<p>ok i'm new here and i'm just looking for some straight answers.. I'm really concerned if I have a shot in getting into med school. I need some advice and a little guidance of what to do in the next year or perhaps take a year off to make myself stand out and better my chances.. sooo here's some background info to get started:</p>
<p>-currently a junior at umass dartmouth
-major in biology
-3.3 GPA (made deans list every semester except one)
-president of hillel (jewish student organization)
-tutor for america reads (more like a teachers aide for elementary school)</p>
<p>now im getting a car in the spring which will make all the difference so i can get around and do more volunteer work. im confident that i can bring up my gpa to around a 3.5-3.6 by the end of college.
Being the president of hillel, i pretty much have a lot of control so if anyone has any good suggestions for activities that i can organize that will look impressive, i would appreciate any feedback (maybe food/clothes drive to help out, volunteering the club at the shelter, etc)
i know i need more experience/research/internships.. however, my advisor at school was very unhelpful (in the process of switching) but in the meantime, could anyone give me an idea of what kinds of internships i should look for?
my school is offering EMT classes and certification during the spring semester, should i sign up? or should i look into getting a cna certification? </p>
<p>i still have to take the MCATS, which will probably be at the end of the summer. I'm thinking of signing up for one of the programs offered by Kaplan to prep for the exam.</p>
<p>please, i know this is a lot of information and im sure everyone has seen posts like this before, but i really would like some honest feedback.. my goal is set on going to med school, and i will do anything it takes to get achieve that.. i just need a little guidance :(</p>
<p>Get A’s. Nothing but A’s in the science courses. Everything else takes a back seat. “More experience” won’t mean diddly if you can’t raise your gpa. Once you earn all of those A’s, any social service experience will suffice, as long as you include shadowing and clinical volunteering. Just find a passion, and stick with it. If you are passionate about something, it will come out in interviews.</p>
<p>EMT? Only if you are passionate about it. Otherwise, you join a long list of 3.4 students with an EMT cert.</p>
<p>ok i feel like i have no choice but to spend an extra year to retake my chemistry classes, I earned solid B- in inorganic and organic… does it look bad to retake classes? im thinking since i have to take an extra year, then i can use that time to work/volunteer as well…
how do i go about with the shadowing and clinical volunteering? most of the people i talked to were able to pull some strings with family friends to get those positions… unfortunately i dont have any help like that… i could probably go to the volunteer office in hospital, but what kinds of positions would be justified as “clinical” experience? i feel like all the volunteer positions available are office work, wheeling around patients, etc.
also, how would i go about with shadowing a doctor? would i do it through the volunteer office or contact the doctors office?
and should i bother looking into research or internships for the summer? or would you reccommend that i focus all my attention on doing more clinical volunteering?
again, thank you so much for the feedback!</p>
<p>Do not retake a B- unless you are applying about DO schools. DO schools will replace your grade with the repeated course. Allopathic med schools will just average the two. Thus, if you desire Allo med schools, then it is better to take upper division science courses and earn an A. The impact on your allopathic med application gpa is the same.</p>
<p>
</p>
<p>Not a bad place to start. “Wheeling around” patients can be helpful and then position your for other opportunities. Look for research at your college. Talk to your Profs. (Research units can be easier A’s.)</p>