Ok, getting worried now about my chances

[zoner]

Hi

I have been reading a lot of posts here lately, and started to get worried again. There were some posts where people whose admission to med school is affected by their undergraduate gpa from 10 + years ago.

This is my situation. I just started my post bac program this past semester (not a program, but I am pretending that I am doing a 2nd bac). Before that, I graduated from undergrad '99 with 3.15 GPA in Film Studies. I never took a single science class, so I am pretty much starting everything fresh. My passion to go into medicine started fairly recent in 2006 while I was extremely ill with life threatening disease (all better now though) and the career I have taken since then which really got me into this field. Anyways, with my current 3.15 GPA from more than 10 years ago, considering that I have gotten all A's and planning on getting all A's in all the med school pre req classes (science and English), I will not be able to obtain a competitive cumulated GPA. Even if I score high on MCAT, I am worried that my grade will not be competitive for med school in California if not anywhere else.

Is there any truth to what I am thinking? Should I spend more than just 2.5 years for me to finish the prerequisite hoping to raise my overall GPA? I mean, are med schools really going to consider my undergraduate gpa? To me, that seems like its same as wanting to see my kindergarten gpa. I am such a different person than I was then.

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[NTF]

Hi

I have been reading a lot of posts here lately, and started to get worried again. There were some posts where people whose admission to med school is affected by their undergraduate gpa from 10 + years ago.

This is my situation. I just started my post bac program this past semester (not a program, but I am pretending that I am doing a 2nd bac). Before that, I graduated from undergrad '99 with 3.15 GPA in Film Studies. I never took a single science class, so I am pretty much starting everything fresh. My passion to go into medicine started fairly recent in 2006 while I was extremely ill with life threatening disease (all better now though) and the career I have taken since then which really got me into this field. Anyways, with my current 3.15 GPA from more than 10 years ago, considering that I have gotten all A's and planning on getting all A's in all the med school pre req classes (science and English), I will not be able to obtain a competitive cumulated GPA. Even if I score high on MCAT, I am worried that my grade will not be competitive for med school in California if not anywhere else.

Is there any truth to what I am thinking? Should I spend more than just 2.5 years for me to finish the prerequisite hoping to raise my overall GPA? I mean, are med schools really going to consider my undergraduate gpa? To me, that seems like its same as wanting to see my kindergarten gpa. I am such a different person than I was then.

Check out the "secrets of non-trad success" thread in the non-trad sticky. There are plenty of examples of people who repaired past poor performance and made it to medical school.

 

[zoner]

thats what I read and started to get worried... I don't have those people's crazy amount of clinical, leadership, volunteer work. I will have whatever I can get from now till when I apply in '11. It seems like they consider undergrad GPA really important no matter how long ago that was.

 

[QofQuimica]

thats what I read and started to get worried... I don't have those people's crazy amount of clinical, leadership, volunteer work. I will have whatever I can get from now till when I apply in '11. It seems like they consider undergrad GPA really important no matter how long ago that was.

Every med school has its own policy concerning how the adcom evaluates the old grades of nontrads. My school looks at all grades (yes, including the old grades), but we also look at trends. So the fact that you have gotten straight As in your postbac will be taken into consideration and will work in your favor. Other schools may focus more on overall GPA, and they may screen you out. Applying broadly can help you overcome this problem.

As for ECs, remember that everything you've done since you were 18 counts. Presumably, you've held some kind of job or otherwise done something with your life since 1999; whatever that is should go on your app. The one thing you must make sure you do this year before you apply is get clinical experience if you haven't already.

Again, I recommend that you apply more broadly than just CA schools. Unfortunately, it seems like about 99% of premeds want to go to medical school in CA and/or the East Coast, which will make it harder for you to be one of them. But fortunately, we have many excellent med schools in the South and Midwest that get far fewer apps than many coastal schools do. You should consider checking some of them out. Best of luck.

 

[student1799]

thats what I read and started to get worried... I don't have those people's crazy amount of clinical, leadership, volunteer work. I will have whatever I can get from now till when I apply in '11. It seems like they consider undergrad GPA really important no matter how long ago that was.

I know it seems like a lot, but you should really try to emulate those people in the "secrets of success" thread, because that is pretty much the only way to go. I should know, because my own story was very similar.

My bad grades were more than 20 years old--but I found they still mattered at most schools. There was no way I could get to a truly competitive GPA with just 2 years of postbacc, but I did as well as I possibly could (though I didn't make straight A's). I also tried to stand out with a really strong record of clinical volunteer work and community service. These things are very important because they show your interest in medicine and willingness to work hard and make sacrifices in order help others.

