I practiced, and I didn’t find it easy. I had to really work for my grade. If someone listens to one of these posts of yours saying “(insert subject here) is so easy!” then they might not take the class seriously, meaning they’d be more likely to fail.
Tangentially, if you go to a school where GPA is used to determine who gets into their major, a C/C+ will really hurt that goal. My major’s requirement was a 3.0 when I entered and is a 3.2 now.
A grade of C or C+ is not really going to get you a good recommendation letter for med school when there are students who have an A in the class. You need A’s in most of your premed classes to have at least a 3.7 gpa to apply to an MD program. An A- is a 3.7 while an A is a 4.0. Do you think you can get nothing less than an A or A- for the rest of your classes? Some colleges will not give you a committee letter to apply to med school without a competitive gpa and a strong application.
You first need to work on developing good study skills and have a plan for approaching each class that you take.
For example if you get a C+ in Organic Chemistry your comprehension of the material is not going to be good enough to ace that section of the MCAT. You need a very strong foundation in your premed classes and also good study skills for the MCAT which is a very lengthy exam. Many premed students have had to overcome lots of challenges academically and in their personal life but they still need to be able to perform well. Med schools don’t want to hear excuses. If you have had challenges they want to hear what you did to overcome them.
There are just too many academically strong students with high gpa’s and MCAT scores competing for a spot in med school. Many great applicants don’t get even one acceptance offer. Realize a career in medicine is dedication to life long learning and having the skill to perform well under pressure. The MCAT is the first of many exams you will take before you can think of becoming a practicing physician. You have to set very high standards for yourself to meet the expectations of what a med school is looking for. You have to work on your weaknesses and find ways to overcome them. There are lots of different career options in the healthcare field that are not as competitive to get into. Take the time to explore what those options are.
My friend got a C in both organic chemistry 1 and 2, yet he still got accepted to Grad school. He’s going to Syracuse University. There won’t be any chemistry majors if there weren’t any premeds. Have you ever thought why organic chemistry is the most failing class? I’ve seen people who passed the MCAT section of chemistry with a B+ or lower in organic chemistry
Because it’s hard? Students probably haven’t taken anything like it before, there’s a lot of material, and you really need to understand it thoroughly to do well. None of that adds up to “it’s easy if you just try.” I know people who have dropped out of my major because they couldn’t make it past organic chemistry.
Thank you everyone, i spoke to my pre med advisor and they said that one bad semester will not guarantee me not getting into med school i just have to do amazing from here on out.
Please understand that a C- or below is not acceptable for med school applications. Even if you retake those classes, you need to list them on your med school app. What school are you at, your advisor is not giving you good advice. Kids that have GREAT apps get denied from any med school. You are behind the 8 ball. Sorry if that sounds harsh, but you need to be realistic in your career goals.
What college are you attending?
Is your adviser a PRE HEALTH/PREMED adviser? Or just a random undergraduate adviser?
Because that’s seriously bad advice. basically you’re being strung along. Yes, one bad grade won’t sink your application, but you have several bad/failing grades and it’s going to get even harder. Finding an appropriate health care profession now would save you a lot of time.
A downward trend is a red flag to a med school admissions officer. They are more willing to forgive a freshman who has a bad first semester but then shows an upward trend. Retake a class and you don’t get an A? You have just given them a reason to reject you. After taking a class twice you still haven’t mastered the material. There are a lot of premed advisors out there giving bad advice. What you got was generic advice.
"i spoke to my pre med advisor and they said that one bad semester will not guarantee me not getting into med school i just have to do amazing from here on out. "
Did she give you the steps to execute that? My assumption is that you put your best effort this past semester with not very good results.
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I go to a prestigious school in the north east actually i’m not going to disclose where but i did not post on this forum for negative feedback i posted for advice. @CottonTales
My advisor said if i do not get in the first cycle then i just have to build up my resume. Its a common misconception many people especially in this forum have, Just because you do not get in the first cycle does not mean your done and you will never get in. You can still take a year off and research and retake the MCAT and do amazing. This forum seems very negative and if i knew it was going to be like this i would have never came here for advice. There is a difference between giving good advice and just being straight up negative and doubtful toward my abilities.
@MYOS1634 Its my pre health advisor
Why would you want advice that would just sugar coat the truth? You said in your OP that you were getting a C- or worse in 2 classes. Not only would that be a GPA crusher, but there is no grade replacement when applying to med school, you would have to report those grades. Anything less than an A on taking them a second time would be disastrous. I am not trying to be negative, just realistic . Many of us that have been responding to you have kids that have gone through the med school process and know how difficult it is, even when applications don’t have major dings as it appears yours will.
@CottonTales okay thank you i’m not asking for the sugarcoated truth but the demeanor some people have when typing comes off as rude.I know these grades are crap. Im not this type of students i got almost all straight As in my first year and a half of college. I transferred and its been a huge change on my life along with a whole plethora of financial issues. Its all resolved now but i know that i have to do phenomenal from now on
Do retake the classes and make SURE you get A’s. But keep other options in mind.
@MYOS1634 Thank you, I actually registered to take them over. Thank You for the advice i really appreciate it.
The premed path is unforgiving. So, let’s say you attend Amherst or Brown, take a glide year (like most students do), apply to DO schools… your odds might be a bit better than if you attend a random college and apply to 3 MD schools. But it’s still a long shot.
Also, be careful with sequences, ie., don’t take Organic Chemistry as you retake General Chemistry 2. it has to be taken after Chemistry 2 and hopefully a strong A in Chemistry.
If in a semester you haven’t got straight A’s you’ll have to throw in the towel and find a new path. It’s painful for all premeds. But NP, for instance, is an awesome job that pays well, so is PA. In short, there are plenty of healthcare professions in the US.
Rest over the summer, volunteer/shadow, review or preview all your classes.
There are actually some parents here that have gone through the process and their kids are now doctors. @Cottontales, @WayOutWestMom @MYOS1634 gave you honest and sincere advice. They have helped so many premeds and their parents in this forum. People take out time to share their lessons learned from their own experiences and sometimes the reality of premed life and the difficult journey to becoming a doctor is sometimes a hard pill to swallow. The sad part is many premeds are not able to tell the difference between good or bad advice. I see lots of posts by students here seeking validation for their choices. It is better to get sincere and honest advice that will be helpful to you even if it is not something you want to hear. There are also lots of frauds that pose as experts and all they are looking for is for subscribers and your money. Next time you have a question related to premed post it in the premed forum. You will get good advice there from those experienced in the process.
“I went to Hunter and transferred to Stony Brook. The courses here are more rigorous but so worth it. The faculty at Hunter was not really helpful and the guidance was no good. At Stony Brook there are more options for research and joining clubs that have good missions.”
I believe they provide a committee letter. You need to go through a committee evaluation process. I don’t know if your advisor gave you this but you may want to read this document. https://www.stonybrook.edu/commcms/prehealth/docs/PreHealthGuide092616.pdf
Sometimes when one asks a question one can get an answer that one doesn’t like. One can either find value in the answer or ignore it. Here several people who are very, very knowledgeable in this area offered answers to your question. Many of the replies you seem to not like. Perhaps in future it would be helpful to ask people to reply with only positive feedback. In any event, apparently you are leaning towards continuing down premed pathway as prehealth advisor suggested. Go for it. When you have your med school acceptances in hand please repost the great news. Good luck.
Thank you to everyone for the advice. I’m just gonna try to do super well on my finals and move on from this huge mistake. If I do not get all As next semester i’m going to go into something else