Post-bacc/SMP?

[sharmon1]

Hi guys!

I'm planning on (hopefully) attending medical school after graduation and I am looking to see whether or not you guys think I need to do a post-bacc or SMP before applying.

sGPA - 3.35
cGPA - 3.53
MCAT - n/a

I have not taken the MCAT yet, which I know will be a bit difficult for you to judge, but any advice would be greatly appreciated! Like for instance if I got a certain score whether or not I would be competitive and to what schools with or w/out a post-bacc or SMP.

I am going to be a senior this year in Biochemistry, living in Colorado, and am planning on taking the MCAT in the spring of next year. My original plan was to study for the MCAT this semester and next semester since I have a fairly light course load. However, do you think it would be a better idea to put off the MCAT and try to increase my uGPA while I'm still in school? If not, I'm assuming a post-bacc/SMP would be necessary. I was leaning towards an SMP since I would like to get a master's degree, but is that a better idea than a post-bacc? Either way, could you guys suggest any good SMP programs that I would potentially be able to get into if that was the best option for me?

I greatly appreciate any advice you can give me, I have no one to talk to about this and I have so many questions! I would prefer to go MD, so if you could direct answers towards that I would appreciate it, but would also gladly welcome any advice regarding DO!

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[sharmon1]

Not sure if it makes a difference, but I've had a very strong upward trend in my courses. My low GPAs came from low freshman courses where I was lame I will have had about 2 years of 3.85+ GPA after graduation, most likely 4.0s the last two semesters and Dean's List for 2.5 years.

 

[Goro]

Not sure if it makes a difference, but I've had a very strong upward trend in my courses. My low GPAs came from low freshman courses where I was lame I will have had about 2 years of 3.85+ GPA after graduation, most likely 4.0s the last two semesters and Dean's List for 2.5 years.

You should be fine if you maintain that nice trend. No need for SMP/post-bac.

 

[sharmon1]

You should be fine if you maintain that nice trend. No need for SMP/post-bac.

Thanks!! What would that be for? MD schools? Lower or mid-tier? Or only for DO schools? Do you have any in mind that if I achieve a fairly decent MCAT score you think I would be able to get into? Maybe specific MCAT scores for potential schools?

 

[Goro]

Thanks!! What would that be for? MD schools? Lower or mid-tier? Or only for DO schools? Do you have any in mind that if I achieve a fairly decent MCAT score you think I would be able to get into? Maybe specific MCAT scores for potential schools?

Depends upon the school and your final GPAs and .MCAT

 

[sharmon1]

My final GPA should be around a 3.55. Do you know an approximate score I would need to not have to do an SMP/post-bacc? To have a competitive set of info for a middle-tier MD school?

 

[sharmon1]

Does anyone have any estimate on the approximate MCAT score I would need to be competitive for a mid-tier MD score? With and w/out an SMP?

 

[alex4d1]

Average MCAT score for applicants was 511, average score for STUDENTS ACCEPTED INTO SCHOOLS was 515. I got those numbers from just perusing the AAMC page for their average matriculant stats, so you can take a look there if you would like a more complex breakdown. That average comes with all of the caveats of any measure of central tendency, since it naturally also takes into account top tier and low tier schools with mid tiers. However, I do think it's a pretty good ballpark of what score to beat to be safe.

With or w/o SMP depends more on school preference, since some prefer more job and clinical experience. They may not say it directly but some schools also are willing to provide things like the average age of the accepted medical student, which can be a great insight into what demographic they are looking to fill their class with. Take this with a grain of salt though of course, since I'm just a prospective applicant and not one of the OG's on this sight or an admissions officer. I'm sure you might get a more nuanced or better answer if you shot an email over to your dream schools to see what they'll say .

 

[FutureDPM123]

You should take a look into podiatry school. You have a good GPA for it. Even with an MCAT below 500, you can get accepted.