What should I do?!

[bettth]

Hello everyone! I'm about to complete my first semester as a sophomore and it looks like I'm going to be receiving a D in my intro bio class..
On top of that my grades are really bad: I've taken 46 credits and got 5 C's so far and now 1 D. My gpa is a 2.6 and with my grades this semester they'll either stay at a 2.6 or go to a 2.7. W

I have a few questions..
Should I retake the D in my bio course? I'm taking the 2nd part of the class next semester and am going to do everything I can to get an A in the course. I've added this first sem bio course to my schedule just in case I will retake it but I need advice.

Also.. My goal by the time I graduate is to have a 3.0
I want to apply to medical school.
Is it completely outrageous that I'll get accepted with my past grade history? I really want to turn things around and make an upward trend for the remaining 2 years. Any opinions?

If I end up not doing well next semester my plan is that I will hold off on applying to med school and take a gap year instead. I'll retake classes, complete a medical perfusion program, and do research.
If by then, I'm still just NOT getting it. I will apply to grad school for my PHD in some sort of research.
Does this sound like a good plan? I'm actually really in love with it because I do enjoy research (I just love medicine more). Will I get into grad school for research with a 3.0?

Also if I get a stellar MCAT score + 3.0 gpa + lots of research hours, what are my chances of acceptance into MD?

THANK YOU FOR THE COMMENTS/ADVICE IN ADVANCE.

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[AnatomyGrey12]

Hello everyone! I'm about to complete my first semester as a sophomore and it looks like I'm going to be receiving a D in my intro bio class..
On top of that my grades are really bad: I've taken 46 credits and got 5 C's so far and now 1 D. My gpa is a 2.6 and with my grades this semester they'll either stay at a 2.6 or go to a 2.7. W

I have a few questions..
Should I retake the D in my bio course? I'm taking the 2nd part of the class next semester and am going to do everything I can to get an A in the course. I've added this first sem bio course to my schedule just in case I will retake it but I need advice.

Also.. My goal by the time I graduate is to have a 3.0
I want to apply to medical school.
Is it completely outrageous that I'll get accepted with my past grade history? I really want to turn things around and make an upward trend for the remaining 2 years. Any opinions?

If I end up not doing well next semester my plan is that I will hold off on applying to med school and take a gap year instead. I'll retake classes, complete a medical perfusion program, and do research.
If by then, I'm still just NOT getting it. I will apply to grad school for my PHD in some sort of research.
Does this sound like a good plan? I'm actually really in love with it because I do enjoy research (I just love medicine more). Will I get into grad school for research with a 3.0?

Also if I get a stellar MCAT score + 3.0 gpa + lots of research hours, what are my chances of acceptance into MD?

THANK YOU FOR THE COMMENTS/ADVICE IN ADVANCE.

Uh almost 0.... You will need a much higher GPA than that... Why would you shoot for something so low?

 

[bettth]

I dont really know honestly. I guess realistically speaking, I made my goal a 3.0. Is it possible to get above that?

 

[IlDestriero]

Start thinking about plan B, or plan to retake some of those classes for DO school.
If you're doing so poorly in your college classes and actually trying, it's not going to happen.

 

[Dr Tony T. Chopper]

Hello everyone! I'm about to complete my first semester as a sophomore and it looks like I'm going to be receiving a D in my intro bio class..
On top of that my grades are really bad: I've taken 46 credits and got 5 C's so far and now 1 D. My gpa is a 2.6 and with my grades this semester they'll either stay at a 2.6 or go to a 2.7. W

I have a few questions..
Should I retake the D in my bio course? I'm taking the 2nd part of the class next semester and am going to do everything I can to get an A in the course. I've added this first sem bio course to my schedule just in case I will retake it but I need advice.

Also.. My goal by the time I graduate is to have a 3.0
I want to apply to medical school.
Is it completely outrageous that I'll get accepted with my past grade history? I really want to turn things around and make an upward trend for the remaining 2 years. Any opinions?

If I end up not doing well next semester my plan is that I will hold off on applying to med school and take a gap year instead. I'll retake classes, complete a medical perfusion program, and do research.
If by then, I'm still just NOT getting it. I will apply to grad school for my PHD in some sort of research.
Does this sound like a good plan? I'm actually really in love with it because I do enjoy research (I just love medicine more). Will I get into grad school for research with a 3.0?

Also if I get a stellar MCAT score + 3.0 gpa + lots of research hours, what are my chances of acceptance into MD?

THANK YOU FOR THE COMMENTS/ADVICE IN ADVANCE.

Keep in mind that you need above a 40 on the mcat to break 70 on LizzyM. Consider DO school for their graceful grade replacement policy, and retake your bad grades.

 

[Satire5Texul]

You are 46 credits in you havent sunk your ship. It would be of detriment to take any more classes, especially science, if it will mean the same results.
Know that federal aid will run out after a certain amount of credits or when you have hit your stafford loan limit (stafford loan limit is likely the first). Please consider speaking to your financial advisers more about this if need be.

