What Are My Chances: WAMC Podiatry

[de Ribas]

Hey everyone, hope you all are having a great holiday season!

Cgpa 3.01
Sgpa 2.8
Mcat 485 retaking it
60 hrs pod shadowing

Am i screwed??
Anything else i can do to enhance myself as a candidate?

Thank you!

Retake MCAT. You will do better than that.

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[bigGamej4mes]

Retake MCAT. You will do better than that.

Yea i will be retaking it! What score do you think could get me in? Can i submit application before i get score back cuz im worried that ill be late if i wait till after my mcat result come in?

Thank you for the reply

 

[Aibaba370]

Hey everyone, hope all is well. Just trying to see where I stand.

(BMS)
cGPA 3.21
sGPA 2.9 (Had some family issues/deaths which effected me...)
Taking MCAT January
100+ volunteer hours (working on more)
5 years working as a licensed pharmacy tech
50 hours podiatry shadowing
200 hours family care shadowing
100+ Hours pain management shadowing
I have leadership roles in my 400+ member club I founded.

I’m starting a post bacc in January, hoping to bring my sGPA up. What are my chances and what MCAT score is a safe score? I’m hoping to get above a 500.

 

[ScienceSailor]

Hey everyone, hope all is well. Just trying to see where I stand.

(BMS)
cGPA 3.21
sGPA 2.9 (Had some family issues/deaths which effected me...)
Taking MCAT January
100+ volunteer hours (working on more)
5 years working as a licensed pharmacy tech
50 hours podiatry shadowing
200 hours family care shadowing
100+ Hours pain management shadowing
I have leadership roles in my 400+ member club I founded.

I’m starting a post bacc in January, hoping to bring my sGPA up. What are my chances and what MCAT score is a safe score? I’m hoping to get above a 500.

I had similar stats (slightly higher sGPA, but following a post bacc) and a 505 MCAT. Got interview invites from everyone except Western and Kent (didn't apply to those two)

 

[dontbelatebegreat]

Does anyone know if I should apply with a pending score (taking MCAT in March) or wait until i get my score? My previous 2 scores were 489, 486. I don't want to get rejected right away.

 

[bigGamej4mes]

Some schools are ok with applying and sending score later.

But I think that it is one thing to not a have a score at all and another thing is when you have a very low score.

You should make sure they know you are retaking before they reject the lower score. So, I am not sure which is better to wait or apply before newer score.

hmm thank you for the response de Ribas. i think ill wait until i have the scores from my MCAT in april. do you think its too late to submit application in April? or is it ok to submit in April?

 

[de Ribas]

hmm thank you for the response de Ribas. i think ill wait until i have the scores from my MCAT in april. do you think its too late to submit application in April? or is it ok to submit in April?

you will be fine at most schools.

 

[hopefullyigetin]

I've been verified since Dec 7th but still haven't heard back from New York or Kent, should I call admissions and ask about my application?

 

[Podguy33]

I've been verified since Dec 7th but still haven't heard back from New York or Kent, should I call admissions and ask about my application?

I was verified in October and I just heard back from Kent today. I heard back from NYCPM the next day after I was verified. I had to tell Kent I was already enrolled at Scholl!

 

[Shadow chaser]

Dismissed from a Caribbean med school after failing first semester twice. My cumulative GPA: in comunity college: 3.88; after transfer to 4 year college I graduated with 3.55 in Chemistry major. My MCAT was 487. I will retake MCAT. Will there be any chance for me? Thank you very much!

 

[GypsyHummus]

You will deff be grilled about your academic performance if you get an interview. Not all is lost for you. I met one person on my interview trail that failed from the caribean who was trying for Pod school. I dont know what happened to them, but they got an interview. You may want to consider doing something else though.

Truthfully, Pod school is almost identical to medical school the first two years. You will most likely fail out if you employ the same study tactics you did in the Caribbean.

If you truly want to still be a doctor and do Pod, I could see a large school taking you after you get your new MCAT to a 490+, but unless something else changes, I would consider other professions. Maybe Nursing or Physical Therapy. Pod school is too stressful, too expensive, and too time consuming to go into it with a half hearted attempt after getting smacked down by the Caribbean.

I know its prolly not what you want to hear, but the most wise thing we can do is to know when to keep pursuing something vs cutting losses and moving on. Maybe someone else has some insight.

Dismissed from a Caribbean med school after failing first semester twice. My cumulative GPA: in comunity college: 3.88; after transfer to 4 year college I graduated with 3.55 in Chemistry major. My MCAT was 487. I will retake MCAT. Will there be any chance for me? Thank you very much!

