethical background will play a role. To above everything 'do no harm' to patients. P.s. this is only an example of thousands of new projects that causes quandary to researchers everyday.

Finally, in the future, medical schools will require more and more ethical training for physicians and they will add more Bioethics to their curriculums (I know the best ones are doing that as you read).

I personally am planning to get my MA in Bioethics, later an MD from a renowned university, so that in the future I can be part of the ethics committee of a hospital or national institution (maybe even the Presidential Commission for the Study of Bioethical Issues), who knows. My first goal is to serve my patients but I would love to participate in Bioetchical discussions/debates, or even write a book.

The bottom line is that you should do what you want to do and not listen to people who expect you to be a copy of an ideal doctor. Everybody's different and everybody needs different approaches to the same science, and that is what makes medicine awesome.
 
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No one here is saying that bioethics degrees are bad. What they are saying is that they won't really help you get into a 'renowned' institution for medical school.

If you want to do it for your own reasons, that's great. If you think HMS will be impressed ... you are deceiving yourself.
 
Enough with the TX thing. Yes TX is the best state in the whole wide universe! I love it. However, my goal is to get into a renowned school (probably Ivy, why not) and I never said I was too good for Texas, I just said that I wanted something better FOR ME and my ideals. Everybody has their goals/dreams/whatever and that is mine. Do not take it too personally, please. If you do not have anything positive to contribute to this thread I will encourage you to leave. Thanks.
 
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cocodoctor said:
Enough with the TX thing. Yes TX is the best state in the whole wide universe! I love it. However, my goal is to get into a renowned school (probably Ivy, why not) and I never said I was too good for Texas, I just said that I wanted something better FOR ME. Everybody has their goals/dreams/whatever and that is mine. Do not take it too personally, please. If you do not have anything positive to contribute to this thread I will encourage you to leave. Thanks.
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Please copy/paste this in your app to the "renowned schools." :laugh:

Edit: I'll just go ahead and say it, with your stats you'd be lucky if you even got an interview spot at one of the Texas schools you seem to look down on. IF you do manage to get an interview, it's likely that your ignorance and douche-factor wold not result in an acceptance. That being said, good luck in whatever path you end up choosing.
 
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oh god...

Edit: Dude, I would say almost forget about Ivy schools with a 3.3. Ivy schools deny people with 3.8 and 34's. If I were you, I would be happy with ANY medical schools willing to look over your GPA and get accepted into their medical program.

Edit 2: What are you expecting? Everyone to tell you that you can easily get into a top med school if you want it bad enough? You asked for advice and now you're getting it. We are on the internet and no one is going to hold back what they think you should do. If you want to blow a bunch of money on a grad program that won't really help you and waste money applying to only Ivy leagues be my guest.
 
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cocodoctor said:
Enough with the TX thing. Yes TX is the best state in the whole wide universe! I love it. However, my goal is to get into a renowned school (probably Ivy, why not) and I never said I was too good for Texas, I just said that I wanted something better FOR ME. Everybody has their goals/dreams/whatever and that is mine. Do not take it too personally, please. If you do not have anything positive to contribute to this thread I will encourage you to leave. Thanks.
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You are expecting people to say, "Yes, that M.A. in Bioethics will earn you the spot on Ivy League!" Honestly, will admissions care if you have a PhD in Bioethics (let alone M.A.)? Probably not, unless you are a big deal in the field and will contribute significantly to the school's reputation.

You need to wake up and realize that doing M.A. in Bioethics based on interest is as far as it'll lead. Also, going from 30 to 35 on MCAT isn't a joke. Instead of getting offended by people giving you a reality check, ask yourself, why is it that necessary for you to aim Ivy Leagues besides satiating your enlarged ego.
 
Atul Gawande*, recently addressed this piece of advice at this year's commencement at Harvard Medical School:

"You are the generation on the precipice of a transformation medicine has no choice but to undergo, the riders in the front car of the roller coaster clack-clack-clacking its way up to the drop. The revolution that remade how other fields handle complexity is coming to health care, and I think you sense it. I see this in the burst of students obtaining extra degrees in fields like public health, business administration, public policy, information technology, education, economics, engineering."

I certainly believe that in the future, an MD will just not be enough to succeed in this evolving society. Of course you will make money, but that is not the point, at least not for me. We NEED to change many things in today's healthcare system or we will end up flat broke, with people dying from easily preventable diseases (like they do today), and most important, with Washington poking and changing the way we do OUR (future) JOBS. It is time to have more medical professionals with a variety of aptitudes. Only this way, we will prove that we are capable of fixing the - current mess that is today's - healthcare system ourselves.

