Year off Need Advice

[tanny]

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Do you think working as a CNA and doing a 1 year Americorp program would better than biomedical science master degree at UMDNJ for admission to med school? I do have a 3.3 GPA.

Currently I'm doing a summer Americorp program but I may do a yearly too.

I'm a URM.

 

[elyswim]

If you want to go to a better ranked med school I would probably do the Master's program. If you don't care, a 3.3 is a little low but you would probably get in? depending on MCATs of course.

 

[tanny]

Need more opinions

thanks

 

[235009]

the master's program won't make up for your undergrad gpa because grades are just handed out in grad classes and adcoms know this.

elyswim is delusional ...with a 3.3 you have an extremely tough road ahead of you if you want to get into any MD school....if you do/did well on your MCAT you should probably load up on the medical/life experiences doing Americorps and such ...if you don't do well on your MCAT and there's no hope of doing very well (35+) then you should probably consider doing more undergrad classes or a SMP.

 

[elyswim]

the master's program won't make up for your undergrad gpa because grades are just handed out in grad classes and adcoms know this.

elyswim is delusional ...with a 3.3 you have an extremely tough road ahead of you if you want to get into any MD school....if you do/did well on your MCAT you should probably load up on the medical/life experiences doing Americorps and such ...if you don't do well on your MCAT and there's no hope of doing very well (35+) then you should probably consider doing more undergrad classes or a SMP.

Wow... no I'm sorry, have you looked at the MSAR? no he/she doesnt have a 3.7, however he/she is in the 10-90% of several schools. Also take into fact that the MSAR takes into account all accepted students (so that 4.0 who's going to harvard and is applying to a school as his safety counts) and matriculating GPAs are likely lower. With a decent MCAT (granted above average for entrance rate so greater than ~31) score, some level of ECs, and he/she doesn't have a half bad chance.

 

[determined1985]

actually at SMP's grades are not just handed out... that's why they are SMP's

the courses are there to mimic the 1st year school med school curriculum...

do the SMP, and get a 4.0.. check out the SMP threads

 

[tanny]

Wow... no I'm sorry, have you looked at the MSAR? no he/she doesnt have a 3.7, however he/she is in the 10-90% of several schools. Also take into fact that the MSAR takes into account all accepted students (so that 4.0 who's going to harvard and is applying to a school as his safety counts) and matriculating GPAs are likely lower. With a decent MCAT (granted above average for entrance rate so greater than ~31) score, some level of ECs, and he/she doesn't have a half bad chance.

What do you mean?

 

[235009]

actually at SMP's grades are not just handed out... that's why they are SMP's

the courses are there to mimic the 1st year school med school curriculum...

do the SMP, and get a 4.0.. check out the SMP threads

oh does "biomedical science masters" = SMP?

....if so then i am mistaken...i thought he was talking about some regular science master's degree

 

[tiedyeddog]

Do you think working as a CNA and doing a 1 year Americorp program would better than biomedical science master degree at UMDNJ for admission to med school? I do have a 3.3 GPA.

Currently I'm doing a summer Americorp program but I may do a yearly too.

I'm a URM.

I would guess biomedical science master degree = SMP.... Do that if you want to help in the GPA department. Keep in mind it will be super expensive and you might come out worse than when you started...

 

[elyswim]

What do you mean?

Let me put it like this my friend got into WUSTL Med, according to the excel spreadsheet on here the hardest med school to get into, (granted it was @ WU undergrad) with a 3.2 Science GPA. Things can happen with low GPAs, just do well on the MCAT, have some great ECs and I think you can make it.

 

[tanny]

Let me put it like this my friend got into WUSTL Med, according to the excel spreadsheet on here the hardest med school to get into, (granted it was @ WU undergrad) with a 3.2 Science GPA. Things can happen with low GPAs, just do well on the MCAT, have some great ECs and I think you can make it.

ok

I going for the CNA/Americorp then.

 

[Longshanks]

the master's program won't make up for your undergrad gpa because grades are just handed out in grad classes and adcoms know this.

I understand where you're coming from with this, and do agree this is the case with some masters programs (MPH, traditional bio MS with just 10 students going through "intellectual exercises", etc), but it really depends on the program. I'm not in an SMP, as they would be traditionally called, but I'm doing an interdisciplinary biomedical sciences at SUNY-Buffalo and the whole point of the program, the way its advertised, and according to the list on the aamc's website, is for people trying to build up their credentials for medical school - and grades a most definitely not 'just handed out' here. In my pathology class this past semester only two people got A's (though that is a small class) and in oncology they only give out around five A's in a class out of 40-50. Is it the strongest program? No, and I probably should've done Loyola's SMP but I didn't have the financial support at the time or was as knowledgeable about this whole application process as I am now, but it definitely is not a cake walk either. We don't have any interview or admission agreement with SUNY-Buffalo, so I wouldn't call it an SMP then, however there is a good relationship and its been around for ~50 years.

I'm assuming the OP's program is an SMP however.

I didn't mean this to be a rant or defense of my program, I just hoped to clarify that not all masters programs are jokes and its a shame if adcoms truly do believe this. IMHO its more important of what you do during your masters program and achieve beyond just your grad gpa, because even if the grad gpa was added in or given more clout, one or two years of work will never compare equally to four years of work, but if its strong academic work with good ECs that compliments your undergraduate work or confirms an upward trend if one blew one or two early semesters, I don't think it can hurt someone for doing a masters, whether that be a traditional or SMP. One could make the same argument that post-bacc grades are just handed out, but that doesn't seem to be a meme on this board.