There can be significant benefits for you, too: you can learn a tremendous amount, and you can form some great relationships with MDs who may write recommendations for you. These letters can be extremely valuable, because they come from doctors who know you well and can attest to your hard work,dedication and good attitude.

So, while you may think you can't afford to spend much time volunteering, I would strongly urge you to get started ASAP and keep it up during the application process. I put in about 8 hours a week for 2 1/2 years, and I'm really glad I did.

 

[zoner]

I know it seems like a lot, but you should really try to emulate those people in the "secrets of success" thread, because that is pretty much the only way to go. I should know, because my own story was very similar.

My bad grades were more than 20 years old--but I found they still mattered at most schools. There was no way I could get to a truly competitive GPA with just 2 years of postbacc, but I did as well as I possibly could (though I didn't make straight A's). I also tried to stand out with a really strong record of clinical volunteer work and community service. These things are very important because they show your interest in medicine and willingness to work hard and make sacrifices in order help others.

There can be significant benefits for you, too: you can learn a tremendous amount, and you can form some great relationships with MDs who may write recommendations for you. These letters can be extremely valuable, because they come from doctors who know you well and can attest to your hard work,dedication and good attitude.

So, while you may think you can't afford to spend much time volunteering, I would strongly urge you to get started ASAP and keep it up during the application process. I put in about 8 hours a week for 2 1/2 years, and I'm really glad I did.

Hello Student

Can I ask you what your history profile, stats were like... Thanks


This concern I have of mine, is it something valid enough for me to actually get into being a PA over medicine? My Dream is to run my own practice.

 

[njbmd]

Hi

I have been reading a lot of posts here lately, and started to get worried again. There were some posts where people whose admission to med school is affected by their undergraduate gpa from 10 + years ago.

This is my situation. I just started my post bac program this past semester (not a program, but I am pretending that I am doing a 2nd bac). Before that, I graduated from undergrad '99 with 3.15 GPA in Film Studies. I never took a single science class, so I am pretty much starting everything fresh. My passion to go into medicine started fairly recent in 2006 while I was extremely ill with life threatening disease (all better now though) and the career I have taken since then which really got me into this field. Anyways, with my current 3.15 GPA from more than 10 years ago, considering that I have gotten all A's and planning on getting all A's in all the med school pre req classes (science and English), I will not be able to obtain a competitive cumulated GPA. Even if I score high on MCAT, I am worried that my grade will not be competitive for med school in California if not anywhere else.

Is there any truth to what I am thinking? Should I spend more than just 2.5 years for me to finish the prerequisite hoping to raise my overall GPA? I mean, are med schools really going to consider my undergraduate gpa? To me, that seems like its same as wanting to see my kindergarten gpa. I am such a different person than I was then.

Every grade since high school will count. If you need to do uGPA damage control, then get it done (no grades less than B+ with as many As as possible). You can't "do over" in this process in terms of allopathic medical schools but you can get grade replacement under the osteopathic system.

Yep, no matter how long ago those poor grades, they will count. An upward trend is helpful but you can't omit those remote grades no matter how much you have morphed yourself.

 

[gman33]

All your grades count; no matter how old.

It may seem crazy, but that's life.
Part of the reason in my opinion, is that schools want to be able to brag about the stats of their accepted students. The higher the better. Admitting someone with poor stats messes this up.

In any case, they have more than enough highly qualified applicants each year. There is no incentive for them to accept someone with lower stats.

The best you can do is keep working on your gpa until you get in. Put in 2-3 years of work and get your numbers up into a more competitive range. Keep taking classes even in the application year just in case you need to reapply in future cycles.

Also, look into DO schools as they tend to be a little more forgiving for past "sins".

 

[DitchDoc73]

You are in a better position than you realize. While GPA is important, it is not everything (many adcoms look very favorably on maturity). When I returned to school my cGPA was an abysmal 2.4 (about 90 credit hours)! I managed to pull it up to a cGPA of 3.0 while completing my B.S. and my pre-reqs. I have a few acceptances to D.O. with just an average MCAT (26)! Do not give up on your dreams!

 

[zoner]

My concern is that i already have BA with GPA 3.2, all non science course. Even if I take full three years of science course load with all A, my gpa still won't be in the competitive range.

Couldn't I just do my bachelor all over and not submit original undergraduate grade when I apply? Maybe that's a really good reason to another bachelor.

