What should I do?

[Medhead]

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Let me start by saying, I am a c.c. student w/a 3.59 overall gpa. I am 27year old husband and father of 2. I have been attending c.c. for 2 yrs and will grad. in May. I hope to then attend USF for the remainder of my undergrad.
With that said I will try to explane my situation. Lets start w/ my elementary edu. I droped out of school in 8th grade. Although I did receive my GED, I never attended high school. I joined the work force very early and decided that I needed to do something more with my life. So I went back to school. At this time I was not married and had no children and most of all had No motivation. So I quit. A couple of years went by and I joined a volunteer fire dept. I did that for a while and I really loved the medical part of the job but hated the FIRE part. So I joined the local ambulance squad. I volunteered w/ the squad for 2yrs (about 1500hrs). Now this was something I could sink my teeth into. I loved it! So I tried to go to school to become an EMTb but was unable to continue the course due to money and time. Unfortunately, this was after the withdraw date. Because of this I received an 8 credit F on my transcript. I know the ad comms are realy going to love that! So My first question is what should I do about this? I have been told I should retake it? Is this true? (The bad part about that is the squad has gone out of business. So volunteering is out of the question.) Or should I ask for grade forgiveness due to my situation? Is that even posible? Next, will my previous mistake, dropping out of school in 8th grade, curb my chances of getting into med school?
Any good advice is greatly appreciated.

 

[Cielo]

MedHead:
I am an older student too. I am married and have 3 little boys. I didn't attend high school at all! I got my GED and started attending a community college. I completed 2 years there with a GPA of 3.75. Now I am attending my local University and plan to graduate in 2002 and apply to Med-School. I also think that my age and my background are not the best tools that I have, but I also think that the fact that I study and try hard to be a Doctor someday will open the doors for me in the future.
Now, I am telling you this because we have many things in common. I can do it! You can do it! But never stop dreaming and pursuing your goals!
One advice: Be careful with that GPA and don't let it drop below 3.5. Study for your MCAT and write a good statement letter.
I can recommend some books for you to read, they have helped me a lot!

- How to Write a Winning Personal Statement -Third edition - by Richard J. Stelzer

- Medical School Admissions Adviser - 2001 Edition - The expert advise you need to get into the medical school you want. By Kaplan

- Medical School Admission Requirements (MSAR), Official Guide by AAMC, or check their web-site: www.tomorrowsdoctor.org

Please excuse any mispelled words or grammar errors, but I am still working on improving it. English is not my first language.

GOOD LUCK!
Cielo

 

[Cielo]

ooooops!!
The correct web-site is: www.tomorrowsdoctors.org

 

[Medhead]

Originally posted by Cielo:
ooooops!!
The correct web-site is: www.tomorrowsdoctors.org

Cielo,
Thank you very much for your support and advice. Thanks for the book info too.

 

[mj]

I don't know anything about EMT. Did you take it at a college? What is your current total overall post secondary gpa? Did you take any of the pre reqs. at the CC?

The good news is you have the whole positive direction thing and massive warm fuzzy life experiences going for you. Cielo is right, you will need to write a good MCAT (who doesn't) and stay on top of your GPA (you still have a lot of credit hours to go)

The biggest thing to remember is to be a spin doctor. It's not "I dropped out of high school", instead it's "I over came early learning set backs". It's not "I flunked out of EMT school" but "my new found calling for medicine and the maturity of fatherhood have helped me overcome my inital set backs in school". It's all in the spin -- and you have lot's of great stuff to spin in the right direction! Good luck.

mj

 

[Medhead]

Originally posted by mj:

Emerg.Med.Tec. is one step under paramedic. It is what most firefighters have.
Did you take it at a college?
Yes, I did take it in college but it was another c.c. college almost an hour away from me.
What is your current total overall post secondary gpa?
My current overall w/the other school is 2.71 Without it 3.5
Did you take any of the pre reqs. at the CC?
Med school pre reqs? If thats what you mean, no not yet.


The good news is you have the whole positive direction thing and massive warm fuzzy life experiences going for you. Cielo is right, you will need to write a good MCAT (who doesn't) and stay on top of your GPA (you still have a lot of credit hours to go)

The biggest thing to remember is to be a spin doctor. It's not "I dropped out of high school", instead it's "I over came early learning set backs". It's not "I flunked out of EMT school" but "my new found calling for medicine and the maturity of fatherhood have helped me overcome my inital set backs in school". It's all in the spin -- and you have lot's of great stuff to spin in the right direction! Good luck.
I think thats the best advice I've ever gotten. Thanks a bunch.

mj

 

[abbeydesert]

Just some encouragement to fellow CC grads: I took all of my pre-reqs at CC and ended up scoring 35 on the MCAT. It can be done! In fact, after I transferred to a state school, I found that my Honors courses in community college had often been more rigorous (and almost invariably better taught) than my university classes. Best of luck to you!