Soon-to-be military veteran looking for pre-med guidance

Pre-Med & Medical School Pre-Med Topics
1

<p>Hello everyone,</p>

<p>I will be leaving the Air Force this November, after eight and a half years of service. Unfortunately, I have some medical issues, so I will be medically retired. After thinking about what to do with my life afterwards, I've been leaning more and more towards a career in medicine. I was hoping I could get some pointers from here. Here are some questions I have:</p>

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<li><p>I originally thought I would be out by July so, thinking I might be able to attend school this fall, I took the SAT in a bit of a rush last November. I got a 1930. Should I retake it? if not, what are some good schools I could realistically get into with good premed programs?</p></li>
<li><p>From what I gather, the most important things needed to get into medical school are a good GPA and a good MCAT score. However, I've heard some schools tend to be more harsh with their grading, which could be bad for my GPA. I'd like to go to a school that grades students fairly. I'll already be at a slight disadvantage, being a returning education student. I don't want my GPA to suffer unnecessarily if it can be helped. What are some schools I should consider based on that?</p></li>
<li><p>Speaking of returning education students, does anyone know of any good schools that assist veterans with getting back on the education track? If they have a good premed program, that would be even better!</p></li>
<li><p>I obtained an associate's degree in biomedical equipment technology from the Community College of the Air Force. That would put me on track for a bachelor's in biomedical engineering, I guess? But I've heard that going for any kind of engineering degree while aiming for medical school is a bad idea, since engineering is hard and may mess up my GPA. what are some other majors I should consider? I'm fairly artistically inclined, so anything with drawing would be all right. Not very lucrative, though, should I fail to get into medical school.</p></li>
<li><p>Going back to my degree, are there any good schools out there that will let me disregard it and start over? I ask because I know the chances of getting into any school are a lot lower as a transfer student than as a freshman, which I think is a bit unfair for us military folk, since we automatically get credits when we learn to do our job so we can't apply as freshmen. If I can't discard the credits, do any good schools offer a transfer admission guarantee for military vets or something similar?</p></li>
</ul>

<p>I really appreciate anyone taking the time to answer any of the questions above.</p>

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<p>Since you already have earned an AA degree, I don’t think colleges will require or consider your SAT score. For transfer students, colleges will mostly (solely?) look at your grades from your AA program.</p>

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<p>Grades and MCAT are the starting point for medical school admission. There are expectations for other activities-- community service, clinical experience, physician shadowing, leadership, clinical or laboratory research. Your military service will stand you in good stead for some of these, while there are probably other areas you will need to work on.</p>

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<p>Most colleges grade fairly but the academic expectations and/or level of competitiveness varies from college to college. You should not plan on attending a college where your SAT/GPA puts you in the bottom half of the class </p>

<p>The College Navigator at NCES will show you the average stats for incoming freshman. It will give you a place to start.</p>

<p><a href=“College Navigator - National Center for Education Statistics”>http://nces.ed.gov/collegenavigator/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>I can’t name any colleges off hand that have a military re-integration program, but many larger public colleges will have a veterans’ resource center that will help you navigate GI Bill benefits and other issues that veterans face. The better programs offer counseling and other support services. </p>

<p>All colleges have free tutoring centers for all students.</p>

<p>You might start by looking at state universities in your state of residence. </p>

<p>There are also some states which will give military veterans instant state residency if they relocate there within a short period of time (<6 months) after discharge. Please check into this. In-state residency can save you a lot of money on tuition expenses. It will help if you can pick a state that also has several public medical schools with a very strong in-state preference for admission.</p>

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<p>Engineering may or may not be difficult to maintain a high GPA for. It depends on your aptitude for it. I know of a number of successful engineering majors now in med school. Both my children (both now in med school) were applied math majors–a math major didn’t hurt their GPAs.</p>

<p>Since you enjoy drawing, you could major in studio art for a BFA. Be aware, however, that studio arts are often very time-consuming and will leave little time for other activities. It’s also a fairly subjectively graded field. What about something like digital arts & animation? Some programs lean heavily toward computer coding while others are more on the art side. </p>

<p>Bio, biochem and chemistry major have the greatest overlap with pre-med requirements so many med school applicants major in those. </p>

<p>In general, you should major in a field that you enjoy and that you have an aptitude for.</p>

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<p>Well, Texas does have the Academic Fresh Start program, but you would need to have been finished with all classes and out of school completely for 10 years to be eligible.</p>

<p>So except for that, no, and medical schools won’t either. AMCAS requires that you report every grade you’ve earned at the college level no matter how long ago you took the class and all grades will be used when computing your GPA for medical school applications.</p>

<p>AACOMAS (osteopathic medical schools), OTOH, will allow for grade replacement. Your GPAs will be computed only using the most recent grade for the same class. IOW, if you took a gen chem class 5 years ago and got a C, then you retake gen chem this fall and get an A, then only the A is used to compute your GPA. You must replace a course with an identical course with same or greater credit. </p>

