SMP or Post Bacc - New Here

[dboyhaaan]

Hey guys its my first time posting on SDN so pardon me if I'm in the wrong area. Anyway, here is my story:

I graduated high school in June 2009 not knowing what I really wanted to do with my life and I was kind of going through the whole teenage rebellion phase which carried on into my first year of college (yeah I know, I matured a little too late) and ended up ending the year with a GPA of 2.75. I wasn't happy at the school I was at so I decided to switch to a CC in order to save some money while I figure out what I try to do with my life. I spent about 4 semesters there and ended up with a 3.68 GPA along with an A in both Calc I and II. I then decided I wanted to go into medicine and transferred to the for the Spring 2012 semester at the University of Arizona. Unfortunately, 2 months into my first semester my mother was diagnosed with bladder cancer and I freaked out and withdrew from the university to go back home with her. I figured I could still stay in school nearby and still be with my family so I enrolled into a small SUNY school in May 2012 and am currently at a 3.41 GPA which should be raised up to a 3.5 if not almost close by the end of this spring semester.

Here is my grade breakdown of all the science courses I have taken since I started at my most recent school:

Summer 2012

General Chemistry I Lect/Lab: A-/A-

General Chemistry Lect/
Fall 2012

Physics I Lect/Lab:B+/A-

Organic Chemistry I Lect/Lab: B+/C-

Cell Biology: A-

Spring 2013
Physics II Lect/Lab: C+/B

Organic Chemistry II Lect/Lab: B/C+

Immunology: B

Fall 2013

Genetics Lecture/Lab: A-/A

Animal Physiology Lecture/Lab: A/B

Biochemistry Lecture: A-

Research internship (4 credits...not sure if this counts): A

As you can see I made the mistake of cramming all of my prereqs (excluding biology which I took freshman year: Gen Bio I Lect/Lab: B+/A- and Gen Bio II Lect/Lab C+/C+) into my Fa'12 - Sp'13 year which was frankly not a good idea. I didn't realize how hard physics and organic would be taking at the same time and I simply didn't enjoy the material being taught in organic or physics which just made it that much harder for me to learn. but I think my Fa'13 grades show that I am able to handle a heavy course load while maintaining good grades. For this current semester I'm overloaded again with Behavioral Genetics, Developmental Biology w/ Lab, Vertebrate Zoology w/ lab, HAP2, Senior Thesis, and some art course to satisfy my gen. ed. requirement so I can graduate in time. I'm feeling pretty good about this semester and am pretty sure I can at least pull a 3.8 + with the way things have been going. I feel as if I have found a second wind which has been motivating me to get top notch grades. My GPA at this school when I graduate after this semester should be hovering a 3.5.

I plan on taking the MCATs in late August/early September and if I end up doing really well (which I consider a mid to high 30's) then I'll just apply late this cycle and take my chances. I want to keep myself busy next Fall/Spring by doing something that will raise my GPA just incase I don't make it this cycle; which I'm aware is most likely going to happen. What would you guys say is the best course of action for me? Enrolling into an SMP (particularly NYMC's program 1 year accelerated program) or hanging out at my current school another year after I graduate to take more upper level bio courses to raise my sGPA up. I'm bent on staying in the U.S. and not attending D.O. Thanks guys and sorry if my post was a bit lengthy.

TL;DR: Is going post bacc or the SMP route better to improve your academic performance? How does each route effect your undergrad cGPA/sGPA?

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[dboyhaaan]

Under summer 2012 I forgot to finish typing up my grades

General Chemistry I Lect/Lab: A-/A-

General Chemistry II Lect/Lab: A-/B+

 

[Catalystik]

Hey guys its my first time posting on SDN so pardon me if I'm in the wrong area. Anyway, here is my story:

I graduated high school in June 2009 not knowing what I really wanted to do with my life and I was kind of going through the whole teenage rebellion phase which carried on into my first year of college (yeah I know, I matured a little too late) and ended up ending the year with a GPA of 2.75. I wasn't happy at the school I was at so I decided to switch to a CC in order to save some money while I figure out what I try to do with my life. I spent about 4 semesters there and ended up with a 3.68 GPA along with an A in both Calc I and II. I then decided I wanted to go into medicine and transferred to the for the Spring 2012 semester at the University of Arizona. Unfortunately, 2 months into my first semester my mother was diagnosed with bladder cancer and I freaked out and withdrew from the university to go back home with her. I figured I could still stay in school nearby and still be with my family so I enrolled into a small SUNY school in May 2012 and am currently at a 3.41 GPA which should be raised up to a 3.5 if not almost close by the end of this spring semester.

