<p>Hi guys I'm from a JC, I have decent grades but I'm only a sophomore. Can anyone look at my stats(<a href="http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/409796-college-stats.html%5B/url%5D">http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/college-search-selection/409796-college-stats.html</a>)
and tell me if I on track? My ECs aren't that great either. I need advice on how to proceed from where I am. Also, I'm an Asian male if that makes a difference.</p>
<p>125 allopathic medical schools and 25 ostepathic; you keep up this work at a 4 yr school and get half decent MCAT schools-- you're in.</p>
<p>3.9 is a good start but that's all I really see. Start doing some EC's. There's no excuse to not at least have a job or something when you're going to a community college. Work at a Jamba Juice or the new AMC that opened in Cupertino or something.</p>
<p>There's a huge difference b/w DeAnza and a UC (I assume your plan is to transfer into a UC). Whether you can keep up your grades after the transfer will be critical.</p>
<p>My ECs are less than stellar. The reason is that there is nothing worth doing at a community college. Also, what types of ECs are needed? Do I need godly ones(e.g virtuoso pianist, captain of a college football team, etc..)</p>
<p>"here's no excuse to not at least have a job or something when you're going to a community college"</p>
<p>I actually scoffed out loud. The discrimination of community colleges on this board is astounding. What is WRONG with saving money by going to a CC?</p>
<p>I personally feel that going to a CC to save money is short-sighted. In the long run, you might end up $160,000 in debt instead of $180,000 in debt. The disadvantage is precisely the difficulty that the OP is experiencing: "there is nothing worth doing at a community college."</p>
<p>That aside, my point was, even if there are no clubs or research opportunities at a CC, you can, at worst, find a job. That's not a comment on CC's so much as a suggestion for an EC to do. I lived up the street from DeAnza so I KNOW there are job and volunteer opportunities available.</p>
<p>Maybe a community college is considered to be easier. I don't really study that much and I'm still able to pull off A's.</p>
<p>@norcalguy. But most med-school acceptance rates are somewhere below 6%. Thats even lower than Harvard's undergrad acceptance rate(8%). Compared to the ECs that Harvard matriculates had( science olympiads finalists, sports champions, published writers, more than 10 regional awards etc..) a job probably won't help that much.</p>
<p>But "nothing" helps even less.</p>
<p>Med schools are less interested in "talent" and more interested in producing good doctors. </p>
<p>Being able to throw a football 75 yards or publish 2 novels can get you into Harvard undergrad but not Harvard med school. Harvard med school wants to see that you know how to manage your finances, that you know what it's like to work 50+ hours per week, and that you have some sense of responsibility. These are things you can gain from a job.</p>
<p>I'm not saying you can get into Harvard Med by working at Jamba Juice but there's more value in working at Jamba Juice than in doing nothing.</p>
<p>Well, I tutor math and physics part time. Does that count?</p>
<p>Tutoring counts for something, but you really need clinical experience.</p>
<p>Clinical experience? Is that like hands on patient care? I tried to find a volunteer position at Kaiser, but all they had was receptionist work.</p>
<p>Tutoring is good. I had a lot of teaching and tutoring experiences during college that I tried to emphasize during my interviews (after all, what does "doctor" mean?). </p>
<p>However, shades is correct that you should get some clinical experience also. I define clinical experience as any experience where you come into close proximity to patients. Receptionist work at a hospital would qualify and, in my opinion, would be better clinical experience than some of the other volunteer opportunities that are available. If you don't have any licenses or certifications, you will be limited in what you can do in a clinical setting.</p>
<p>Ok, so tutoring, clinical experience, oh I'm also in some clubs. humm.. what about research? I was thinking about looking for a research position at San Jose state but it'll most likely be in math not science. This is due to me being a math major. </p>
<p>Also, do you guys think its feasible to obtain a research position at Stanford?</p>
<p>That has less to do with it being a CC and more to do with the teacher. I have friends that attend state universities, barely study and get As. I don't know anyone that can do that at a CC. That probably has to do with the size of most CC classes.</p>
<p>There are many reasons to go to a community college. Saving money, perhaps being closer to family, no pressure to move out of your parent's house, more intimate classroom sizes, tuition programs that give students a 33% discount on tuition rates after transferring, it's easier to experiment with different majors. Since we're in a premed forum, you bring up that saving money isn't a big deal because we're all going to be in a load of debt anyway. What about students who aren't going into such an expensive field? Are the reasons I stated above not valid for them either?</p>
<p>You asked if saving money was a good reason for going to a CC. I answered with my opinion (obviously it was based on the assumption that you are premed since we are in the premed forum).</p>
<p>You bring up some better reasons for going to a CC. I still wouldn't advocate this route even considering those other reasons due to the disadvantages CC kids face. I understand, however, it is not always possible to attend a 4-year college straight out of high school. </p>
<p>So, yes, it's possible to get into med school coming from a CC just like it's possible to get into med school after failing a class and it's possible to get into med school after scoring a 26 on your MCAT. It's just not optimal.</p>
<p>Look. The bottom line is that people aren't just using your courses to make sure you learn things. That's important, but they're also using your grades to evaluate you.</p>
<p>The lower standards at a community college -- a relatively weaker student pool being the major factor -- render your grades from those first two years a no-win situation. The expectation is straight A's, because you're in a community college. This puts more weight on your post-transfer courses, where you're now scrambling to play catch-up because your courses were weaker to begin with.</p>
<p>Does it kill your chances? No. Is it a good idea, all else being equal? No.</p>
<p>Of course, as you mentioned: all else is not equal. There's a trade-off, as there always is in life. Every pro comes with a con. If admissions and tuition simply mean you can't attend a state university, then you do what you have to do. Excellence is a panacea. But why put yourself in such an uphill battle if you don't have to?</p>
<p>Several of the things you mentioned are very serious disadvantages, not advantages. In particular, the normalcy of still living with your parents is problematic.</p>
<p>Why don't you give me a list of medical schools that don't accept CC credit? I've been looking for this explicitly stated but I haven't found any.</p>
<p>An old collegeconfidential member who was at a CC at the time called several admissions committees and asked. He found a few that told him that they would not accept any prereqs which were done at a CC. He could either delay them, retake them, or take more advanced coursework at a university.</p>