Timeline to Matriculation

[EarlyPoetry]

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Hi everyone!
I had a couple of questions about the viability of applying to med school. Some notes about me:

• 28 years old
• Graduated from undergrad in 2011
• Biology Major/Chem Minor with a overall GPA of 3.84 from a top 10 school
• Have worked in health insurance for the past 5+ years
• No relevant volunteer or shadow experience

Here are some of the questions I have and I was hoping y'all could weigh in!

1. Do I need to retake any of my pre-req classes since I graduated undergrad in 2011?
2. How is science GPA calculated? Which classes does it include (only the pre-reqs or all science related classes)
3. How long should a non-traditional applicant plan to study for the MCAT (haven't been in school since 2011)?
4. What kind of volunteer experience or total hours are med schools looking for and what is the best way to go about accumulating these with a full time job?
5. What is a realistic timeline from where I am now to matriculation? I plan on working full time throughout this transition.

Thank you so much!

 

[nobaddays]

Hey there.. I'm also 28, finishing up a DIY post bac, and preparing for the MCAT in the spring. I have worked full time through the whole thing and it's not so bad. Extra work, but very doable. I'll give this a shot and see f I can help:
1. I think the cutoff for your prereqs is usually 10 years, but that can vary from school to school.
2. I believe the science GPA is the GPA of all your Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Math (BCPM) classes. There are a few AMCAS GPA calculator spreadsheets around the internet that you should be able to help you figure this out.
3. Not really sure.. depends on how comfortable you are with the material, and varies greatly from person to person. (I haven't taken it yet, so I'm probably not a great resource). I plan on taking a one-semester MCAT prep class at a local university. Many people choose to self-study. It's kind of up to you.
4. It's my impression that volunteering in a clinical setting is great for building patient interaction experience, but volunteering in non-clinical settings is a great way to show the commitment to service associated with being a good physician. I've heard about 100-150 hours is enough, but more will never hurt. You will also need shadowing experience. You'll need a lot less of this. The idea is to shadow a few docs for a few shifts to understand what they actually do on a daily basis. Don't follow a doctor to work for a month. Go see a few different doctors in different specialties, for a total of maybe 20-50 hours of shadowing. I think if you're applying DO you must shadow a DO. As far as building hours while working, its doable. You'll have to sacrifice some weekends and evenings, but there are opportunities everywhere. Hospice and assisted living are there 24/7. Many hospitals have volunteer opportunities into the evening hours. Many clinics are open 7 days.
5. Time frame depends on you.. if you can study for and take the MCAT by next spring/early summer whilie accumulating shadow/volunteer hours you could apply in 2019 for 2020. If not, your prereqs may pass the 10-year mark and you may be retaking a handful, which can set you back a good deal. I work full time, and find 1 class per semester to be about my limit. I took bio 1 and 2 simultaneously, and that was fine. With your bio/chem background, you'll be better equipped than I was, and may be able to take 2 or 3 at a time.

Hope that was at least somewhat helpful!

 

[futuremdforme]

1. Do I need to retake any of my pre-req classes since I graduated undergrad in 2011?
Nope. Maybe some schools will need it but I doubt it. Mine were super old and I was accepted to multiple programs.

1. How is science GPA calculated? Which classes does it include (only the pre-reqs or all science related classes)

All science-related classes

1. How long should a non-traditional applicant plan to study for the MCAT (haven't been in school since 2011)?

It took me 5 months, with holding down a full-time job, had been out of school longer than you. I took a practice test when I was 25% done my test prep to see how I was doing, and that was encouraging.

1. What kind of volunteer experience or total hours are med schools looking for and what is the best way to go about accumulating these with a full time job?

Look for weekend experiences. Home volunteering (e.g. hospice, seniors) can be good. It's okay if you have fewer patients, but more contact with them. Slow and steady wins the volunteer race. You can also look at more typical things like volunteering with inpatients, just be clear about your availability.

1. What is a realistic timeline from where I am now to matriculation? I plan on working full time throughout this transition.

Do you have ANY volunteer experience at all? If you have anything that shows altruism, and you do well on the MCAT, and find clinical volunteering and shadowing soon... you could apply this upcoming cycle. It would be a more comfortable application to apply the subsequent year though (you could accumulate substantial volunteer hours, which would get you a killer LOR, good amount of shadowing, and be 100% sure in your choice.) Especially if you do option #2, I would apply pretty broadly so you are more sure to get accepted. You might want to save up some vacation days too so you can use those for interviews.

