Thinking of Medical School - Need Advice!

[2ndthoughts]

Hi guys,

I'm posting to get some advice about whether it will be realistic for me to get into a DO school. Here's my situtation.

I graduated in May 2011 with a 3.27 GPA in Chemistry from an Ivy League. I was never a pre-med student--I intended to go to graduate school and then eventually into a career in research, but by the time senior year rolled around I wasn't ready to apply for graduate school so I got a job instead. The job was at an electronic medical records company, and after 13 months on the job, I am leaving the job to pursue something new.

I am now reconsidering what I want to do with my career and life, and medical school has been on my mind. I've always enjoyed science, and coupled with being able to help others, this seems like a logical choice. Of course I will have to put more thought into it, but assuming I do decide to enter the medical profession, I would like to get some advice on what my next steps would be. I plan to take at least a year (maybe two) off to take the MCAT, do volunteer work, and take classes.

Because I wasn't pre-med in college, I haven't taken the MCAT and don't have any clinical or volunteering experience. I also need to take some pre-med classes (2 semesters of biology lab, 1 semester of physics, maybe 1 more semester of English) to fulfill the basic requirements.

I guess what my questions are:

1. Are my "base" stats decent enough to give me a shot at a DO school? (3.27 GPA)

2. What score on the MCAT will I need to be competitive?

3. Do I need "upper-level" biology classes to be competitive, e.g. physiology and anatomy, genetics, etc. (I have taken a year-long biochemistry course as part of my chemistry degree, and a random biotechnology class)

4. What would be the best course of action for premed pre-requisites? An official post-bacc program? Just take the courses I need at a local university?

5. If I volunteer/shadow for the next year or so before applying, will this be enough for DO schools?

6. Any other advice?

Thanks for your help!

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[DrMeows]

Hi guys,

I'm posting to get some advice about whether it will be realistic for me to get into a DO school. Here's my situtation.

I graduated in May 2011 with a 3.27 GPA in Chemistry from an Ivy League. I was never a pre-med student--I intended to go to graduate school and then eventually into a career in research, but by the time senior year rolled around I wasn't ready to apply for graduate school so I got a job instead. The job was at an electronic medical records company, and after 13 months on the job, I am leaving the job to pursue something new.

I am now reconsidering what I want to do with my career and life, and medical school has been on my mind. I've always enjoyed science, and coupled with being able to help others, this seems like a logical choice. Of course I will have to put more thought into it, but assuming I do decide to enter the medical profession, I would like to get some advice on what my next steps would be. I plan to take at least a year (maybe two) off to take the MCAT, do volunteer work, and take classes.

Because I wasn't pre-med in college, I haven't taken the MCAT and don't have any clinical or volunteering experience. I also need to take some pre-med classes (2 semesters of biology lab, 1 semester of physics, maybe 1 more semester of English) to fulfill the basic requirements.

I guess what my questions are:

1. Are my "base" stats decent enough to give me a shot at a DO school? (3.27 GPA)

2. What score on the MCAT will I need to be competitive?

3. Do I need "upper-level" biology classes to be competitive, e.g. physiology and anatomy, genetics, etc. (I have taken a year-long biochemistry course as part of my chemistry degree, and a random biotechnology class)

4. What would be the best course of action for premed pre-requisites? An official post-bacc program? Just take the courses I need at a local university?

5. If I volunteer/shadow for the next year or so before applying, will this be enough for DO schools?

6. Any other advice?

Thanks for your help!

1. Your GPA isn't bad. However, when you take the pre-med classes, as long as you do well obviously, you can significantly increase that.


2. The average MCAT score of matriclants to DO school I believe is a 26.5 - so shoot for somewhere around that, obviously better if you can


3. You don't NEED upper level courses, but those will enhance your application because they are the type of classes you'll take in med school.