 

[zoner]

what is formal masters a masters usu?

 

[student1799]

My concern is that i already have BA with GPA 3.2, all non science course. Even if I take full three years of science course load with all A, my gpa still won't be in the competitive range.

I think you're being a bit too pessimistic. If you show a really strong record in your science courses and bolster that with an outstanding volunteer work, a good MCAT score, and excellent application essays, you can still have a shot even if your GPA is a bit below average. I ended up just below 3.5 once I was done with postbacc, although my sGPA was better than that because, like you, I had no science courses on my prior record. You have to be smart and apply super-broadly, but it certainly can be done.

Couldn't I just do my bachelor all over and not submit original undergraduate grade when I apply? Maybe that's a really good reason to another bachelor.

No, you could get into very serious trouble if you did that. AMCAS has extremely strict rules that specify that EVERY college course you ever took counts toward your GPA. If you failed to report prior grades and they found out about it (which they could easily do by searching various databases under your Social Security number), it would be considered very serious academic dishonesty. You would never be able to get into med school (or probably anything medical, such as PA school). It's not worth the risk.

But you can still get a second BA on top of your first one, or just take additional courses. This will raise your GPA and show that you've turned over a new leaf academically. If you want to know how many credits it would take to raise your GPA to a certain level, here is a useful calculator: http://www.back2college.com/raisegpa.htm

 

[vc7777]

I think you're being a bit too pessimistic. If you show a really strong record in your science courses and bolster that with an outstanding volunteer work, a good MCAT score, and excellent application essays, you can still have a shot even if your GPA is a bit below average. I ended up just below 3.5 once I was done with postbacc, although my sGPA was better than that because, like you, I had no science courses on my prior record. You have to be smart and apply super-broadly, but it certainly can be done.

Zoner,

Competitive is partly numbers, no way around it. But there is something intangible about the nontrad applicant that can trump all indications of failure.

Remember, if you had little or no science classes until your post-bacc it will work in your favor when calculated in AMCAS. If you rock out your post-bacc then your science GPA will be excellent.

Like QofQ and Student mentioned, you should apply broadly and keep an open mind.

Be mentally limber but disciplined in your applications. Limber in the sense that you need to keep all your options open; don't assume you will get into the CA schools, but don't rule out your dream schools either. Consider both DO and MD, rule neither of them out. Be disciplined in your nailing all of your deadlines and focusing on your MCAT and LOE preparations and applications.

My overall (incl. my undergrad over 10 years ago) is 2.87. Worse than yours, might I add. People were telling my wife at work she was crazy to let me apply. Hey, I've had setbacks, but I am proud of how far I've come. 7 interviews (I declined one). 5 acceptances, and one waitlist. How cool is that?

No, you could get into very serious trouble if you did that. AMCAS has extremely strict rules that specify that EVERY college course you ever took counts toward your GPA. If you failed to report prior grades and they found out about it (which they could easily do by searching various databases under your Social Security number), it would be considered very serious academic dishonesty. You would never be able to get into med school (or probably anything medical, such as PA school). It's not worth the risk.

I believe student is dead right on this one. Academic omissions can come back and haunt the rest of your career. Do not even think about it.

 

[anavistas]

I feel the lack of the official "Low GPA success stories", I remember it was in the Post-bacc forum but was deleted later. It was full of success cases and very inspiring. Many of those ppl got in with sub 3.0 GPAs;Some had a very high MCAT, some had an upward trend in their GPA, some did a post-bac, some went to SMP. They just proved they can handle med-school. Statically there should be a good number of applicants who get in every year with sub 3.5 GPAs, considering the huge number of applicants with very high GPAs and the average GPA for matriculants which is 3.6.

 

[zoner]

Hey all

Thank you all so much for your support logistically and emotionally. I feel all fuzzy, warm and confident. I wish that post anavistas mentioned still existed somewhere. I am sure a lot of people on this site could use reading it.


Anyhoo, happy holidays you all

Congrad vc7777 in your acceptances, I'm getting goose bumps.

Student, thanks for your thorough answers.

 

[shedara2008]

My concern is that i already have BA with GPA 3.2, all non science course. Even if I take full three years of science course load with all A, my gpa still won't be in the competitive range.

Couldn't I just do my bachelor all over and not submit original undergraduate grade when I apply? Maybe that's a really good reason to another bachelor.

Although GPA is important, they are looking for a total package. Dont stress about your GPA, especially if it is over a 3.0. Just focus on what you can work on now.. like test scores, interview skills, and personal statement.