Question about Academic Probation...

[JPeezy]

My dream has been to become a doctor. But I feel my current GPA and lack of consistancy is going to keep me from being able to fulfill my dream.

My first 2 years of college even out to be 1 year with the drops I have had. And my GPA was a 2.9 but dropped to a 1.94 and I was placed on academic probation. All because of the lack of focus and family/personal emergencies I had all semester involving tons of travel which kept me out of classes. Luckily I wasnt taking any science courses yet. I have 3 years left before I get my degree in biology and meet all my pre-reqs.

If I was to turn this all around, get on the ball and make nothing less than A's and a rare B every once in awhile, while gaining experience and building up my extra cirric. do I stand a chance at all? I plan to retake the courses I did bad in and bring my GPA up to a 3.0 by the end of next semester. Then hope to get good grades and get my GPA up to a 3.3-3.4 when it's all said and done.

Thanks guys!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[AustinFinklea]

My dream has been to become a doctor. But I feel my current GPA and lack of consistancy is going to keep me from being able to fulfill my dream.

My first 2 years of college even out to be 1 year with the drops I have had. And my GPA was a 2.9 but dropped to a 1.94 and I was placed on academic probation. All because of the lack of focus and family/personal emergencies I had all semester involving tons of travel which kept me out of classes. Luckily I wasnt taking any science courses yet. I have 3 years left before I get my degree in biology and meet all my pre-reqs.

If I was to turn this all around, get on the ball and make nothing less than A's and a rare B every once in awhile, while gaining experience and building up my extra cirric. do I stand a chance at all? I plan to retake the courses I did bad in and bring my GPA up to a 3.0 by the end of next semester. Then hope to get good grades and get my GPA up to a 3.3-3.4 when it's all said and done.

Thanks guys!

Of Course you do!!!!!

Just because of your problems in the past doesnt mean you wont have a killer chance to get into med school. Lucky for you, however, you havent taken any science courses: this could be a good thing or a bad thing. Alot of these classes are very difficult and if proper attention isnt paid to them, it could very well result in poor grades. Nonetheless, you could also kill your prereq's, as you havent taken any science classes. Some people just have a niche for Chem and Bio and Physics, etc. If your academic past was ever brought up during an interview, you seem to have a legite justification. You will be just fine. You need to make sure that you get the best grades you can and give yourself plenty of time to study for the MCAT. There are many students in your shoes that ask if they aced all their classes from now till then, do they stand a chance? Yes, most do, but dont be surprised if you dont pull off a 4.0 GPA every single semester for the next 3 years. Its ok to get an A- or B+ in a class. My advice would be to talk to a premed advisor, or equivalent, if you have access. Talking with a premed advisor on a regular basis seems to help alot of students keep focused and fixated on what they need to do and how to do it.

Good Luck to you.👍 👍

Merry Christmas!!!!

 

[JPeezy]

Aww thank you very much for such the kinda and informative reply! I definitely will talk with my PreMed advisor. I know I can do it! And I want to do it BADLY. I just had a rough past 2 years, where nothing could go right. Everything is fine now and I'm ready to hit the ground running.

 

[HunterGatherer]

If your premed advisor gives discouraging info you always have SDN.

Try to get the science and overall GPA above 3.0 when you apply. Do well on the MCAT. You will get a chance to explain the academic probation on your AACOMAS application on a form seperate from your PS. When the time come to write your PS you may write a few sentences about your problems but focus on the positive aspects of your academic pursuits, the things you have changed. Same for the interview.

 

[MaximusD]

Buckle down when you get into your science classes. With a science GPA above a 3.5, you'll have a lot of DO schools to choose from.

 

[Fermata]

The good news is that you are from Texas where there are lots of schools with spots for in-state students making it a bit easier to get in.

Start hitting the books and the best of luck to you.

 

[Depakote]

You do have a shot.

1.) AACOMAS will give you an extra 750 character essay to explain your academic probation. It is probably a good idea to refer to this in your Personal Statement, but you should definintely use this space to explain why you had trouble and what you've done to fix it. Adcoms are people too, as long as you don't try to place blame on something/someone, you should be fine.

2.) The AACOMAS Application system is very forgiving. If you retake a class, the new grade will replace the original grade. This means you have a chance to replace those original low grades with A's and B's. You can shoot your applicaiton GPA way up and make yourself very presentable. (My AMCAS GPA is 0.3 lower than my AACOMAS GPA. My Science GPA is 0.4 lower. This made a pretty big difference.)

Just start a turn around and nail your classes from here on out. If you can retake classes, it will be to your advantage applying DO.

Good luck.

 

[caduceus27]

My dream has been to become a doctor. But I feel my current GPA and lack of consistancy is going to keep me from being able to fulfill my dream.

My first 2 years of college even out to be 1 year with the drops I have had. And my GPA was a 2.9 but dropped to a 1.94 and I was placed on academic probation. All because of the lack of focus and family/personal emergencies I had all semester involving tons of travel which kept me out of classes. Luckily I wasnt taking any science courses yet. I have 3 years left before I get my degree in biology and meet all my pre-reqs.

If I was to turn this all around, get on the ball and make nothing less than A's and a rare B every once in awhile, while gaining experience and building up my extra cirric. do I stand a chance at all? I plan to retake the courses I did bad in and bring my GPA up to a 3.0 by the end of next semester. Then hope to get good grades and get my GPA up to a 3.3-3.4 when it's all said and done.

