sGPA: is there a huge difference between a 3.5 and a 3.6?

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Halfdolphy

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Hi guys,

So I'm a senior right now and I have a 3.5 sGPA now. Also an ORM. I plan to take the mcat this may and apply june/july 2015.

right now my sGPA is a 3.5. If I wanna raise it to a 3.6, i need 7 science classes next semester and get A's in all of them.

Honestly, i feel like 7 science classes along with studying for the mcat is just unrealistic.

but when i look at the MSAR, even the state schools have median sGPA of 3.7 - 3.8 (NY State)….so I feel like my 3.5 sGPA will seriously kill my chances………..

What should I do?

Should I take science classes in the summer to boast my sGPA? Summer session 1 grades are released around July 10. So I won't be able to apply early, right? (It will also hurt my chances…)

Sigh. Help me decide. =[

Happy 2015 btw!
 
No, but probably depends a little on what school you go to.
 
I was in a similar position when i applied and i decided to apply early and just update schools with my new grades from summer courses to prevent late verification.
 
No


Hi guys,

So I'm a senior right now and I have a 3.5 sGPA now. Also an ORM. I plan to take the mcat this may and apply june/july 2015.

right now my sGPA is a 3.5. If I wanna raise it to a 3.6, i need 7 science classes next semester and get A's in all of them.

Honestly, i feel like 7 science classes along with studying for the mcat is just unrealistic.

but when i look at the MSAR, even the state schools have median sGPA of 3.7 - 3.8 (NY State)….so I feel like my 3.5 sGPA will seriously kill my chances………..

What should I do?

Should I take science classes in the summer to boast my sGPA? Summer session 1 grades are released around July 10. So I won't be able to apply early, right? (It will also hurt my chances…)

Sigh. Help me decide. =[

Happy 2015 btw!
 
For the amount of time and effort you have to put into 7 classes? Not just no, but hell no.
 
3.5 is still OK. What you really want to do next semester is to take the lightest/easiest load possible so you can ace your MCAT.

Even if medians are 3.7, there is a pretty large sGPA range for most schools.
 
A 3.5 science GPA won't kill you for NY state schools if everything else is strong. I was thinking of waiting a year too because of my low early-in-college science grades, but I applied with ~3.5 sGPA and got interviews and acceptances at New York public and private schools.
 
I was in a similar position when i applied and i decided to apply early and just update schools with my new grades from summer courses to prevent late verification.
Demystifie, I was just thinking about this earlier. If you take summer classes and grades for those won't come out until like August, can you still update AMCAS and have them change your GPA? Thanks!
 
Demystifie, I was just thinking about this earlier. If you take summer classes and grades for those won't come out until like August, can you still update AMCAS and have them change your GPA? Thanks!

AMCAS won't recalculate your GPA once you're verified, so you would have to send the grades directly to the schools you applied to and it's up to them to recalculate your gpa. I was debating whether to delay verification so that my gpa would include the extra classes or to just submit my application early to give myself the best chance possible for admissions. I am glad I went the early verification route, but if you do the same just make sure you are on top of sending out your updated grades to all of your schools. Let me know if you have any other questions!
 
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