one easy way to increase GPA?

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luv2sd

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Wouldn't it be a good idea to take some additional upper level science classes at a community college to help increase GPA?
I mean classes that you haven't already taken at your 4 year college.
 
Um, but you are taking the same course, just at 2 different schools...unless I'm misreading this.
 
Yeah, they are gonna see right through this. It will probably only hurt you in the long run.
 
Yeah, they are gonna see right through this. It will probably only hurt you in the long run.

Of course they will notice. But how will it hurt anyone in the long run?
 
they'll realize you tried to pad your GPA and will probably look down on you for it.

hmm... what about taking upper level science classes that I have not taken at my college? lol
 
Why not study instead? I am having a difficult time understanding how you are going to make it through medical school with your mentality.
 
Sure, I've got your easy way: study
 
Why not study instead? I am having a difficult time understanding how you are going to make it through medical school with your mentality.

Sure, I've got your easy way: study

My GPA is 3.82. It's insanely hard to raise my GPA by 0.1 point now. So I thought about taking some classes at a community college and maybe get like 20 more credit hours of solid A's to raise my GPA to hopefully 3.9.
 
3.8 isn't good enough for you? Ill be lucky to get a 3.2 at the end of the year.
But I'm still a sophomore so...
 
3.8 isn't good enough for you? Ill be lucky to get a 3.2 at the end of the year.
But I'm still a sophomore so...

So consider taking some BCMP classes at a community college then? like me? lol
 
Then you should also consider taking some BCMP classes at a community college.

I'm at community college. To be honest, if it wasn't for this rut called Calculus 2 I'd be in a much better position right now. I already have 2 W's from it.

At least I have an A coming (hopefully) from O-Chem so yeah..
I'm seriously thinking of doing Anatomy/Physiology to boost my GPA though.
 
I'm at community college. To be honest, if it wasn't for this rut called Calculus 2 I'd be in a much better position right now. I already have 2 W's from it.

At least I have an A coming (hopefully) from O-Chem so yeah..
I'm seriously thinking of doing Anatomy/Physiology to boost my GPA though.

besides boosting your GPA, anatomy and physiology classes should help you do better on the MCAT. I haven't taken an official test but I've taken many practice tests.
 
My GPA is 3.82. It's insanely hard to raise my GPA by 0.1 point now. So I thought about taking some classes at a community college and maybe get like 20 more credit hours of solid A's to raise my GPA to hopefully 3.9.

At this point, any increase in GPA will be of marginal benefit, especially if you are going about padding in order to do it. I wish you luck, but I think you would be better off pursuing other extracurriculars or research.
 
Your GPA is really high. Will a higher GPA help? Maybe. But I think you will get more yield from your efforts if you directed your focus on a different area.

You could instead get involved in doing more extra curriculars. The time you would spend increasing your GPA .01 points could be put into completing some unique clinical, leadership or research experience. Working at a community health clinic or as an EMT would give you a level of patient interaction that most premeds lack. Or, working your way up to a executive level within student government will not only look great on the application, but it will put you in familiar terms with many faculty and administration on your campus. There would be plenty of personal growth factors making this a good experience, but a more direct benefit is the potential to get profs or campus deans/presidents to write really great LORs.

Alternatively, you could spend that time and energy taking courses at your school that provide other tangible benefits besides an increased GPA. These would include philosophy, logic, English and other humanities classes to refine your communication and argument skills. Ultimately, doing this would aid you in crafting your personal statement, scoring high on the VR section of the MCAT (if you haven't taken it already), interviewing, etc. Or you might see more long-term benefit by taking or retaking classes that provide a solid foundation for the things you will be learning in med school, like anatomy and physiology, biochem, immunology, etc.

The point is that your GPA is high enough to get your application considered based on the quantatative stats at any campus, so the success you have in other areas is what you will likely need to rely on to be a more competitive applicant.
 