 

[libertyyne]

6 months is a good schedule for mcat prep if you are working full time.
Get some volunteering in.
Some schools have an expiration date for prereqs. Many do not. I would recommend only applying to those without an expiration Date. Buy an MSAR to confirm which schools do or google the admissions pages for each school.

I was in a similar position as you and had plenty of acceptances.

 

[texasblondie]

1. Do I need to retake any of my pre-req classes since I graduated undergrad in 2011?
Nope. Maybe some schools will need it but I doubt it. Mine were super old and I was accepted to multiple programs.

1. How is science GPA calculated? Which classes does it include (only the pre-reqs or all science related classes)

All science-related classes

1. How long should a non-traditional applicant plan to study for the MCAT (haven't been in school since 2011)?

It took me 5 months, with holding down a full-time job, had been out of school longer than you. I took a practice test when I was 25% done my test prep to see how I was doing, and that was encouraging.

1. What kind of volunteer experience or total hours are med schools looking for and what is the best way to go about accumulating these with a full time job?

Look for weekend experiences. Home volunteering (e.g. hospice, seniors) can be good. It's okay if you have fewer patients, but more contact with them. Slow and steady wins the volunteer race. You can also look at more typical things like volunteering with inpatients, just be clear about your availability.

1. What is a realistic timeline from where I am now to matriculation? I plan on working full time throughout this transition.

Do you have ANY volunteer experience at all? If you have anything that shows altruism, and you do well on the MCAT, and find clinical volunteering and shadowing soon... you could apply this upcoming cycle. It would be a more comfortable application to apply the subsequent year though (you could accumulate substantial volunteer hours, which would get you a killer LOR, good amount of shadowing, and be 100% sure in your choice.) Especially if you do option #2, I would apply pretty broadly so you are more sure to get accepted. You might want to save up some vacation days too so you can use those for interviews.

Hi there, in a similar situation to earlypoetry, in that I am applying at 31 and work full-time currently. All my pre-reqs were done in undergrad (already checked they are accepted at the schools I'm looking at... 4.0 GPA), have my PhD. I am wondering how important shadowing/clinical experience will be if it is lacking on my application — I did some amount of this back in undergrad when I was pre-med, but obviously not in the recent years. Should I seek out something ASAP to do in the next few months until I apply in July? It will be quite difficult to fit that in given studying for the MCAT and a full-time job but I don't want that to be the reason I do not get in (obviously given I get a good MCAT score).

Thanks for your thoughts!

 

[libertyyne]

Hi there, in a similar situation to earlypoetry, in that I am applying at 31 and work full-time currently. All my pre-reqs were done in undergrad (already checked they are accepted at the schools I'm looking at... 4.0 GPA), have my PhD. I am wondering how important shadowing/clinical experience will be if it is lacking on my application — I did some amount of this back in undergrad when I was pre-med, but obviously not in the recent years. Should I seek out something ASAP to do in the next few months until I apply in July? It will be quite difficult to fit that in given studying for the MCAT and a full-time job but I don't want that to be the reason I do not get in (obviously given I get a good MCAT score).

Thanks for your thoughts!

You need some sort of activity to show you know what you are getting into. Some sort of clinical contact, volunteering, or work. Some schools also have time limits for UG work so pre-reqs may expire, but this is school specific.

 

[futuremdforme]

Hi there, in a similar situation to earlypoetry, in that I am applying at 31 and work full-time currently. All my pre-reqs were done in undergrad (already checked they are accepted at the schools I'm looking at... 4.0 GPA), have my PhD. I am wondering how important shadowing/clinical experience will be if it is lacking on my application — I did some amount of this back in undergrad when I was pre-med, but obviously not in the recent years. Should I seek out something ASAP to do in the next few months until I apply in July? It will be quite difficult to fit that in given studying for the MCAT and a full-time job but I don't want that to be the reason I do not get in (obviously given I get a good MCAT score).

Thanks for your thoughts!

Clinical experience/volunteering will probably be a key part of your application. It was a major part of my letters and interviews despite having a lot of volunteer experience in non-clinical settings earlier. You need to show that your interests changed, you took this seriously, you didn't just write a test and apply. You can do hospice volunteering on the weekend (at patients' homes).

I did literally one day of shadowing and just casually referenced in essays/secondaries ("In shadowing the hospice physician..." but did not make it its own section so don't do lots of shadowing. Just try to do 1-2 sessions.

I'd get started so you can talk about doing it currently, and continue to do it throughout the interview season.

Do a practice MCAT early, if you had a 4.0 you might be in good shape earlier than you'd think.