So, it turns out my freshman GPA is 3.2. According to my advisor, I am not

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alexfoleyc

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According to my advisor, I am not int he "safe zone". My school considers anything above 3.5 a safe zone, and 3.3-3.5 a "possible zone" and anything below 3.3 is "red flag zone". Schools out for summer, and the sun is shing, but its raining in my world. 🙁 Am I screwed for ever? Even if I get straight A's next 2 semesters (which is literally impossible with my tough schedule nexr yr) I will end up with a 3.44. Oh man, what should I do? Any inspirational stories? And my extracurriculars are not outstanding either. I was only involved in one organization.
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Oh yea, thats my overall gpa and my science gpa is just a little above that.
 
1. You are not screwed forever. Learn from your mistakes and try again.

2. There have been people who did not do as well as you the first few semesters and still got into medical school.

3. If those are your adviser's exact words in quotes, he sounds like a douche.
 
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I wouldn't give up right now based on one year of 3.2, but you do need to get your act together, academically speaking. The harsh reality is that med school is generally for people with 3.5+ GPA's. They are looking for people who can do the rigorous work of med school. You need to get cracking. What your advisor says is not really untrue, but if you interpreted it as advice to give up then maybe you are putting too much stock in it. However, if you don't like studying enough to get your GPA >3.2 then I think you might be miserable in med school. However, overall no, you are not hosed...this was just your freshman year.
 
thanks a lot guys..im going to try really hard next semesters. And it was a typo, my gpa is 3.32 not 3.2..😉
 
alexfoleyc said:
According to my advisor, I am not int he "safe zone". My school considers anything above 3.5 a safe zone, and 3.3-3.5 a "possible zone" and anything below 3.3 is "red flag zone". Schools out for summer, and the sun is shing, but its raining in my world. 🙁 Am I screwed for ever? Even if I get straight A's next 2 semesters (which is literally impossible with my tough schedule nexr yr) I will end up with a 3.44. Oh man, what should I do? Any inspirational stories? And my extracurriculars are not outstanding either. I was only involved in one organization.
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I think your adviser was implying what would happen if you got a 3.2 every semester for the rest of your undergrad career.

Anyway, if you stay in the red zone, you can join me in the Caribbean.

...

...

(Half joking.)
 
JonathanMD said:
I think your adviser was implying what would happen if you got a 3.2 every semester for the rest of your undergrad career.

Anyway, if you stay in the red zone, you can join me in the Caribbean.

...

...

(Half joking.)
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hah..word!
 
My first year GPA in undergrad was a 3.1. My dean said I should think of another healthcare field if I was interested in healthcare. I'm graduating medical school in 2 weeks.

And don't say it's "impossible" to get a 4.0 because of your tough schedule next year. It's only impossible if you believe it's impossible. Also, it's still early enough for you to start volunteering or doing some other ECs if you're worried about that. Take some ownership of your situation!

End of rant.
 
Show upward trend from now, and it should mitigate that low GPA.
 
There's a "safe zone"?
 
Uh oh, I hope the med schools i got into don't find out I'm in the "Red-Flag Zone" :scared::scared::scared:
 
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Work really hard on your extracurriculars (spend a lot of time on volunteering and/or research), bring the GPA up as high as you can, and apply to DO schools as well as MD.
 
sarahg said:
Work really hard on your extracurriculars (spend a lot of time on volunteering and/or research), bring the GPA up as high as you can, and apply to DO schools as well as MD.
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Actually, I would focus on getting that GPA up first before doing ECs.
 
BTW, "safe zone" grossly misrepresents the weight of GPA in medical school admissions. It suggests that you have a good chance of acceptance with X.XX GPA when in fact, 50% of applicants between a 3.5-3.75 were rejected in 2009-2010.

Also, 25% of applicants with a 4.0 were rejected from medical school according to MSAR 09-10.

Take home message: don't underestimate the importance of other characteristics of your medical school application. You cannot safely assume admission based on a 3.5+ GPA alone.
 
I had a 3.1 after freshman year and 3.0 science and I made it just fine. Work hard and show a wicked upward trend and you will be fine. You don't even need straight As. I made it up to 3.5 by the end and did fine. Just take it as a wake up call and do something about it when you head back to school.
 
