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If I have a 2.5 GPA in English Lit with no sciences, what is the best path for me to take in order to get into a [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif] Osteopathic medical school?.
If I have a 2.5 GPA in English Lit with no sciences, what is the best path for me to take in order to get into a [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Osteopathic medical school?.
You're in a lot better shape than I was when I graduated.
Yes, EC means extracurricular activities, Sorry, I guess I shouldn't be so cavalier with the SDN slang. Anyway, what I meant by "the necessary EC's" is clinical and volunteer work and perhaps research. Schools want lots of clinical exposure (go for 100+ hours, at least) and a significant amount of volunteering. Research is a plus but not required.Milkman, EC's are extra curricular? What does that mean in this context?
Personally, I think I'd opt for a 4-year school. They carry much more weight than community colleges. As far as I know, you can apply anywhere you want since you're not going to be getting a degree.Should I do all my pre-meds at a 4 year or can I do some at a CC?
Thank you guys so much for the inspiration etc. Does your advice also apply to regular medical school? Or you think I should stick with DO since it is a tad bit easier to get into a DO school? Or am I delusional? Is it just as hard to get into a DO school?
What kind of volunteering do they love?
You say I can apply to any school for my post-bac. Will any school let me in? If I wanted to go to UCLA, what are the chances they will let me enroll? How do I enroll for post-bac? Is it the same process as a High Schooler?
lastly, what kind of volunteer work do YOU like. i think its bull to get ECs just cuz they look good on a resume. you should volunteer because you want to, not because you have to. most ppl try to get some stuff in hospitals or doc's offices. i personally went to kenya to volunteer in a mobile medical clinic, but i did this for me, not for the med schools i was trying to get into. the idea is, ur supposed to want to do the volunteer work, since its in the field that you want to enter.
i really think you havent quite thought this all out. why dont u have a little sit down with urself, and really think about what you want to achieve in med school, from there, see where u'd like to volunteer then.
oh, and they like students to be wellrounded, so dont JUST volunteer in a hospital. they're supposed to want YOU, not ur kiss-a** abilites. good luck.
I have been volunteering long before I thought of going to medical school. I did some of it not even volunteering, I just walked around and gave food to homeless people, saved a couple lives, published articles against war, protested against poverty, did interviews about ending the conflict in Israel by means of non-violence in major publications, housed Tibetan refugees, met the Dalai Lama, sold shirts that said compassion on it, worked for 10 hours a day fund raising, put on benefit concerts and on and on. (I am not saying this to brag, just to point out that what you harshly wrote is the opposite of the truth and maybe point out that one should not judge so harshly in such a manner) I started Students for a Free Tibet in college, when I didn't even imagine becoming a doctor, in fact that is what inspired me to do so. And other volunteer jobs with kids etc. when I didn't think I would ever apply to med school. I am 29 after all. I haven't been sitting around. Becoming a doctor is so I can best help the most amount of people. Volunteering isn't so I can get into med school, going to medical school is so I can become a better volunteer. All I want is to help people. In fact my plan was to become a doctor so I could work in 3rd world countries year round, even live there. I don't want to help people in order to get into medical school, I want to get into medical school so I can help the poorest of the poor. I have no interest in saying this to be mean at all, I truly appreciate your post, but it's hard to make assumptions upon people and then judge them harshly for it. It seems to be a limited perspective. But I appreciate it. One love.
How would I go about researching some of these volunteer opportunities in Kenya or other 3rd world countries?
Julez suggested that I go back to school and do the entire 4 years instead of just 2 years of post-docs, do you guys agree Texas and Ryserr and Milkman?
Find a post-bacc program that is designed specifically for pre-meds (ex: SFSU Health Prep and the UC Berkeley Extension programs). There's no sense in starting undergrad ALL OVER AGAIN. Not to be harsh, but you're 29...Time is NOT on your side!
Also, I wouldn't worry about your 2.5 undergrad GPA. I know plenty of med students (both allopathic and osteopathic) who've not only gotten into med school, but are academically outperforming their classmates.
From what you've listed in a previous post, it seems like you've had plenty of extracurriculars. All you need now is clinical experience...Find a hospital ASAP!
Last and most importantly, WHY DO YOU WANT TO BE A DOCTOR? In all of your posts, you've tiptoed around a clear answer. Your whole wanting-to-help-the-poor schpiel is not convinving, quite frankly. There are plenty of other high-impact professions you could choose (ie, teaching) that would benefit tons of people, and wouldn't involve the great physical, emotional and financial demands of diving into medicine.
Please think about this...
You think I have ulterior motives? I am convincing you guys on this site that I have never met that I want to help the poor? Why would I make that up? I didn't convince you? I wasn't trying to convince you. I don't understand. Do you think I made it up to trick you into something and what I really want is to make 300K a year as a radiologist and wear a white coat and put MD on my vanity license plate? Are you the admissions counselors that I have to trick into believing that I want to help the poor where in fact I just want to boost my self esteem and emulate Zack Braff Sorry I didn't do a good job of convincing you
Much love.
I love science, I love school, I love learning, I love hospitals, I love working hard, I love being with intelligent people who care about the world, I love the idea of working in poor neighborhoods for 40K a year just to help others who can't get the care they need. I love it all. I don't think teaching is my path.
I don't see why you require an essay from me? Should I list more reasons? Why did you guys want to become a doctor?
Yes, I want to be a doctor so I can save lives. Many doctors would find that answer sufficient. Is it good enough for the two of you?
Don't mean to sound mean, it's that a lot of the posters on this site seem so arrogant about everything. I got responses like, "You should seriously ask yourself if you are cut out to be a doctor because quite frankly your GPA stinks and I don't think you understand anything about this." "Do some research on your own. I don't think you know anything about what you are talking about." It's a funny thing to say, since no one did until they got the experience in it. It's like calling a kid stupid. We were all lacking knowledge before we attained it. People seem to get their kicks off this, "I know more than this new guy." Not you, I'm just stating what I have noticed.
Peace and love
NYCOM and PCOM in particular and they were telling me that for NYCOM, they consider the post bacc grades much more heavily than undergrad grades. At PCOM, they ONLY consider the post bacc grades.
That is great news. Thanks Chup. What is NYCOM and PCOM?
Thanks Meggie!!! Highly appreciated!!!!! Very true about DO programs. Some states even have to fill a quote of 20% of the students they let in have to be non-trads.
Hi doctor4dapoor,
I am also in the same boat. I am in my 4th semester of post bac. I was wondering where you got this information about the quota.
I don't blame you...the numbers on the top left are a little small. But the last time anyone posted in this thread was ~20 months ago.
I don't blame you...the numbers on the top left are a little small. But the last time anyone posted in this thread was ~20 months ago.