Rejected from SMP...advice?

[premedgrl1]

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Applied to only 2 SMPs b/c they were the only ones close enough to me to commute to. Surprisingly rejected from one so far- still waiting to hear back from the other one. First rejection now worrying me I may not get in to the other one now.

Any advice for what I should do if I don't get in to an smp this fall? Should I take upper level undergrad classes until I can apply again? I'm not a candidate for a regular post bacc since I've taken all the science courses already. Anyways, feeling pretty discouraged so far so any helpful suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

* undergrad gpa 3.0, gre score was average, taking mcat in October

 

[V5RED]

Applied to only 2 SMPs b/c they were the only ones close enough to me to commute to. Surprisingly rejected from one so far- still waiting to hear back from the other one. First rejection now worrying me I may not get in to the other one now.

Any advice for what I should do if I don't get in to an smp this fall? Should I take upper level undergrad classes until I can apply again? I'm not a candidate for a regular post bacc since I've taken all the science courses already. Anyways, feeling pretty discouraged so far so any helpful suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

* undergrad gpa 3.0, gre score was average, taking mcat in October

Why didn't you take the MCAT before applying to SMPs? I thought that was pretty much required or at least "highly preferred".

Hi all. I am new to SDN and posting for the first time. I know there have been numerous threads about post-bacc, SMP, ect., but I would still appreciate your personal opinion.

I recently graduated with a B.A. in Biology and a 3.0 GPA. I have taken all the required pre-medical courses for medical school. I am aware I will need to enhance my academic background to make up for the 3.0 and I am wondering what my best option would be given my academic background:

Bio 1 - A Chem 1 - B+ Chem 2 - A Organic Chem 1 - B
Bio 2 - A Chem 1 lab - B Chem 1 lab - B+ Organic Chem 2 - C
Organic Chem lab - B
Physics 1 - C+ Physics 2 - C
Physics 1 lab - A Physics 2 lab - A

Calculus - B

OPTIONS:

Option 1: A post-bacc pre-medical program. (Although, I have found that most are for students who have not taken the pre-medical courses.)

Option 2: A Master of Biomedical Science which involves a Medical Scholars program for students interested in going to medical school. This program also has a linkage agreement, MCAT prep, and is affiliated with a medical school in which you would be taking some medical school classes.

I feel as though the Master's option would be better suited for me. But I would love for you to share your experiences and opinions so that I can make the best decision. Thank you!

Kind regards,
premedgrl1

Yes. I took a number of upper level science classes in which I received some A's, mostly B's, and a few C's. Which is why I'm not sure how much creating my own post-bacc would raise my GPA...

From what I have read, you will need to do extremely well in an SMP to be successful. Basically a A/A- grades. Based on your grade history, I am not sure that sounds realistic. Why do you think you will succeed in an SMP when you were not so successful (relative to those who get into medical schools) in undergrad? Your posts indicate you didn't even have a strong upward trend to support the idea that you would be successful.

I am not trying to be mean, I am just pointing out my impression from your post here and your post history.

 

[premedgrl1]

B/c i had too many things going on (personally, professionally, academically) to adequately prepare and study for the mcat until recently. So I'm studying now and taking a prep course soon.

 

[mehc012]

B/c i had too many things going on (personally, professionally, academically) to adequately prepare and study for the mcat until recently. So I'm studying now and taking a prep course soon.

Right, the point was not necessarily 'you should have done this by now', but rather 'you should have done this prior to applying to SMPs'.

 

[zzxxzz]

B/c i had too many things going on (personally, professionally, academically) to adequately prepare and study for the mcat until recently. So I'm studying now and taking a prep course soon.

In general, you are expected to have taken the MCAT prior to applying to an SMP. Many programs require it. SMPs are very competitive.

Bio 1 - A Chem 1 - B+ Chem 2 - A Organic Chem 1 - B
Bio 2 - A Chem 1 lab - B Chem 1 lab - B+ Organic Chem 2 - C
Organic Chem lab - B
Physics 1 - C+ Physics 2 - C
Physics 1 lab - A Physics 2 lab - A

Calculus - B

To be honest, taking a post-bacc year to retake organic and physics while studying for the MCAT and then applying to DO schools may be a more prudent expenditure of your time.

 

[b05010445]

I had a 3.1 out of undergrad and a bunch of C's. got a 26 on my first mcat applied and was accepted to BU MAMS. I raised my mcat to 31 and got a 3.4 from them (yeah I had some b's and a b-) I had 10 MD interviews and multiple acceptances.
You can do it too, you jut need to be ready to study about 11 hours a day.
Also, your state of residency makes a huge difference I think in your SMP outcome.