 

[Shadow chaser]

You will deff be grilled about your academic performance if you get an interview. Not all is lost for you. I met one person on my interview trail that failed from the caribean who was trying for Pod school. I dont know what happened to them, but they got an interview. You may want to consider doing something else though.

Truthfully, Pod school is almost identical to medical school the first two years. You will most likely fail out if you employ the same study tactics you did in the Caribbean.

If you truly want to still be a doctor and do Pod, I could see a large school taking you after you get your new MCAT to a 490+, but unless something else changes, I would consider other professions. Maybe Nursing or Physical Therapy. Pod school is too stressful, too expensive, and too time consuming to go into it with a half hearted attempt after getting smacked down by the Caribbean.

I know its prolly not what you want to hear, but the most wise thing we can do is to know when to keep pursuing something vs cutting losses and moving on. Maybe someone else has some insight.

Thank you for your response. I love medicine, but I slipped too early as I did not cope with study habits in the first semester. The semester after was due to an unexpected event that my grandma had a stroke, and a lots of factor relating to failing the previous semester, I was depressed. However, after getting out of depression, I had questioned myself whether or not persuing medicine, I decided to try podiatry school. I do not see podiatry school as lower stat than MD or DO. I did not apply to podiatry school earlier because I tried to follow my uncle steps, and I did not know about podiatry. I learned from experience. The reason I failed was that I did not have enough time to study. I used these time to deal with my emotional feelings.

 

[GypsyHummus]

Be honest, humble, and reach out to some of the larger schools. Explain to them the situation.

Make sure that Pod is what you want to be. Shadow Shadow Shadow and have an answer for "Why Podiatry". You will find DPM schools to be very receptive to people who show passion in Podiatry.

Thank you for your response. I love medicine, but I slipped too early as I did not cope with study habits in the first semester. The semester after was due to an unexpected event that my grandma had a stroke, and a lots of factor relating to failing the previous semester, I was depressed. However, after getting out of depression, I had questioned myself whether or not persuing medicine, I decided to try podiatry school. I do not see podiatry school as lower stat than MD or DO. I did not apply to podiatry school earlier because I tried to follow my uncle steps, and I did not know about podiatry. I learned from experience. The reason I failed was that I did not have enough time to study. I used these time to deal with my emotional feelings.

 

[HarmonicConvergence]

Dismissed from a Caribbean med school after failing first semester twice. My cumulative GPA: in comunity college: 3.88; after transfer to 4 year college I graduated with 3.55 in Chemistry major. My MCAT was 487. I will retake MCAT. Will there be any chance for me? Thank you very much!

My school has a few Caribbean drop outs. (and DO drop outs).You'll probs get an interview with your stats as is if you focus on schools who weigh gpa in higher regard than Mcat. If you retake Mcat and get 495 or above you'll probs get into all schools. Pod is def your best perhaps only shot at being a clinical doctor. Just know what you're signing up for and don't be apart of attrition. Good Luck.

 

[Shadow chaser]

My school has a few Caribbean drop outs. (and DO drop outs).You'll probs get an interview with your stats as is if you focus on schools who weigh gpa in higher regard than Mcat. If you retake Mcat and get 495 or above you'll probs get into all schools. Pod is def your best perhaps only shot at being a clinical doctor. Just know what you're signing up for and don't be apart of attrition. Good Luck.

Thank you very much! It is realy motivated.

 

[AJG_ATC]

He

The only schools that auto screen are AZPOD and Temple. They have GPA screens, but I don’t know any schools that MCAT screen.

That is interesting! Do you know what Temple and AZPOD are looking for in those GPA screens?

 

[I Drink Riesling]

He

That is interesting! Do you know what Temple and AZPOD are looking for in those GPA screens?

AZPOD has a GPA screen of 2.75 for sGPA I believe. I don’t remember Temple, but you can probably find it here in the forums or on their website.

 

[AJG_ATC]

Hey Everyone,
Here's my story...
I am an athletic trainer who graduated this past May and have been working as an athletic trainer at a high school for about 6 months and will be working another 4 months to finish the high school year. I am planning on applying to Podiatry school in August when the applications open. I started college at Loyola University Chicago and took 63 credits there and ended up getting a 3.5 GPA before I transferred to Illinois State to pursue an athletic training major as well as save money. At Illinois State, I took 88 credits and had a 3.97 GPA (graduated summa cum laude). Between both schools, I had a sGPA of 3.28 and cGPA of 3.75. Athletic Training is a pretty intense major so I didn't have much of a chance for extracurriculars. I did, however, spend 1600+ hours at athletic training clinical rotations (yeah they made us count and its my best estimate). I decided only recently to apply to a DPM program. That being said, I am taking Organic Chemistry I & II this summer in 5 week courses and taking the MCAT in early August. If it helps to compare another standardized test, I took the GRE and got a 301. I will start shadowing a DPM in the next couple weeks and through the summer hopefully totaling 60+ hours. I have a few questions other than just what are my chances... If I take Organic Chemistry at a local Community College, is there any of the 9 podiatry schools that will not accept those courses? Can I apply without MCAT score so I can submit my application as early as possible? And of course, What are my chances with my stats?

