Pleasee Help with postbacc or masters

[tibzgurl]

Hi all,

I graduated with the BS in Biochemistry and didn't do so well in undergrad. Ended up with 2.68 BCMP Amcas gpa. My cumulative GPA is 3.05 with 25 MCAT. I am not sure if i will benefit more from a postbacc program or from a special or traditional masters program. I am from the midwest and it is my dream to go to med school. I am not sure if i can get into any of the SMP's or masters with my MCAT and GPA. Any comments? or help will be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

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[DoctorPhud]

Do the Post-bacc.

The masters doesn't fix your undergrad GPA, and you need to get that up. Use the post-bacc to really develop your BCPM abilities for an MCAT retake as well.

Honestly, it's going to take some work to get the GPA up, so expect to work on it for more than a year. Also, MCAT retake scores don't move very much, in general, so you will really need to work hard to revise for that. Take your time and slog your guts out.

You may be disadvantaged if you get a better MCAT and the scores are averaged.... You need to aim for 30+, so you might need 35+, which is a really big jump.

 

[Instatewaiter]

Not all schools average MCATs and you don't need a 35. Aim for at least a 30. With a low GPA it is much better to have a high MCAT but it is not an absolute necessity.

I feel the Ugrad GPA is too low to apply to an SMP, plus SMPs will help you less bringing up the MCAT, which like tibzgurl said, needs to be retaken. Go the post-bac route and raise the BCMP GPA and maybe later consider the SMPs

 

[imrep1972]

Hi all,

I graduated with the BS in Biochemistry and didn't do so well in undergrad. Ended up with 2.68 BCMP Amcas gpa. My cumulative GPA is 3.05 with 25 MCAT. I am not sure if i will benefit more from a postbacc program or from a special or traditional masters program. I am from the midwest and it is my dream to go to med school. I am not sure if i can get into any of the SMP's or masters with my MCAT and GPA. Any comments? or help will be greatly appreciated. Thank you!

Tibzgurl,

I agree with Instatewaiter about the Post-Bac, but for a slightly different reason.

Your GPA, while low, is not necessarily an obstacle to getting into an SMP. My cume GPA was lower than yours and I was admitted to Gtown. The problem for you is your MCAT. With your GPA, you really need to pull that up. You should really shoot for the 30+ range (35 may not be necessary.) The post-bac will help you to do better on your MCAT (while also helping out your GPA a bit.)

Even if you do well in a Post-Bacc, you're probably not going to raise your GPA enough to really make you that much more competitive for med school. You'll likely need to do a SMP.

With an improved MCAT you could be a good candidate for an SMP.

 

[nanaschool2000]

Tibzgurl,

I agree with Instatewaiter about the Post-Bac, but for a slightly different reason.

Your GPA, while low, is not necessarily an obstacle to getting into an SMP. My cume GPA was lower than yours and I was admitted to Gtown. The problem for you is your MCAT. With your GPA, you really need to pull that up. You should really shoot for the 30+ range (35 may not be necessary.) The post-bac will help you to do better on your MCAT (while also helping out your GPA a bit.)

Even if you do well in a Post-Bacc, you're probably not going to raise your GPA enough to really make you that much more competitive for med school. You'll likely need to do a SMP.

With an improved MCAT you could be a good candidate for an SMP.

I think both Imprep and instatewaiter mentioned a really good point. Although I dunno much about SMP as they are, I personally believe it won't be necessary to choose postbacc over SMP. I mean if you are thinking about DO route as well. If you are only looking for MD schools, then I think what imprep and instatewaiter said is right (postbacc first then SMP). Since your cumulative gpa is above 3.0 cutoff point (and you got 25 on MCAT), I think that is good for PCOM (masters) or LECOM 1 year certification postbacc program. I heard DO schools are more likely to forgive a past poor performance if you show a great increasing trend in upper level UG science or in grad school. After you finish your SMP, you can always give a shot at med school. During your glide year, you can take UG courses I believe. Although Postbacc to SMP sounds more reasonable, I THINK doing SMP (or certification program) now wouldn't necessarily hurt you if you can't anticipate to start SMP. REMEMBER!! I'm saying this in case you are thinking about Osteopathic Medicine. If you are thinking about MD, I think doing a postbacc first would be a way better option. How do you think about that, Imprep and instatewaiter?

 

[imrep1972]

I think both Imprep and instatewaiter mentioned a really good point. Although I dunno much about SMP as they are, I personally believe it won't be necessary to choose postbacc over SMP. I mean if you are thinking about DO route as well. If you are only looking for MD schools, then I think what imprep and instatewaiter said is right (postbacc first then SMP). Since your cumulative gpa is above 3.0 cutoff point (and you got 25 on MCAT), I think that is good for PCOM (masters) or LECOM 1 year certification postbacc program. I heard DO schools are more likely to forgive a past poor performance if you show a great increasing trend in upper level UG science or in grad school. After you finish your SMP, you can always give a shot at med school. During your glide year, you can take UG courses I believe. Although Postbacc to SMP sounds more reasonable, I THINK doing SMP (or certification program) now wouldn't necessarily hurt you if you can't anticipate to start SMP. REMEMBER!! I'm saying this in case you are thinking about Osteopathic Medicine. If you are thinking about MD, I think doing a postbacc first would be a way better option. How do you think about that, Imprep and instatewaiter?

I was operating under the assumption that the OP wanted to go the US MD route. If the OP is willing to consider DO, then I think the GPA and MCAT become less of a factor. If Tibzgurl is able to get into PCOM or LECOM with the current stats and is willing to do DO, that could be a viable option.

 

[tibzgurl]

Thank you so much you guyz! I really appreciate your help. how competitive are the postbacc programs??

 

[Instatewaiter]

I agree with nano. Honestly the DO route would be a much shorter road from this point, especially if the OP is looking to do primary care. DO's have all the rights and responsibilities as MDs in the US and in terms of admissions are generally more forgiving.

In terms of difficulty of post-bacs, it will vary from school to school, but they are pretty competitive. Most say they are 'harder' than Ugrad for a variety of reasons. Generally you are taking all the pre-recs in a condensed time frame and also have to complete applications and find time for ECs.