You need reform. You cannot apply with a 3.0 GPA without a good life story and in any case a rocking MCAT score.
So if this is truly your dream, you need to realize that perhaps it cannot happen as quickly as you would like.

going DO route is less stress, financially not as problematic, less time consuming and less risky than vying for an MD.

In both cases retake the classes you received bad grades. Dont rush things, you are on your own timeline now. You need to do well.

I dont want to scare you but just to give you what it looks like using this website for GPA calculator:

https://advising.wisc.edu/gpacalculator

If you wanted to raise your GPA to 3.6, it would take 116 college credits at a 4.0 semester (all As). So as you can see you need to do extremely well from here on out. Whatever you do do not sink yourself further into the ground.

Please understand its make it or break it time for you now. If you do not show improvement, this path in life will not be practical for ya.

Good news is you need 2 semesters of good grades being fulltime student to get it over 3.0 GPA.
You gotta aim higher than that.

83 credits at all As to get 3.5
62 credits at all As to get 3.4
46 credits at all As to get 3.3

As you can see the hill becomes very steep as you put more credits into the mix.

Best of wishes ~ Ask yourself how badly do you want this. Thankfully you sought advice now and not when you have graduated with a poor GPA. There is still hope, while its a small flicker in the light, but you must prove yourself. And be realistic. Consider DO and MD.

 

[mw18]

Disclaimer: This may read harsh, but I honestly don't want it to hurt your feelings. It should motivate you/open your eyes.

If you truly want to be a physician (and it seems like you think you do), this is my advice. First, shadow/talk to some physicians to get the closest sense of what the field is really like because it won't be worth the effort if it's not your dream. It will require a lot of effort. Second, definitely re-take that D (and give it your all). If you can get an A, then perhaps your problem was focus. Don't put the cart before the horse, because nothing about your academic record would lead one to believe that you should go to medical school. Nothing about it would lead one to believe that you will do well on the MCAT. Once you see that you can get great grades with effort, then move forward with your plan. That plan should be re-taking the C's you have, particularly in sciences, and applying DO. Also, your EC's will have to be top notch, because even with a lot of work your academic record won't blow adcoms away.

And someone more familiar with DO admissions can comment on how much research helps. As far as having a ton of research hours, I don't think that will be the most effective use of your time (unless you are going to go for the PhD backup plan). I'd focus on doing well academically and doing some volunteering and clinical work. The odds of you applying somewhere that truly values research seems unlikely, but I defer that to people who know more.

 

[El-Rami]

I don't know anything about your major and course load. Are you trying to take more than 2 or 3 science or math classes a semester? Is your major just really hard? Consider trying to take classes you know you can do well in while you take your medical school pre-reqs. Maybe this will allow you to balance your studying better.

Also, what's your study routine like? Do you study every day and work problems in your textbook? Do you wait til 1-2 days before an exam to even start studying? Re-examine how you study, and maybe you'll see a huge improvement. However, if you are putting all your effort in (i.e., studying every day, reading all assigned chapters and supplemental reading, working problems, getting tutoring, etc.) then maybe medical school just ain't a realistic goal for you to achieve.

 

[piii]

Why do people always assume they'll get a "stellar" MCAT when they are barely passing their classes? Baby steps.

 

[thatwouldbeanarchy]

Agree with above posts. If you're absolutely certain that medicine is the career you want, you're gonna have to make some serious changes. A 3.0 may be realistic in terms of your current effort/ability but it's not going to get you into med school. (I'm not familiar with PhD programs but I doubt it'll get you very far there either...)

OP, I think you need to figure out why your grades (particularly in the sciences) are so low. Take advantage of your school's study center; see if there's someone there who can help you learn how to study more effectively! Go to your professors' office hours, find a tutor, study with a group. Find what works for you and stick with it. Definitely DON'T take the MCAT until you're getting A's in at least some of your science classes. You'll just be throwing away $300.

 

[Goro]

Yes.
Should I retake the D in my bio course? I'm taking the 2nd part of the class next semester and am going to do everything I can to get an A in the course. I've added this first sem bio course to my schedule just in case I will retake it but I need advice.

Not if you ace everything from now on. But words are easy, doing is harder.
Is it completely outrageous that I'll get accepted with my past grade history? I really want to turn things around and make an upward trend for the remaining 2 years. Any opinions?

You should visit your school's learning or education center and get help with your learning style, testing taking skills, etc. And pay attention tot he other fine advice you' already received in this thread.


If I end up not doing well next semester my plan is that I will hold off on applying to med school and take a gap year instead. I'll retake classes, complete a medical perfusion program, and do research.

No. Think B+
Will I get into grad school for research with a 3.0?

Also if I get a stellar MCAT score + 3.0 gpa + lots of research hours, what are my chances of acceptance into MD?

THANK YOU FOR THE COMMENTS/ADVICE IN ADVANCE.[/QUOTE]