What matters???

[Spotless]

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When you look up medical school acceptance rates, it seems that the average GPA to get in is around 3.65. Are there any medical schools out there that will accept a person with a 3.2 GPA? Also, how hard is it to get into a foreign medical school? I'm Canadian, but my biggest anxiety is which medical schools accept foreign applicants, especially from Canada.

Thanks,

😱 😀

 

[Naphtali]

What's wrong with Canadian medical schools? As far as I understand it (someone correct me if I'm wrong) you can get US residencies coming from a Canadian med school, if practice in the US is your ultimate goal. And there are some damn fine schools in Canada (McGill, U of Toronto, ect.)

Aside from that, I know SUNY Upstate, Yale, and UT-Southwestern all accept "foreign" applicants, but you might check around... I'm not sure that Canadians are considered foreign everywhere. Med school web sites should have this info... just check their admissions page.

As for your GPA, well, it's hard to say. You're probably out of the running for the most competitive schools (Harvard, Yale, WashU, ect) but may still have a chance at less competitive schools. Hopefully, the DO crowd won't jump down my throat for this, but DO schools *are* easier to get into. You might consider that path. (Philadelphia Coll of Osteopathic Med has nice facilities and decent training from what I can tell).

It all depends on your MCAT, and the rest of your app. If you rock the MCAT (38+), you may do OK. I would say your app is a longshot at best, unless you have above a 30 MCAT. Good EC's and LORs are a must if you've got a low GPA.

Anyway, good luck!

-Naphtali

 

[Chieka]

Hey Spotless,

Your GPA, although a little low, is workable. Wait - is it based on the AMCAS scale, or is it based on your school's scale? If it's the latter, it will likely go up when it's converted on the AMCAS scale. Canadian grades convert really well!

Anyhow, I'm a Canadian app and I can tell you what I've learned from this fairly successful, but tedious and frustrating application cycle.

Firstly, I think you have a chance if you apply really early (submit the AMCAS as soon as it's available). That way, you'll be competing against fewer people for spots.

Also, try not to apply to state schools - they take very few international students (UCONN seems to be the exception to this - I, and another Canadian, have been accepted for 2003). Get the Medical School Admission Requirements book, published by the American Association of Medical Colleges. It tells you which schools accept Canadians. This info is not readily available on the school's websites. Roughly half of the 14 schools I applied to this year immediately rejected me because they do not accept any non-Americans.

As Napthali said, a strong MCAT, good LORs and ECs will only help your app. That said, I do think you have a chance.

Take care, and feel free to PM for more specific info.

C.

P.S. Here is a site for Canadian applicants: www.premed101.com Click on forums at the top of the page; there are pretty informative discussions going on.

😉