question for med students who went through grad school then applied !!

[vhle]

Hi!
I'm super new to this and all forums of any sort so hopefully i'm doing this correctly and will receive some extra informative answers!

At my school the pre-med advisors suck..they gear 120% energy towards the students they feel has the best potential (on paper, gpa, mcat scores, etc) to get into a med school. Which I GUESS is kind of understandable since they probably dont want to waste time on someone they presume isnt going near that field. But still...I've been through a lot of things and along the way my grades have suffered so the only thing I managed to get out of the advisor was the option of enrolling in a graduate program and then applying.Since she barely told me anything else about it I'm hoping maybe someone experienced with this or knows a lot about this option can help answer my questions!

1. Will any masters program suffice? (Obv. granting you do extremely well in it..) For instance I saw a one year program where students study along side med students and then theres also like biomed masters..biology..oy..so many and so confusing.

2. What about 2 years like anesthesiologist assistant programs...could you use that to show that your ability to handle heavy course loads?

3. Let's say one gets through a masters program or w.e what about the undergrad transcript? Is it just ignored, weighed less ??

Hopefully I make sense and be nice please lol ! I'm fully admitting my lack of knowledge about this whole masters program option path then medical school so that's why I'm looking to find out more!

vhle

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[OveractiveBrain]

Before I begin realize that there are "hard criteria" and "soft criteria."

Hard Criteria are things like GPA and MCAT scores. Reportable averages that each school must demonstrate. Sad as it is, its just a number, and schools want that number high. If you went to Princeton with a 3.0, some schools look down on that over a UGA with a 3.7. Its all about numbers. Most schools have cutoffs. If you don't make the cutoff, you don't get in. Period.

Soft Criteria are things like extracurriculars, life experience, and master's degrees. They help, and if very significant can outweigh the hard criteria, but in general, they are only considered after the student passes the hard criteria cutoff.

1. Will any masters program suffice? (Obv. granting you do extremely well in it..) For instance I saw a one year program where students study along side med students and then theres also like biomed masters..biology..oy..so many and so confusing.

There are really three options for "more schooling" if the purpose is only "to get into med school."

Your first option is to do a post-bacc program. That is for people who weren't premed but no want to be. Some programs allow you to do a post-bacc to improve science GPA. In that case, your undergrad scores still count, but the "new you" will matter more.

The second option is to do a masters of public health. Since everyone who joins medical school is supposed to be about saving the world, treating patients, and having an idealized view of the world, nothing says this better than a public health degree. You learn things that you wouldn't learn in med school (comprehension of epidemiology, health systems management) and it shows commitment to the field. Residencies don't care much for the MPH (see multiple threads here on SDN on the topic), but it does look good for med school.

Your third option is a med school masters feeder. Some schools have masters in human anatomy, some have pharmacology, some have "do first year and prove to use youre good enough, so you can do first year again" programs. These are auditions and are ideal for people who don't meet the paper criteria to show the school that "no no, im actually pretty good at this."

That being said. I was a paramedic for two years, and didn't do any extra schooling.

2. What about 2 years like anesthesiologist assistant programs...could you use that to show that your ability to handle heavy course loads?

You could. But if your reasoning for "why did you do this program" is "because I wanted to show you I am actually a good student" it looks poor. You just did a bunch of coursework loosely associated with medicine, without developing a whole lot of patient contact. It certainly doesn't look BETTER than a regular ole masters.

3. Let's say one gets through a masters program or w.e what about the undergrad transcript? Is it just ignored, weighed less ??

Hard criteria are hard criteria. The fact that you are more years out, that you completed new course work, etc., does mean that the old college stuff is "weighed less." But in order to be a true nontraditional student (i.e. does not go right to medical school after college) there should be some personal or professional development. If you got a 2.5 GPA and a 26 on your MCAT, then showed up with a 4.0 from a masters, they'll take you more seriously, but probably pass you up for someone with a 3.5 and a 36.

Hopefully I make sense and be nice please lol ! I'm fully admitting my lack of knowledge about this whole masters program option path then medical school so that's why I'm looking to find out more!

Welcome to the Forum! A word of caution. This place has a lot of people who did very well and come here to boast their success, and pass on their "advice." Heed caution.

This place also has people who are very unhappy and like to belittle other forum members. Ignore them. This is a great community and you can really learn a lot should you focus on the real points and avoid the nasties.
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[gocoastal]

I would agree that the aforementioned types of masters programs are the ones that my classmates have done in the past. A number of people did post-baccs, and quite a few were part of the feeder program at our institution and others (the MA in Medical Science at BU comes to mind). If you do something that's not strictly medicine, such as an an MPH, MHA, MEd or something - make sure it means something to you. You have to be able to discuss how this diversion in your life has contributed to your future as a physician when you interview for medical school

A masters program can definitely help. After I unsuccessfully applied right out of college, I did an MPH and some public health work, then was accepted into a few schools. I didn't retake the MCAT, but I had a 30, ~3.3 science GPA. I think the difference was that I did meaningful work during my time off from school, and I wrote a compelling personal statement about how public health studies changed my perspectives on medicine. I have a classmate who had a 29 and did a MEd. We've both been very successful in medical school and matched into our top choices.

Hope that helps.

 

[EgotiStick]

If you're only picking up coursework to get into medical school, you need to decide if your deficit is MCAT or GPA. If its your MCAT score, take an MCAT class and save yourself the loans. If its GPA then you should look towards post-bac vs the aformentioned special masters programs.

No matter what you do, just showing up to class isn't going to cut it. So even if you do an MEd or MPH or SMP or post-bac work, network and make sure you immerse yourself in the medical field.

 

[vhle]

sorry havent been on here in a while but thanks guys for such great info!