So I’ve been dealing with a lot of health problems this year that has led me to perform bad in one of my classes, specifically calc I. I know that calc I is one of the pre-med prerequisites, and I know that doing well in them is important. I’ve taken BC calculus in HS and did fairly well, so it’s not about me not understanding the courses contents. It’s bad timing and me getting sick before/during the exams. I think my average will be around a high C. I want to retake it during the summer and replace the old grade, but I found out that Med School will still include the old grade. I think I can get an A if I retake the class with a good teacher.
My parents feel like I should change my major since med school is extremely competitive, and I’ve already messed up a bit. My grades so far are around this (finals not factored in): Honors 110: A, Bio: A, Chem: B, Chem Lab: A, and Math: C. If I work hard and get a really good MCAT score, will that balance it out? Should I take extra classes in the summer to help my gpa’s average go up?
I’m a freshman majoring in biology. Also thank you for those that respond!!
According to the Association of American Medical Colleges, as reported by The Princeton Review, the average GPA for medical school matriculants in 2017–2018 was a 3.64 science, a 3.79 non-science, and a 3.71 overall.
Based on that, you shouldn’t be out of the running just based on one C in one math class. The B in Chem does indicate that you’re really going to have to buckle down and study hard for that classic pre-med weed’em out class: Orgo.
Yes, every course including repeat need to be reported in AMCAS App. Any courses taken in any colleges including community college and courses taken for dual enrollment during HS with any local colleges.
Getting a C in 1 course should not prevent from getting admission. Some feel repeat is not looked favorably.
Suggest to find ways to maintain a good grade moving forward and don't rely on the average GPA of matriculants. You need to focus on 3.8+ sGPA minimum. It depends on so many factors like URM vs ORM, plan to have a gap years vs no gap years etc.,
No hard in exploring alternate major before it is too late. That gives an opportunity for you to know if anything interest you. Because Bio is not a good major even for Medicine knowing for Plan B Bio is not going to help. Doing alternate major is not going to prevent you to get MD admission. Choose some thing that will help you for Plan B if needed.
It’s your first semester and you have a 3.4. That’s great! College is an adjustment. You’ll do better the next semester. Don’t get discouraged, just bounce back and do it again.
It’s way, way, way too soon to give up on being a pre-med. You have 7 more semesters to go before you will have a final GPA/sGPA and will know if you’re competitive for med school.
Do NOT retake Calc. Since you took AP Calc BC in high school, taking Calc again over the summer will make that class the 3rd time you’ve taken it. Earning an A the 3rd time you take a class isn’t going impress anyone.
Also there is no grade replacement allowed for retaken classes. Both your original grade and the retake will be included in your GPA calculations by AMCAS and AACOMAS so the GPA boost will be minimal.
The general advice for pre-meds is that if you pass the class with a C or better, don’t retake. Instead take the next higher level class and do well in it.
I would suggest that you don’t take summer school classes for simply for the sake of fluffing your GPA. Summers are more productively used to get involved in ECs–community service, clinical employment or volunteering, research.
RE: Major. Pre med is an intention, not a particular major. You can major in anything and still attend med school. So if you want to change your major, feel free to do so.
Neither of my now-physician daughter were bio majors in college. Many of their med school classmates had non-typical majors, including agriculture/forestry, music composition, Italian, classics, mathematics, theology, gender studies, English lit, engineering. They all did fine in med school and are now doctors.
While biology has perhaps the greatest overlap w/ pre med requirements, biology doesn't have particularly good post-college employment prospects.