Are you seriously complaining about a 3.8? You do realize that your semester's GPA has to be higher than that to even raise your GPA a bit? So unless you take pad classes, which is a waste of time and money, or take some upper div classes that you might not do as well in, why worry about it? People that post about irrelevant things like a 3.8 GPA make me sick.:barf::barf:
 
Are you seriously complaining about a 3.8? You do realize that your semester's GPA has to be higher than that to even raise your GPA a bit? So unless you take pad classes, which is a waste of time and money, or take some upper div classes that you might not do as well in, why worry about it? People that post about irrelevant things like a 3.8 GPA make me sick.:barf::barf:

just trying to get past the average GPA of some of the medical schools I'll be applying to...
 
People that post about irrelevant things like a 3.8 GPA make me sick.:barf::barf:

Its a matter of perspective. It depends on your standards and future goals. If your plan is just to get into any med school, then surely a 3.8 is a great GPA. However, a 3.8 is average at many top tier schools.

You probably wouldn't feel this way if he was concerned about increasing his GPA from a 3.4, but to many people applying to DO or carrib schools, such a complaint would evoke the same reaction.

No need to dismiss someone else's concerns just because they are based on aspirations that may be higher than your own.
 
My GPA is 3.82. It's insanely hard to raise my GPA by 0.1 point now. So I thought about taking some classes at a community college and maybe get like 20 more credit hours of solid A's to raise my GPA to hopefully 3.9.

Honestly, once you get above a 3.8, your GPA doesn't matter as much. You have diminishing returns when increasing your GPA.

Notice that few schools have an average GPA above 3.85 while MCAT scores skyrocket to 35+. That's because med schools aren't looking for perfection. They are looking for people who want to be doctors.

Spend that time doing something else unique to your application. GPA boosting is completely unnecessary for you.
 
My GPA is 3.82. It's insanely hard to raise my GPA by 0.1 point now. So I thought about taking some classes at a community college and maybe get like 20 more credit hours of solid A's to raise my GPA to hopefully 3.9.

wow, what year are u? Or do u have a lot of units. 20 units to raise by 0.1?
 
wow, what year are u? Or do u have a lot of units. 20 units to raise by 0.1?

junior, 120+ credit hours

I have a few C's and B's in freshman/sophomore year.
 
junior, 120+ credit hours

I have a few C's and B's in freshman/sophomore year.

So upward GPA trend also? Seriously dude, investing that time in an activity similar to what myself and other people have suggested above instead.
 
Its a matter of perspective. It depends on your standards and future goals. If your plan is just to get into any med school, then surely a 3.8 is a great GPA. However, a 3.8 is average at many top tier schools.

You probably wouldn't feel this way if he was concerned about increasing his GPA from a 3.4, but to many people applying to DO or carrib schools, such a complaint would evoke the same reaction.

No need to dismiss someone else's concerns just because they are based on aspirations that may be higher than your own.

No, this is a wrong perspective. Any GPA increase will bring marginal returns, even at top tier schools. It's nice to have a 4.0, but it is not much different from a 3.8. And certainly the difference between a 3.8 and a 3.9 will not even register to an adcom.
 
Aren't community colleges two year schools? How can you take upper level classes there? I thought they only had freshman and sophomore level classes.
 
My GPA is 3.82. It's insanely hard to raise my GPA by 0.1 point now. So I thought about taking some classes at a community college and maybe get like 20 more credit hours of solid A's to raise my GPA to hopefully 3.9.

I'm not a doctor yet, but I'm going to prescribe a chill pill, mmm'kay? :laugh:
 
you cant take an "upper level" science course at a two year institution....the only class you can argue for is organic chemistry.
I was a transfer student, and this not only held true for all California schools, but Florida ones as well. No doubt across the nation...
 
junior, 120+ credit hours

I have a few C's and B's in freshman/sophomore year.

Increasing your GPA isn't going to make a difference as far as admissions goes. Work on getting a good MCAT and improve ECs instead.

If you took upper divs at a CC (assuming they even offer the coursework) it'd be a red flag even if you did well, and if you did poorly, it'd be terrible.

