Ironically, I actually work for the hospital of my university right now. I know that I was destined to work in this type of setting; it’s just a feeling that can’t be explained. Unfortunately, i’m only at the receptionist level as far as experience goes so not too much patient interaction there & certainly no “hands on” experience.
If it means I can achieve my dream career, I have all the time in the world. Time really is no object here.
Seeing the reply posted above I am definitely interested in exploring the path of suspending my graduation & pursing a dual major at this time. I’m just not sure how all that goes or how long it would take to repair my GPA.
Anyone experienced with GPA calculations or know how long it might take me in terms of semesters to improve it?
@college_query I’ve searched & there isn’t exactly a calculator that would determine how many semesters you could complete this task in. They all assume you’re set to graduate in a 4-year track & would therefore say it is “impossible” to raise my GPA in the time allotted (4-year span) with my current GPA - 2.4.
This idea actually seems a lot more plausible as most institutions won’t accept a petition to obtain a second bachelors unless the field of study is dramatically different than the first… i.e. Sociology to something like Engineering. Considering I always say Sociology & Psychology are like fraternal twins, i’m sure most colleges absolutely would not consider these drastically different disciplines & my petition would probably get shot down anyhow.
@ugrad2016 - I graduated from an LAC and worked for two years at a string of random jobs while figuring out what I wanted to do. Then I enrolled at my cheapo in-state public U as a “senior transfer”, and took classes in that staus for a year. When I had enough background to enroll in grad courses, I did that in “non-degree” grad status and took another semester and summer session of grad classes. My GPA there was something like 3.7 overall, and I had strong enough relations with my profs to get the LORs needed for the grad programs I applied to. The grad programs evidently cared more about my newer better grades in that new field of study than they did about my older grades in the previous field of study.
Your mileage may vary of course.
Determining how many credits you need to earn and at what grade in order to pull up your SBU GPA to where you want it to be is just a mathematical calculation. Sit down with a friend who remembers what they learned in Algebra 1, and you can figure it out. As for finding out what your options are for a second BA or just a second major that will let you keep studying long enough to raise that GPA, that is something you need to take up directly with SBU. Do you have free or reduced tuition because of your job? If you don’t, you will have to sort out how to pay for classes.
Lots of pre-med/pre-healthcare students I know have picked up CNA certificates that get them hands on paid experience in hospital and other medical settings. If you want out from behind the receptionist desk, and your hospital has a CNA training program, that could be something to consider.