Post Bac or not

[porschegt3]

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So I graduated last june from UCSD and applied this cycle, but my chances seem bleek🙁. Mt stats are: overall GPA: 3.59, science GPA: 3.71 and my MCAT is a 28 (B:11, P:10, V:7😕). I dont know how to proced to reach my dream, do you think a post Bac program would be worth while. Thanks for the help

 

[dapmp91]

I would not apply to a postbacc, you already have solid credentials for low tier MD schools and a whole range of DO schools. If I were you, I would spend a year doing something else, such as improving extracurricular's and retake the MCAT if your hell bent on getting into an allapathic school. I mean there are better ways to improve your application rather than spend 30K+. just my 0.02 cents

 

[NutCracker2021]

yeah how are your ECs and clinical experience??

 

[porschegt3]

I think my EC and clinical experience is ok:
-Volunteered in a hospital for over 2 years
-shadowed 2 physicians (have a letter or recommendation from one)
-3 different research positions (cancer, gene therapy, HIV)
-TA O-chem for a year
-Various other small volunteer work around the community

 

[NutCracker2021]

Great ECs!! So then just work on getting a higher MCAT and send those applications in way early for next cycle..

 

[Habeed]

Do a post-bacc with an affiliated medical school that historically accepts a high percentage of the post-bacc students. Rosalind Franklin BMS is one such program.

The reasoning is simple :

1. It gives you something to do while doing an application cycle.
2. It HEDGES your bets. If you don't get in to the other schools you applied to, you get into to the school affiliated with the post-bacc. This keeps you from having to waste yet another year applying for a third time. Plus, how heartbreaking is it to apply 3 times in a row?
3. It gives you a chance to take medical school classes with an easier to handle workload. You'll do better in medical school.
4. Yes, it costs money. But what is getting into med school 1 year early worth? An economist would say it is the average annual salary of a physician, or about $170k.

 

[Squiggy]

Your GPA is too high to risk a post-bacc. Retake the MCAT to get 30+ and beef up the ECs and maybe LoRs. Post-baccs (SMPs) are for people with low (3.0-3.4) GPAs like me and are Hail Marys. You mess up the post-bacc and you can pretty much kiss medicine goodbye.

Don't do an SMP until you're ready and confident you'll suceeed. As a correlation to Habeed's 4th point, realize that if you blow the SMP, the door to medicine may be shut permanently. You'll forgoe possible millions in lifetime earnings that way.

 

[Habeed]

Squiggy, I'm going to say I agree with you. I forgot about the risk of messing up totally.

Post baccs that give you a shot at an affiliated medical school are hard. They have to be. Med school classes involve competing against a class full of people who already made it in out of thousands of applicants. The school I'm at now had 10,000 applications for 187 spots.

However, it wasn't hard for me. I worked out a method to master the material efficiently that has worked rather well.