Post Bacc vs. Caribbean med schools

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childish213

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Hey Guys, I'm a third year undergrad hoping to go to med school but my GPA is horrid (2.7) and I am planning on taking the MCAT in May (I'm aiming for a 35). I was wondering whether going to a post bacc program or a caribbean med school (SGU, Ross) is a better option for me. I have almost 300 volunteer hours, and I am a founder/exec board member of a humanitarian club on campus. Thanks for all your help, I really appreciate it!

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If you search the forums you'll see pretty strong opinions regarding Caribbean. Do not go Caribbean. You still have presumably 3 semesters left to raise your GPA so work very hard to do that. Then consider Postbac, or DO and retaking some courses utilizing grade replacement. Also make sure everything else is in place including MCAT score, ECs, and strong letters. From a 2.7 it's an uphill battle, but it is possible if you work hard.
 
Hey Guys, I'm a third year undergrad hoping to go to med school but my GPA is horrid (2.7) and I am planning on taking the MCAT in May (I'm aiming for a 35). I was wondering whether going to a post bacc program or a caribbean med school (SGU, Ross) is a better option for me. I have almost 300 volunteer hours, and I am a founder/exec board member of a humanitarian club on campus. Thanks for all your help, I really appreciate it!

I would suggest the post-bacc.
I am not only suggesting this because I don't think they will be able to sufficiently match graduates to residencies in 6 years (when you graduate medical school at the earliest). I am also suggesting this because you need to show an ability to perform strongly over an extended period of time in an academic setting. If you are not able to be the cream of the crop in a post-bacc, then medical school isn't for you. If you aren't able to be the top in the Carribean, you get booted out/drop out/fail out and are saddled with thousands and thousands of dollars of private loans.
 
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Do well from now on (rising gpa trends are appreciated), take a gap year/ do a post-bac if necessary (probably), rock the mcat, definitely apply to DO and maybe some MD depending on final gpa and mcat. Do not apply Carib.
 
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I agree with @dayman (and @Oso seconds before me!). Try your best to get a 3.0+c/s GPA with the time you have left and check out DO. I had no problem with a 3.15ish and a 36 (numbers that sound doable for you -- esp with some grade replacement). If you're stuck on MD and end up below a 3.3, you will very likely need to do a post-bacc after.

To reiterate others, just say no to the Caribbean. ;)
 
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Hey Guys, I'm a third year undergrad hoping to go to med school but my GPA is horrid (2.7) and I am planning on taking the MCAT in May (I'm aiming for a 35). I was wondering whether going to a post bacc program or a caribbean med school (SGU, Ross) is a better option for me. I have almost 300 volunteer hours, and I am a founder/exec board member of a humanitarian club on campus. Thanks for all your help, I really appreciate it!
Sister you better consider DO.
 
Hey Guys, I'm a third year undergrad hoping to go to med school but my GPA is horrid (2.7) and I am planning on taking the MCAT in May (I'm aiming for a 35). I was wondering whether going to a post bacc program or a caribbean med school (SGU, Ross) is a better option for me. I have almost 300 volunteer hours, and I am a founder/exec board member of a humanitarian club on campus. Thanks for all your help, I really appreciate it!

Just curious, judging by your GPA, how do you think you'll be able to pull off a 95% percentile score on the MCAT?

Oh and post bacc (with solid linkage if possible) all the way should you be able to pull off a decent mcat. Be open to DO and low tier MD's.
 
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Hey Guys, I'm a third year undergrad hoping to go to med school but my GPA is horrid (2.7) and I am planning on taking the MCAT in May (I'm aiming for a 35). I was wondering whether going to a post bacc program or a caribbean med school (SGU, Ross) is a better option for me. I have almost 300 volunteer hours, and I am a founder/exec board member of a humanitarian club on campus. Thanks for all your help, I really appreciate it!

Caribbean should only ever be a last resort. In this instance, you have an option (post-bacc) other than the Caribbean. You should do a post-bacc.
 
Just curious, judging by your GPA, how do you think you'll be able to pull off a 95% percentile score on the MCAT?

Oh and post bacc (with solid linkage if possible) all the way should you be able to pull off a decent mcat. Be open to DO and low tier MD's.
It's doable -- albeit, with a lot of hard work.
 
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Hey Guys, I'm a third year undergrad hoping to go to med school but my GPA is horrid (2.7) and I am planning on taking the MCAT in May (I'm aiming for a 35). I was wondering whether going to a post bacc program or a caribbean med school (SGU, Ross) is a better option for me. I have almost 300 volunteer hours, and I am a founder/exec board member of a humanitarian club on campus. Thanks for all your help, I really appreciate it!

Postbacc man. trust me. Do well on it and you'll thank us later
 
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MD/DO >>>> Every other job on the planet that requires a college degree and most that don't >>>>>> Caribbean MD

So Post-Bacc hands down if it comes down to that - but it doesn't necessarily have to if you have a skyrocketing upward trend.

Buckle down, get some help from your academic advisors and peers, and get ready to improve that GPA. You have plenty of time to raise it up to a decent mid/low MD/DO acceptance level. Gap year could possibly be necessary. Make sure you assess everything that is holding you back from getting those As-->B+s right now. Don't wait to fail another test/get another C to think about what you are doing wrong.

Good Luck!
 
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Exhaust all your options for US MD/DO before going to the Caribbean. If you definitely want MD, a postbacc might be necessary. However, if you are ok with DO, you need to finish strong. Also, a few retakes might bring your GPA to 3.3+, which is ok for DO. Then 26+ MCAT will get you into a DO school.
 
Thank you so much guys! Looks like I'll probably go for a post-bacc if necessary.

And I didn't do a very good job of spacing out my classes my first two years and some personal stuff came up in the middle as well. I just wanted to try to find another option to get into a DO or MD school because its my dream to practice medicine.

You guys are awesome, thank you for all the advice!
 
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