WAMC 2.2 GPA

[blueexercise14]

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Hi all,

I’m a senior majoring in Public Health and hoping to apply to medical school in the future. However, I’m struggling with a low GPA (currently 2.2) and haven’t completed all the prerequisites. I ended up failing a semester due to health reasons during the spring of my sophomore year, but I’ve had an upward trend since then in public health courses. I’m a New Hampshire resident attending college in Massachusetts and am seeking advice on how to best improve my chances of getting into medical school, especially regarding finishing prerequisites.

Here’s a breakdown of the prerequisites I’ve already taken:​

• Biology I: C
• Biology I Lab: B-
• Biology II: B
• Biology II Lab: A
• Chemistry I: C+
• Chemistry I Lab: A
• Chemistry II: C+
• Chemistry II Lab: A-
• Organic Chemistry I: W
• Organic Chemistry I Lab: W
• Anatomy & Physiology I: C+
• Anatomy & Physiology I Lab: C-
• Anatomy & Physiology II: B
• Anatomy & Physiology II Lab: B
• Microbiology: B-
• Biostatistics: B
• Cell Biology: F
• Intro to Psychology: A
• Intro to Sociology: F
• Calculus: W
• Nutrition: F, C+

Extracurriculars:​

• 2 years in Student Council, with 1 year as President.
• 3 years volunteering for my university’s advertising department.
• 25 hours assistant coaching a middle school soccer team.
• 2.5 years as a Resident Advisor.
• ~500 hours working as an EMT.

I’m planning to retake failed courses and complete the necessary prerequisites, but I’m concerned about balancing this with the cost. I also know I need to gain clinical experience and prepare for the MCAT. I am on track to graduate in Spring 2025.

Would it be beneficial to delay graduation to finish prerequisites (and thus continue my extracurriculars), do a master’s in something else while completing prerequisites, enroll in a Post-Bacc/DIY Post-Bacc/SMP, etc.? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

 

[Mr.Smile12]

First of all, how dead-set on "doctor or bust" are you? Have you looked at the other health professional careers that are also in major need? I'll be the first to admit, the academic grades are not going to help you at all, and I'm unsure how ready you would be for the MCAT, let alone for medical school.

 

[LeaveNoTrace]

You're going to need 30 credits of at the very minimum 3.5 or better in science courses. That's a bare minimum. Good luck.

 

[candbgirl]

Even if you retake the F grades, the Fs will remain on your transcripts and will be averaged into you cGPA and sGPA. There is no grade replacement in AMCAS.

 

[GoSpursGo]

All roads to success start with obtaining academic success going forward. Realistically that means getting a 3.7+ going forward, and a 4.0 would be better. Everything else like getting clinical experience and taking the MCAT doesn't matter if you can't get past this first step.

What kinds of grades are you getting this semester, and what are you doing differently now to get better grades than you've gotten in the past?

If you failed an entire semester due to health issues, have you explored retroactively withdrawing from all credits that semester? This is a thing at some schools, and is the easiest way to make up some ground in your current condition.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I am also interested in what your prehealth advisors say. Are you the type that can process negative feedback?

I'm also missing clinical experience (specifically physician shadowing), non-clinical community service (you're active with the campus community, but it's not so clear with those off-campus), and research experience in your description.

Another option is to work for a living. You seem concerned about costs. Time can clarify your career goals, and we have many people who apply successfully as non-traditional students whose GPA's must be reinvented.

We need good people in public health, and not everyone needs to be a physician to do that. We even have a forum on that.

Public Health Degrees (Masters - MPH & Doctoral)

For students interested in public health either as an individual degree (such as MPH or DrPH) or in combination with another degree (such as MD/MPH).

forums.studentdoctor.net

 

[Goro]

Hi all,

I’m a senior majoring in Public Health and hoping to apply to medical school in the future. However, I’m struggling with a low GPA (currently 2.2) and haven’t completed all the prerequisites. I ended up failing a semester due to health reasons during the spring of my sophomore year, but I’ve had an upward trend since then in public health courses. I’m a New Hampshire resident attending college in Massachusetts and am seeking advice on how to best improve my chances of getting into medical school, especially regarding finishing prerequisites.

Here’s a breakdown of the prerequisites I’ve already taken:​

• Biology I: C
• Biology I Lab: B-
• Biology II: B
• Biology II Lab: A
• Chemistry I: C+
• Chemistry I Lab: A
• Chemistry II: C+
• Chemistry II Lab: A-
• Organic Chemistry I: W
• Organic Chemistry I Lab: W
• Anatomy & Physiology I: C+
• Anatomy & Physiology I Lab: C-
• Anatomy & Physiology II: B
• Anatomy & Physiology II Lab: B
• Microbiology: B-
• Biostatistics: B
• Cell Biology: F
• Intro to Psychology: A
• Intro to Sociology: F
• Calculus: W
• Nutrition: F, C+

Extracurriculars:​

• 2 years in Student Council, with 1 year as President.
• 3 years volunteering for my university’s advertising department.
• 25 hours assistant coaching a middle school soccer team.
• 2.5 years as a Resident Advisor.
• ~500 hours working as an EMT.

I’m planning to retake failed courses and complete the necessary prerequisites, but I’m concerned about balancing this with the cost. I also know I need to gain clinical experience and prepare for the MCAT. I am on track to graduate in Spring 2025.

Would it be beneficial to delay graduation to finish prerequisites (and thus continue my extracurriculars), do a master’s in something else while completing prerequisites, enroll in a Post-Bacc/DIY Post-Bacc/SMP, etc.? Any advice would be greatly appreciated!

Read this:
Goro's advice for pre-meds who need reinvention