What should I do?

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FutureDoc3094

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Hello SDN Family!

I have been receiving some conflicting advice in the past few days and I am just honestly plain confused right now on what I should do. I have a 2.7 GPA and just graduated from college with a degree in Biology. I have been talking to some pre-med advisers and they have been telling me different things. One told me that I should do a post bacc program in enhance my GPA for AMCAS considers post bacc grades to be undergrad grades. Another adviser told me that I am not allowed to do a post bacc since I have majored in a science and I should do a master's program instead. But, I do know people despite of majoring in a science still completed a post bacc and got into medical school. Another adviser told me that I should do both a post bacc and master's. I plan on applying next cycle and there are one year master's and post bacc programs out there. It will be extremely hard to both at the same time. All insight is greatly appreciated! Thank you 🙂
 
Don't do both at the same time.
It's honestly up to you, if I were in your shoes though I would do masters to show schools that you're capable of handling upper level course work.

Have you considered DO? They have grade replacement. Any C's or below you can retake and your new grade replaces your old one.
 
samac said:
Don't do both at the same time.
It's honestly up to you, if I were in your shoes though I would do masters to show schools that you're capable of handling upper level course work.

Have you considered DO? They have grade replacement. Any C's or below you can retake and your new grade replaces your old one.
Click to expand...

I am open to DO, but I would much rather have an MD. So it's fine to do a post bacc program even though you majored in a science?
 
FutureDoc3094 said:
I am open to DO, but I would much rather have an MD. So it's fine to do a post bacc program even though you majored in a science?
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I know people who have successfully done it, but I don't think it's the smartest route, like I said if I was in your shoes I would go masters. Prove to medical schools you can handle the upper level course work.

You also have to look at post bacc programs to see if they'll even accept you if you were a science major.
 
samac said:
I know people who have successfully done it, but I don't think it's the smartest route, like I said if I was in your shoes I would go masters. Prove to medical schools you can handle the upper level course work.

You also have to look at post bacc programs to see if they'll even accept you if you were a science major.
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Sounds good! Thank you so much! Also, do you know if med schools are open to answering these kinds of questions? Like talking to an admissions adviser?
 
Is your relatively low GPA due to a whole bunch of B and C grades? Or due to several D and F grades?

If it's a bunch of Bs and Cs, then grade-replacement would be a long haul. A few Ds and Fs can be quickly redeemed though.
 
DokterMom said:
Is your relatively low GPA due to a whole bunch of B and C grades? Or due to several D and F grades?

If it's a bunch of Bs and Cs, then grade-replacement would be a long haul. A few Ds and Fs can be quickly redeemed though.
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It's a bunch of Cs and 1 F. This past year my dad was diagnosed with cancer and I had to take up a job since he is unable to work. I was working about 45 hours a week while a full time student. I just want to prove that these grades are not representative of my work ethic as a student.
 
I'm very sorry about your dad --

Will you have to work full time next year? After that? Do you know what kinds of demands will be placed on your time to help your family? These will all shape your best decision --
 
Just because you were a science major that does not mean you are not eligible for a postbacc program. If you have already completed all of the premed prereqs, I would suggest a postbox program designed for people who need to improve their GPA, and that allows you to take upper level undergraduate courses. You may not raise your overall GPA, but 1-2 years of solid performance in upper level science classes is a way to show med schools you can handle the courses.
 
Not sure where you have heard being a science major makes you ineligible for a postbacc program. There are multiple types of postbacc's not just the ones where you take pre-reqs. Not sure if this is just horrible advice you heard or your adviser is talking about some specific situation or specific program or something else important you left out that s/he said.

Also I wouldn't retake many classes that are a C or better even for DO. Sure your GPA might artificially be enhanced a little but you aren't impressing any ADCOM or proving you can handle med school rigors by getting A's in classes you retook. Do a post-bacc, do well, retake the grades below a C, get the GPA in the 3.0-3.1 territory then you can start talking about DO. With a 2.7 the last thing you should be worried about is "you strongly preferring an MD but being open to a DO". There's a good amount of work you need to do to even get in the DO discussion.
 
DokterMom said:
I'm very sorry about your dad --

Will you have to work full time next year? After that? Do you know what kinds of demands will be placed on your time to help your family? These will all shape your best decision --
Click to expand...
It's ok. I know that I will definitely have to work and pay my tuition regardless of whether if I do a post bacc or master's. Which one do you think would be the most flexible?
 
FutureDoc3094 said:
It's ok. I know that I will definitely have to work and pay my tuition regardless of whether if I do a post bacc or master's. Which one do you think would be the most flexible?
Click to expand...

Try and build up some money before hand, work however long you need to do before committing to one of these. You have to ace them for them to be of any purpose and doing poorly will eliminate any chance you have of salvaging an MD or DO acceptance. You can't commit sufficient time to either which will be much more classwork than you've ever seen in your life while also working15+ hours a week, it just won't work, particularly if you already have tried that and have the GPA you do.
 
djtanner said:
Just because you were a science major that does not mean you are not eligible for a postbacc program. If you have already completed all of the premed prereqs, I would suggest a postbox program designed for people who need to improve their GPA, and that allows you to take upper level undergraduate courses. You may not raise your overall GPA, but 1-2 years of solid performance in upper level science classes is a way to show med schools you can handle the courses.
Click to expand...
GrapesofRath said:
Not sure where you have heard being a science major makes you ineligible for a postbacc program. There are multiple types of postbacc's not just the ones where you take pre-reqs. Not sure if this is just horrible advice you heard or your adviser is talking about some specific situation or specific program or something else important you left out that s/he said.