Moreover, I am NOT expecting any positive encouragement from any of you. I just want to show you why I THINK some of you are wrong and why I believe an MA will help me. I was hoping to find in this forum pre-medical students that share my way of thinking. I feel (and many doctors i know) that it is a good idea for me to pursue this Bioethics path before med school, taking into consideration my Biology, Philosophy, and research background. Soon, some of you smart people will start realizing that an MD + MBA, PhD, MPH, PA (public administration), or even an MA will be a nimble move in order to better help and understand our society, so that together we will deliver better and smarter healthcare for future generations.

I will accept any and every criticism posted, and like I said, I am not expecting "what I want to hear" - if that was the case I wouldn't even bother posting this thread, right?

*If you don't know who Atul Gawande is, you should start reading or seriously consider switching careers.

**Silverfalcon - the Ivy League thing - is just my dream. I will be satisfied to get into any good medical school, as long as they prove to share my points of view. So far, other than BCM, none of the Texas schools I've visited really cared about true innovation, or at least they don't clearly reflect it at first. That is why I'm heading East. Sorry if my ego bothers you, but I just won't stop until I fulfill my goals. You should be doing the same thing.

***BJJ - I don't usually reply to retort and your comment is saying me nothing to prove your point. I have a good friend who scored a 41 on the MCAT and GPA 3.7 - she didn't get any interviews from any of the top 20 schools. She was offered to stay in-State, but she declined, she worked on her ECs for a year and is now a Vanderbilt Med student. Sometimes scores aren't everything, sometimes they are. I believe it's worth taking the chance and fighting for what you really want.
 
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Let him do what he wants, and fail on his own.
🙄
 
DKTacts - right?

Though, if you have any other advise, I would like to hear it.
 
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Retake statistics. Your n=1 is meaningless. Plus she had a pretty good gpa + a freaking 41. You have a 3.3 and a 30. Granted it isn't all revolved around your stats, but you should be happy with any med school you get into. Like LizzyM said, the M.A. won't help you get into medical school, because it isn't too tough to get into a grad program. Now if you got your MD+MBA/Phd/etc. that would make you more marketable towards employers or if you want to do something yourself. You're a little hard-headed, but I think you will get it eventually. Good luck 🙂

Edit: Also if you think that taking the chance is worth it, by all means go for it. According to AAMC MCAT and GPA Grid for Applicants and acceptees to US medical schools you have a 39.7% chance of getting into a medical school. Unfortunately I don't know wtf it is for ivys.
 
Also your friend is an idiot for delaying her education for a year to get into a "better" school and I'm surprised she was accepted after having turned down a previous offer...

Also I'm done with this conversation because you're missing the point.

DKTacts said:
Let him do what he wants, and fail on his own.
🙄
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Good advice, which I'll take 🙂
 
BJJ - I am glad you changed your tone and I appreciate the luck wishes. I know my n=1 makes it 'the exception' but I am willing to give it a try. Worst case scenario I'll be back in Texas or even the Caribbean, who knows. I just don't want to stay here and think about 'I should've taken that opportunity when I could'. I mean, I am young, single and somehow intelligent. If I work more on my application, I might catch a glimpse.

*P.S. I was hoping to get real/smart discussions on this forum and instead I get this guy ^.
 
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I think I just got trolled. Hard to believe there are people who really think this way.
 
Is there someone who shares my point of view? :xf:
 
Think of this gaining an acceptance to a top 10 in 2 ways:

(1) GPA / MCAT
Here are the numbers for the 10th percentile at a couple of Ivy / Top 10 schools:

Harvard (3.69/32)
Yale (3.62/33)
Cornell (3.62/32)
Columbia (3.5/32)
Johns Hopkins (3.71/32)

At the moment, both your GPA and your MCAT are below the baseline for the bottom 10% of matriculants at any top 10 (or top 20/30) for that matter. In terms of pure numbers, you're not even close to competitive at these schools, and you'll probably be screened out by the schools before they even take a look at your application (so they wouldn't see that M.A. anyways).

(2) Extracurriculars
Even people who have extraordinary numbers get rejected from top 10 schools. These schools get inundated with hundreds of highly qualified applicants, which means they get to pick the cream of the crop, from the cream of the crop. You need some impressive ECs to have a fighting chance at any of these schools (even assuming great stats).

Do you have impressive research credentials?
Do you have impressive leadership credentials?
Do you have impressive humanitarian credentials?

