Weight of other activities in applying to medschools

[pullhard]

I am currently a rising junior at an Ivy League university and am majoring in biology. I have been told by many people that only see my grades (3.0 gpa) that there is enough reason for me to give up trying to become a doctor. However, I have also been told by a few doctors that my school, athletics, and (of course) killing the mcats could keep my dream alive. I will be the first to admit that my classes take a huge hit for my sport. Athletics are a huge part of my life - I am a D1 athlete who trains with my team for usually 8 hours/day 6 days/week and our racing season is all year, spanning from Sept-July. Racing is an integral part of my life and, through my sport, I have been fortunate enough to win conference titles, national titles, and have gathered international racing experience. I was recently told that by being in an Ivy League program along with such extensive racing experience (of course with volunteering and shadowing in the summers), that I could still have a chance and I was hoping that someone on here could give their opinions on this subject.

Thank you in advance for any thoughts anyone might be able to share with me.

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[coolingglasses]

Maintain the rising trend and you'll end up a strong DO candidate. MD odds depend on exactly where your AMCAS GPA sits when it's all said and done.. but no, it's too early to call it a day for sure.

 

[maestrohuang]

As a rising junior you have plenty of time to bring up your grades. So long as you complete the next year with high marks to bring your GPA to a 3.3 or so, I believe you will still have a shot. I have a 3.44cGPA/3.48sGPA, but I am not from an Ivy League school. I did, however, play college sports and also went on to national championships (2) and professional trials. I believe I should have talked more about my sport in my personal statement, but I found that I enjoyed medicine more and I was able to take part in some amazing programs to heighten my interest for medicine.

A 3.0 is easy to take care of if you have a full year left and have about 60-70 credits... it's much harder when you have 120 and have a year to bring up the gpa. I wish I had a better mcat so I am retaking. Do yourself a favor a make sure you have ample time for the mcat studies and in that same time, I would drop your ECs so that you have enough effort in sport and mcat studies.