Also I wouldn't retake many classes that are a C or better even for DO. Sure your GPA might artificially be enhanced a little but you aren't impressing any ADCOM or proving you can handle med school rigors by getting A's in classes you retook. Do a post-bacc, do well, retake the grades below a C, get the GPA in the 3.0-3.1 territory then you can start talking about DO. With a 2.7 the last thing you should be worried about is "you strongly preferring an MD but being open to a DO". There's a good amount of work you need to do to even get in the DO discussion.
Click to expand...

That's what my adviser told me. She said that as a science major, I am not eligible to complete a post bacc program. She said that post bacc programs are more designed for students who did a non-science major or did not complete the pre-med requirements. So would MD schools be considered out of reach for me?
 
FutureDoc3094 said:
Sounds good! Thank you so much! Also, do you know if med schools are open to answering these kinds of questions? Like talking to an admissions adviser?
Click to expand...
They would absolutely be willing to answer your questions.
GrapesofRath said:
Not sure where you have heard being a science major makes you ineligible for a postbacc program. There are multiple types of postbacc's not just the ones where you take pre-reqs. Not sure if this is just horrible advice you heard or your adviser is talking about some specific situation or specific program or something else important you left out that s/he said.

Also I wouldn't retake many classes that are a C or better even for DO. Sure your GPA might artificially be enhanced a little but you aren't impressing any ADCOM or proving you can handle med school rigors by getting A's in classes you retook. Do a post-bacc, do well, retake the grades below a C, get the GPA in the 3.0-3.1 territory then you can start talking about DO. With a 2.7 the last thing you should be worried about is "you strongly preferring an MD but being open to a DO". There's a good amount of work you need to do to even get in the DO discussion.
Click to expand...
Do you know much about the DO world? Retaking C's a perfectly acceptable thing to do. I have a couple and in interviews I was asked why I didn't retake them.

Also, I didn't say all post baccs were not for science majors. I said to check the post baccs and make sure they weren't only for non-science majors, to make sure he's eligible. There are many he is eligible for, but many he is not.
 
samac said:
They would absolutely be willing to answer your questions.

Do you know much about the DO world? Retaking C's a perfectly acceptable thing to do. I have a couple and in interviews I was asked why I didn't retake them.

Also, I didn't say all post baccs were not for science majors. I said to check the post baccs and make sure they weren't only for non-science majors, to make sure he's eligible. There are many he is eligible for, but many he is not.
Click to expand...

Should have said above a C, ie like a B-

Its also worth mentioning it was @gyngyn I believe who said the other day if the OP is serious about an MD that there are those who will question why an applicant is re-taking a C(when talking about MD ADCOMs). If the OP is serious about both that is something to consider. I still would focus on re-taking grades lower than C and taking new classes first before retaking those above the C grade.
 
FutureDoc3094 said:
Retaking C's are frowned upon for MD?
Click to expand...

This was definitely something I saw @gyngyn post the other day about how some ADCOMs in MD will look and ask why is someone re-taking a C. I'll see if I can find the post or if @gyngyn can clarify here.

http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...ycle-or-to-wait-a-year.1138936/#post-16514377

Here we go, I'll let @gonnif clarify for your situation and what he says but here is the quote from yesterday...

"Retakes will help for DO,. They will not help and in some ways can hurt for MD. You would only retake for MD for a C- or below on a required prereq. Furthermore, if you retake something that you got a C or better in, it can raise questions for the adcom as to what does that say about the type of person. Example, you get a B in a course and retake, does that same you are OCD?"

Now the OP in that thread was asking about retaking ONE class that was a C and here is what @gonnif said to that

"If you are considering DO, then retake Ochem. If that is your only issue, it will be a minor blip for an adcom at MD that is quickly passed over"

For one class, especially a pre-req sure re-take it. If you are retaking 4 or 5 classes that are C or better? now that might be a different story.

Regardless of all of this, we can debate re-taking C's or higher or not, but what isn't debateable is the biggest thing that will help you going forward is acing classes you will take in the future. Retaking classes can artificially boost your GPA but you aren't really impressing anybody getting an A on a class you already took. If you want to impress and show you can handle the rigors of med school getting A's on classes from here on out is the way to go.
 
Last edited:
This is good advice

I have been receiving some conflicting advice in the past few days and I am just honestly plain confused right now on what I should do. I have a 2.7 GPA and just graduated from college with a degree in Biology. I have been talking to some pre-med advisers and they have been telling me different things. One told me that I should do a post bacc program in enhance my GPA for AMCAS considers post bacc grades to be undergrad grades.

This is ignorant advice. Maybe the adviser is confusing post-bac with "career-changer" programs, which are designed to give say, accountants the basic pre-reqs for med school and some MCAT prep. But anything you take after you graduate is "post-bac".

SMPs are exactly what they are...auditions for med school.

You can do a post-bac/SMP DIY, or in a formal program. You DON'T need to do both. And dump the second advisor.

Another adviser told me that I am not allowed to do a post bacc since I have majored in a science and I should do a master's program instead. But, I do know people despite of majoring in a science still completed a post bacc and got into medical school. Another adviser told me that I should do both a post bacc and master's. I plan on applying next cycle and there are one year master's and post bacc programs out there. It will be extremely hard to both at the same time.
 
Should I retake the coursework that I got C's in or take upper level classes for the post bacc?
 
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