These schools derive a lot of their prestige from producing the future leaders of medicine, so if you don't have anything on your application that demonstrates this, your chances aren't good (an M.A., while uncommon for applicants, is not something that will really fill any of these criteria).


Even people who have both of these components get rejected from top schools. On the off chance that your ECs are something ridiculous, your numbers will still hold you back.
 
cocodoctor said:
Is there someone who shares my point of view? :xf:
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I finished undergrad with a little above a 3.3 and had a 31 on my MCAT. I didnt' get in to med school initially so I did an SMP at Tufts, got a 4.0, and then retook the MCAT and scored a 36. When I applied to med school again, I had nearly 10 publications, including a first authorship in Cancer. I also had extensive shadowing and volunteer experience. I eventually received over 10 interviews for med school, so I know my essays and letters of recommendation must have been solid.

With that being said, I still got very little love from top 10 and ivy programs. If you have a serious flaw in your application (like a 3.3), it is very difficult for your application to make it through these top notch schools. They have many applications that are 3.8 + and 35 MCAT, why should they pick you? It certainly is not impossible, but it is a gamble that really has few rewards in the end. You will most likely be wasting a year of your earning potential on a degree you can get while in med school or doing residency. I know I am just reiterating what a lot of others have said, but I hope our similar initial numbers will make you realize that even if you improve that MCAT and do great at this masters program, the top schools are still very unlikely (not impossible).

Good luck with the process, it has been a great ride for me and hopefully you will have the same results a few years down the road.
 
A bioethics, even from Harvard, would sound to me as not very marketable and would not say anything about your ability to do science.

Word of caution, my friend did the Dartmouth MPH and the Clinical Nutrition MS at Columbia. It still hasn't paid off with an acceptance to a medical school.
 
cocodoctor said:
I certainly believe that in the future, an MD will just not be enough to succeed in this evolving society. Of course you will make money, but that is not the point, at least not for me. We NEED to change many things in today's healthcare system or we will end up flat broke, with people dying from easily preventable diseases (like they do today), and most important, with Washington poking and changing the way we do OUR (future) JOBS. It is time to have more medical professionals with a variety of aptitudes. Only this way, we will prove that we are capable of fixing the - current mess that is today's - healthcare system ourselves.

Moreover, I am NOT expecting any positive encouragement from any of you. I just want to show you why I THINK some of you are wrong and why I believe an MA will help me. I was hoping to find in this forum pre-medical students that share my way of thinking. I feel (and many doctors i know) that it is a good idea for me to pursue this Bioethics path before med school, taking into consideration my Biology, Philosophy, and research background. Soon, some of you smart people will start realizing that an MD + MBA, PhD, MPH, PA (public administration), or even an MA will be a nimble move in order to better help and understand our society, so that together we will deliver better and smarter healthcare for future generations.
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Okay, I'm not LizzyM and I'm not a premed, but I do know a good bit about combining medicine with health policy and the like as a career, since that is what I've been doing for a few decades (and with "only" an MD).

It can be beneficial to get the "extra" degree, but it is not crucial or necessarily helpful to get it now. Rather, at a later time, when you've identified the field of medicine you'll be pursuing, or have a clearer idea of how you'll use the education, you can go and get the education. There are lots of folks getting MPHs, etc, etc while pursuing fellowships or afterwards. These folks are often leaders in their field.

I won't belabor the points made by others about your application, but I would strongly disagree with your concept that Baylor College of Medicine is the only school in Texas that can challenge you in the areas you are interested in. I encourage you to look more carefully at the public and global health training in several other schools, any of which routinely send their graduates to top residencies as well as Baylor COM.

Regardless, I think that you overrate the importance both of getting the bioethics degree before value and of going to an East coast/Ivy, etc school compared to the outstanding state schools in Texas.

Best of luck to you in all your efforts.

Tildy
 
With your GPA your aim should be 'a medical school', not 'Top 10 medical school'. MA in Bioethics won't help you with that GPA. So it's a bad choice. Another bad choice is getting rid of your TX residency. Another bad choice is ignoring people like LizzyM who are on admission committees, and other pre-meds and med students who know what they're talking about. The worst choice of all is discounting your state schools, which also happen to be some of the cheapest in the nation, as somehow not good enough for you.

So right now you're looking at 0/4 on your choices. A monkey flipping a coin would have likely made better choices. Well done there. Good luck and God speed - perhaps Carribean schools will be enough of a challenge for you.
 
Are there ANY supporters of Bioethics here?

*Forget application/chances/Ivy/Texas.
 
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I leave you this video of Jacob Appel, a prominent Bioethicist, MD and writer (kind of what I am aiming for).

