Special Masters Programs

[Notaparamagician]

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I have what I consider to be a strong application except for my GPA. My cumulative GPA is 2.92 after 6 years, my last 2 years at a second institution from which I graduated with a GPA of 3.86 Biology major, math minor. I have a 517 MCAT, as well as 2000 hrs+ clinical experience as a ER scribe and EMT-B.

I applied this past cycle with no luck, which I ascribe to my GPA. As I understand, a post-bacc would not be useful in my current situation, and that I should instead look at special master's programs. My question is whether any 1 year accelerated masters program would be considered an SMP and if the 1 year graduate certificates also count.

 

[Faha]

Where is your state of residence? Did you apply to DO schools? Are you URM?

 

[Notaparamagician]

Where is your state of residence? Did you apply to DO schools? Are you URM?

I'm currently living in New York. I did not apply to DO schools, as there are few in my area, though I am open to the option. I would most likely attend an SMP this cycle if accepted, while applying to DO schools to avoid a gap year, while also bolstering my resume for another MD/DO application in Summer 2019.

I am a second generation immigrant from Spain, and while Google may consider me Hispanic, I'm not quite sure if medical schools would have the same philosophy.

 

[Faha]

It is your low GPA that is hurting your chances. However, even if you do well in a SMP there is no guarantee of a MD admission if you apply in 2019. I suggest including all these DO schools in your application:
ACOM
ARCOM
BCOM
WCU-COM
LMU-DCOM
UP-KYCOM
WVSOM
UIWSOM
VCOM (all 3 schools)
NYIT-Arkansas
RVU-Utah
ICOM
ATSU-SOMA
PCOM-South Georgia (new school)
Nova Clearwater (new school)
You could do a DIY post bacc to increase your GPA to 3.0. Let us know next year how your plans are progressing. Your MCAT of 517 could attract attention at a few MD schools with a higher GPA.

 

[Notaparamagician]

It was my understanding that post-bacc's are not appropriate for my situation as I graduated with 170+ credits, meaning further success as an undergrad would little budge my GPA, and most classes that I would take in a post-bacc I have already scored well in. What would a DIY post-bacc entail and why would that increase my chances of acceptance over an SMP? Wouldn't a good graduate GPA of 3.5+ look better than raising my undergrad a few points, and shouldn't the potential of the provisional acceptance that some programs offer be enticing to someone in my situation? I fully appreciate the help, I just cannot wrap my head around this.

 

[candbgirl]

Well you didn’t say you had 170 hours of credits. But even so a few semesters of 3.7+ GPA in a post bac might convince some ADCOMS that you can handle med school. Have you read up on SMPs? It’s not just any masters program. SMPs are very expensive and very risky. Unless you can compete against the medical
students and be better than most of them(say a >3.7GPA) your chances at med school are over. SMPs are sort of a second chance or a back door into an acceptance. Even if you do well there isn’t any guarantee. Faha knows what he’s talking about. You might never be competitive for MD so it’s up to you to decide if you want to try for DO. But don’t apply DO if you plan to try MD again in 2019. Waste of time and money for you and the schools.

 

[Notaparamagician]

Well you didn’t say you had 170 hours of credits. But even so a few semesters of 3.7+ GPA in a post bac might convince some ADCOMS that you can handle med school. Have you read up on SMPs? It’s not just any masters program. SMPs are very expensive and very risky. Unless you can compete against the medical
students and be better than most of them(say a >3.7GPA) your chances at med school are over. SMPs are sort of a second chance or a back door into an acceptance. Even if you do well there isn’t any guarantee. Faha knows what he’s talking about. You might never be competitive for MD so it’s up to you to decide if you want to try for DO. But don’t apply DO if you plan to try MD again in 2019. Waste of time and money for you and the schools.

Ok. So a successful post-bacc could increase my chances of MD and DO acceptance. I thought they were generally for those who hadn't yet met their pre-reqs. An SMP very may well lead to my acceptance but only under the risky stipulation that I score 3.7+. So a post-bacc is my best option? What about a regular masters?

 

[candbgirl]

Regular masters aren’t useful for MD but they are considered for DO. ADCOMS expect you to do very well in a Masters programs and many think there is a lot of grade inflation. Some people do use post backs to do prereqs but many don’t. Post Bacs give you the opportunity to string together several
semesters of high grades in high level
science classses. It provides you an opportunity to show ADCOMS that you are up to the rigors of med school.
Your 2.9x GPA doesn’t prove that. But you do have a nice upward grade trend the last couple of years. One of your issues is getting through the auto screen some schools have. And Spend some time looking for threads on schools that reward reinvention.

 

[candbgirl]

The US government might but med schools decide themselves. It’s actually UIM and the nationalities that are considered are groups that are under presented in health care not necessarily in the population. Is there a lack of Spaniards practicing medicine? And even if you are considered UIM you should have well Documented service to that community. So be careful.

 

[Notaparamagician]

OK so just to get the consensus, I should stop wasting my time researching SMP's and instead focus of post-baccs?

 

[Faha]

OK so just to get the consensus, I should stop wasting my time researching SMP's and instead focus of post-baccs?

Yes, you just need to increase your cGPA and sGPA to 3.0 so you will not be screened out at many schools. With a 3.0 you would be fine for many DO schools. For MD schools I would consider these with your MCAT of 517 and a GPA of 3.0 . The GPA-MCAT grid shows that you would have a 35% to 45% chance for a MD acceptance.
All 4 SUNY's
New York Medical College
Albany
Quinnipiac
Oakland Beaumont
George Washington
Rosalind Franklin
Seton Hall
NOVA MD
California University
any new schools that may open by 2019 (Kaiser, Roseman, Henricopolis)

 

[Notaparamagician]

Thanks for words of advice. I'll have to mull over this before speaking with my pre-medical advisor.