Thank you!

 

[Weirdy]

Hey Everyone,
Loyola University of Chicago 3.5 GPA before I transferred to Illinois State to pursue an athletic training major as well as save money. At Illinois State, I took 88 credits and had a 3.97 GPA (graduated summa cum laude). Between both schools, I had a sGPA of 3.28 and cGPA of 3.75. If I take Organic Chemistry at a local Community College, is there any of the 9 podiatry schools that will not accept those courses? Can I apply without MCAT score so I can submit my application as early as possible? And of course, What are my chances with my stats?

Thank you!

You're fine.
A good classmate of mine also went to Loyola Chicago.

Focus on passing Ochem.

Study well for the MCAT. It is a different animal.

Havn't read anything in admissions that says programs will not take local CC credits. You should be good to go for that.

You can submit your app without an MCAT score.
Some SDNers here have applied and received interview invites before taking the MCAT.

When in doubt, email or call the programs you are interested in directly and get their opinion.


Best of luck, hope you like podiatric medicine as a whole.

 

[AdrenalineJockie]

If I take Organic Chemistry at a local Community College, is there any of the 9 podiatry schools that will not accept those courses?

I took Organic Chemistry I and II with lab at a community college and I received interview invites and acceptance as well. I don't think it will matter as long as you get good grades. My organic chem GPA is 4.0 so maybe that helped? Good luck!

 

[I Drink Riesling]

Anyone hear from midwestern recently about interview invites? It's been almost a week and still nothing. I got 2 invites so far and those schools took less than 24 hours.

Sent from my SM-G930V using SDN mobile

Give them another week or two, then call them. Being patient is one of the hardest parts of the app cycle, so I understand. Go watch Netflix and check back later

 

[Weirdy]

Anyone hear from midwestern recently about interview invites? It's been almost a week and still nothing. I got 2 invites so far and those schools took less than 24 hours.

Sent from my SM-G930V using SDN mobile

7-14 business days.

Easy dude.

 

[hopefullyigetin]

should I retake genetics if I got a C- in it? I sent in my updated semester grades and still got invites from new York and kent

 

[I Drink Riesling]

should I retake genetics if I got a C- in it? I sent in my updated semester grades and still got invites from new York and kent

Is a “C-“ a pass at your school? If so, it’s fine. Genetics is not a pre-req course for any schools, so you do not need a “C” in it to fulfill requirements.

 

[hopefullyigetin]

Is a “C-“ a pass at your school? If so, it’s fine. Genetics is not a pre-req course for any schools, so you do not need a “C” in it to fulfill requirements.

yes its a pass! I just didn't know if it looks bad or not to have a C- in one of my bio courses for admission

 

[I Drink Riesling]

yes its a pass! I just didn't know if it looks bad or not to have a C- in one of my bio courses for admission

Okay, you should be fine! Be prepared to discuss any shortcomings with grades. Some of my interviewers brought some “Cs” up, but they said that since I didn’t fail them, then it’s fine.

 

[Podguy33]

should I retake genetics if I got a C- in it? I sent in my updated semester grades and still got invites from new York and kent

I wouldn’t. Genetics isn’t a prereq so I’d say your chances of getting in are good! If you don’t mind what are your other stats?

 

[hopefullyigetin]

I wouldn’t. Genetics isn’t a prereq so I’d say your chances of getting in are good! If you don’t mind what are your other stats?

Honestly I have pretty low stats, sGPA is around 2.52-2.58 and cGPA is a 3.18 I believe and MCAT 491, I got some D's and had to retake the classes which brought my sGPA down a lot. wish me luck lol

 

[Weirdy]

should I retake genetics if I got a C- in it? I sent in my updated semester grades and still got invites from new York and kent

If you are already getting invites, I would not bother wasting that time and money.

 

[HarmonicConvergence]

Honestly I have pretty low stats, sGPA is around 2.52-2.58 and cGPA is a 3.18 I believe and MCAT 491, I got some D's and had to retake the classes which brought my sGPA down a lot. wish me luck lol

Just be sure you've fixed your academic shortfalls. Once you get in its game time from day one. This will not be easy.

