Very Confused. Need Advice plz!

[SyrianHero]

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I am a senior and I will be graduating this upcoming Spring with a degree in Computer Science and Engineering, and I have accepted a well paying full time job where I will be working after graduation. I have recently decided to pursue medicine, and here's the problem. I have a 3.14 cumulative GPA and a 2.8 sGPA (due to all the math classes that I had to take for the Engineering degree, and I also had to take a few Gen Chem classes and Physics classes that I also needed and I didn't do great in them since I wasn't really passionate about my major, hence my low GPA). So, my question is, is there still a possible way for me to get into medical school (MD) while working full time and with my terrible GPA? There aren't any postbac programs around where I live, Columbus, Ohio, so I'm not sure what to do. I'm not sure if this is noteworthy but I have gotten a 3.9 GPA this semester which was definitely a confidence booster since I decided to pursue medicine last semester 🙂. Any advice would be much appreciated.

Edit: It's surprising to me how opinions vary widely, for example, some people say I have no chance and that I might as well quit, and others say that my situation isn't that bad if I continue to work at it and that I'm in decent shape. It makes me even more confused :? Any thoughts?

 

[Chip N Sawbones]

Start retaking all the science classes you got bad grades in. Keep doing that until you've retaken everything you got a C or lower in, and then start taking new upper-division science classes. Apply for MD when you've got about a 3.4 or an average GPA for your state school, whichever is lower. You don't need to do a formal postbac program, just take the classes at any 4-year college. I should warn you that if you're absolutely set on MD, this is going to take a long, long time and a lot of money. I'll let you do the math to get the numbers exactly right, but my guess is that you'll need something like 50 credits at a 4.0 before your GPA is even marginally good enough for MD. Are you certain your goals in medicine can't be met by a DO school? The ability to do grade replacement and lower average stats would probably save you a year of full time postbac work.

 

[surgeryDO]

It's not out of reach if you go DO, MD would be a far stretch I think. Retake the sciences where you didn't do well, ace the ones you still need, if there are any. You can prove you're serious by blowing the MCAT out of the water too. Don't forget it would be beneficial to find some clinical exposure, volunteering, and shadowing.
You could also try for a master's program. Depending on how you preform it could prove that you can handle med school since those are all upper level courses also.

Sent from my LG-E739 using SDN Mobile

 

[SyrianHero]

Thank you so much for the responses. Anyone else like to chime in?

 

[ktgk]

You should retake the classes you didn't do well in and study for the MCAT. After you've done that and taken the MCAT, you'll have a better idea of what your options are.

Out of curiosity (my husband and children are Syrian), what makes you a hero?

 

[SyrianHero]

Lol it's just a name. So, is it possible to go to an MD school if I do all that?

 

[ktgk]

Possible is a squishy word. You should do what you can to get yourself on the best possible standing. You can check out the stats about your chances based on MCAT and gpa. After that it's up to you to decide whether your "best possible standing" is good enough to apply to an MD school school.

 

[Chip N Sawbones]

Lol it's just a name. So, is it possible to go to an MD school if I do all that?

It's possible, but it's going to take a long time and a lot of work. If you want to work full time like you said, you'll probably be taking undergrad classes for over two years, including summers, before you can even think about applying to MD. Even then you'll be a very marginal applicant. You will be severely restricted in what schools are worth applying to, as most MD schools don't want to bother with anyone holding a 3.4 GPA and an even lower sGPA unless there's something exceptionally good on your application. There's a good chance you won't get any acceptances your first application cycle, which will mean another year of classes and a few thousand more in application fees before you get another chance to apply. In your case I really recommend going the DO route. It would get you into medical school at least a year sooner, which means meeting your end goal of becoming a doctor a year sooner.

 

[kami333]

I've been somewhat disappointed by postbacc opportunities in Columbus, other than at Columbus State I didn't find many (any?) classes that fit into my schedule and academic needs. Lots of vocational courses for nursing and similar but not many basic science or non-intro humanities are offered in the evenings/weekends or online. Surprising considering how big OSU is. I finished most of my informal postbacc classes before moving here but did take a few math and non-science classes at CSCC, felt I might as well take advantage of tuition reimbursement from work.

I found that while working full time the biggest hurdle was how flexible and demanding my work was; even with morning/evening classes it's hard to take more than 1 or 2 at a time if you are in a job where your schedule is dictated by the client or other needs. When I started my postbacc I changed fields to work in a research lab at a university and while it was a paycut it also gave me more control over my schedule, I could take classes at lunch, had access to mentoring, etc. A lot of people just quit their jobs and focus full time on their studies, it was an option that I decided not to take since I enjoyed working in the lab and felt that I was a stronger applicant with the research experience.