I hope this video will explain better than me - a Bioethicist's role in modern medicine, and why I believe the MA will help me in my future career.

Enjoy.

http://bigthink.com/ideas/19237

Tildy - I am glad you contributed to my thread. Thanks for the input. My only thought is that as you can see in this video, Bioethics is NEW, it didn't exist 30 years ago ~ when you started. So, we might need the degree in order to be an expert in health policy in the future, don't you think? Maybe Bioethics, maybe something else, who knows. The point is, as I said before, when I quoted Dr. Gawande - big changes are coming to medicine as we know it. MAYBE in the near future, if we apply to medical school with a graduate degree, our chances of being noticed/accepted will increase significantly.
 
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cocodoctor said:
Are there ANY supporters of Bioethics here?

*Forget application/chances/Ivy/Texas.
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I am a great supporter of a bioethics degree. I will soon be starting a dual MD/MA in Bioethics at Case Western. At Case, it's free and I will complete within the four years. I only point this out since I think it makes more sense to do this either during medical school or after. I think bioethics is an interesting field (I went to school for philosophy) that will pay dividends by informing the physician-patient interaction regardless of whether it's used to sit on an IRB or a Hospital Ethics Committee. I think it's highly relevant to medicine (especially as fields like genetics and assistive reproductive technology are booming). So much of our knowledge and technology is outpacing the capacity to understand the ethical implications behind their use.

With all that said, everyone here seems to be giving you great advice to achieve your primary goal (as it should be) which is getting into medical school. You should give yourself the best shot of getting in and, based on the advice of some very knowledgeable people here, that means staying in Texas and not doing the bioethics degree right now. Don't worry about the Ivies...it's good to have lofty goals...but just do your best to get your GPA to a competitive range, retake your MCAT and then let the cards fall as they may. Who knows? You may interview at an Ivy and realize there are better places for you.

Nobody's hating on bioethics...it just won't give you the edge you seem to think it will. I suggest pursuing it later and dealing with what's currently right in front of you (bringing up that 3.3 GPA and the MCAT). As whatyousay pointed out, it is a numbers game. Don't let your numbers close doors for you. Best of luck!!!
 
Signe said:
With all that said, everyone here seems to be giving you great advice to achieve your primary goal (as it should be) which is getting into medical school. You should give yourself the best shot of getting in and, based on the advice of some very knowledgeable people here, that means staying in Texas and not doing the bioethics degree right now. Don't worry about the Ivies...it's good to have lofty goals...but just do your best to get your GPA to a competitive range, retake your MCAT and then let the cards fall as they may. Who knows? You may interview at an Ivy and realize there are better places for you.
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Nobody has given me a true piece of advice other than - Don't be stupid, stay in Texas & Don't get the MA. Nobody has even mentioned a way in which I can boost my GPA/MCAT/ECs in order to achieve my goals. Finally, nobody here (other than you & *Tildy) seems to be familiar with Bioethics itself.
 
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Tildy - Sorry, but I am quoting Dr. Appel here, do not feel insulted by me.

*Jacob Appel: "Absolutely. I think 30 years ago, there were no bioethicists. It is one of the new occupations of the technological age that we live in."
 
cocodoctor said:
Nobody has given me a true piece of advice other than - Don't be stupid, stay in Texas & Don't get the MA. Nobody has even mentioned a way in which I can boost my GPA/MCAT/ECs in order to achieve my goals. Finally, nobody here (other than you & *Tildy) seems to be familiar with Bioethics itself.
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While all the bolded advice might not have been delivered in the kindest way, I'd like to rephrase it this way: For getting into medical school, you give yourself the best opportunity by remaining a resident of Texas, and not getting the bioethics degree right now (I think it's a great idea...just not at this stage) and spending your time raising your GPA and MCAT.

As far as advice for how to do these things, I'm not an expert (there are people here who can give much better advice on these topics)...but my suggestions would be to look at '30+ Study Habits' in the MCAT forum and potentially do an SMP (see postbac forum or do a search) to raise the GPA. SMP's (or special masters programs) are basically masters degrees that allow you to show medical schools you can cut it by taking med school courses. It's hard to answer the EC question without knowing more about you...but following your passions and showing you have interest in medicine (i.e. shadowing, volunteering etc) seems to be a good way to go. I hope that helps!!!
 
Thanks Signe I really appreciate it. Will def. look into those SMPs.

Good luck with the MD/MA... Congratz!
 
cocodoctor said:
Tildy - Sorry, but I am quoting Dr. Appel here, do not feel insulted by me.