 

[Goku the Gentleman]

Hey everyone, I'm new to the community here and still learning my way around but I think this is the appropriate place to post my long-winded story, and subsequently to ask you all my honest chances. Ever since I was little, I wanted to be a doctor; I have a passion for helping people. I knew at age 12 when I visited China with my grandparents in a super poor region when we visited the adoption center to adopt my younger brother.

Here's the bulk of it summed up: I had no idea what I was doing at University and had a horribly rough start. I was scared of the sciences and I was just an overall immature 18 year old kid who cared more about "the university life" than my academics. My biggest fear was to obtain a chemistry or biology (hard science) degree and not be able to make it into Med school, and I would have wasted 4 years doing pre med reqs for nothing (employment). I chickened out and didn't believe in myself. I fell into a super deep depression. It deeply affected my grades. The depression hit me from my younger sister getting Hodgkin's Lymphoma cancer, my grandpa who raised me dying, my step sister was murdered, and my dog died. All within 10 months. I couldn't make this up if I tried. None of these are excuses, just attributors to my depression I fell into. Needless to say, halfway through school credit wise, I decided to transfer having knocked out all my basic electives with a 2.1 GPA feeling pretty defeated.

I transferred into another University where I was accepted into the business school, and finished out the rest of my undergrad averaging a 3.1 GPA post-transfer and earned a bachelor of science in Accounting with a cumulative GPA of 2.71. This way I knew my college wouldn't be a waste and I had a back up career where I could sit for the CPA exam and have a decent middle class life style. I grew up in poverty and never wanted to experience it again in adulthood or my children if I were to ever have any. The good news is, my science GPA is basically a clean slate because I didn't take any of the 4 required pre-reqs (chem, bio, physic, org chem)..

My plan was to take a post baccalaureate over 2 years (bio and chem the first year, physics and org chem the 2nd). Believe me when I say my undergrad GPA is not reflective of who I am, nor my intelligence. I was salutatorian in HS and accepted into a good university pre transfer. I just was unmotivated, clinically depressed, immature, and just had no general direction. Once my grandpa passed, I had no real "adult figures" to seek guidance from. Both my parents were killed by a drunk driver when I was 2, so I don't really have any memory with them, and my grandpa was the last remaining figure who raised me. My confidence of becoming a doctor waned and I essentially gave up on my life long goal and played it safe with the accounting degree.

Given that I am able to ace my pre reqs, and do well on the MCAT from essentially studying the sciences for 2 years, do I have a reasonable shot at getting accepted to at least 1 of the 9 Podiatric Medical schools? Thanks everyone for reading the long winded post, but this place is full of great information and people. It's all or nothing at this point. I don't want to waste the time, money, and effort of studying these subjects for 2 years to ultimately have too low of a cumulative GPA to begin with. I'm on medicine that keeps the depression away and I have felt great the past year. I am 26 now and have learned immensely from my past struggles. I'm set on becoming a Podiatrist because I absolutely love working with ankles and feet. I love the ability to perform surgery. It's been my life goal but I want to remain honest with myself and expectations. Thanks again everyone. All replies are greatly appreciated!

 

[de Ribas]

Hey everyone, I'm new to the community here and still learning my way around but I think this is the appropriate place to post my long-winded story, and subsequently to ask you all my honest chances. Ever since I was little, I wanted to be a doctor; I have a passion for helping people. I knew at age 12 when I visited China with my grandparents in a super poor region when we visited the adoption center to adopt my younger brother.

Here's the bulk of it summed up: I had no idea what I was doing at University and had a horribly rough start. I was scared of the sciences and I was just an overall immature 18 year old kid who cared more about "the university life" than my academics. My biggest fear was to obtain a chemistry or biology (hard science) degree and not be able to make it into Med school, and I would have wasted 4 years doing pre med reqs for nothing (employment). I chickened out and didn't believe in myself. I fell into a super deep depression. It deeply affected my grades. The depression hit me from my younger sister getting Hodgkin's Lymphoma cancer, my grandpa who raised me dying, my step sister was murdered, and my dog died. All within 10 months. I couldn't make this up if I tried. None of these are excuses, just attributors to my depression I fell into. Needless to say, halfway through school credit wise, I decided to transfer having knocked out all my basic electives with a 2.1 GPA feeling pretty defeated.

I transferred into another University where I was accepted into the business school, and finished out the rest of my undergrad averaging a 3.1 GPA post-transfer and earned a bachelor of science in Accounting with a cumulative GPA of 2.71. This way I knew my college wouldn't be a waste and I had a back up career where I could sit for the CPA exam and have a decent middle class life style. I grew up in poverty and never wanted to experience it again in adulthood or my children if I were to ever have any. The good news is, my science GPA is basically a clean slate because I didn't take any of the 4 required pre-reqs (chem, bio, physic, org chem)..

