<p>Calling anyone with knowledge of medschool application process</p>
<p>So I'll start off by saying I'm not your typical applicant. When I was 18 went to UF where I did poorly for 2 years (2.8gpa with 2 medical withdrawals). </p>
<p>I came back to USF, close to where I grew up and started a biomed major from scratch (chem1,bio1,calc1 ect...). I'm now proud to say I'll be graduating with a 3.8 gpa, 3.7 science gpa and a 34MCAT (all in 3 years!). Volunteered 2 years at Tampa General, a year mircrobio research, shadowing, service trip to Haiti and more. I understand this to be competitive. But what I cannot find anywhere online is how a medschool (DO or MD) will look at my past. Those 2 years at UF were rough and I am a completely different person/student now.</p>
<p>Can anyone give me some EDUCATED advice? I'd love to hear from someone with experience.</p>
<p>The reason you can’t find that information anywhere is because every school, indeed every member of the admissions committee, is going to view it differently.</p>
<p>You will need to apply broadly to both MD and DO schools and present your situation carefully to put your journey in the most positive light possible.</p>
<p>You will need to offer some assurances that whatever the reason for your multiple medical withdrawals is now completely under control and will not recur. Adcomms want students who will be successful in the pressure cooker that is med school and will want some reassurance that whatever happened before won’t ever happen again.</p>
<p>You may have better luck with DO schools since they allow grade replacement, while AMCAS will use all your grades (old and new) to calculate your GPAs.</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>It will all be taken into account. But they will see your upward trend and give you credit for that. In interviews, you’ll probably be asked about it if it is an open file interview, but Im sure you have your explanations. Seems like you really turned it around. Good job!</p>
<p>Is the GPA for both UF and USF, or just USF? If just USF, you’ll need to calculate your GPA with all college courses.
Either way, you’ve got an impressive record. Based on our limited experience(one applicant) I’d recommend that you start the process by looking at the websites for the medical schools of interest. They often embrace significantly different views on what is important and what type of students they want. It’s a good place to start, to see if it’s what you’re interested in.
Based on your total college experience, you’ll need to address the ups and downs in your essays. Looking at your results, there’s no question that you will be able to do so. Take your time and write some cogent essays; with those, you’ll find some schools who will be intrigued and you’ll get some interviews. Then you’ll have a chance to shine at the interviews. It’s a long, tough process but based on your accomplishments, it’s worth it.</p>
<p>The big issue is if your GPA with everything combined is still low enough that you could get weeded out by the digital screen before someone even reads your app.</p>
<p>Once you get read by a human, I assume most people would see that there was obviously some change/growth and weigh your more recent accomplishments much more. A 34 MCAT score is certainly good enough to demonstrate your academic abilities and show that the 2.8GPA is not really representative of you.</p>
<p>That being said - it’s not like they’re ever going to completely ignore your past and some people might still be afraid that you’re a liability.</p>
<p>The stated GPA is just for USF, I used this because I completed all prereqs at usf. If no grades were transferred could I theoretically just submit my USF transcript? I don’t see a point in even talking about UF. </p>
<p>If not, I’m afraid most MD schools have plenty of other applicants who started off on the right foot and don’t have to explain those first 2 years. Is it really worth it to explain 2 semesters of Ws and 2 more of poor grades? (I have medical documentation which helps but doesn’t erase anything).</p>
<p>AMCAS and AACOMAS rules specifically require ALL college coursework to be reported regardless of how old it is or whether or not it included pre-reqs.</p>
<p>Submitting only your USF transcript will result in your application failing the verification process. AMCAS and AACOMAS use your SSN and name and other data to check national databases of college enrollments. Failure to list your prior coursework would be considered filing a fraudulent application and will result in you getting permanently blacklisted.</p>
<p>If by some slim chance, your application does get verified without acknowledging your previous coursework, if at any time in the future (like say during medical licensing review or on a tip from a family member, friend, vindictive ex) your omission is uncovered, then your medical degree will be revoked.</p>
<p>The medical profession places a very high value on ethicality and honesty.</p>
<p>^yep.</p>
<p>Unfortunately you don’t have a choice about whether or not to include your time at UF. You have to address it. I would probably not transfer the credits to USF unless you need them for something. AMCAS will present both a total GPA as well as institution specific GPAs and you’ll definitely want the USF one to be as high as possible.</p>
<p>Medicine is full of difficulties and setbacks, so there is certainly a case to be made for taking students who faced adversity and did not give up.</p>