<p>PLEASE be realistic and critical!
I want to apply to bs/md programs but I doubt I can make them even though I'm REALLY passionate about medicine. If you don't think I can get could you please explain what the alternative route is and how I should improve my stats? I've always been somewhat confused by the "traditional route"...</p>
<p>High School: Indiana, Public
Rising Senior
Class rank: ~50/499 but school doesn't give it to colleges
GPA: around 3.78 uw </p>
<p>SAT: 2130 best combined, 2100 one-sitting (I'm taking it again for 2200)
SATII: 700 Lit
660 Bio (GAH!!!! I wanna retake this!)
ACT: 31 (i was sick. taking it again for 34)
AP's: 2 Euro. History
4 US History
2 Bio (GAH AGAIN!!!)
4 Lit</p>
<p>Extracurriculars:
- Speech & Debate (4 yr member, VP 2 yrs, President next year)
- Poetry Out Loud (2nd place at state)
-Academic Spell Bowl (3 yrs)
- Key Club (4 yrs)
- National Honors Society (Executive Board Member)
- National Merit (221, min. of Semifinalist, Do I have a shot at Finalist?)
- Dance (10 yrs)
- Yearbook Staff (next year)
I'll end up graduating with the highest diploma status</p>
<p>Medical Extracurriculars:
- Volunteering at a local hospital (3 yrs, 150? hours)
- Volunteering at Red Cross (just started, 30 hours)
- NYLF on Medicine
- Shadowing Internal Medicine Dr. (50 hrs)
- Shadowing Cardiologist (25 hrs)</p>
<p>I took one AP each year as a freshman and sophomore (the max allowed), 2 this last year, and i'm signed up for 4 next year including stats, calc, lang and psych. </p>
<p>Obviously I have a limited number of times i can take tests again but i still want to apply for early admissions. Does anyone have any advice on how i should plan my test-taking schedule?</p>
<p>I think that most BS/MD programs require a very high class rank (like top 5%). Your rank shouldn't change that much during senior year. The alternate route is simply to just go to a school for 4 years (or however many needed) to get your BA or BS and then go to medical school. It's not a bad thing, because what if you want to go to med school somewhere different than where you go undergrad?</p>
<p>Yeah I know my gpa and class rank aren't the best...I had some low points in math in freshman year (b+'s) but one good thing is that I've definitely improved. My grades went from mostly a-'s with the occasional b+ to straight a's and a+'s. Dunno how good of a thing it is. Another thing is that our grading scale became more difficult yet I got higher grades with the tougher scale. Just gonna throw it out that our scale is 90-92=B+, 92-94=A-, 95-98=A and our school doesn't weight grades. It's kinda sucky but...there's only so many times you can appeal to the board.</p>
<p>What sort of majors should I look into if I want to get into a med. school eventually? Also, do you recommend any good colleges for undergrad? Preferably with a lower price tag or with plenty of scholarships...</p>
<p>A good many colleges throw out freshman year, so if that is what's holding you back then you're in luck; they also tend to like seeing upward trends as well.</p>
<p>As for majors, Bio/Chem is the most popular, although most any major can get in to med school (they like diversity!) if you have a high gpa/mcat score. Just choose most anything science related and you'll be fine; even an English major (to use one example) with sufficient credentials and determination can easily get into medical school.</p>
<p>As for good colleges, the prestige of you pre-med school is really quite irrelevant. Usually state schools offer good scholarships, and if you manage to stand out (big fish in a small pond) you'll probably have a higher chance of acceptance than a run-of-the-mill Harvard grad. My local state honors college (UofA) has a decent physical sciences program (I'll be pre-med too) and will give me full tuition, books, room and board, and probably a monthly stipend if I go there (if I get the scholarship I want, then I'll get an all-expenses paid semester abroad too!) . I would suggest you not break the bank for undergrad (although some places, like JH, have been known to be worth the cost).</p>
<p>Here's a general list of BA/MD programs. Alot of them are a tad above you, but you might fit into some (although I personally have chosen not to do one).</p>
<p>You might want to retake the Bio AP and get a high enough score to get college credit. Most any science major needs a bunch of bio classes, so getting them out of the way now can help you alot.</p>
<p>What field of medicine do you want to go in to? What profession are you planning on?</p>
<p>Now there's where i have some issues. I'm really interested in diabetes because while I was shadowing I met a woman who unfortunately had it and didn't follow the regimen. As a result she lost the nerves in much of her legs and was beginning to lose it in her hands. Somehow I found it both cruel and fascinating (is that wrong?). On the other hand, I shadowed the cardiologist because I had seen so many patients with heart problems come into the internal medicine office. I felt I could get a better idea of what symptoms were dangerous or even just a broader scope of the medical field. Part of the reason is also because my dad, grandmother, uncles, just about everyone in my family experiences or has experienced issues related to the heart. I always felt somewhat in the unknown and finally I went into the operating rooms and cath labs. There I began to understand more terminology, various methods of blockage removal, etc. and witness doctor-patient interactions and I loved every second of it! I'm still keeping my options open though!</p>
<p>Which BA/MD programs do you think I might even possibly have a shot at? That is if I pull up my test scores enough and at least maintain my GPA. </p>
<p>Thank you everyone for helping!! Please keep it coming!!</p>