Post-bacc prospects...would appreciate feedback!

[nwjohnson]

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Hello,

I tried to keep this post straight to the point. I would like to know if Med School is a possibility for me from those who have more knowledge of the process than I do. I appreciate each of you for the help and taking time reading my scenario.

Background

Currently 25yrs old
• Graduated w/ BA in Spanish Literature in fall of 2010 from UW-Madison
• cGPA: 3.03, no science courses except intro Bio freshman year (big reason low GPA)
• One year of studies in Buenos Aires, Argentina toward my degree. Classes were all taught in Spanish alongside locals seeking degrees – not your typical study abroad “party year”
• No MCAT

After Undergrad

• Spent 2 years serving at a restaurant, still not sure what direction to turn following graduation.
• Snapped out of the complacency that came from making fast money at the restaurant. I wanted to do something that made me actually use my brain and direct that energy towards something meaningful.
• Moved to Oaxaca, Mexico at the beginning of 2012 to get back into the swing of speaking/thinking in Spanish. Volunteered as a Tutor for young children at an orphanage 3days/week. I also spent time teaching English 2days/week to teenagers in a poor town outside of Oaxaca.
• At the same time, I took a class on medical interpreting. I plan on earning my nationally recognized certificate in medical interpreting sometime in the middle of this year.
• In August 2012, I took an AmeriCorps position at a Community Health Center in Colorado working on the “Transition of Care” team. Our goal is to cut down readmissions to the hospital for patients stratified into a high risk category based on “high risk” diagnosis (i.e. diabetes, copd, chf, asthma, etc…) We then meet the high risk pts in the hospital, help them as they transition home, and meet them in their home (if they accept) to go over discharge instuctions, lifestyle concerns, and motivational factors to help them stay healthy and out of the hospital. Basically it’s a free extension of their healthcare in the convenience of their own home.
o While on the TOC team, I have been able to shadow both Doctors and PA’s quite a bit. The clinic also has a mobile unit that serves the large migrant farming community in rural northern Colorado that I have been able to shadow.
o I forgot to mention it’s a 1700hr/11 month community service position. I get a living stipend.

Short-term future

Through these experiences post-undergrad, I realize my passion is in the medical field helping others. The problem is I need the science courses and additional EC’s to boost my chances at a Post-bacc program and eventually Med school.

1. After some research, my GPA places me at the bare minimum of many Post-bacc programs. Can I still apply and expect to get in anywhere?

2. Would it be more beneficial to get more exposure? I have thought about joining Peace Corps, ideally in a health-related position using my Spanish speaking skills.

My plan:

1. Get certified as a Spanish/English Medical Interpreter this year
2. Apply to Post-bacc programs to get the necessary pre-reqs to apply to Med school.
3. If all goes well w/ Post-bacc, I may (based on reading other posts on this site) need more experiences to boost my resume.
If anyone has any input on where I stand and my plan it would be greatly appreciate it. Thanks for reading my post.

 

[DrMidlife]

1. After some research, my GPA places me at the bare minimum of many Post-bacc programs. Can I still apply and expect to get in anywhere?

You won't get into a name brand structured formal premed postbac program. But those programs are just a tiny fraction of the options.

What you need to focus on, above all else, is how to get a university to allow you to take not just the med school prereq courses, but enough additional coursework to show that you're a strong student. That's the only thing you should be thinking about, if you're serious about med school: how to show you're a strong student. As in: 3.7+ in harder classes than you've ever seen. It doesn't really matter what university you choose. Paying for classes, and getting registration priority, will be obstacles. Every grade you get that isn't an A is a step away from med school.

Your cumulative GPA will never be competitive for med school. That means you need to be more mature and responsible and in charge of your choices than regular students, in order to get in. For more info on GPA redemption while getting prereqs done, find the low GPA thread in this forum. It's the one with the most posts and the most views.

It's probably a good idea to do a semester at a community college, to get some math and intro science done, before you dive into the prereqs. If you can't get A's in such classes, then there's no justification to go after med school.

2. Would it be more beneficial to get more exposure? I have thought about joining Peace Corps, ideally in a health-related position using my Spanish speaking skills.

That won't help you get into med school. Strong academics will get you into med school. As of now, your extracurricular activities are overloaded. After you've got some A's in prereqs, then start volunteering in a clinical setting to get more exposure to the practice of medicine.

If you just want to work in healthcare, then look into MPH or MPA or nursing programs.

My plan:

1. Get certified as a Spanish/English Medical Interpreter this year

This makes sense if you can support yourself through your premed studies as an interpreter. But in my experience, the job is thankless and low pay.

2. Apply to Post-bacc programs to get the necessary pre-reqs to apply to Med school.

Nope, you need to be looking at schools that will allow you to do lots of courses without being degree-seeking (such as Harvard Extension or Berkeley Extension) or will let you do a 2nd bachelors.

3. If all goes well w/ Post-bacc, I may (based on reading other posts on this site) need more experiences to boost my resume.

Not really. You already have a ton of activities to fill up an app.

Don't worry about the non-academic aspects of your med school app anymore. Worry, a lot, about whether you have the capacity to be back in school, with harder classes than you've ever seen before, with much more pressure than you were in before.

Best of luck to you.

 

[nwjohnson]

I appreciate the response, Dr Midlife.

You mention in response to the first question that I should take courses that are harder than I have taken up until this point. Any recommendations on classes I should focus on?

You also mentioned Harvard Extension and Berkeley Extension as possible options. I have heard mention of these programs on this forum but can't distinguish if it's a different route than a post-bacc entirely or if it is a post-bacc for people who have lower cGPA'S than most applicants. Is this a way I could simultaneously take pre-reqs while (if all goes well) raising my cGPA to a respectable level for med school applications down the line?

Thanks