I’m a senior at a university in NJ and wondering if I should still apply to medical school. I received A’s in General Bio I and II, A’s in General Chem I and II, A’s in Calculus I,II, & III (don’t think III is required for med school) and then I transferred from a community college in PA into my current university in NJ and took Physics and Organic Chem, unfortunately my junior year was heavy and difficult for me and I suffered the loss of a loved one this same year, severely affected my personal and academic life, should have dropped out of the classes but instead I decided to give it a shot. I received an F in Organic Chem I, a C- in Physics I, and then I took Physics II and received a C, and retook Organic Chem I and received a C-. I have not taken Organic Chemistry II yet or Biochemistry, but I plan to just focus on my major to graduate with a high GPA, and then probably retake Organic Chem I and then take Organic Chem II and then finally Biochemistry I at another university close to home. Is this a good idea? or should I consider a postbacc after graduation? I’ve always wanted to be a doctor (MD), it has been my main goal since freshmen year of high school.
Unfortunately adcomms are going to interpret your sGPA as showing that you were a fine community college student, but couldn’t compete when faced with stronger competition at a 4 year college. Offering any sort of explanation is only going to come off an making excuses for your poor performance.
(There are many applicants who do face all sort of terrible events in their lives and still manage to earn top grades. As a whole medicine is not a very forgiving profession when it comes to personal issues. Doctors are expected to succeed or step out. Additionally your failure to withdraw once you knew you were performing poorly academically showcases both poor judgement and immaturity–two things which will hurt your application with adcomms.)
I’m sure you know already that allopathic med schools do not allow for grade replacement; all grades you earn will be averaged into your GPA/sGPA.
Also medical schools do not consider any grade below a C as passing in terms of fulfilling pre-reqs. C- is not a passing grade to med schools. This mean you’ll need to retake Phys I and try Ochem 1 for the 3rd time in additional to taking Ochem 2 and biochem.
TBH, right now your sGPA is kind of a disaster w/r/t med school. You going to need to a number of additional high level science courses to demonstrate you can succeed at the kind of difficult science coursework expected of successful applicants. I don’t think just retakes plus Ochem 2 and biochem are going to be enough to convince an adcomm you’d succeed in medical school. Realistically, a formal grade-enhancing post-bacc which confers a master’s in a bioscience is probably your only chance for an MD.
There is a searchable database of post-baccs here:
https://apps.aamc.org/postbac/
Choose grade enhancing as the type.
Be aware that there are good post-baccs and poor ones. Before selecting a program, you’ll need to research their success rate in placing their grads into med school.
You say you want to be MD. Will you consider osteopathic medicine? Why not?
A physician is a physician; the letters after your name are irrelevant.
DO programs allow grade replacement. This would be a faster and more cost-effective way to improve your sGPA.
You say you have always wanted to be doctor–but what are your reasons? (Don’t post them, just be honest with yourself.)
Have you been involved in any kinds of clinical activities or physician shadowing? These are activities that will give you a insider’s view of medicine as profession.
IOW, do you have a realistic view of medicine as a career or you just a one of many pre-med dreamers?
Do you have any of the ECs expected in med school applicants? Research? Long-term community service? Leadership? Clinical volunteering? Physician shadowing? Teaching/tutoring/coaching?
I should have just gone to a smaller university and not an ivy league after community college, my GPA and sGPA would be perfectly fine. I only went to CC to save money because my family was struggling, sigh. Princeton kind of screwed me up, the learning there is different but my overall GPA is good, but I guess the challenging coursework is good preparation. I have done everything you’ve listed, I currently work at a dental office too. And recently got into a program as an intern in a psychiatric office. Thank you for the honesty and database, I will look into it.
Just curious as to how you are a transfer student at Princeton?
Who Can Apply
“We accept students who will begin their freshman year in the fall. Princeton does not offer spring semester entry or a transfer admission option. If you already have started a college or university degree program elsewhere, you are not eligible to apply for admission to Princeton.”
http://admission.princeton.edu/applyingforadmission
http://admission.princeton.edu/applyingforadmission/admission-faqs/eligibility
Is it possible to transfer to Princeton from another college or university?
“No. Princeton does not offer transfer admission. Any student who has graduated from secondary school and enrolled as a full-time degree candidate at another college or university is considered a transfer applicant and is not eligible for undergraduate admission. Additionally, any student who has completed a post-secondary degree is not eligible for undergraduate admission or a second undergraduate degree from Princeton.”
Kat
I was gonna say the same thing as Kat; it’s impossible to transfer to Princeton. Your post is sus af