Postbacc or SMP? Please help

[spots1324]

I am not sure if I should do a diy postbacc or SMP. No one in my family has gone to medical school, so I don't have much guidance on what to do. I was doing ok, and just had a bad semester which dropped my GPA to a 3.4 (sGPA is about the same). I am wondering if a postbacc to retake the classes I didn't do well in would benefit me more than a SMP?

Stats-

3.4 cGPA and sGPA
4 C's
3 D's
biochemistry TA
top 20 university/ major research university
500+ research hours- 300 in basic and translational brain cancer research at my universities medical school (third author on 2 papers and 5 posters)
66 hours of shadowing (clinical and surgical settings)
hospice volunteer
D1 student athlete
ambassador and graphic design/social media chair for Morgans Message (a student athlete mental health initiative)
German minor
3 solid letters of recommendation

I was planning on applying at the end of this year, but with my grades from this past semester, I am not confident in my application. I feel like my EC's are pretty decent, but the GPA and MCAT are not competitive, which is why I am planning on taking the time to do more research, retake my MCAT and take classes to boost my GPA. I have considered both SMP and DIY postbacc. My main concern is cost. I will be paying for this on my own and would like to limit loans and debt as much as I can since i will likely have to take on massive debt during medical school.

Thoughts on...
-SMP or postbacc?
-which is the best SMP?
-does name matter?
-any that provide financial aid?
-any that offer linkage?
-good postbacc programs?
-anything you would have done differently if you had to do it over again?

thank you in advance!

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[Goro]

I am not sure if I should do a diy postbacc or SMP. No one in my family has gone to medical school, so I don't have much guidance on what to do. I was doing ok, and just had a bad semester which dropped my GPA to a 3.4 (sGPA is about the same). I am wondering if a postbacc to retake the classes I didn't do well in would benefit me more than a SMP?

Stats-

Do not retake Cs

Retake the Ds IF they are science classes.

If cost is an issue, then do the post-bac.

Thoughts on...
-SMP or postbacc?

They both have plusses and minuses.

-which is the best SMP?

They're all pretty much a dime-a-dozen.
Pick one that has the lowest tuition, is a single year program, and is given at a medical school.

-does name matter?

No

-any that provide financial aid?

Not that I know of.

-any that offer linkage?

Many of them do, ranging from a guaranteed interview to an accept if your stats are above a certain number

-good postbacc programs?

Check in the Non-trad forums. The best ones will provide MCAT prep and advising on applications

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I feel like my EC's are pretty decent, but the GPA and MCAT are not competitive, which is why I am planning on taking the time to do more research, retake my MCAT and take classes to boost my GPA.

What is that MCAT score?

Don't forget your community service helping those in distress, preferably off campus and not health-related. You need at least 150 hours.

As a D1 athlete, you need to check if your scholarship can help you. I don't know what your school does for taking postbac courses, so you need to ask. I am much less certain about an SMP.... you should consider retaking Ds in science courses, but your old Ds will not disappear from your GPA calculations.

What did your prehealth advisor say?

 

[spots1324]

What is that MCAT score?

Don't forget your community service helping those in distress, preferably off campus and not health-related. You need at least 150 hours.

As a D1 athlete, you need to check if your scholarship can help you. I don't know what your school does for taking postbac courses, so you need to ask. I am much less certain about an SMP.... you should consider retaking Ds in science courses, but your old Ds will not disappear from your GPA calculations.

What did your prehealth advisor say?

495... I went about studying completely wrong, but I learned and my FL's have increased significantly. I'm planning on taking it in August.

I also would not be staying at my current school for the postbacc. The program here is only for career changers, and since I have taken almost all of the required courses I am ineligible. I know that the previous grades will not disappear, which is why I am unsure of what I should do. Would a whole new gpa (SMP) be better than trying to improve what I have now with a postbacc? Should I do a full postbacc and retake the D's? Or just retake the ones I need?

The pre health advisors here are horrible. If you don't have a 3.8+ and a 515 mcat they basically tell you to give up on your dreams. They haven't been super helpful in my case, which is why I've resorted to this forum and the reddit pages.

thanks again for your help

 

[chilly_md]

Do a DIY post bacc at a state college, retaking science classes with D's (and any pre-reqs with a C- or worse). Make sure to take at least 20 credits in brand new classes too. I would not generally recommend an SMP to students with a GPA around your range.

You will need non-clinical volunteering in the community as the MD schools you should be targeting will value that.

 

[deleted982921]

495... I went about studying completely wrong, but I learned and my FL's have increased significantly. I'm planning on taking it in August.

I also would not be staying at my current school for the postbacc. The program here is only for career changers, and since I have taken almost all of the required courses I am ineligible. I know that the previous grades will not disappear, which is why I am unsure of what I should do. Would a whole new gpa (SMP) be better than trying to improve what I have now with a postbacc? Should I do a full postbacc and retake the D's? Or just retake the ones I need?

The pre health advisors here are horrible. If you don't have a 3.8+ and a 515 mcat they basically tell you to give up on your dreams. They haven't been super helpful in my case, which is why I've resorted to this forum and the reddit pages.

thanks again for your help

I did an SMP and would really recommend against it until you're 100% confident in your academic ability. Maybe half of my program either failed out or pursued different paths after spending a ton of money on the program. The general feeling among faculty and advisors was that "some people will simply not make it." You definitely want to make sure that you're going to be one of the ones who does make it before you do an SMP

 

[spots1324]

Do a DIY post bacc at a state college, retaking science classes with D's (and any pre-reqs with a C- or worse). Make sure to take at least 20 credits in brand new classes too. I would not generally recommend an SMP to students with a GPA around your range.

You will need non-clinical volunteering in the community as the MD schools you should be targeting will value that.

Sounds good, thank you very much!

 

[spots1324]

I did an SMP and would really recommend against it until you're 100% confident in your academic ability. Maybe half of my program either failed out or pursued different paths after spending a ton of money on the program. The general feeling among faculty and advisors was that "some people will simply not make it." You definitely want to make sure that you're going to be one of the ones who does make it before you do an SMP

that makes sense. Thank you!