If I was in your shoes (I assume you just graduated or going to graduate in May), I would take a semester or two off. Take a break, get used to being a working adult with a career. Start shadowing or volunteering if you don't have any to make sure you know what you are getting yourself into. I think it's important to make an assessment of how serious you are about getting into medical school and how much you are able/willing to sacrifice. Is this my life goal that I will devote everything to, applying multiple times and even doing an SMP, or is it something that I'm going to devote my free time to and apply once?

You should calculate out how many credits you need to take to get you above a cutoff (above 3.0 for sGPA is a good starting point) and see what classes to take to get there, and also figure out if there are any retakes you can take advantage of (I retook all prereqs below a B- but it had also been a few years). Making a rough timeline helped keep me motivated, it will probably change based on your progress but it felt good to know that I was making some progress.

I'd definitely encourage you to look at the osteopathic schools, Ohio University was fantastic in answering questions and providing mentoring even though I wasn't a student there. Grade replacement and not counting math classes in your sGPA should help you a lot in raising your sGPA for AACOMAS. DO will be easier but I think you still have a chance at MD schools but it will be a uphill battle. Research schools closely, many do take into account trends so your 3.9 semester in upper level comp sci + a couple more postbacc semesters might overcome fears of your academic ability if you get past the screens. I did toy with the idea of applying MD only, then doing an SMP when unsuccessful (MEDPATH at OSU, Drexel SMP, Cinci, etc) but didn't due to personal circumstances and applied both MD and DO this year.

 

[Esquire]

.

 

[Chip N Sawbones]

Ohio schools still have high GPAs. It looks like the average was about a 3.68 last year, and that's a long, long way from the OP's 3.14. Average MCAT is a little over 30. You would need to beat that by a lot to have a chance at an acceptance, and there's just no way to guarantee a score that good, no matter how much studying you put in. Either put in years of postbac work to bring that GPA up, or put in one year and go DO.

 

[SyrianHero]

I’ve been somewhat disappointed by postbacc opportunities in Columbus, other than at Columbus State I didn’t find many (any?) classes that fit into my schedule and academic needs. Lots of vocational courses for nursing and similar but not many basic science or non-intro humanities are offered in the evenings/weekends or online. Surprising considering how big OSU is. I finished most of my informal postbacc classes before moving here but did take a few math and non-science classes at CSCC, felt I might as well take advantage of tuition reimbursement from work.

I found that while working full time the biggest hurdle was how flexible and demanding my work was; even with morning/evening classes it’s hard to take more than 1 or 2 at a time if you are in a job where your schedule is dictated by the client or other needs. When I started my postbacc I changed fields to work in a research lab at a university and while it was a paycut it also gave me more control over my schedule, I could take classes at lunch, had access to mentoring, etc. A lot of people just quit their jobs and focus full time on their studies, it was an option that I decided not to take since I enjoyed working in the lab and felt that I was a stronger applicant with the research experience.

If I was in your shoes (I assume you just graduated or going to graduate in May), I would take a semester or two off. Take a break, get used to being a working adult with a career. Start shadowing or volunteering if you don’t have any to make sure you know what you are getting yourself into. I think it’s important to make an assessment of how serious you are about getting into medical school and how much you are able/willing to sacrifice. Is this my life goal that I will devote everything to, applying multiple times and even doing an SMP, or is it something that I’m going to devote my free time to and apply once?

You should calculate out how many credits you need to take to get you above a cutoff (above 3.0 for sGPA is a good starting point) and see what classes to take to get there, and also figure out if there are any retakes you can take advantage of (I retook all prereqs below a B- but it had also been a few years). Making a rough timeline helped keep me motivated, it will probably change based on your progress but it felt good to know that I was making some progress.

I’d definitely encourage you to look at the osteopathic schools, Ohio University was fantastic in answering questions and providing mentoring even though I wasn’t a student there. Grade replacement and not counting math classes in your sGPA should help you a lot in raising your sGPA for AACOMAS. DO will be easier but I think you still have a chance at MD schools but it will be a uphill battle. Research schools closely, many do take into account trends so your 3.9 semester in upper level comp sci + a couple more postbacc semesters might overcome fears of your academic ability if you get past the screens. I did toy with the idea of applying MD only, then doing an SMP when unsuccessful (MEDPATH at OSU, Drexel SMP, Cinci, etc) but didn’t due to personal circumstances and applied both MD and DO this year.

Thank you everyone for your thoughtful responses. I was thinking about taking my pre reqs at Columbus State Community College since it's the only university with classes that fit with my full time work schedule, and I plan on doing very well on the MCAT (34+). I know how easy it is for me to say that I will score that high, but it's the only way, and I will keep studying until I start scoring around 34 on the practice MCAT exams. You only have one life and you've got to follow your dreams no matter how far they seem to be. That's my philosophy at least. Please keep your responses and comments coming.

 

[popopopop]

I get very motivated when I look at this thread.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=843730