4. It might be better to take an official postbac if you haven't taken anything yet. I took an SMP and I feel extremely prepared for med school whenever I get to start


5. That should be enough. Make sure you shadow DO physicians because a lot of DO schools either require or strongly encourage a letter of rec from one.


Another piece of advice I'd give is to figure out what schools your interested in and contact their admissions offices. Ask them what is competitive for their school and what they look for and go from there. Some schools put greater emphasis on high GPAs (e.g. DMUCOM) while others really like volunteer experience (e.g. MSUCOM).


I hope I helped a little! Good luck with everything

 

[ParacrineAgent]

I guess what my questions are:

1. Are my "base" stats decent enough to give me a shot at a DO school? (3.27 GPA)

2. What score on the MCAT will I need to be competitive?

3. Do I need "upper-level" biology classes to be competitive, e.g. physiology and anatomy, genetics, etc. (I have taken a year-long biochemistry course as part of my chemistry degree, and a random biotechnology class)

4. What would be the best course of action for premed pre-requisites? An official post-bacc program? Just take the courses I need at a local university?

5. If I volunteer/shadow for the next year or so before applying, will this be enough for DO schools?

6. Any other advice?

Thanks for your help!

I will take a stab at some of these.

1 and 2 sort of roll together. Your GPA is not beyond hope, but you need to get a pretty good MCAT with that gpa. My GPA was a 3.33 and I got a 28 on the MCAT. That being said, you really want to hit as close to 30 or more as you can. If you get a 24 or so with that GPA, you are in really rough shape.

3. I don't know that you NEED physiology and anatomy to be competitive (some schools do require them though). I will say, though, that having them will help you significantly in your first year of medical school. I am about 3-4 years removed from my undergrad anatomy and some of the little chunks of info pop into my head and save me time trying to memorize things. Same for biochem, etc.

4. I can't personally say for sure. We have a fair number of post-baccs in our class and I think that it's a good way to dedicate yourself to a specific school if they have the program. But again, I am not completely sure.

5. There is no hard and fast rule for what is enough shadowing and volunteering. Mostly they are looking at your commitment to helping your community and such. It would have been better to do consistent volunteering for the past several years, rather than cram it in at the last minute, but doing it now is better than not doing it.

6. If you decide that a career in medicine is right for you, be absolutely certain about that. I love medical school, I wouldn't want to be anywhere else, and I am also working harder than I ever have in my life. Day 1 is zero to sixty and it will be like that until I retire (if I don't keep working until I die). In other words, it's not a decision to be made lightly, but I am glad that I made it.

 

[premedmind]

Get a 28+ MCAT, ace all of your pre-reqs, and obtain a good DO LOR and you'll be set. Anything less than a 28 MCAT and I would not apply.

 

[MedPR]

Hi guys,

6. Any other advice?

Thanks for your help!

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/search.php?do=process

 

[2ndthoughts]

Thanks for all of the replies.

Excuse me for being a unaware on many elementary aspects of applying to medical school, but if I take additional science classes at a community college/extension university, how are those grades factored into my GPA? Are my post-graduate classes weighted the same as my college courses? Do schools officially recalculate my GPA and give me a new cGPA and sGPA, or is it that they just see the grades and it's more of a de facto boost to your GPA (assuming I do well)? Do they consider the GPA on your college transcript as more legitimate than the newer GPA?

 

[torshi]

Get a 28+ MCAT, ace all of your pre-reqs, and obtain a good DO LOR and you'll be set. Anything less than a 28 MCAT and I would not apply.

Yea ok...

 

[MedPR]

Yea ok...

If the OP's GPA stays at around a 3.27 applying with less than a 28 really wouldn't be smart.

 

[dntke1518]

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/search.php?do=process

Your link goes to nothing...

 

[MedPR]

Your link goes to nothing...

It goes to the search page in case he can't find the link

 

[Temperature101]

I think OP can squeeze in an acceptance with 26 MCAT if OP maintains that GPA and the other aspects of his/her application are solid, but 28+ MCAT will seal the deal.