It's not like some school is going to reject you because your GPA is too low. No school has a GPA screen at 3.85.
 
Aren't community colleges two year schools? How can you take upper level classes there? I thought they only had freshman and sophomore level classes.
O-chem is regarded as a upper level class, but its a hard to transfer the credit to a 4 year without jumping through some hoops.
 
No, this is a wrong perspective. Any GPA increase will bring marginal returns, even at top tier schools. It's nice to have a 4.0, but it is not much different from a 3.8. And certainly the difference between a 3.8 and a 3.9 will not even register to an adcom.

At many top tier schools, 3.8 is average. The OP has a 3.8 and intends to apply to these schools, so his desire to increase his stats above average is understandable.

However, if you read my other posts on this thread you will see that I pretty much agree with you, as I have suggested that he spend his time doing something other than padding his GPA.
 
I still think this is a waste of time. First of all, if the OP has a 3.8x they can obviously get As at their 4 yr college. Why take any classes at a CC? Secondly, does anyone other than the most neurotic premed think theyll get rejected w/ a 3.82 but interviewed w/ a 3.86? The OP sounds like one of those kids that would file a formal complaint w/ the dean of students if they got an A-
 
from what i understand, it sort of works like the whole mcat verbal score did before - anything in the 13-15 range gets assigned a 15. similarly, a 3.8-4.0 is essentially a 4.0, meaning that your gpa will not be the limiting factor at ANY medical school in the country.
 
Short answer to this thread: "No"

Its VERY hard to increase a damanged Undergrad GPA no matter what college you do it at.

I graduated in '04 with 136 credits with a 3.01 GPA (took me exactly 4 years to get that many credits)....
Right now, If I want a 3.5 UG GPA, I have to take another 136 credits with 4.0 EVERY SINGLE CLASS (pretty impossible if you ask me), just to get my UG GPA to 3.5.....
 
My GPA is 3.82. It's insanely hard to raise my GPA by 0.1 point now. So I thought about taking some classes at a community college and maybe get like 20 more credit hours of solid A's to raise my GPA to hopefully 3.9.

trollus4.jpg
 
I still think this is a waste of time. First of all, if the OP has a 3.8x they can obviously get As at their 4 yr college. Why take any classes at a CC? Secondly, does anyone other than the most neurotic premed think theyll get rejected w/ a 3.82 but interviewed w/ a 3.86? The OP sounds like one of those kids that would file a formal complaint w/ the dean of students if they got an A-

because it's easier to get A's at CC. I can focus on studying for the MCAT more.
 
you cant take an "upper level" science course at a two year institution....the only class you can argue for is organic chemistry.
I was a transfer student, and this not only held true for all California schools, but Florida ones as well. No doubt across the nation...

the community college in my area offers biochemistry, anatomy, physiology, and cell biology
 
from what i understand, it sort of works like the whole mcat verbal score did before - anything in the 13-15 range gets assigned a 15. similarly, a 3.8-4.0 is essentially a 4.0, meaning that your gpa will not be the limiting factor at ANY medical school in the country.

oh I see

thanks for the info
 
Most community colleges don't offer a lot of upper level science classes.
 
the community college in my area offers biochemistry, anatomy, physiology, and cell biology

My CC offers A&P but its not an upper level class here.
 
besides boosting your GPA, anatomy and physiology classes should help you do better on the MCAT. I haven't taken an official test but I've taken many practice tests.

Anatomy isn't going to help you with the MCAT that much. I can recall one, maybe two questions on my MCAT BS sections (took MCAT twice) that demanded recall of specific anatomical facts. I'm also very familiar with all of the AAMC practice tests. So, yes there may be a very small amount of anatomy on the MCAT, but certainly not enough to justify taking an anatomy course specifically for MCAT purposes.

Undergrad anatomy courses will help you out in medical school, of course.
 
Why not focus on the MCAT and stop worrying about your GPA? If you can do "flawlessly" on the MCAT no one will question your 3.82, not that many people would at this point in the game. Show that you are more than just grades if you're worried about anything.
 
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