*Jacob Appel: "Absolutely. I think 30 years ago, there were no bioethicists. It is one of the new occupations of the technological age that we live in."
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With all due respect to Dr. Appel, who perhaps did not mean what he said here, there were many bioethicists 30 years ago.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fred_Rosner

among others including several that I personally know. They may not all have called themselves bioethicists then, but they were around and heavily focused in this area. IRBs and the like have been around for a lot longer than 30 years.

Regardless, why don't you spend some time thinking about the advice you've been given and then making your best decision. If you go the NYU route, I suspect you'll be successful and make it into med school somewhere afterwards. However, I do not think that you fully appreciate the merits of going to any of the outstanding medical schools in Texas, many of which have both public health and bioethics expertise aplenty.
 
Just a friendly advice to OP: stop citing/quoting people. I guarantee that most people in this forum, including myself, could care less where those links go. tl;dr for most of the quotes.
 
Tildy - Thanks once again for the guidance, I really appreciate it. I will, consider all inputs, including the bombastic tips from other SDN users, and make a smart decision soon.

Best.

coco,(future)md 😉
 
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Silverfalcon - You are awfully welcome to not enter this thread ever again, if you want. Thanks for your input as well. 🙂
 
I am really interested in bioethics as well. I think education in bioethics would help to shape one's way of thinking and give one a thorough, humanistic approach to making decisions as a physician. This is not to say that you cannot have that without the education. I am particularly interested in the use of reproductive technology and genetic testing. I see the benefits of learning about bioethics at all stages of one's career, either before MD school, at the same time with an MD/Masters, or at a well-established point as a physician.

I can also understand wanting different scenery. Is it possible to take some of these classes without being enrolled in the program? I know some programs allow non-matriculated students to take classes. I believe UPenn does this. This could give you the flexibility to take science classes to boost your GPA and pursue other ECs for your app. Maybe you could use some of these credits to a degree in the future? Also, many masters programs allow 3 years to complete the degree. Taking fewer credits could give you ample time to improve other areas of your app. I would talk to the program director and see if many students are medical students or physicians with busy careers. You could use the extra time to take post-bacc science classes, to show you can handle the courseload and still be able to pursue bioethics.

I am really not familiar with rules of residency, especially in TX. Do you definitely lose your residency if you are in NYC for an academic calendar year?
 
Silverfalcon said:
Just a friendly advice to OP: stop citing/quoting people. I guarantee that most people in this forum, including myself, could care less where those links go. tl;dr for most of the quotes.
Click to expand...

👍
 
Bridget21 - I might be wrong, but since I will still have as permanent address - my parents house in TX, I will still be considered a TX resident next year. Unless I decide to claim NY residency and if I decide work there for a year.

I believe you can't take the classes if you are not in the program. However, I checked the class schedule for both Fall & Spring and I noticed all classes being taught after 5 p.m. on weekdays. Probably because, many bioethics students will be already professionals who have daytime MD, RN, PhD, etc. jobs.

What I can do, is work during the day to improve my ECs: Volunteering, shadowing, more research, etc. To become a more attractive candidate. Moreover, I can finish two Master programs to improve my GPA, maybe.

I still haven't decided 100% if I will go to NYC this Fall though, I am certain that I will obtain the MA before, during or after medical school.

Thanks for the advise. You should look into the NYU program, there many outstanding professors there + it's NYC.
 
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OP -
I'm not much of a poster, but as someone who took a couple of years off after graduation, had a mediocre GPA (3.5), and will be attending a top 10 medical school this fall (which you stated as a goal), I'll give this a go.

You clearly recognize that your GPA is a weak point in your application. As other (more knowledgeable people) have pointed out, the best thing you can do to establish some credibility w/ your ability to handle rigorous coursework is to do an SMP program, and do it very, very well.

It appears that you are also interested in the Bioethics program as a way to stand out from the pack, and pursue your own interests - which we can all agree are important things. I don't know if this degree alone is going to make you stand out to top schools. If you are going to do the MA, I suggest that you also find something very real and consuming in the community to become involved in. I was a volunteer social worker for two years in undergrad in one of the poorest counties of my state. It was the main talking point of most of my interviews and, in one of my acceptance letters, was specifically mentioned as a reason that I had been accepted. You come off as abrasive, short-sighted, and arrogant in your posts, and it has been my experience that a little humility gets you far in this application process. An interviewer (at an Ivy med school, since you care) told me that he really liked to see applicants with experience doing something 'uncomfortable,' because so much of medicine involves working in such situations.

Good luck. Feel free to PM me if you have any questions
 
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