% ppl that get into Med after SMP

[daniella07]

Hey guys..
I was just wondering if anyone had an estimate of the % of ppl that get in to med school after doing an SMP...
From reading up on them a bit, it seems thatmed schools like them right?

Also, could someone tell me generally how hard is it to do well in one of these? I know your marks are compared to med students, so would the ability to do well be somewaht similar to how it is in undergrad or much harder?
thanks

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[socal78]

85% of graduates from the georgetown smp program matriculate onto medschool according to their website. those sound like pretty good odds to me.

 

[anj1202]

I completed the SMP at Boston University and it was the hardest year of my life. Its not an easy road to take but if you're committed to doing whatever it takes and working your butt off to get into med school then go for it, but don't expect to have a lot of free time if you want to be successful. Taking classes with med students and competing to outdo them is a tough challenge but well worth it in the end. Goodluck!

 

[socal78]

I completed the SMP at Boston University and it was the hardest year of my life. Its not an easy road to take but if you're committed to doing whatever it takes and working your butt off to get into med school then go for it, but don't expect to have a lot of free time if you want to be successful. Taking classes with med students and competing to outdo them is a tough challenge but well worth it in the end. Goodluck!

Did you apply to any other smp programs? If so, why did you choose Boston?

 

[Faze2]

Does anyone know what kind of gpa requirements they require? I know it is around a 3.0, but do some give exception to people on an upward trend?

I ask because of all the numbers people give about "if you had a x.xx gpa as an undergard, you will need Y amount of credits at a 4.0 to have a z.zz gpa". So it would not make much more sense for me to take another year of classes with all that money just to raise my gpa a few tenths. Don't get me wrong, I would if I had to, but if I could get into an SMP, which I heard gives you a better chance of getting in somewhere as long as you do well, I would rather do that instead.

 

[BeanerMD]

89% of my SMP classmates (Loyola) are now in medical school...yours truly being one of that unfortunate 11%

 

[drhansolo]

can you teach a noob what SMP stands for?

 

[tacrum43]

can you teach a noob what SMP stands for?

Special Masters Program. It is a term that started with the original of them all, Georgetown's SMP back in the 1970's. It is "special" because they are intended as a way to bolster your application to medical school (usually because of low GPA issues).

 

[Doctor Bagel]

85% of graduates from the georgetown smp program matriculate onto medschool according to their website. those sound like pretty good odds to me.

Where? Do those 85% go to US allopathic schools? Is 85% the total that go to US allopathic and osteopathic schools, or is 85% the amount that go to medical school period, which means it includes allopathic, osteopathic and offshore schools? To me, that's a huge difference because my hunch is that most of Georgetown's SMP students could be admitted to osteopathic and offshore schools without the SMP so doing the SMP is a waste of money for them.

 

[TheGalvaniFrog]

This is what Dr Adam Meyers, the director of Georgetown SMP wrote some times ago:

Of every 100 students who ENTER the SMP, 90 to 95 successfully finish.

Of every 100 students who ENTER the SMP, 50 to 60 go to US medical
schools THE VERY NEXT YEAR. This calculation includes students who
drop out or fail out of the SMP at any point, a significant number who
don't even apply to medical school, aren't recommended by us, and a
couple who go to DO school.

Of every 100 students who ENTER the SMP, 80 to 85 go to medical school
eventually. This calculation includes students who drop out or fail
out of the SMP at any point, a significant number who don't even apply
to medical school, aren't recommended by us, a few who go to DO
school, and a couple who go to offshore schools.

My impression is that the ones going the DO or Carribean route is a minority.

 

[Instatewaiter]

Honestly I would estimate if you added up all of the students at SMPs only around 20-40% go to med school. The rate for each school is going to depend on the SMP (ie how well respected the SMP is AND what their entrance reqs are). I have found that schools like to talk up their numbers yet the reality is always less than they report. There are some excellent programs w/ good acceptance rates: EVMS, Georgetown and UCinnci come to mind.

SMPs are really, really difficult. Not only are you taking most of the medical school classes w/ med students but there is the added stress of knowing that you have to do well not to mention having to complete apps/secondaries. They are much harder than Ugrad; the volume of info is pretty ridiculous. Think if you took all the good students in your undergrad classes and put them in one class and you had to compete for top grades against them. That is med school and SMPs.

Med schools do like SMPs. For example I graduated with a 2.8 yet that terrible GPA was neutralized by an excellent SMP performance. However, if you do poorly in an SMP (ie Bs or Cs) you will pretty much ruin you chances of ever going to medical school.