Hello everyone I’m in a somewhat complicated situation and any advice is helpful. I’m currently a junior and I’ve just decided I want to attend medical school. I plan to do a post baccalaureate once I graduate but I have already taken some prequisities. I’ve taken bio 1 & 2 and chem 1&2 my question is in the yr I have left should I do orgo 1& 2 or should I jus wait to do it in the post baccalaureate. I don’t want to stress my self since I only have a yr left. And if anyone knows any good post baccalaureates for my particular situation it would be greatly appreciated. Thank you in advance.
- Explore to extend your UG for another year and complete all your pre-med courses at your current school and apply.
- Start non-academic activities related to medicine right away including this summer.
- Not clear "I don’t want to stress my self since I only have a yr left. ". Can you elaborate, especially 'stress' & 'only have a yr left'? A. If doing OChem 1 & 2 is a stress, how are you going to do BioChem, Higher level Bio, and MD courses in 2 years? B. If you think doing MD and medicine career is tough and that is why you want to relax your last 1 year, then think backup plan also.
Searchable database of career-changer post-baccs–
https://apps.aamc.org/postbac/#/index
Note that because you’ve already taken 4 pre-reqs, you may not be eligible for many of them.
It’s probably less expensive to continue to take your pre-reqs during your regular undergrad than to do them at a formal post-bacc. As @GoldenRock has suggested, explore taking a 5th year of undergrad to finish your pre-reqs there.
You could also finish your pre-reqs as a do-it-yourself post bacc, taking missing pre-reqs part-time and ala carte while working after you graduate from college. (D1 did this.)
Or you could finish your pre-reqs as a full time non-degree student at a college near where you live post graduation.
There are plenty of ways to finish your pre-reqs. Post-baccs are only 1 way.
Now to the important questions-- what is your current GPA? What is your GPA for only your math, bio, chem and physics classes? Both are critical for gaining a med school acceptance.
Besides finishing your pre-reqs, you need to have the right ECs to apply to med school. A strong MCAT score & great GPA only prevents your application from getting immediately rejected, it’s your ECs that get you interviewed.
Expected pre-med ECs:
–clinical volunteering The more the better. You need to start this immediately. Med school adcomms expect people applying to med school have spent enough time working with the sick, injured, dying, mentally ill and frail elderly so that they understand what they’re signing up for.
–community service with vulnerable populations (elderly, mentally ill, poor, homeless, physically disabled, non-English speakers) Medicine is a service-oriented, altruistic profession and adcomms want to see that you have demonstrated those qualities. Start community service involvement immediately.
–leadership Physicians are team leaders in the medical environment. Adcomms are looking for people who work well in team environments and are capable of organizing and leading groups of people.
–bench or clinical research experience–less important than the 3 listed above, but a very useful/enlightening. If you can find an opportunity during your remaining time in college, you should try to do some. Since you’ve had bio & chem, there are probably some labs on your college campus that would be willing to take you on. Start contacting professors right now to ask if they have any summer opening, or, alternatively, if they will have one in the fall.
RE: Stress. Medical school is extremely stressful. Working as a doctor is extremely stressful. If you are looking for a low stress career--medicine is NOT a career you should be considering.
I understand the desire to have a fun, low stress/high partying senior year of college, but a medical career requires a great many sacrifices of physicians/future physicians. Having an academically intense & challenging senior year is the just the first of many sacrifices you'll be asked to make if you want to be a physician. As @GoldenRock said
You should think twice before jump in to medicine, being a doctor is very stressful and its not for fainted heart. Not only taking Orgo is stressful, but also the ensuing years. In your practice, you are facing live or death situation and you must be able to coop the stress and make quick decisions. It a long haul to become a doctor, it might take you another 10 years to become a board certified doctor.
What is your major right now?