My plan was to take a post baccalaureate over 2 years (bio and chem the first year, physics and org chem the 2nd). Believe me when I say my undergrad GPA is not reflective of who I am, nor my intelligence. I was salutatorian in HS and accepted into a good university pre transfer. I just was unmotivated, clinically depressed, immature, and just had no general direction. Once my grandpa passed, I had no real "adult figures" to seek guidance from. Both my parents were killed by a drunk driver when I was 2, so I don't really have any memory with them, and my grandpa was the last remaining figure who raised me. My confidence of becoming a doctor waned and I essentially gave up on my life long goal and played it safe with the accounting degree.

Given that I am able to ace my pre reqs, and do well on the MCAT from essentially studying the sciences for 2 years, do I have a reasonable shot at getting accepted to at least 1 of the 9 Podiatric Medical schools? Thanks everyone for reading the long winded post, but this place is full of great information and people. It's all or nothing at this point. I don't want to waste the time, money, and effort of studying these subjects for 2 years to ultimately have too low of a cumulative GPA to begin with. I'm on medicine that keeps the depression away and I have felt great the past year. I am 26 now and have learned immensely from my past struggles. I'm set on becoming a Podiatrist because I absolutely love working with ankles and feet. I love the ability to perform surgery. It's been my life goal but I want to remain honest with myself and expectations. Thanks again everyone. All replies are greatly appreciated!

I truly feel sorry for all of your losses. This is not something I came close to experiencing in life nor most of the people. Since your sGPA is clean, given you would ace from now on, with great sGPA, great postbacc GPA and MCAT score you could get in MD, DO and DPM.

I am sure that if you do well now, all 9 schools will consider you.

Your top priority at this point should be to make sure you have recovered well from the past. Med school is challenging and even strong people break in med school. Besides that, you have couple of years ahead of you to get to med school. They wont be easy as well. I guess you will have to do shadowing, some volunteering and clinical experiences to do as well as all science prerequisites before you can even apply. You need to make sure that you ready for that and have recovered from that deep depression you are talking about.

Otherwise, if you do well on MCAT and your postbacc, many MD, DO, DPM schools will look at your academic record differently. Given your story, your last 2-3 years will be more important for ADCOMs.

Good luck!

 

[Goku the Gentleman]

I truly feel sorry for all of your losses. This is not something I came close to experiencing in life nor most of the people. Since your sGPA is clean, given you would ace from now on, with great sGPA, great postbacc GPA and MCAT score you could get in MD, DO and DPM.

I am sure that if you do well now, all 9 schools will consider you.

Your top priority at this point should be to make sure you have recovered well from the past. Med school is challenging and even strong people break in med school. Besides that, you have couple of years ahead of you to get to med school. They wont be easy as well. I guess you will have to do shadowing, some volunteering and clinical experiences to do as well as all science prerequisites before you can even apply. You need to make sure that you ready for that and have recovered from that deep depression you are talking about.

Otherwise, if you do well on MCAT and your postbacc, many MD, DO, DPM schools will look at your academic record differently. Given your story, your last 2-3 years will be more important for ADCOMs.

Good luck!

Thanks for the encouraging words. I wasn't sure no matter how good I did on the postbacc and MCAT, if most schools automatically would toss my application due to not meeting general cut off lines for cumulative GPA. It looks like many places teeter on the 2.75 line. As everyone on this sub knows, the pre req science courses require a lot of dedication and time to do well, along with the MCAT. I absolutely want to pursue my dream because I've worked in a corporate setting for 3 years, and no amount of money could make me happy looking over financials to enrich corporations being an office drone. It's truly opened my eyes to how badly I want to be in medicine and be helping others. It gives my life a sense of purpose to make up for all the negatives. I just didn't want to waste a couple years of studying for nothing if schools couldn't see past my poor cumulative GPA. I realize it's on the extreme of the lower end. I know anomalies exist with super low gpa's, but they are outliers and the exception, not the rule. Your post gives me hope.

 

[de Ribas]

Thanks for the encouraging words. I wasn't sure no matter how good I did on the postbacc and MCAT, if most schools automatically would toss my application due to not meeting general cut off lines. I know many places teeter on the 2.75 line it looks like. As everyone on this sub knows, the pre req science courses require a lot of dedication and time to do well, along with the MCAT. I absolutely want to pursue my dream because I've worked in a corporate setting for 3 years and no amount of money could make me happy looking over financials to enrich corporations being an office drone. It's really opened my eyes to just how badly I want to be in medicine and helping others. It gives me and my life a sense of purpose to make up for all the negatives. I just did not want to waste a couple years of my life for nothing if schools couldn't see past my poor cumulative GPA. I realize it's on the extreme of the lower end. I know anomalies exist with super low gpa's, but they are outliers and the exception, not the rule. Your post gives me hope.

