SMP financial aid

[lostnconfused]

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Can someone that has done a SMP give me some insight on whether or not financial aid is available? I see that a lot of the programs only state financial aid will be available in the form of loans. Is that the only sort of financial aid SMP provide (besides school scholarships)? I was going to save up $20-30K to attend a SMP but I can't afford to stake out $50-70K before medical school if no finaid (besides loans) is available.

I was also debating taking science courses at my state university, but it wouldn't raise my GPA that much. I currently have about a 3.3-3.4 science GPA, 3.56 overall. Taking classes at my state university while working (assuming I could even get into any of the classes) would only boost my GPA 0.1-0.2 max.

 

[DrMidlife]

You shouldn't plan on getting any scholarships or other free money for an SMP. At best a few thousand, or a lower interest rate on a school-specific loan. Schools/donors have no motivation to throw money at GPA redemption programs. Totally different from being a med student.

A program like Temple, which is nearly guaranteed to make you a med student, might be different.

Glad to see the debt burden of SMPs as a concern - that's smart. Keep looking at alternatives, including those that take more than a year. Don't rule out regular grad work.

Best of luck to you.

 

[Dro133]

What's your MCAT score? With a solid MCAT (32+), I think you would be a solid applicant given your current GPA, depending on your state of residence. If you can bump your GPA up to ~3.65 and ~3.4+ with a full semester's load of courses, I think that would be the way to go, and it would run you less than 10 grand...but again, with your numbers, you might not even need that as long as you rock your MCAT and have all the other requisites (good letters, volunteering, etc.).

I know people who got into my state school with lower GPA's than yours with low to mid-30's MCAT scores. As long as you aren't in California, I think it's very doable.

 

[lostnconfused]

What's your MCAT score? With a solid MCAT (32+), I think you would be a solid applicant given your current GPA, depending on your state of residence. If you can bump your GPA up to ~3.65 and ~3.4+ with a full semester's load of courses, I think that would be the way to go, and it would run you less than 10 grand...but again, with your numbers, you might not even need that as long as you rock your MCAT and have all the other requisites (good letters, volunteering, etc.).

I know people who got into my state school with lower GPA's than yours with low to mid-30's MCAT scores. As long as you aren't in California, I think it's very doable.

I'm a California resident. :/ I called Drexel today and was told financial aid for grad programs don't come in any other form besides loans. I'm about to take the MCAT in a couple of weeks. Debating between doing a SMP or taking courses from my state university...

 

[Dro133]

I'm a California resident. :/ I called Drexel today and was told financial aid for grad programs don't come in any other form besides loans. I'm about to take the MCAT in a couple of weeks. Debating between doing a SMP or taking courses from my state university...

Again, with your numbers, I don't really see the point of doing an SMP -- in my mind, an SMP is a "nuclear" option geared towards people whose GPAs are so low that they really have no other choice. For example, someone with a 3.2 gpa could take a year's worth of courses, earn all A's, only to bump themselves up to ~3.4, which still wouldn't be high enough to have any confidence whatsoever of receiving an interview invite. That's not the situation you're in -- you're sitting at 3.56, which isn't that far off the national matriculant average of 3.7.

Is it financially feasible for you to take a full courseload this upcoming semester? If so, you could always do that and raise your GPA to ~3.6-3.7 (maybe ~3.4-3.5 sGPA?), which again, puts you right around the national average for all matriculants (and it would only cost you ~10k, pennies on the dollar compared to SMP costs). Score at least a 30 on the MCAT with that GPA and you can be reasonably confident that you'll receive multiple interview invites, if you apply broadly.