Re-considering career pathway again (Used to be Pre-Med) Advice greatly appreciated !

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tj1987

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Hi everyone!

I'm currently in my 5th year of undergrad (Psych major) and I am graduating in May 2016. It has definitely been a difficult road for me through undergrad. For the first three years of my undergrad career I was pre-med and took the required courses but did not finish- I dropped Physics I after three weeks of taking it in my junior year (winter 2014) due to my math skills being very poor- and feeling extremely discouraged, dropped being pre-med altogether and focused on Psychology- my new goal being getting a PhD in Clinical Psychology after graduation. I've been heavily involved in research and am currently finishing up my honors thesis, however, I am now reconsidering medical school as my career path. I am not *too* crazy about research and, putting a lot of thought into a medicine again has made me excited. However, I still want to graduate with my bachelors next semester...and I am not entirely sure how post-bacc programs work in my situation.

my current bcpm is a 3.60, my current cGPA is a 3.85. I still need to take Pre-Calc, Physics I and II, Orgo II, Gen Chem II, Physio and Anatomy, Biochem and two more other biology courses. I am unsure if I could just do a post-bacc after graduation, or if I need to do an SMP? I'm also worried about the fact that I've changed my mind so many times about my career path, and how I'd have to explain that (especially to the professors that I am working with now in my research labs!) I plan on meeting with my advisor very soon and this is sort of freaking me out...several months ago I never would have reconsidered this pathway and haven't even thought about it again until very recently... Also... any advice on helping me prepare for Physics (I already know that it would be wise to take Pre-Calc and possibly even Calc beforehand, but if any of you guys could also mention some other resources -- like Physics books or websites-- I'd be very grateful)

Any advice on what my plan should be after graduation (I'm still thinking...), along with anything else? Given what I still need to take (MCAT too!) How many semesters do you think it will take me?



Sorry if this post is too long, confusing, or if things have already been answered elsewhere in this forum. I'm tired and it's super late lol. Thanks!

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Do NOT do an SMP. Your GPA is great right now, and going for an SMP would mean you risk what could be a fantastic application for a chance to get into medical school. If you don't do well in SMP's, you can kiss your medical school dreams goodbye.

You still need to get through the bulk of your pre-reqs, and a post-bacc is the perfect thing for that. You should definitely ask your advisor about DIY postbaccs at your university, I think the majority of universities will allow graduates to continue taking classes after they graduate as non-degree seeking students. You could continue your research and do some clinical volunteering on the side, and you'll also be able to put more emphasis on MCAT studying if you're not taking a full courseload.

Look over which medical schools require calculus or not (I would take Calc 1 and 2 just to be safe). You can also take the Physics for life-science majors, which is not calculus based and quite a bit easier to understand for those who haven't taken calculus. I recommend http://www.freelance-teacher.com/videos.htm for Algebra based physics.

If you start doing your pre-reqs now, you might only need one semester of post-bacc work (maybe a winter session), and then you could take your MCAT during the April after you graduate, then apply in June. If you decide to start your pre-reqs after you graduate, you're probably looking at a year and a half to fit all of your pre-reqs and MCAT studying in. You could rush it, but I would recommend against it.
 
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