Part Time Undergraduate

[soul21]

Is it even possible to get in to medical school going to school part time and working about 30 hours a week. I have a 3.9 gpa and will finish within the next two years. Im hoping if I get a 30+ on the mcat I'll have a shot. 😕 What do you guys think?

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[Sooz]

Is it even possible to get in to medical school going to school part time and working about 30 hours a week. I have a 3.9 gpa and will finish within the next two years. Im hoping if I get a 30+ on the mcat I'll have a shot. 😕 What do you guys think?

I really don't think it would pose that much of a problem as long as the rest of your app. is strong. I actually had a lot of semesters of part time classes at a CC (while having spousal, health and work issues) where I only managed to pull out about a 3.0 GPA. Since going to work part time (25-35 hours a week) my GPA at the university I now attend is around 3.7 (12-15 hours per semester). Anyway, I have talked to a few schools and explained this situation to them and I didn't really hear anything negative. Of course I would say that if you can, you might want to sneak in a few semesters of full time classes just to show that you can keep a solid GPA with a heavy course load.

Good Luck! 🙂

 

[Twitch]

I just took the plunge when the time was right and left my work and started working on my pre-reqs at a 4 year. I did do a couple of classes at a CC due to their evening classes and the fact that I was wrapping up grad school in addition to working 60-80 hours a week with 1 week q1 on call 24x7.

Take home message - take the plunge and do it full time. The full kaboodle. When the time is right (for you).

 

[kimmcauliffe]

I was in the same boat as you. Taking classes part-time, as far as I can tell, will not affect your chances at all. Med schools are taking into consideration how well you're able to balance everything else in your life, so if you were doing it due to work, ect, they should still be able to make a decision based on that.

I agree, take the plunge into full-time when you're ready. Good luck to you.

PS, stop by my site and let me know how you're doing. It's nice to find another soul out there in the same boat as me 🙂

 

[y0ter]

Do adcoms have a preference for nontrads when it comes to part/full time students? If one is able to support themselves, is it better to take a full course load, or do they frown upon applicants quitting their full time jobs in order to complete their pre-reqs, prepare for mcats and volunteer?

 

[blee]

People have gotten into med school using both tactics. I am personally an advocate of the full-time approach, both for reasons of time and academic endurance. In a couple of my interviews, adcoms have mentioned to me the importance of showing that one can handle the workload at med school, which isn't so easily done by taking one class and working 40 hours a week.

There's one other thing to consider, though. No matter what's going on in the rest of your life, no one will care if your grades are poor. If you absolutely cannot avoid working, do NOT sacrifice your GPA just to get through your classes sooner. Extenuating circumstances will not give you bonus points.

Is it really absolutely necessary for you to work? There are ways to cover your tuition and living costs over the course of a school year. It may not be easy to stomach a loan, but you might want to consider one. Just something to think about.

 

[osli]

Or you could be a full-time student with 4 science/lab courses and work 30 hours a week.

Wouldn't recommend it though. 👎