I need your advice

Pre-Med & Medical School Pre-Med Topics
1

<p>Hey guys,</p>

<p>As my title says i really do need advice. I am a pre-med that has always wanted to become a doctor, but unfortunately first semester was at BU has been a complete mess. Have a look</p>

<p>Bio: D
Chem: B-
1st Sem Spanish: A-
College Writing: B</p>

<p>This means my 1st sem gpa is: 2.60</p>

<p>I plan to take Bio 2 honors, chem 2, 2nd sem spanish and college writing 2, even if i do get a 4.0, my cum. gpa will still be below a 3.7, with a 3.30</p>

<p>What should i do...?</p>

2

<p>Like you said, it is only your first semester, don't lose hope. Just keep maintaining an upward trend.</p>

<p>Btw, I would suggest re-taking that Biology course, also if the reason you are failing Biology is due to it being honors, I would suggest taking the normal type. Getting a high grade>having the word "honors" next to it.</p>

3

<p>I agree with projectx about retaking and honors. It's your first semester so you haven't done as much damage as you think. Trust me, i don't think my first quarter went too hot either but my brothers (in med school) told me not to worry too much. Oh yea, and you don't NEED a 3.7 gpa, but it is good to aim high.</p>

4

<p>This is a big deal. I am considerably less optimistic than the others. Your BCPM GPA in particular has taken a large hit, with the D and the B- adding up to give you a 1.85 BCPM GPA.</p>

<p>I would only recommend a retake in the event that BU will actually erase your previous grade from your transcript. Otherwise, you've put yourself in a no-win situation; "Of course" you get an A, because it's your second time through the course, or you could not "even" do well your second time around.</p>

<p>A perfect track record from here on out will earn you a very respectable 3.7 and be well understood -- I think. But your current grades are not only a "hit" to the GPA, they are also a predictor of your future performance.</p>

<p>(A baseball player who opens the season 0-for-30 might go on a hot streak and erase the "hit" to his average, but most of them don't manage to do that.)</p>

<p>In your shoes, I would give myself one more semester on the premed track. Anything short of exemplary performance, and I'd begin evaluating other options. This may sound harsh, but a 1.85 or even a 2.85 is going to be an obstacle in your premedical path, and you'd be better served protecting whatever you can by taking courses in majors where you can excel.</p>

5

<p>excuse my language, but the professors have reset the curve that actually bumps my grade lower to an F....would u guys still recommend my not re-taking the course.</p>

<p>Also, Can I still get into Med. School with an F in intro. bio. I am still very keen on becoming a doctor, and honestly cannot see myself being happier with any other profession. Has one grade/bad semester completely ****ed me over...?</p>

6

<p>Well, now you need the credit, so I suppose you have to take the course again.</p>

<p>You should bear in mind that it's still very early. I learned in college about a lot of professions that I didn't even realize existed prior to that -- kids tend to focus on easily understood professions ("doctor", "firefighter", "veterinarian") and often don't realize that things like intellectual property law, leveraged buyouts, etc. have their own rewards.</p>

<p>In terms of "feeling like a doctor", PAs and NPs have virtually identical responsibilities except that they can't be the primary in surgery.</p>

<p>To answer your question directly, every obstacle can be overcome... in theory. If you managed to cure cancer, win the Nobel Peace Prize, etc., I guarantee you med schools will be knocking on your door.</p>

<p>I don't even think you're quite that desperate, but close. If you can give them a spotless track record from this point forward, you're still presenting a respectable 3.6 BCPM -- not the sort of thing that will help, but certainly not something that will keep you out of medical school in general. You will need to be flawless in every other respect: Needless to say, the rest of your grades and your MCAT score will all need to be stunning. Your essays, interviews, application timing, etc. will all need to be flawless, and you will need exemplary clinical experience and/or research.</p>

<p>This is a very high bar to jump over, and very, very few students will be able to pull it off -- and very few of those will be among the students who found themselves in your position.</p>

<p>As I said previously, I would give yourself one more semester. Anything short of straight A's, and I'd explore other career options.</p>

<p>EDIT: For the record: This sounds like the advice that I give students who have just received a C. It is NOT the same situation. You are in much worse straits. A C would need to present with a flawless record otherwise. An F needs to present with a stellar record otherwise. Don't underestimate the difficulty of doing that.</p>

7

<p>Did you receive the poor grades because you skipped class, didn't turn in assignments and blazed up before every exam? Or did you get bad grades because "things just didn't work out", despite working hard? If the former is true, you should explore some lifestyle changes. If the latter is true, you should explore other career paths.</p>

8

<p>If it's of any help, I use this calculator to input credits, potential grades and more to see how future semester will impact me: <a href="http://www.back2college.com/gpa.htm%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.back2college.com/gpa.htm&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

9

<p>well cavalier i did everything but blaze up before every exam....i regret it so much, it was intro bio that focuses on evolution, ecology, and the like....i hated it so i skipped class/lab....damn, i hate myself over this</p>

10

<p>
[quote]
In terms of "feeling like a doctor", PAs and NPs have virtually identical responsibilities except that they can't be the primary in surgery.