Given that you at least get 3.3-3.5 in all sciences (your cumulative GPA will raise a bit more depending on amount of credits you already have), and get 495+ MCAT most DPM schools might interview you at least.

If you get, 3.5-3.7 or higher sGPA and 500+ MCAT, some DO schools might consider you.

If you get 3.7-4.0 sGPA with ~510+ MCAT, some MD schools, especially your IS school (if you have one), might consider you.

This above is highly subjective opinion of my own and considering all other parts of your application meet or exceed requirements for the school you would apply.

Since you will be non-trad applicant with the story you have, med schools will mostly look at your last 2-3 years of academics, your MCAT score and recent changes and accomplishments.

Most MD/DO schools have 3.0 GPA cut off both for science and cumulative. You have to calculate if your successful post-bacc will also increase your cumulative GPA above 3.0.

Let's say you have 130 credits so far with 2.70 GPA. You will need about 40 credits of 4.0 GPA or 55 credits of 3.7 GPA to get 3.0 cumulative GPA.

Just giving you a rough estimate.

It is definitely possible.

For DPM schools, not all schools have cut off GPAs and some that do probably have it around 2.75 or so. But I am not 100% on that.

 

[Mobilecow]

Hi everyone, first time poster here. Looking to get some advice/feedback on my plan for this year.
I graduated from my undergrad in 2017 with a degree in sociology with a cgpa of 2.9. I was incredibly restless and unmotivated, well my major gpa is actually quite good, and simply didn't care enough to try hard. I did have some good ec's I think: Vice President of the student body, resident assistant, university tour guide, and working in our university career services center reviewing resumes for my fellow students. Immediately after graduating I left the U.S to teach english abroad as part of a program that is analogous to the fulbright ETA. I'm in a Spanish speaking country and have become pretty proficient at the language. I teach rural highschoolers geography, modern history, English language, and North American culture. I'm leaving this year and returning to the U.S to finish a post bacc program and to get all of the pre reqs and other higher level science courses taken care of. I've already completed a microbiology course, biotechnology, 3 upper level math courses, and the first biology will A's. After I return to the U.S this summer I plan to shadow with at least 1 pod and obtain a letter. My goal is to apply by the end of 2019 or very early 2020, planning on the January 2020 MCAT. Do you think if I continue doing well in the pre req courses, get some good shadowing hours, and a decent MCAT score I stand a chance at getting in to a pod program even though I have a low undergrad gpa? I am super committed and have matured greatly over the past two years and hope that adcoms see that.

 

[de Ribas]

Hi everyone, first time poster here. Looking to get some advice/feedback on my plan for this year.
I graduated from my undergrad in 2017 with a degree in sociology with a cgpa of 2.9. I was incredibly restless and unmotivated, well my major gpa is actually quite good, and simply didn't care enough to try hard. I did have some good ec's I think: Vice President of the student body, resident assistant, university tour guide, and working in our university career services center reviewing resumes for my fellow students. Immediately after graduating I left the U.S to teach english abroad as part of a program that is analogous to the fulbright ETA. I'm in a Spanish speaking country and have become pretty proficient at the language. I teach rural highschoolers geography, modern history, English language, and North American culture. I'm leaving this year and returning to the U.S to finish a post bacc program and to get all of the pre reqs and other higher level science courses taken care of. I've already completed a microbiology course, biotechnology, 3 upper level math courses, and the first biology will A's. After I return to the U.S this summer I plan to shadow with at least 1 pod and obtain a letter. My goal is to apply by the end of 2019 or very early 2020, planning on the January 2020 MCAT. Do you think if I continue doing well in the pre req courses, get some good shadowing hours, and a decent MCAT score I stand a chance at getting in to a pod program even though I have a low undergrad gpa? I am super committed and have matured greatly over the past two years and hope that adcoms see that.

I think you have a chance. Good MCAT and good GPA for the last 1 year or so might yield some interviews.

 

[Mobilecow]

Thanks for your response, much appreciated. In your opinion, is there anything else that I could do to make myself seem more appealing as an applicant. Outside of continued academic success and MCAT score(any clue what I should aim for?). Thanks again.

I think you have a chance. Good MCAT and good GPA for the last 1 year or so might yield some interviews.

