pros/cons of graduating a semester early?

[premedprepa]

are there any negatives/drawbacks that adcoms would see to graduating in December (right during the application cycle)?

only thing I could do full time that spring would be to work as an EMT, even though I would want to travel or try to find something else.

Thoughts?

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[clumzi00]

i graduated this december and i start medical school in august. I think its great because i get to have a nice long break to do whatever I want instead of going straight into medical school after graduating. so thats a pro. there really aren't any cons in my opinion.

 

[RTC19]

I am just a premed myself, but I think this is a great idea. It could really help both to save you a semester's worth of tuition. If you have student loans from undergrad, you could also start paying those down that spring/summer and/or build a healthy savings account. It's also good to give yourself a nice mental health break so you are more prepared for the craziness of M1.

The only con I can think of right now is if your GPA is on the lower side and you want the extra grades/upward trend calculated into your AMCAS GPA in case of reapplication. I don't see any downsides if your GPA wouldn't have been the problem if you find yourself a reapplicant.