[/quote]
</p>

<p>PA scope practice varies according to state requirements. In California and in most states, close physician supervision is required.
[quote]
Supervision: Physician must be available in person or by electronic communication at all times PA is caring for patients. Written guidelines for supervision must include one or more of the following: same-day examination of patient by physician; countersignature of all medical records within 30 days; protocols for some or all tasks. Supervising physician must review, countersign, and date at least 10% of medical records within 30 days for patients treated by PA, for PAs working under protocols.

[/quote]
</p>

<p><a href="http://www.aapa.org/gandp/statelaw.html%5B/url%5D"&gt;http://www.aapa.org/gandp/statelaw.html&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p>

<p>PA and NP practices are similar to each other, but both differ from MD practice in substantive ways.</p>

11

<p>i appreciate ure words bluedevilmike but if i donot get steller grades/scores can i not become a doctor?, and i donot need the credit since its not the into bio course needed for major (biochem. and molecular bio.), should i retake it anyway?</p>

12

<p>1.) Certainly I think there are differences between MD's and PA's -- there's a reason I'm not pursuing a PA degree -- but when presented with a 1.35 BCPM GPA and a student who insists on medicine, I do think being a PA or an NP could preserve much of what he's looking for.</p>

<p>2.) I mean, say you get a 4.0 from here on out, which is pretty stellar by any measurement. That nets you a 3.6 BCPM. Go much lower than that, and you start to run into problems.</p>

<p>Let's say you get that 3.6. That's a very minor problem, but it certainly won't help you at all. When your GPA won't help you, you really need to excel at other factors. If your GPA slips even a little bit -- say you get a 3.9 from here on out -- you really, really need to excel at other factors.</p>

<p>In other words, a C gives you no room for error. An D gives you no room to be average. An F... well, that really gives you no room to be anything less than stellar.</p>

<p>3.) You need to take a bio class with a lab for med schools. If it's not a prerequisite for anything, then by all means, move on.</p>

13

<p>I thought a 3.6 was above the average BCPM for med schools. Is anything below that really a problem? Is there a difference if this 3.6 is comprised of B's and A's, as opposed to C's, B's, and A's?</p>

14

<p>Yeah, you're exactly correct on all counts. The 3.6 isn't a problem, and I shouldn't have even called it a "minor" problem. That's my fault. I stand by my statement that it certainly won't be a factor in his favor.</p>

<p>There IS a difference. I can speak from personal experience that medical schools DO consider individual grades, especially in science classes. Half A's and half B's is better than three-quarters A's and one-quarter C's.</p>

15

<p>I believe what he's saying is that a 3.6 won't hurt you. However it doesn't help you either. Effectively it's in the neutral category. </p>

<p>Think of it this way, there are things that you can do or numbers you can hit which positively impact your application - a 4.0, a 37 on the MCAT, having great leadership experience. There are also things that can negatively impact your application - a 2.9, a 21 on the MCAT, not having any clinical experience. Other scores or activities are important but don't define your application in any way. </p>

<p>Let's face it, if you are student who has a 3.65 Overall, a 3.4 BCPM, a 29 on the MCAT, was a biology major, member of the pre-med and biology clubs, maybe a member of Beta Beta Beta (bio honorary), volunteered in the ER 3 hours a week for a year, and did a year of genetics research, you are a dime a dozen. You are competitive for a spot in medical school certainly, but you have done nothing to really make yourself stand out (in either a positive or negative way). A person with that same profile but a 3.4 Overall and 3.2 BCPM has effectively put themselves in the margins for getting admission. The 3.4 candidate still has a chance, but it's much less than the 3.6 application.</p>

<p>Let's be clear here before we go any farther: Getting a 3.4 is NOT, in and of itself, preventing the person from getting into medical school. It's that combined with the rest of the picture of their application, which is not notable. </p>

<p>This example is why, I tend to say that I got into med school on my MCAT score and my campus involvement, because those were outstanding in comparison to my peers. My excellence in those areas gave me some leeway for my slightly lower GPA.</p>

16

<p>if you really wanna be a doc, you need a good gpa. There are things you could do to increase your gpa. As BDM said, you must get 4.0's (or very close to that) from here on out. Another thing you could do is take a science major. Take as many BCPM courses you can get (provided you can do well, as in an A, in them). THere is still hope, but you need to work much harder (i.e. don't skip class/laze off). I know that evolution/ecology is boring ( i took it this quarter) but you have to understand that if you wanna be a doctor, these kinda classes are boring but necessary to get through in one piece. good luck</p>