- Joined
- Jan 30, 2021
- Messages
- 14
- Reaction score
- 14
I will start by thanking anyone who takes the time to read about my situation and/or gives honest and logical advice for how I can maximize my chances of getting back into medical school. I think I have done at least a decent job so far at setting myself up for a second chance. Let me know what y'all think.
Here is my original post from 2021, written during a very dark and stressful time of my life. Forgive my self-pity that is evident in the original post as I now have come to realize that everything happens for a reason, and I am better off today than I was then because of my experiences. Below, I will explain how. 🙂
Link to Original Post/Thread for context: Never give up. Never Surrender. (please read this first for context for the below explanation)
(the last comment in my original post's thread is just the explanation I will provide here as well for everyone who has not had the pleasure of stumbling upon my old thread describing my less than ideal situation.)
An Update on my Situation and Progress Towards Reapplying to Medical School:
Just in case anyone will see this long-delayed update to my situation... I ended up voluntarily withdrawing after my Dean declined my request for a medical LOA. After that, I worked for a year at two jobs to scrape by and pay my rent. I worked as a medical scribe for an Oncologist from 7am to 3pm, then would drive to an Urgent Care where I worked as a Medical Assistant from 4pm to 10pm. I did this for about a year. Though this was a grind, both jobs were very educational and I enjoyed the work and getting to interact with MD's, PA's, and patients every day!
During this time, I also studied for and took the GRE, and PA-CAT, both of which I passed with very competitive scores due largely to my MCAT and med school exam experience. I applied to around 7-10 PA schools around the country, and got accepted by 4 of them. I ended up going to my top choice PA school.
I started PA school in January of 2022. I took the lessons I had learned during my time in Medical School (including the less than ideal way that ended) and used them to sculpt a study strategy that would make failure impossible for me. It helped that I already knew how NOT to study. Those two years of PA school were definitely an insane challenge, and there was a lot of struggle and suffering involved, but I loved it. Those two years flew by faster than I could've imagined. I performed well overall, earning a total GPA of 3.63 at graduation. Despite the difficulty, I can honestly say the two years of PA school were two of the best years of my life so far. I married an amazing girl from my PA cohort shortly after graduation as well (we dated all through PA school).
I have now been working as a Neurosurgery PA for a year and 3 months. I spend three days a week in the OR, and two days a week in the clinic seeing patients. I have been 1st assistant for a few hundred neurosurgeries, and have accumulated over 2,700 clinical hours in neurosurgery as a practicing, licensed, PA-C. The neurosurgeon I work with is one of the most prominent in our area, probably even our state. While working as a PA, I have also spent a few months working a side-gig as a content editor for a popular medical reference site/app (will leave out the name for anonymity). I was a content editor specifically for vignette questions for the launch of their new PANCE prep Qbank designed specifically for PA students studying for the PANCE (The PA certification exam). Prior to the launch of this product, they were strictly in the medical school realm.
All that being said, I have come a long way since my original post. I have also not given up on my ultimate goal. I am now studying for the MCAT during my free time after work and on weekends. I plan to retake the MCAT relatively soon and hope to score highly on it. Though my chances are still less than ideal, I remain hopeful that with a high MCAT score, a 3.63 GPA during PA school, a Master's Degree in Medical Sciences, and over 2,700 clinical hours as a practicing provider, I will have successfully demonstrated my passion and dedication for medicine, as well as my ability to adapt and overcome difficult obstacles. I hope I will have adequately shown that I can maintain good standing in a very difficult and strenuous curriculum as well. If I have successfully accomplished those goals over the last few years, it is my hope that a medical school out there will see the work I have put in, and the improvements I have made, and take a chance on giving me a spot in their incoming cohort. IF all of that happens, I will finally be able to restart medical school and accomplish my ultimate goal of becoming a Physician. So... onwards we go, the final outcome still to be determined. But I am ready for what is next and now have a supportive wife by my side. With her help, and God's continued help, I feel I can accomplish anything I put my mind to. There is always hope. NEVER GIVE UP. NEVER SURRENDER.
Quotes for hard times:
"But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded. - 2 Chronicles 15:7
All we have to decide, is what to do with the time that is given to us. - Gandalf
Have patience, go where you must go, and hope! -Gandalf
Some believe that it is only great power that can hold evil in check. But that is not what I've found. I found it is the SMALL THINGS. Every day deeds by ordinary folk that keeps the darkness at bay. - Gandalf
"Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light." - Albus Dumbledore
Lastly, if anyone thinks of anything else I could do to boost my chances of getting back into medical school after a voluntary withdrawal, please let me know.