 

[Weirdy]

Thanks for your response, much appreciated. In your opinion, is there anything else that I could do to make myself seem more appealing as an applicant. Outside of continued academic success and MCAT score(any clue what I should aim for?). Thanks again.

ECs don't matter if the GPA and MCAT are not there.

Your personal story and how you have matured are interesting enough to put in a personal statement and dig about during interviews.

3.5+ Post-bac/pre-req, 500+ MCAT.
Focus on your grades.

 

[PODstudent1917]

sGPA:3.74
cGPA:3.6
30 Hours POD shadowing
750+ Hours of Patient Care as an EMT
200+ Community Volunteer Hours
486 MCAT (I know this really bad)

I am only 19 and applied without a bachelors degree and have previously interviewed with rosalind without an MCAT score and have an interview with kent here in about a month. What are my chances that I get accepted with such a low MCAT score?

 

[Keatbaby]

sGPA:3.74
cGPA:3.6
30 Hours POD shadowing
750+ Hours of Patient Care as an EMT
200+ Community Volunteer Hours
486 MCAT (I know this really bad)

I am only 19 and applied without a bachelors degree and have previously interviewed with rosalind without an MCAT score and have an interview with kent here in about a month. What are my chances that I get accepted with such a low MCAT score?

I know of people who have gotten in with a lower MCAT score than yours (485). As long as you are not picky you should be able to get into a school somewhere. But if you are wanting to receive scholarships and are hoping for a specific school I would recommend retaking the MCAT.

 

[FutureDPM123]

sGPA:3.74
cGPA:3.6
30 Hours POD shadowing
750+ Hours of Patient Care as an EMT
200+ Community Volunteer Hours
486 MCAT (I know this really bad)

I am only 19 and applied without a bachelors degree and have previously interviewed with rosalind without an MCAT score and have an interview with kent here in about a month. What are my chances that I get accepted with such a low MCAT score?

How are you only 19? Did you graduate high school early and go to community college? Have you already taken the required credit hours?

As far as your stats, you will probably get into Kent. I feel not many people have been applying to podiatry this year. Kent's MCAT acceptance range is 482-515. Your experience and GPA makes up for your low MCAT anyways. Also, Kent has such a large class size that they probably have difficulty filling seats. You're applying early enough that I think you should expect an acceptance.

You should also apply to Barry if you haven't already. Their average MCAT is 491, with the lowest being 480. You'd have a great shot there. You could also get into Western I think. Scholl might wait-list you, but I think they'd accept you if you did well on the interview.

 

[FutureDPM123]

I'm leaving this year and returning to the U.S to finish a post bacc program and to get all of the pre reqs and other higher level science courses taken care of. I've already completed a microbiology course, biotechnology, 3 upper level math courses, and the first biology will A's. After I return to the U.S this summer I plan to shadow with at least 1 pod and obtain a letter. My goal is to apply by the end of 2019 or very early 2020, planning on the January 2020 MCAT. Do you think if I continue doing well in the pre req courses, get some good shadowing hours, and a decent MCAT score I stand a chance at getting in to a pod program even though I have a low undergrad gpa? I am super committed and have matured greatly over the past two years and hope that adcoms see that.

You got a good gameplan. At the bare minimum, get a 3.0 GPA in the post-bacc and at least a 490 on the MCAT.

 

[PODstudent1917]

How are you only 19? Did you graduate high school early and go to community college? Have you already taken the required credit hours?

As far as your stats, you will probably get into Kent. I feel not many people have been applying to podiatry this year. Kent's MCAT acceptance range is 482-515. Your experience and GPA makes up for your low MCAT anyways. Also, Kent has such a large class size that they probably have difficulty filling seats. You're applying early enough that I think you should expect an acceptance.

You should also apply to Barry if you haven't already. Their average MCAT is 491, with the lowest being 480. You'd have a great shot there. You could also get into Western I think. Scholl might wait-list you, but I think they'd accept you if you did well on the interview.

One of my parents worked at a community college so I was a post secondary student and took a bunch of credits in high school and because the school she worked at gave me free tuition I took advantage with heavy semesters (18-20 credits) and took a bunch of summer classes. I ended up finishing my last pre-requisites at tOSU this semester and I am doing the 90 credit hour option.

I was going to apply to barry but I decided to take biochem as a replacement for Orgo II so that takes me out of the running for Barry. I'm hoping Scholl will come back with an acceptance but I'm not going to be picky because I know that I am not a desirable candidate with a low MCAT at the moment, I only applied to KSU (got an interview), Scholl (already interviewed), and NYU (nothing yet) due to location and cost restrictions.