I definitely think if you take the mcat and get high 20's you'll get into an SMP; I didn't know of anyone in my program who didn't take the mcat.

 

[premedgrl1]

Thank you! I appreciate the words of encouragement.

 

[premedgrl1]

I had a 3.1 out of undergrad and a bunch of C's. got a 26 on my first mcat applied and was accepted to BU MAMS. I raised my mcat to 31 and got a 3.4 from them (yeah I had some b's and a b-) I had 10 MD interviews and multiple acceptances.
You can do it too, you jut need to be ready to study about 11 hours a day.
Also, your state of residency makes a huge difference I think in your SMP outcome.

I definitely think if you take the mcat and get high 20's you'll get into an SMP; I didn't know of anyone in my program who didn't take the mcat.

Thank you! I appreciate the advice/words of encouragement.

 

[b05010445]

When studying for the mcat, no content review! Just 100% practice problems and figuring out the fastest way to the answer and why every incorrect answer is wrong. I know you think you need to do content preview; but don't you dare. Watch a khan academy video and go do problem based (Princeton review offers a lot of online problem based resources).
Feel free to message me anytime

 

[Goro]

Retake all F/D/C science coursework and and apply to DO schools.

Work for a year, apply to more SMPs and be prepared to relocate.

Do a DIY post-bac.

Applied to only 2 SMPs b/c they were the only ones close enough to me to commute to. Surprisingly rejected from one so far- still waiting to hear back from the other one. First rejection now worrying me I may not get in to the other one now.

Any advice for what I should do if I don't get in to an smp this fall? Should I take upper level undergrad classes until I can apply again? I'm not a candidate for a regular post bacc since I've taken all the science courses already. Anyways, feeling pretty discouraged so far so any helpful suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Thank you.

* undergrad gpa 3.0, gre score was average, taking mcat in October

 

[masaraksh]

When studying for the mcat, no content review! Just 100% practice problems and figuring out the fastest way to the answer and why every incorrect answer is wrong. I know you think you need to do content preview; but don't you dare. Watch a khan academy video and go do problem based (Princeton review offers a lot of online problem based resources).
Feel free to message me anytime

... Ummm, No.

I think most people would benefit from content review in the context of MCAT. Followed by practice questions and passages. The problem is that some MCAT content review books suck.

You're crazy to seriously suggest someone prepare for MCAT without reviewing content.

 

[zzxxzz]

When studying for the mcat, no content review! Just 100% practice problems and figuring out the fastest way to the answer and why every incorrect answer is wrong. I know you think you need to do content preview; but don't you dare. Watch a khan academy video and go do problem based (Princeton review offers a lot of online problem based resources).
Feel free to message me anytime

OP got Cs in both physics and organic 2. I do not believe this strategy is prudent.

Doing content with just EK will take maybe a week or two at most.

 

[mehc012]

... Ummm, No.

I think most people would benefit from content review in the context of MCAT. Followed by practice questions and passages. The problem is that some MCAT content review books suck.

You're crazy to seriously suggest someone prepare for MCAT without reviewing content.

Yyyyeaaahhh.
I agree that LOTS of practice passages is key, but...in the context of also knowing the material, otherwise you're getting far less out of them than you could be.
Maybe that poster did mostly content review prior to their 1st low MCAT, then added practice passages before the second and confused 'you need both' with 'hey, I did nothing but practice problems THIS time around, maybe that is all you need EVER!'?

 

[masaraksh]

I did ~7 weeks studying, full time. I worked my way through the EK content review books (each chapter had question sets and then 'chapter tests' that were MCAT style passages and questions based on that chapters material). Following that, I did review + practice problems + AAMC tests + full-lengths.

Made me really confident for BS and PS. I think the content review was a critical part of my studying.

 

[V5RED]

When studying for the mcat, no content review! Just 100% practice problems and figuring out the fastest way to the answer and why every incorrect answer is wrong. I know you think you need to do content preview; but don't you dare. Watch a khan academy video and go do problem based (Princeton review offers a lot of online problem based resources).
Feel free to message me anytime

I highly disagree, especially considering that OP did not ace the prerequisites. That is like telling me that the key to making excellent cookies is not learning what the proper ratios of flour to sugar to baking soda etc are, but making up recipes in my head and being told what is wrong with the crappy cookies I come up with rather than learning how to make a good cookie then trying to make one.

Maybe no content review worked for you, but it is not something that is a wise choice especially considering that there are not infinite practice problems to burn and you pay for all the practice problems you use.