Seeking guidance on whether I will be able to ever attend medical school

[gt345]

I was a pre-med bio major, after a major accident and around 2 years off of school, I went back for a semester and took OChem and Physics. Some other related problems happened, and I ended up with a C in Physics and an I in OChem (that was changed to an F). I then was convinced that due to the unfortunate circumstances I was out of the running for medicine, so I transferred to math and graduated. Now almost two years later I am wishing I didnt give up so easily.

I am considering petitioning the school to get a medical withdrawal for that semester.

In the math major I did so-so as I basically crammed 2-3 years into 3 semesters. So now my overall GPA (including the F) is around a 3.0.

I have a lot of Cs and C+s in math classes which I guess will always drag down my average. I am considering trying to do a post-bacc program, but I dont know if that will help me due to my previous grades. Thank you

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[truthDMC]

I think a post-bacc program is a very reasonable idea. I don't know much, but from someone who had a poor start like me, I had to come back and show new motivation/discipline. Those numbers are not so hot, so I would want to see some reason why you are now capable of excelling in medical school. Seems a post-bacc is a feasible way to do that.

 

[jombojuice22]

It would be a long uphill battle to get to MD school but I think you should have a good shot at DO due to their grade replacement policy? Replace the F and C with A's, crush the rest of the pre-req's, and do well on the MCAT. In addition to all the usual ECs, volunteering, shadowing, etc.

 

[gt345]

Any help greatly appreciated,

I took Gen Chem 1 and 2 (B and C, As in labs) my freshman year.
Bio 1 - (C, C+ lab), Bio 2(B and B) in addition to the F in OCHem ( was an I) and C in physics from that troubled semester. I intend to petition the school to get a medical withdrawal for that semester.

What are my options now besides doing a second bachelors degree? It seems that I dont fulfill the reqs for either a post-bac program or an SMP.

Thank you

 

[Gauss44]

DO: You could definitely do a DO by retaking classes.

Texas MD: I think MD schools in Texas allow grade replacement, but you have to be a resident of Texas or something?

MD:
-In summary, an MD is probably possible if you are willing and capable of doing GPA repair, and work hard enough to get a high MCAT score. That might take a while.
-Other stuff to look into: SMP (in addition to GPA repair), a tiny number of medical schools use their own system to calculate GPA, the Re-Applicant section of SDN. (In response to your question: You don't have to complete a second bachelors. You only need to do GPA repair.)

 

[gdfernan]

Any help greatly appreciated,

I took Gen Chem 1 and 2 (B and C, As in labs) my freshman year.
Bio 1 - (C, C+ lab), Bio 2(B and B) in addition to the F in OCHem ( was an I) and C in physics from that troubled semester. I intend to petition the school to get a medical withdrawal for that semester.

What are my options now besides doing a second bachelors degree? It seems that I dont fulfill the reqs for either a post-bac program or an SMP.

Thank you

I see 1 'F', 3 'C's, & 1 'C+'. Assuming that your GPA of 3 was over 120 credit hrs, re-taking those five subjects and getting 'A's would boost your GPA to 3.22 (assuming DO grade replacement). Taking another 4 upper div Bio/Chem subjects and getting 'A's would boost your GPA to 3.3. That coupled with an MCAT of around 28 would make you competitive for DO schools.

 

[SN12357]

Any help greatly appreciated,

I took Gen Chem 1 and 2 (B and C, As in labs) my freshman year.
Bio 1 - (C, C+ lab), Bio 2(B and B) in addition to the F in OCHem ( was an I) and C in physics from that troubled semester. I intend to petition the school to get a medical withdrawal for that semester.

What are my options now besides doing a second bachelors degree? It seems that I dont fulfill the reqs for either a post-bac program or an SMP.

Thank you

You're best bet is to do an 'informal' post-bacc and probably apply DO.

You don't need to be in a formal program to retake classes. DO schools do grade replacement on the application, so your GPA will improve more.

Retake any Cs and below and if you do well in those classes and on the MCAT, you have a definite shot.

 

[gt345]

Thanks for all your help, one thing thats concerning me is that I have quite a few Cs in upper level Math classes(like I said above, i overloaded my schedule) and that theyll factor into my BCPM GPA...obviously im not intending to retake them.

Will this be a major issue, is there a separate Pre-Med Req GPA?

 

[Goro]

Nope, just cGPA, which can be looked at as uGPA and gGPA (UG and graduate. The gGPA shopudl always be >>> uGPA.


Will this be a major issue, is there a separate Pre-Med Req GPA?[/QUOTE]

 

[murfettie]

i do want to say, a career with math degree is also an excellent choice.