Don't feel too bad. I got told by two separate advisors that I wasn't getting good enough science grades to get into medical school. Clearly, they were wrong. Just work harder next year, and start with some ECs!
 
Take every piece of advice you receive with a grain of salt. And if its an advisor to medical school than its a few tablespoons.

UPWARD TREND. Your goal should be to beat your previous semesters GPA for the next 6 semesters. If you put in your best effort I can practically guarantee that you, a freshman from God Know's Where University that I don't even know, will achieve this goal.
 
My advisors used to say that 3.4 was the target too, and you want to try to stay above that. But for the most part, I feel like being a pre-med advisor is just making stock statements and paraphrasing from the MSAR. It's a cushy gig.

The above are absolutely right. Three years is still plenty of time, plenty of people with 3.2s get into medical school, and either way, you've just got to do the best you can. Even if you were in the "safe zone" (which is kitty-corner from the Twilight Zone, I believe), you'd still want to try to get the max GPA possible.

Just do your best!
 
I was pretty much in the same boat... I finished off my freshman year with a 3.33 GPA. Every semester onward I've made a 4.0, and my current GPA (as a junior) is 3.68. I'm applying this year and if this semester turns out well I should be applying with around a 3.74. So yes, a turn around is possible... you just have to work hard at it.
 
I had a 2.85 my freshman year and I ended up with MD/PhD acceptances. Medical schools accept people not statistics. Advisors are notorious for trying to deter everyone from applying so that only those determined enough to actually get in apply (making their school look better).
 
Strong upward trends mean ALOT!!
 
wait...peope still listen to advisors? I would rather type "med school help" in google than listen to one.
 
I used to hate advisers too. Until I transferred to a school where I have TWO good, useful, helpful, encouraging advisers! 😱

But yes, good undergrad advisers are rare in my experience.
 
Your not screw, you probably have a bad advisor like mine, who tells me to give up, Im a freshman with a 3.4 gpa I know i could bring it back up in the 3.5. So all you have to do is try and get it up there, if you know you can do it your not screwed, also I advise to have a back up plan like a major in something else you would like. Just in case you know, you have a back up job.
 
Freshman year won't destroy your application. I had a 2.8 after freshman year and I've done just fine through 2 years of med school. But do try and get that GPA over a 3.5 by the time you graduate. Also, if you think your schedule is too hard, then lighten it up. There's plenty of time in 4 years to take the classes you need. Don't fall on your sword trying to be some super student. 16 units with a 4.7 is better than 20 units with a 3.3. And lastly, most advisers don't know squat. Some do, but most don't. Good lock.
 
My 1st semester GPA was 2.5.
My 2nd semester was a 3.
My 3rd semester was a 2.75

When I left for my postbacc, my pre-med adviser at my undergrad told me I had to get straight A's for the rest of my career. I got 3 B-'s and a C in my postbacc, and only one wasn't in a pre-med pre-req.

After all was said and done, my GPA was 3.45 and 3.21 sci.

Notice, I got into med school. It does reduce the chance you will get in, but getting below a 3.5 does not doom you. Also, it's ridiculous to say your EC's are no good...b/c you're only a freshman, so you have 3 years to fix that, and it would be silly not to. If you graduate and still don't have enough clinical experience, just take a year off and work to prove yourself.

Good Luck.
 
alexfoleyc said:
According to my advisor, I am not int he "safe zone". My school considers anything above 3.5 a safe zone, and 3.3-3.5 a "possible zone" and anything below 3.3 is "red flag zone". Schools out for summer, and the sun is shing, but its raining in my world. 🙁 Am I screwed for ever? Even if I get straight A's next 2 semesters (which is literally impossible with my tough schedule nexr yr) I will end up with a 3.44. Oh man, what should I do? Any inspirational stories? And my extracurriculars are not outstanding either. I was only involved in one organization.
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Is it the end of the world? no
Is it going to be easy to get into Med school? no

I applied this past application cycle with a 3.3 from a top-tier school and am currently sitting on waitlists at all 4 places I interviewed (of the 20 I applied to.) I'm definitely a bit bummed out, but I am still holding hope, and I know it's not the end of the world even if I don't make it this time around.