Thanks guys!

dont give up is one thing i can say to you. i am in a similar situation got C's in bio1 and bio2 chem1 and chem2. but i was not put on academic probation. but my grades are not obvisly going to get me anywhere. so my advice is to take retakes,pull yourself up dont fall behind. and one thing about family problems dont get yourself get caught in them they waste time and energy. so to answer your question YES you still have a chance to fulfill you dream PM if you have a question i know a little since i am in a similar situation.

 

[asif7083]

2.) The AACOMAS Application system is very forgiving. If you retake a class, the new grade will replace the original grade. This means you have a chance to replace those original low grades with A's and B's. You can shoot your applicaiton GPA way up and make yourself very presentable. (My AMCAS GPA is 0.3 lower than my AACOMAS GPA. My Science GPA is 0.4 lower. This made a pretty big difference.)

What happens to Ws?

 

[jkhamlin]

My dream has been to become a doctor. But I feel my current GPA and lack of consistancy is going to keep me from being able to fulfill my dream.

My first 2 years of college even out to be 1 year with the drops I have had. And my GPA was a 2.9 but dropped to a 1.94 and I was placed on academic probation. All because of the lack of focus and family/personal emergencies I had all semester involving tons of travel which kept me out of classes. Luckily I wasnt taking any science courses yet. I have 3 years left before I get my degree in biology and meet all my pre-reqs.

If I was to turn this all around, get on the ball and make nothing less than A's and a rare B every once in awhile, while gaining experience and building up my extra cirric. do I stand a chance at all? I plan to retake the courses I did bad in and bring my GPA up to a 3.0 by the end of next semester. Then hope to get good grades and get my GPA up to a 3.3-3.4 when it's all said and done.

Thanks guys!

Yeah, turn it around and do well, and you certainly stand a chance. I was on academic suspension from my first two tries at college due to withdrawal F's. I am accepted at one school and on hold at another. Be prepared to explain the situtation countless times, and show how you have moved on and learned from the expercience.

 

[jkhamlin]

What happens to Ws?

No one cares about W's.

 

[JPeezy]

Wow thanks so much guys! I thought I was good as gone and just needed to settle with doing plan B. But your kind words and motivation has given me new hope. Thanks so much!!!

If anyone has anything else I should know or tips to help my situation, I gladly welcome them!!! 🙂

 

[JPeezy]

I just called my school and they told me that being on Academic Probation will always be on my Transcript. 🙁 Does this hurt my chances of making a comeback?

 

[Kuba]

I just called my school and they told me that being on Academic Probation will always be on my Transcript. 🙁 Does this hurt my chances of making a comeback?

i was on academic probation one semester... and although my school takes it off my transcript, I still volunteered that information on the AACOMAS. NO ONE has asked me about that at the 3 interviews I have been to. They have, obviously, addressed the lousy gpa.

 

[jkhamlin]

I just called my school and they told me that being on Academic Probation will always be on my Transcript. 🙁 Does this hurt my chances of making a comeback?

You also have to put it on your primary app for med school, and explain it. Stop panicking. It will be OK. You have plenty of time to make a comeback.

 

[Marthea007]

Like everyone has said, you should be fine. I had a bad semester my sophomore year. My advisors told me to get one of my professors to explain why in my LOR. This was I don't have to bring it up and someone, while noticing my weaknesses, can still recommend me.

 

[JPeezy]

ya but ive had a bad 2 yrs. i was makin decent grades..A's B's ...but Id drop out of a course here and there and rack up some W's 🙁

but thanks for everyones input! i will keep on believing!!

 

[jkhamlin]

ya but ive had a bad 2 yrs. i was makin decent grades..A's B's ...but Id drop out of a course here and there and rack up some W's 🙁

but thanks for everyones input! i will keep on believing!!

Don't worry at all about W's. No one cares about them any more. Low grades are something to be concerned about, but I think you have a good shot given what you told us.

 

[JPeezy]

Awesome! Thanks so much guys! And thanks for the last response jkhamlin!

I was real worried about the W's thinking they would come back and kick me in the behind.

You guys have been amazingly helpful, and God Bless! I'm sure you'll hear from me again with little questions here and there. It's nice to know there is a site like this to come and get help from such admirable people.

 

[jkhamlin]

Awesome! Thanks so much guys! And thanks for the last response jkhamlin!

I was real worried about the W's thinking they would come back and kick me in the behind.

You guys have been amazingly helpful, and God Bless! I'm sure you'll hear from me again with little questions here and there. It's nice to know there is a site like this to come and get help from such admirable people.

I have so many W's, I lost count a long time ago. If they really cared, they would have said something to me by now, but after four interviews, an acceptance, and a wait list it seems like they didn't even notice. 👍

 

[Kuba]

I only have 2 Ws, and when I called DMU they used them as a reason they put me on hold...

 

[jkhamlin]

I only have 2 Ws, and when I called DMU they used them as a reason they put me on hold...

Your app is probably so flawless that they were grasping for excuses. 😀

Really, pretty much everyone has at least two W's; it's just part of the undergraduate game, and they understand that.

Anyway, the point is you got in somewhere didn't you?

 

[MaximusD]

I have two W's a WN (no grade) in Advanced Calc (withdrew after first exam, retook for a B-) and a WP in Organic Chemistry (withdrew after 3rd exam with a C, retook for a B+)

They are definitely not good, but lots of people ahve had to use them. Focus on your last couple years of undergrad and you will be fine if you get better than a 3.4. Best of luck!