WAMC: 3.3 cGPA, 3.1sGPA, URM

[swole_doc]

Hi I'm curious what you think my chances would be for med school given the following stats:

3.3 sGPA
3.1 sGPA
URM: Black Female immigrant
State of residence: MA
MCAT: Haven't taken yet, what should I be aiming for?

Clinical hours: 1000+, worked as a PT aide 6 months full time. Directly worked with patients, instructing them how to complete exercises. Currently work as a CRC at BWH in Boston. I see 4-5 patients a week (w/ doctors ofc) for various derm illnesses such as atopic dermatitis, psoriasis, and alopecia. Would this also count as shadowing?

Research hours: 1000+, worked as a Research Assistant in Psychiatry for 6 months full time, continued working on a specific project with a resident for 5 months part time. Currently work full time in research at BWH for 7+ months.

Volunteering/ Leadership: Been volunteering since Freshman year in a club that works with Title 1 Boston public school students (low income students). Eventually became president of this club by my senior year. (100+ volunteers total, 20+ exec board members to manage). We teach kids peaceful skills such as teamwork and conflict resolution through games and activities.

Shadowing: Shadowed anesthesiologist & psychiatrists for a total of about 30 hrs. Not sure if my current work w dermatologists count as shadowing or not but either way I plan on asking to shadow them in clinic at some point.

EC: A part of my college's powerlifting team for a year. Continued powerlifting and competing independently. Volunteered at local meets as a USAPL state referee, also refereed at the Special Olympics in MA for 2 years. Still volunteered at local meets when I was no longer on the team.

Planning on taking my MCAT this year. What score will I need to make up for my GPA? I really don't want to take a post-bacc if I don't have to.
Any tips of studying for the MCAT would be greatly appreciated!!

Also, this is random, but I got a C- in Biochem lab (C+ in the class). Should I retake the entire class+lab to make up for this?

Thank you so much!!

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[SDeduN]

Hello!

Thorough overview! Upon initial look, I think you’re not in bad shape at all, assuming you’re a US citizen at this point. Of course, an MCAT score will be a critical part of your final application picture. I’m guessing you mean you’ll take it in 2020. Make sure you give prep for it your full focus and reasonable time, so as to hopefully take it only once when you feel most ready. Regardless of GPA, aim for the highest score you can get, then the landscape can be reassessed once you get the score. Ideally, I’d probably say about 508 or above should would be fair-ish in your case but again please aim high! If you need a self-study structure, which is how I prepped, the MCAT sub on here can be a good place to start exploring...especially the stickied posts if they are not too outdated. Ignore the anxiety-inducing posts. If you feel you need more external structure, MCAT prep courses exist but ofc YMMV...and those cost.

If your GPA trend showed an upswing in your junior or senior years that will help. It’s generally recommended that C- or above aren’t worth a retake, so I‘d lean “no” on the biochem makeup. If you can afford to take other upper level science courses you haven’t yet taken (ex. Immunology or Physiology) and believe you can achieve a good grade (don’t take any during MCAT prep), then those can only help overall.

Your ECs, shadowing and research experiences look solid to me. Keep doing what you’re doing there. Best of luck and one step at a time!

 

[swole_doc]

Thank you!!

I'm planning on using Khan A videos and then supplementing w Kaplan textbooks if necessary. I'll look on the MCAT sub here for more ideas though. Really appreciate the input