In retrospect, I was a bit too optimistic about my credentials (I had a lot of ec's and great rec's) when I should have been more realistic. Instead of applying directly after college, I should have done a year long master's program to boost my creds. I should have applied to more schools within my reach, but I stubbornly stuck to top-30 schools. What's past is past.

Strictly speaking, I don't believe you should consider yourself out of the running unless you fall below a 3.2, but at present its a total crap-shoot.

My advice to you is if you really want to secure a spot in med school right out of college, bust your ass off these next two years and rock your MCAT. Get a lot of clinical experience. Show that you are capable of improving. Even after this, I urge you to apply BROADLY, 20 schools is not unreasonable (and don't make the mistake that I did of applying very top-heavy.)

Of course this is easier said than done, and if by this point next year you haven't shown SIGNIFICANT improvement, I'd say plan on taking an extra year to boost your creds with an SMP or post-bacc program.

Best of luck.
 
alexfoleyc said:
According to my advisor, I am not int he "safe zone". My school considers anything above 3.5 a safe zone, and 3.3-3.5 a "possible zone" and anything below 3.3 is "red flag zone". Schools out for summer, and the sun is shing, but its raining in my world. 🙁 Am I screwed for ever? Even if I get straight A's next 2 semesters (which is literally impossible with my tough schedule nexr yr) I will end up with a 3.44. Oh man, what should I do? Any inspirational stories? And my extracurriculars are not outstanding either. I was only involved in one organization.
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My first year I finished with under a 3.0. The second year I had about a 3.3, cant exactly remember. I wasn't premed but when I told my advisor I wanted to go to medical school he literally laughed and said there was no way I could do it. I had 3.5+ for the 3rd and 4th years. My gpa was still low and my science gpa really needed help so I did a post-bacc. I was accepted to 3 schools (MD) this past cycle so I would say with confidence you can definitely overcome a 3.2 in your first year. If you buckle down and do well from here out you won't need to do a post-bacc like I did. Although, if research or something else interests you it is a nice time to explore that before starting your medical education.

*Small disclaimer, I did very well on the MCAT otherwise I probably would have had more trouble.
 
I had a 2.0 my freshman year and I raised it to a 3.7...took me 4 more years though and I applied after graduation
 
The wonderful thing about freshman GPAs, is that you've taken so few credits, that it's easy to raise. Once you get too many credits under your belt, it's harder to shift your GPA around. So, get that GPA up while you have the chance! A few A's will definitely go a long way.

Good luck 🙂
 
Mattabet said:
plenty of people with 3.2s get into medical school
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Are you sure about that? Unless, you are referring to DO schools or some MD states schools in the South,or the Caribbean ones... Save for his being a URM, son of med school Dean, Chuck Norris, scoring over 35 on the MCAT, etc. it will be very hard him to get into an MD school with 3.2 or lower.
If I were you, I would study my rear off to get at least 3.5 by the time you graduate. Trust me, with your hard work, it is DEFINITELY doable!
 
alexfoleyc said:
According to my advisor, I am not int he "safe zone". My school considers anything above 3.5 a safe zone, and 3.3-3.5 a "possible zone" and anything below 3.3 is "red flag zone". Schools out for summer, and the sun is shing, but its raining in my world. 🙁 Am I screwed for ever? Even if I get straight A's next 2 semesters (which is literally impossible with my tough schedule nexr yr) I will end up with a 3.44. Oh man, what should I do? Any inspirational stories? And my extracurriculars are not outstanding either. I was only involved in one organization.
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Where are you getting this from? I can only estimate, because I don't know how many credits you have, but

(30 x 3.32 + 30 x 4.00)/60 = 3.66
 
Your adviser is right. A GPA > 3.5 is basically the no explanations required range. While a 3.8 is still going to be significantly better, your GPA won't cause any questions. The 3.3 - 3.5 range will raise a few eyebrows, but won't be a huge question mark on the application. When you hit the 3.0 - 3.3 range, people are going to start being concerned with why your GPA is that low.

In short, once you start dropping below a 3.5, your extracurriculars start migrating from bonus points to justifications and your MCAT starts migrating from a confirmation of your knowledge/ability to a second opinion of sorts.

More importantly, it's your first year. Get the f*** over it. You have two more years to improve it...
 
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