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Will my grades give me a decent shot at a US school?

Discussion in 'What Are My Chances?' started by Lullapalooza, Dec 7, 2008.

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  1. Lullapalooza

    Lullapalooza
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    I still have some undergrad core pre-med classes to take, but I was wondering with my current grades if I was headed on a track that would lead me into a US medical school.

    I'm on a quarter system, so my science grades are:
    Chem 1A - B
    Chem 1B - A-
    Chem 1C - B+

    Bio 5A - A
    Bio 5B - B

    Stats - A
    Calc I - B
    Calc II - B

    This quarter, I'm looking at getting:
    Ochem 1A - B or B+
    Physics 1A - A-


    My goal is to get into a school in the U.S. Clearly with my grades, I'm not going to be applying to a top ten school. I feel that I have the ability to get a 30 on the MCAT, and I'm working on getting some EC's together.

    I guess I just need some encouragement. I've been really trying my hardest, and haven't been to thrilled with the B's I've been getting. But I am still going to try my best and rough it out until the end.


    I want to get into medical school so badly, that I will go just about anywhere in the U.S. I was wondering by the way, if I would have a better chance of getting an MD through the military to compensate for my sub-par grades?
     
    #1 Lullapalooza, Dec 7, 2008
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  2. sixpence

    sixpence
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    as a very rough estimate it looks like you have a little less than a 3.5 which is not too great... maybe your cGPA is higher? if you are getting 30s on practice mcats then you can predict you would make around a 30 but you cant be so sure about that. anyhow, focus on making a's for the rest of the classes you take because you need to bring that gpa up.
     
    #2 sixpence, Dec 7, 2008
  3. Lullapalooza

    Lullapalooza
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    I'm sorry, but what does cGMP stand for?

    Also, I was a former business major before I switched to Neuroscience. MY GPA as a business major was very low, but obviously I wasn't taking any science classes.

    My academic history is filled with all sorts of academic issues, but only within the past two years have my grades been "alright".

    I will probably have a lot of explaining to do if I am lucky to get called in for an interview. :(
     
    #3 Lullapalooza, Dec 7, 2008
  4. Mobius1985

    Mobius1985
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    cGPA is composite GPA, the overall GPA from all post-high school classes taken. Medical schools tend to screen out applicants based on cGPA and MCAT score. We can better advise you with a clearer overall picure of your situation.
     
    #4 Mobius1985, Dec 7, 2008
  5. TRN1983

    TRN1983 MS1 - I.e. "Know nothing"
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    Keep your grades at that level or better and you have a shot at all DO schools as long as you get an MCAT > 26 and have plenty of volunteering over an extended period of time, IMHO. For DO schools you want a GPA of 3.3+ and a MCAT of 26+.

    Keep your grades at that level or better and you have a shot at many MD schools as lon gas you get an MCAT > 33 if you have exceptional volunteering (i.e. 10-15 hrs/wk for >1yr with some stuff done for underserved), leadership experience, research experience, etc. Idealy for MD schools you want 3.6+ with an MCAT of 32+.

    JM.02
     
    #5 TRN1983, Dec 7, 2008
  6. Lullapalooza

    Lullapalooza
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    Thank you for your advice. I am still going to try and shoot for A's, and hopefully my gpa will go up.

    I went to three different schools, I am also wondering how that will impact admission. I went to Boston University for two years, then dropped out and went to community college for a year before enrolling at University of California, Riverside. My academic adviser has told me that the grades from my most recent institution is going to hold the most weight for medical school admission. Also, I have not taken any science classes anywhere except at my current university.

    Will I be reporting all of my GPA's from all three schools when I apply, or just the most recent? Is my adviser right that most weight will be placed on my most recent GPA?
     
    #6 Lullapalooza, Dec 7, 2008
  7. Mobius1985

    Mobius1985
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    You are required to submit transcripts from all schools attended. The application service will generate the composite GPA, listing your performance year by year, then averaging everything at the end. If you had a poor GPA at the beginning, then stellar grades for the last two years, you will be given some credit for the recent upward trend.

    BTW, the Uniformed Services medical school is reasonably selective. They won't take you if you aren't competitive for other med schools.
     
    #7 Mobius1985, Dec 7, 2008
  8. Lullapalooza

    Lullapalooza
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    What I am really concerned about is my grades at my first institution. Though I didn't take any science classes, I took a lot of humanities breadth coursework. Most of my grades back then were C's and B's. I am very concerned that these grades are going to negatively impact my admission into medical school. If I retake the all those humanities classes in a post-baccalaureate program, will I have a decent shot if my grades improve? Also will medical schools replace the old grades with the new ones when calculating my GPA?

    Please give me some advice as I'm getting very nervous! Thank you!
     
    #8 Lullapalooza, Dec 14, 2008
  9. Catalystik

    Catalystik Platinum
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    The DO medical school application service (AACOMAS) will replace a poor grade with the retaken class grade before calculating your application GPA, so retaking classes you did poorly in can help raise your GPA fast. The MD medical school application service (AMCAS) averages a poor grade with the retake.
     
    #9 Catalystik, Dec 15, 2008
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