So my freshman year of college was a 2.94 gpa, and then I transferred to a better university, and my gpa for sophomore and junior years are 3.85, senior year gpa wouldn’t change that much either. My resume has leadership positions, activities, shadowing, research, medical jobs, so I wouldn’t worried much about that. So my question is Would my freshman gpa affect my chance of getting in Med school? Thanks
Med school take ALL college credits into consideration, including college credits earned while you are in high school. Your freshman credits WILL effect their admission decision, but otoh they will consider your upward trend.
Generally speaking med schools like upward GPA trends. But there’s much more to your GPA than just saying 2.94, 3.85,3.85. Med school GPAs get calculated primarily into two important ways. One is a cumulative GPA, or cGPA for all courses taken. A cGPA will be calculated separately for each year, and an overall cGPA is also calculated for all courses taken during college (and hs). Second, a science GPA, or sGPA. This will include all bio, chem, physics, and math courses (BCPM) you’ve taken. Like a cGPA, your sGPA is separately calculated for each year and an overall sGPA is also calculated. One’s sGPA is typically considered to carry more weight.
What’s your overall cGPA? Can you calculate your sGPA by year and cumulatively? Did you take many BCPM courses in second, third years, or are your second, third year 3.85 GPAs mainly say non BCPM courses?
Even if you’ve brought your GPAs up to say 3.6 (arguably lower end of competitiveness), without a MCAT score, it’s impossible to venture a guess as to whether your first year grades will affect your chances. Do you have a MCAT score?
@Jugulator20 My BCPM courses for my sophomore year and junior in my current college is a 4.0 (straight As) but if you combine my freshman sGPA at the previous college, that is only 3.64. (Freshman year sGPA is 2.56). If I get all As In my senior year, my sGPA is 3.72 combined with freshman year. If not my BCPM is just a 4.0 for the last three years. My cGPA for the first three years is 3.71 combined. My MCAT I only took practiced, and it’s around 509-513.
You will be fine if your final sGPA is 3.72. Don’t stress about your freshman GPA too much, you have an excellent upward trend going from below 3.0 to 4.0. If you know any med school applicants, ask to take a look of their AMCAS applications (in PDF) and you’ll understand how GPAs are layed out. If you score 510+ in MCAT, you should get in MD schools.
med schools will certainly combine your freshman year grades.
I don’t know what that means. Does that mean you took one BCPM course each term during the last two years and earned As, hence your 4.0 sGPA for each of the last two years. This would not help your case. Or were you taking say 2-4 UD BCPM courses each term the last two years and earning As. This scenario could help med schools conclude you can handle the academics of med school despite your slow start first year.
You appear to be on right track and with a competitive MCAT score you could get past initial screening at many schools. Initial screening is where schools look at GPAs/MCAT to determine if an applicant can handle academics of med school. If you get past screening, whether you would get an interview invitation would depend on rest of your application (eg ECs, LoRs, PS, secondary essays, fit with school’s mission statement). Any deficiency here would probably end your chances. And whether you would get an acceptance would depend on how you do at interview. It’s just not about GPAs and MCAT.
I would encourage you to keep doing what you are doing and apply, assuming you have a competitive MCAT score. As the competition is fierce, apply broadly as all US meds schools are good schools and can get you were you want to go as MD. If you are a CA resident, if accepted, expect to attend med school out of state.
If it offers you some hope, it’s been over a decade and at a time where it seemed like competition was not as crazy as today, but S finished first year with GPAs below 3.2 and is an MD. Good luck.
@Jugulator20 Yeah I took 3-4 UD BCPMs each year and got all As. I am just so afraid of the impact that my freshman year gpa will have on my application.
Don’t be afraid. Many frosh have problem grades. The upward trend is important. You’re showing that you’ve matured and can handle things.
When will you be taking the MCAT and applying?
Are you a senior now?
I think you’ll be ok but I also think you have to take a gap year (ie apply at the end of senior year) so that your senior year grades will be on the transcript and your freshman year will only be 1/4 of your grades, not 1/3.
Edit: actually I guess you are a senior if I’m reading your post right so you are already doing the right thing. You might want to consider 2 gap years so you can focus on school senior year, do the MCAT over the summer, and then apply at the end of that school year (so assuming you are class of 2019, I mean take MCAT summer 2019, apply summer 2020, start med school summer 2021). I don’t think this is necessary but for someone in your situation it could mean being vastly more competitive as you have a bit of a GPA hole to dig out of
@iwannabe_Brown So I graduate May 2019. I planned on going to Med school Fall 2019. So to include all my senior gpa, you would recommend on taking the mcat summer 2019 and then go to med school fall 2020.
@mom2collegekids I plan on taking the MCAT before May and applying, but my sGPA is going to be low if my senior year is not counted. Planning on taking a gap year in order for my senior gpa to be included so instead of a 3.62 I would have a 3.72 for my science courses
Okay. Let me elaborate this more clearly. Should I apply after now or after Senior year grades are posted ?
If I apply for Fall 2019
My sgpa (3.64)
My cgpa (3.74)
If I apply for Fall 2020
My sgpa (3.71)
My cgpa (3.80)
Do not take into account MCAT scores and ECs, those I have nothing to worry about.
If you planned on going to med school in Fall 2019, you should have applied in summer of 2018. You’ve probably missed most med school deadlines for fall 2019 admission, and even if there is a school where you haven’t missed deadline, without an actual MCAT score, it’s too late to apply for Fall 2019 .
So take MCAT in May 2019, finish your senior year so you’ll have your senior grades, and apply in summer 2019 for 2020 admission. But apply broadly.
@Jugulator20 Thank you !
What jug said