 

[DexterMorganSK]

One of my parents worked at a community college so I was a post secondary student and took a bunch of credits in high school and because the school she worked at gave me free tuition I took advantage with heavy semesters (18-20 credits) and took a bunch of summer classes. I ended up finishing my last pre-requisites at tOSU this semester and I am doing the 90 credit hour option.

I was going to apply to barry but I decided to take biochem as a replacement for Orgo II so that takes me out of the running for Barry. I'm hoping Scholl will come back with an acceptance but I'm not going to be picky because I know that I am not a desirable candidate with a low MCAT at the moment, I only applied to KSU (got an interview), Scholl (already interviewed), and NYU (nothing yet) due to location and cost restrictions.

Take the MCAT again and try for next year...you got plenty of time, no point rushing into it without being fully prepared.
With your good GPAs, and a score of 490+ you can expect scholarships in the future.
Imo, anyone with your GPAs should not be getting that low of an MCAT. Get the books, get all of the AAMCs materials, make a 3-6 month schedule and study...you can easily break a 500 if you put the time into it.

Also, if you're missing a prereq for the MCAT then take that class first before studying for exam.

 

[FutureDPM123]

cGPA: 3.01
sGPA: 2.47
MCAT: 503

-Licensed EMT, 200+ hours volunteer at hospital, 40+ podiatry shadowing hours
-Leadership positions at school, 2 years of research, peer academic adviser
- Great Letters of Rec
- Applied to all schools except DMU

- Clearly the science GPA is killing me, its due to struggles adjusting freshman year and then a illness junior year which I can definitely explain in an interview I am just concerned I may not even get that chance. Hoping my MCAT can show where I am now vs where i was 2+ years ago as as student but I guess we will see. What do you think?

Thanks!

Predictions based on the MCAT and GPA range of those matriculated in 2017.

Close to no chance: Midwestern, Temple
Little chance: Western
Decent chance at: New York, Kent State
Good Chance: Samuel Meritt, Barry, Scholl

 

[HarmonicConvergence]

Predictions based on the MCAT and GPA range of those matriculated in 2017.

Close to no chance: Midwestern, Temple
Little chance: Western
Decent chance at: New York, Kent State
Good Chance: Samuel Meritt, Barry, Scholl

Idk Temple loves a plus 500 Mcat. If they are able to make it past the screen then I'd say there was a chance. Def no shot at Azpod tho.

It seems like Barry cares more about GPA than MCAT. Temple cares more about MCAT than GPA. Just IMO

 

[GypsyHummus]

Idk, ur overall GPA is 3.0+ with a super solid MCAT with good Extras, I think you have a chance at most schools.

Your science GPA will hold you back at some picky schools, but I think you’ll have a couple options. Congrats, your MCAT actually might save you.

cGPA: 3.01
sGPA: 2.47
MCAT: 503

-Licensed EMT, 200+ hours volunteer at hospital, 40+ podiatry shadowing hours
-Leadership positions at school, 2 years of research, peer academic adviser
- Great Letters of Rec
- Applied to all schools except DMU

- Clearly the science GPA is killing me, its due to struggles adjusting freshman year and then a illness junior year which I can definitely explain in an interview I am just concerned I may not even get that chance. Hoping my MCAT can show where I am now vs where i was 2+ years ago as as student but I guess we will see. What do you think?

Thanks!

 

[Weirdy]

cGPA: 3.01
sGPA: 2.47
MCAT: 503

- Clearly the science GPA is killing me, its due to struggles adjusting freshman year and then a illness junior year which I can definitely explain in an interview I am just concerned I may not even get that chance. Hoping my MCAT can show where I am now vs where i was 2+ years ago as as student but I guess we will see. What do you think?

Thanks!

Upward trend would make all the difference.
Either way, for sure you'd get a few invites.

 

[sad1980s]

So for anyone that applied to/goes to Barry, how long does it normally take after my application being verified to get a response on an interview or rejection? My application was verified last Friday and a lot of people have been saying most responses are within a day or two (or even hours), so I'm getting nervous.

I'm not going to post my full stats but my sGPA is 3.3 and my cGPA is 3.4, and I haven't taken the MCAT, I have an appointment for it next month.

 

[FutureDPM123]

So for anyone that applied to/goes to Barry, how long does it normally take after my application being verified to get a response on an interview or rejection? My application was verified last Friday and a lot of people have been saying most responses are within a day or two (or even hours), so I'm getting nervous.

I'm not going to post my full stats but my sGPA is 3.3 and my cGPA is 3.4, and I haven't taken the MCAT, I have an appointment for it next month.

I'd say give it up to 2 weeks.