i am currently attending a state university for my bachelors in biotechnology i transferred from a community college and got my associates with decent grades and ended up with a 3.2 gpa but after transferring due to personal issues i failed my first semester at this new school 3 classes 10 credits total if i retake these classes and do well the rest of my time here will i have a chance at med school
Right now your current GPA is much too low to be competitive for medical school. (The average GPA for MD programs is hovering around 3.7; for DO programs, the average GPA is around 3.58)
I won’t say med school is completely out of the picture, but you’re in a deep, deep hole and it’s going to take considerable time & effort to get out.
One-- allopathic med schools (MD) do allow grade replacement even if your college does. This means that for any course you retake both the original grade and new grade will be included in GPA/GPA calculations. Essentially any retaken class will average both grades and count it at double weight.
You should use a GPA calculator to figure out what GPA you have right now and what GPA you need to earn going forward to get your GPA up above 3.6.
Here’s a calculator to use: http://www.back2college.com/gpa.htm
Depending on exactly how many credits you already have, it may take 3, 4, 5 or 6 years to earn enough credits to raise your GPA into the med school acceptable range.
Two-- if you’re open to attending an osteopathic medical school (DO), then you have a different option. DO program do allow grade replacement. Only the newest grade is included when GPA/sGPA is computed.
If you are open to this option, start by retaking every C/D/F grade you’ve earned to date. This wilimprove your GPA more quickly–probably in 2 or 3 years.
Three-- and this probably goes without saying. NO MORE Fs! You simply cannot afford any more failing grades. In fact, you can’t afford any Cs.
One last word–there are literally hundreds of medically related and or hospital-based jobs that don’t involve med school. Don’t rule them out without first exploring your options.
Thanks from the looks of it I have about 2 and a half years left also I’m an emt and I know I can do a lot better in my classes a lot happened and that’s really why this semester went so poorly I’ve always gotten As in my sciences and never really anything bellow a b- in other classes. Also I’ve never been able to find consistent info on DO programs what’s the difference? As far as I can tell from things I’ve read it seams like a more logical approach to medicine in some ways, all I found say that they look at the body as a whole more than MDs and incorporate lifestyles into their care like diet and such
Here you go–
[American Colleges of Osteopathic Medicine-- What is Osteopathic Medicine?](http://www.aacom.org/become-a-doctor/about-om)
[Comparison of MD and DO in the United States](Comparison of MD and DO in the United States - Wikipedia)
The biggest difference between an MD and DO is that DOs are trained in OMM.
I say you should have a second plan right now. The 4 yr college will likely more difficult than community college and it’s very difficult to recover from your blowout the first semester in your 4 yr college.
It’s not the end of the world not being a doctor.
I too think that you should have another plan. A 3.2 CC GPA is not decent for pre med. You than failed 3 courses which is a minimum course load at a state College. Even getting straight A’s for the rest of your undergraduate career will not get your GPA up to a competitive level. You would than need to do some sort of post bac and do well. Lastly you would need to score highly on the MCAT for any sort of chance. Academic success requires talent, work ethic and discipline and so far you have not shown that you have what it takes. Its not impossible but you would need to completely need to dedicate the next 3-4 years to this quest with the realization that you have to be close to perfect here on out for a chance.
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One-- allopathic med schools (MD) do allow grade replacement even if your college does. This means that for any course you retake both the original grade and new grade will be included in GPA/GPA calculations. Essentially any retaken class will average both grades and count it at double weight.
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She meant to write: do NOT allow grade replacement…
3.2 GPA is too low, particularly from a CC. Now, with this semester, it’s probably around 2.7.
Your best hope is DO schools.
Come up with a plan B.
Better have a plan b as DO schools no longer take grade replacement as of 2017.
Or you can go on to an SMP program after graduation to remediate.