...
Here is my original post from 2021, written during a very dark and stressful time of my life. Forgive my self-pity that is evident in the original post as I now have come to realize that everything happens for a reason, and I am better off today than I was then because of my experiences. Below, I will explain how. 🙂
Link to Original Post/Thread for context: Never give up. Never Surrender. (please read this first for context for the below explanation)
(the last comment in my original post's thread is just the explanation I will provide here as well for everyone who has not had the pleasure of stumbling upon my old thread describing my less than ideal situation.)
An Update on my Situation and Progress Towards Reapplying to Medical School:
Just in case anyone will see this long-delayed update to my situation... I ended up voluntarily withdrawing after my Dean declined my request for a medical LOA. After that, I worked for a year at two jobs to scrape by and pay my rent. I worked as a medical scribe for an Oncologist from 7am to 3pm, then would drive to an Urgent Care where I worked as a Medical Assistant from 4pm to 10pm. I did this for about a year. Though this was a grind, both jobs were very educational and I enjoyed the work and getting to interact with MD's, PA's, and patients every day!
During this time, I also studied for and took the GRE, and PA-CAT, both of which I passed with very competitive scores due largely to my MCAT and med school exam experience. I applied to around 7-10 PA schools around the country, and got accepted by 4 of them. I ended up going to my top choice PA school.
I started PA school in January of 2022. I took the lessons I had learned during my time in Medical School (including the less than ideal way that ended) and used them to sculpt a study strategy that would make failure impossible for me. It helped that I already knew how NOT to study. Those two years of PA school were definitely an insane challenge, and there was a lot of struggle and suffering involved, but I loved it. Those two years flew by faster than I could've imagined. I performed well overall, earning a total GPA of 3.63 at graduation. Despite the difficulty, I can honestly say the two years of PA school were two of the best years of my life so far. I married an amazing girl from my PA cohort shortly after graduation as well (we dated all through PA school).
I have now been working as a Neurosurgery PA for a year and 3 months. I spend three days a week in the OR, and two days a week in the clinic seeing patients. I have been 1st assistant for a few hundred neurosurgeries, and have accumulated over 2,700 clinical hours in neurosurgery as a practicing, licensed, PA-C. The neurosurgeon I work with is one of the most prominent in our area, probably even our state. While working as a PA, I have also spent a few months working a side-gig as a content editor for a popular medical reference site/app (will leave out the name for anonymity). I was a content editor specifically for vignette questions for the launch of their new PANCE prep Qbank designed specifically for PA students studying for the PANCE (The PA certification exam). Prior to the launch of this product, they were strictly in the medical school realm.
All that being said, I have come a long way since my original post. I have also not given up on my ultimate goal. I am now studying for the MCAT during my free time after work and on weekends. I plan to retake the MCAT relatively soon and hope to score highly on it. Though my chances are still less than ideal, I remain hopeful that with a high MCAT score, a 3.63 GPA during PA school, a Master's Degree in Medical Sciences, and over 2,700 clinical hours as a practicing provider, I will have successfully demonstrated my passion and dedication for medicine, as well as my ability to adapt and overcome difficult obstacles. I hope I will have adequately shown that I can maintain good standing in a very difficult and strenuous curriculum as well. If I have successfully accomplished those goals over the last few years, it is my hope that a medical school out there will see the work I have put in, and the improvements I have made, and take a chance on giving me a spot in their incoming cohort. IF all of that happens, I will finally be able to restart medical school and accomplish my ultimate goal of becoming a Physician. So... onwards we go, the final outcome still to be determined. But I am ready for what is next and now have a supportive wife by my side. With her help, and God's continued help, I feel I can accomplish anything I put my mind to. There is always hope. NEVER GIVE UP. NEVER SURRENDER.
Quotes for hard times:
"But as for you, be strong and do not give up, for your work will be rewarded. - 2 Chronicles 15:7
All we have to decide, is what to do with the time that is given to us. - Gandalf
Have patience, go where you must go, and hope! -Gandalf
Some believe that it is only great power that can hold evil in check. But that is not what I've found. I found it is the SMALL THINGS. Every day deeds by ordinary folk that keeps the darkness at bay. - Gandalf
"Happiness can be found even in the darkest of times, if one only remembers to turn on the light." - Albus Dumbledore
Lastly, if anyone thinks of anything else I could do to boost my chances of getting back into medical school after a voluntary withdrawal, please let me know.
...
Last edited:
