Submitting AMCAS June 1 but retaking prereq-should i wait for grades on June 30?

[Queenshawtii]

Here are my stats.

cGPA 3.4 sGPA 3.0 (maybe a 3.1 now) Grad (MPH) GPA 3.8 My august 2006 MCAT was 26K

I will be retaking the MCAT April/Early May
Ideally I plan on applying to 15+ MD schools and about 10 DO schools. I really love OU-COM.

3 year undergraduate research experience in a Pharmacology Lab
6 years experience as a CNA 3 years in a nursing home, 3 years in a hospital
I'm currently working on a MPH-Epidemiology (part time) and working as an aide full time..
Currently shadowing a DO doc, briefly shadowed a NP in the ER to get the flow/idea of it..



I was looking over my transcripts and i realized that I never retook my bio lab 1 from freshman year, I got a D but since it was one one credit hour I didn't plan on retaking it.

What I didn't realize is that it is also a prereq and a C or better is needed. I've gotten interviews in the past, but I'm wondering if this is a reason why I was always waitlisted. I am really trying to have my application complete early, so that i have July for secondaries. Neverless, I want to retake this class but I'm worried about it being "late" Summer session grades are due June 30. So, I will have to submit my transcript after that. I was planning on having everything complete buy June 14 by the latest.

But then I worry about getting prescreened out of secondaries because of the D i got in lab. I received secondaries from everywhere i applied before, so I'm not sure if this is even an issue.

So, would be the best thing to do in this situation?
Can I send AMCAS an updated transcript (after i already sent one in May/June) especially if it isn't verified yet (at that time), or should I send the updated transcript to each school individually so that they can see that I've retaken the class?

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[Catalystik]

Most schools don't screen much and send Secondaries to just about everyone, since the fees enhance their coffers. If you got interviews before, at least for those schools the D didn't matter much. You might be fine just listing the lab as a future course so they know you plan to retake it. It isn't required that all prerequisites are complete before you submit. You just need to finish them before you matriculate.

Is it possible you could retake the class at a local community college and get it done before submit time? Once you have submitted with AMCAS, you can't add or update anything except your contact information and future plans for taking the MCAT.

Yes, you could send the individual transcript to each school later, but if you were already screened out, this won't help you.

It seems to me, from what little you've told us, that your problem is your interview skills. Maybe you need to practice a lot, with bosses, PIs, premed friends who've already interviewed, or the carreer center at your school.

If you want to give more details about your application, we'd be happy to critique for other weaknesses.

 

[bannie22]

Dont wait.

 

[Queenshawtii]

@Catalystik

Yea I think it does come down to my interview skills but I also have a low sGPA and cGPA. I will update the 1st post with my stats and experiences...

 

[Catalystik]

The ECs you've mentioned look great, though you don't mention formal shadowing. Do you have a DO LOR? I know OUCOM doesn't require any physician letter, but many DO schools do.

For DO schools especially, I understand you pretty much need a C+ or better in all prerequisites, so I'm glad you noticed you need to redeem that D.

 

[Queenshawtii]

I'm really glad i noticed, too. I just wish I looked at my transcript before this semester started so I could get it done and over with. I forgot to mention that I've been shadowing a DO (family practice) since summer 2009 and also I've shadowed a NP at work in the ER for about 30 hours.
I hope to get a LOR from the doc I'm shadowing, I'll ask in a few weeks after my PS is complete.

The MD schools I'm looking at are
I'm an OH resident

Univ. of Toledo
Wright State
Univ. of Cincinnati
Ohio State (I don't think I will apply here, I don't think i would like living in columbus)
Morehouse
Meharry
Howard
Rosalind Franklin
Loyola
Rush
Albany
New York Medical College
George Washington

Maybes:
South IL Univ
Univ of IL @ Chicago College of Medicine

Are there any more MD school that I should look at?

 

[Queenshawtii]

Also It seems that the aacomas application process can take up to 8 weeks! I really don't want to be waiting that long if I help it..

 

[Catalystik]

If you apply as soon as AACOMAS opens up to applications, it won't take that long.

SIU only takes Illinois residents; don't bother. Rush takes only about 13% OOS; I won't say to take it off the list though. UIC is a good choice. Consider researching MSU, Tulane, EVMS, UVermont, USCarolina, Drexel, MCW, Virginia Commonwealth, Temple, Penn State, and Jefferson, UBuffalo, and Creighton.

 

[Queenshawtii]

Thanks, I will look into those schools that you mentioned. I have the 2009-10 and 2010-11 MSAR in front of me right now.

What does EVMS and MCW stand for?

 

[Catalystik]

Eastern Virginia and Medical College of Wisconsin.