Post-Bacc after Change in Plans?

[Nash09]

Background on me:
I was a Biology major in undergrad (3.03 cGPA) who didn’t get into vet school the first time around. I did ROTC in college, so because I didn’t get into school I chose to go active duty. While in, I realized that I could take more upper level science classes and improve my last 45 GPA for those schools that look at graduate grades by completing a Masters (plus it would allow me to complete everything online - no labs yay) so I began a MS in Biology that I will be finishing this fall. I figured I would do a Masters, retake the few prereqs that I needed to retake (Physics and Biochem) and then apply in the 2022-2023 application cycle, as I am leaving the military this fall as well.
Well, my fiancée recently learned that she got her DREAM Army job (yes we are dual-military for the time being lol) at West Point. I decided that it means more to me to go with her to NY so that we can be together, rather than rushing to still try to apply and then be long distance again for 3 years if I managed to get in somewhere.

All that to say, I am thinking now about doing some sort of post-bac while we are in NY (looking at the NYC area), because by the time I am planning to now apply (2025-2026 cycle) my undergrad prereqs will be 9-12 years old at the time of potential matriculation. Additionally, my undergrad science GPA wasn’t super high to begin with...

TL; DR: Would it make sense to do a post-bac to replace prereqs that will likely be too old by the time I am planning to apply (and also increase grades)? If so, are there benefits to a structured post-bac program vs the DIY route?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[EngrSC]

I personally went the DIY post-bacc route because there weren't any structured post-bacc programs near me. I think I also saved money by doing it the DIY way as well. But my situation was a little different ... I hadn't taken any biology or o-chem or biochem as part of my original degree (engineering) but I had to retake physics and gen chem because they would be expired at the time of my application. So I think it'll kinda depend on what is available to you. The school I went to allowed me to enroll as a second degree-seeking student and I had priority registration because I had a ton of credits (super-senior status). But when I lived in California I was only able to take classes as an open-enrollment student (which meant crashing classes each semester) which was a royal PITA ... so basically in California I would've needed a structured post-bacc program to get into classes reliably each semester. Thankfully we PCS'd to a state that was more amenable to my situation.

Hopefully you've done well in your masters program and will be accepted to vet school during your next application cycle! My cumulative GPA was crap as well but putting a decent chunk of time between then and my recent coursework really worked in my favor. I also did super well in my post-bacc work so I applied with a strong last 45 GPA.

Also, married to a career military man and we're doing the long distance thing while I'm in vet school, though thankfully we're at least in the same state! So holler if you have any questions about the long distance or military thing or using the GI bill!

 

[britzen]

Your credits may be fine despite how old they are - make a list of the schools you are interested in and check with each one as to whether they will count your credits if they are 9-12 years old when you apply. Some of my pre-requisites that counted were 17 years old when I applied and the schools I contacted did not care. (I also crossed at least one school off of my potential application list specifically because I did not want to retake math classes that were over 10 years old and they would not have accepted them.)

Considerations for structured post-bacc:
- you will most likely be considered a super-senior and will get priority for registering first
- you may have access to funding (I got a scholarship that I would not have been able to without being in a structured program.)
- you may have better administrative support since it's a formal program at the school so has things like registration, advising, etc set up
- you will probably be at a university, so each class may be more expensive than a DIY community college route


Considerations for DIY post-bacc:
- can probably do it cheaper (you can shop around for the best / cheapest classes, including community colleges, remote learning, etc)
- you only have to take classes that you need for vet school apps - make a list of your potential schools prereqs and plan accordingly
- you may not get priority registration - at the school I went to you would have been dead last for registration as a non-degree seeking student no matter how many previous credits you had