Here is my grade breakdown of all the science courses I have taken since I started at my most recent school:

Summer 2012

General Chemistry I Lect/Lab: A-/A-

General Chemistry Lect/
Fall 2012

Physics I Lect/Lab:B+/A-

Organic Chemistry I Lect/Lab: B+/C-

Cell Biology: A-

Spring 2013
Physics II Lect/Lab: C+/B

Organic Chemistry II Lect/Lab: B/C+

Immunology: B

Fall 2013

Genetics Lecture/Lab: A-/A

Animal Physiology Lecture/Lab: A/B

Biochemistry Lecture: A-

Research internship (4 credits...not sure if this counts): A

As you can see I made the mistake of cramming all of my prereqs (excluding biology which I took freshman year: Gen Bio I Lect/Lab: B+/A- and Gen Bio II Lect/Lab C+/C+) into my Fa'12 - Sp'13 year which was frankly not a good idea. I didn't realize how hard physics and organic would be taking at the same time and I simply didn't enjoy the material being taught in organic or physics which just made it that much harder for me to learn. but I think my Fa'13 grades show that I am able to handle a heavy course load while maintaining good grades. For this current semester I'm overloaded again with Behavioral Genetics, Developmental Biology w/ Lab, Vertebrate Zoology w/ lab, HAP2, Senior Thesis, and some art course to satisfy my gen. ed. requirement so I can graduate in time. I'm feeling pretty good about this semester and am pretty sure I can at least pull a 3.8 + with the way things have been going. I feel as if I have found a second wind which has been motivating me to get top notch grades. My GPA at this school when I graduate after this semester should be hovering a 3.5.

I plan on taking the MCATs in late August/early September and if I end up doing really well (which I consider a mid to high 30's) then I'll just apply late this cycle and take my chances. I want to keep myself busy next Fall/Spring by doing something that will raise my GPA just incase I don't make it this cycle; which I'm aware is most likely going to happen. What would you guys say is the best course of action for me? Enrolling into an SMP (particularly NYMC's program 1 year accelerated program) or hanging out at my current school another year after I graduate to take more upper level bio courses to raise my sGPA up. I'm bent on staying in the U.S. and not attending D.O. Thanks guys and sorry if my post was a bit lengthy.

TL;DR: Is going post bacc or the SMP route better to improve your academic performance? How does each route effect your undergrad cGPA/sGPA?

It would help to know your cumulative cGPA and BCPM GPA, including all attempted courses. Hopefully, your withdrawal resulted in Ws rather than WFs. There is a GPA calculator link in the 'Please Read Before Posting' sticky at the top of the What Are My Chances forum.

Once you have those numbers, you might calculate in a theoretical additional full-time year of 4.0 coursework to see the effect of more undergrad postbac work. Let us know what you get.

 

[MrChance2]

I'd take upper level biology, 3.5/3.6 seems to be the GPA cutoff that with an MCAT of 31+ you are pretty much good to go for MD. It will probably save you money as well.

 

[lazyindy]

I'd take upper level biology, 3.5/3.6 seems to be the GPA cutoff that with an MCAT of 31+ you are pretty much good to go for MD. It will probably save you money as well.

Sorry but needed a little clarification, by 3.5/3.6 being the cutoff that I hope you aren't implying that anything below a 3.5 would get autoscreened out at most MD schools?

 

[MrChance2]

.

 

[knv2u]

Sorry but needed a little clarification, by 3.5/3.6 being the cutoff that I hope you aren't implying that anything below a 3.5 would get autoscreened out at most MD schools?

Your GPA shouldn't automatically exclude you from consideration, but anything less than a 3.5 will hurt your candidacy and it is better to have a 3.6 or higher, which is around the average for accepted students into allopathic medical schools. People with lower GPAs get in every year. Based on your grades and current cumulative 3.41 GPA (this is the cumulative GPA, right?), my recommendation would be to do a post-bacc and attempt to raise your GPA. In fairness, if you are able to score well on the MCAT, you might get as is though.

You should aim for around a 3.5/3.6 GPA or higher for both your cumulative and science GPAs.