Post Bac students fresh from Undergrad

[HopefulMDStuden]

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Hey I had a question. How many of the post bacc students on here went into the program or are looking at programs for as soon as they graduate undergrad? And what kind of programs did you/are you looking into?

 

[darkjedi]

Theres a bunch of people in my program that are straight from ugrad. I think you still need to demonstrate an interest in medicine, whether through volunteering or whatever, or have a very strong background in terms of GPA/SATs. Definitely possible, but arguably at a disadvantage.

 

[HopefulMDStuden]

Well, I will be graduating with a math degree and my overall GPA at the moment is 3.96 and I have a 33 on the ACT. I will have had the physics and math courses completed. Do you think it would be beneficial to go to a post bacc program or to just take the chem, orgo chem, and bio on my own?

 

[darkjedi]

Well, I will be graduating with a math degree and my overall GPA at the moment is 3.96 and I have a 33 on the ACT. I will have had the physics and math courses completed. Do you think it would be beneficial to go to a post bacc program or to just take the chem, orgo chem, and bio on my own?

With those stats you should have a very good shot at the structured programs. Whether or not you want to take the classes on your own or at a structure program is a choice entirely up to you. Some people say that structured programs are too expensive however.

I personally chose to do a structured because of the linkage opportunities as well as the advisors that are available to help you through the process, something that will probably be lacking in one way or another if you take classes on your own. I also enjoy the community that is established when you are with your classmates for all your classes as it makes taking 3 lab classes at the same time that much more bearable.

In the end its up to you, you will probably be successful either way, but I personally think it's worth the extra cost.

 

[Bubba3]

I'll be going to a postbac fresh from undergrad starting either this summer or fall. (I graduate in June.) I've applied to 2 structured programs and 2 semi-structured programs. Still waiting to hear back from 3 of them, but I'll hopefully have made a decision within the next month or two. So I'm in the same boat. 🙂

 

[HopefulMDStuden]

With those stats you should have a very good shot at the structured programs. Whether or not you want to take the classes on your own or at a structure program is a choice entirely up to you. Some people say that structured programs are too expensive however.

I personally chose to do a structured because of the linkage opportunities as well as the advisors that are available to help you through the process, something that will probably be lacking in one way or another if you take classes on your own. I also enjoy the community that is established when you are with your classmates for all your classes as it makes taking 3 lab classes at the same time that much more bearable.

In the end its up to you, you will probably be successful either way, but I personally think it's worth the extra cost.

The structure and advising definitely seems like a great bonus, along with the aspect of having a group of students with you along the way. My only thing is the cost. I really can't afford to finish a program in a year with the same amount of debt I incurred in four years in undergrad.

I'll be going to a postbac fresh from undergrad starting either this summer or fall. (I graduate in June.) I've applied to 2 structured programs and 2 semi-structured programs. Still waiting to hear back from 3 of them, but I'll hopefully have made a decision within the next month or two. So I'm in the same boat. 🙂

Bubba, that's awesome! I'm not scheduled to graduate until next May but I am pondering graduating a semester early so that I can go ahead and get started with pre reqs and volunteering.

I'd like to hear where you end up. Best of luck.

 

[ReInventor]

I am going to try to apply next fall in my senior year. I have a 3.95GPA and a 1390 SAT (prob gonna take the GRE, raise my math score). I have a little bit of shadowing experience and I am going to try to do some hospital volunteering in the fall. I decided to study abroad this spring before my interest in medical school appeared, so sadly I am losing the spring for volunteering and shadowing. Maybe I can do some while I am abroad but it doesn't look good. Though I am definitely not regretting my choice to study abroad. 😛

My major is in psychology and I'm hoping that my "story" will help me...I have spent several summers working with autistic kids, and have several semesters of psychology research (including two semesters of independent research and directed study). I realized my interest in autism might be better suited to a career in medicine than psychology. I plan to apply to some good structured programs...fingers crossed!

 

[betterlate]

The structure and advising definitely seems like a great bonus, along with the aspect of having a group of students with you along the way. My only thing is the cost. I really can't afford to finish a program in a year with the same amount of debt I incurred in four years in undergrad.



Bubba, that's awesome! I'm not scheduled to graduate until next May but I am pondering graduating a semester early so that I can go ahead and get started with pre reqs and volunteering.

I'd like to hear where you end up. Best of luck.

I went to Goucher and many of my classmates came to the program straight out of undergrad. Most of those who did opted not to link b/c they wanted the experience of researching for a year or simply wanted to have time away from school before starting med school.

Regarding whether or not that kind of structured program is right for you, obviously it depends on what you need. Despite the prohibitive cost, I felt that a structured program was best for me because the small student:teacher ratios, personal attention, built-in support systems and advising available made it more likely that I would be able to perform well. I've got a learning disability, and while I've gotten good grades throughout my academic career (hence having the stats to get into Goucher in the first place), I find it harder to succeed in some learning environments than in others. I wanted to maximize my chance of success. With that as my goal, i decided the cost of a small, structured postbacc was worth it. Your mileage may vary, here.

A word about advising: in the years before I decided to apply to Goucher, I was weighing my options. I called the alumni association of my alma mater (a liberal arts school w/ <2000 students) and discussed the situation w/ a career counselor there. He told me that my alma mater would be willing to put together a committee letter on my behalf, even if I took the premed courses on my own at a different university. He also said they'd provide premed advising to me.

It might be worth it to you to see if you can get similar services through your alma mater. If so, you may be able to complete the other premed courses for less money and still take advantage of the advising and support systems of a premed program at your current university.