Hey guys. So I’m going back to school after a year and a half after getting kicked out of school for a low GPA. In that time I thought about what caused this and it was purely my lack of interest in school at the time along with my laziness.
I’m planning to go to Community College to start fresh and I have a couple of questions.
Do community colleges offer pre medicine tracks? Or is going to a community college for pre medicine absurd? I’m not trying to actually use those credits for my application to medical school, but I wanted to know if they have courses that will prepare me for the science courses at another 4 year institution.
Another question I have about Community College: Is it possible to only go to a Community College for one year and then transfer to a nicer 4 year college? I’ve heard of students staying for 2 years for their Associates and then finishing the last two years at another college, but I don’t know many people transferring to a better college after 1 year.
Thanks. This is my first post here on this site and honestly instead of me trying to find out for myself on “Google”, I think that coming to a place where people have experience is a lot more intuitive. Thanks again.
Yes, you can go to a community college and they will offer the science classes you need. Most offer bio, chem and physics up through the second college level, in addition to “prep” level classes which you may need to take depending on your high school/prior college preparation. Some medical schools like to see certain classes, like Organic Chem, taken at a four year school though. But you can certainly get a lot of the general education and preparatory math and science classes done at a community college.
For many four-year schools, you can attempt to transfer after one year. You do not have to have an associate’s to transfer. It just depends whether the four-year school decides to admit you based on only a few credits. You should look at the websites of schools that you are interested in to see what their transfer requirements are. I think California’s system is different, but it doesn’t sound like you are heading out there!
Yeah I’m in New York, but I do want to look to transfer out in one year. The reason is because all I’ll be doing is studying and it’s what I’m going to focus on. If need be, I would like to take more than the recommended credits my second semester at the Community College.
My concern is that your prior 4-grades will come back to haunt you if you do decide to apply to medical school in the future. For you to have been kicked out from another institution, your GPA must have fallen below 2.0. Your composite GPA, when you include all your College courses, might not get you to a competitive GPA for medical school.
So, in addition to your zeal to get back to a 4-year College as quickly as possible, you should also consider other college majors/career choices as backup, as you move forward. How many credits did you complete successfully (C or better) at your first institution? How many semesters did you complete before you was asked to withdraw? Do you mine sharing the name of the prior College? You cannot just wipe the slate clean by starting over at a Community College and don’t assume that, because you are attending a Community College, the level of rigor will be substantially less than 4-year Colleges.