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<p>I don’t know of any. But you may have better luck asking in the Veterans forum:</p>

<p><a href=“Veterans - College Confidential Forums”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/veterans/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>The only guaranteed transfer programs I’m aware of are for community colleges that have articulation agreements with their local state universities.</p>

<p>Good luck with your transition to civilian life! </p>

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<p>Thanks for your assistance!</p>

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<p>Thanks for your assistance!</p>

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<p>First…thank you for your service to our country.</p>

<p>Are you looking for Yellow Ribbon schools? These are schools that accept your VA benefits and pay any remaining tuition. </p>

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<p>Frankly, I cannot answer any of your question.
However, I am here to support your decision. My D. (4th year Med. student) has a veteran in her class. She said that while he is more reserved than most others, he is one of the nicest people in her class. You definitely will have an advantage of being more mature and appreciative. These traits are not obtained thru education, they are life experiences that many others around you will appreciate. The best wishes! </p>

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<p>What kind of medical issues do you have? If it is a disability, med schools won’t easily admit you as the MD profession requires physical stamina to be successful.</p>

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<p>Mom2collegekids, I am looking into yellow ribbon schools as well, but there are a lot of them so it takes a while to find one with a good combination of quality education, economically significant yellow ribbon contribution, and enough slots. Thanks for the tip, though!</p>

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<p>MiamiDAP, thanks for your comment. One of the things that worry me is feeling like I might not fit in due to starting so late (I’m about to turn 27). But it’s nice to see that people do appreciate the sort of life skills and experience one can bring to the table.</p>

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<p>Artloversplus, as far as physical disabilities, I don’t have any major issues, except for some lower back pain that seems to be getting worse over time. My main problem is that I suffer from depression. That can make it very difficult to feel motivated to accomplish one’s goals and assigned tasks. One of the things that I’m most afraid of about pursuing medical school, or any career in general, is not that I won’t understand the material or do good in class, but that I won’t have the motivation required to accomplish what’s necessary to succeed. That’s why I’m still deciding whether medicine is a good fit for me or not.</p>

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<p>@overmind87</p>

<p>Don’t let age be a deterrent. There is an individual in the class ahead of D1 who was 52 when he matriculated into med school. D1’s SO is just now picking up his pre-reqs for med/PA school. He’s 34 and has 1.5-2 years of coursework at least ahead of him before he can sit for the MCAT. </p>

<p>The depression & motivation issue is more concerning. You really need to get your health issues under control before embarking on this journey. Pre-med and medical school is physically and emotionally demanding. You need to be in the best place possible in order to succeed.</p>

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<p>Also try asking here: <a href=“Nontraditional Students | Student Doctor Network”>http://■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■■/forums/nontraditional-students.110/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Alabama has unlimited Yellow Ribbon awards. Very generous. Alabama (and the South) loves vets. Plus, establishing residency in the state would be easy for you. The state has two med schools and while admission is competitive, if you have the stats and resume, your chances for admittance is quite good. </p>

<p>Both instate and OOS med school applicants have a high success rate of admittance. The school does do Committee Letters and Mock Interviews.
<a href=“http://prehealth.ua.edu/”>http://prehealth.ua.edu/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>I know that the VA link says that Bama has a limit, but about a year ago, Bama changed its policy to become Unlimited…and the VA website never updated.</p>

<p>here is the info on the changed policy…</p>

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<p>“[The GI Bill issue] does not come into play with our students here at UA. The University has elected to be an unlimited Yellow Ribbon school,” Blair said.</p>

<p>As such, The University of Alabama provides veteran students with scholarships to cover the full cost of tuition for both in-state and out-of-state students, regardless of how much tuition the GI Bill covers.</p>

<p>“When a veteran, service member or dependent is eligible to receive the Post 9/11 GI Bill at the 100% rate then they are automatically eligible to receive the Yellow Ribbon Scholarship,” Blair said. “This comes into play when a student is in an Out-of-State Residency status. UA has agreed to be unlimited for this program, so if you meet the criteria, UA has agreed to pay for half of the out-of-state cost and the VA picks up the other half.”</p>

<p>Will Suclupe, a U.S. Army veteran and UA student, has been using the Chapter 33 9/11 GI Bill to pay for school since being released from active duty in 2009.</p>

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<p>reported in the Crimson White 1/15/2013</p>

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<p>OP thank you for your service to our country.</p>

<p>Sounds like you are single? </p>

<p>As mom2 said, there are two medical schools in AL, UAB and USA in Mobile (Univ of South AL). USA also has other health related studies there.</p>

<p>UAB may also be another place for you to look into - that way if you do believe you want to go into another health related field you have options there. Good advising at both UA and UAB (I have students at both).</p>

<p>You may find more non-traditional students at UAB. B’ham is the largest city in AL. Tuscaloosa is definitely a college town to the state flagship.</p>

<p>Sounds like you will be healing, body and mind. You may find more VA services in a city like B’ham for you.</p>

<p>Are you planning on beginning school in January? You will want to get admitted, get your course evaluated, and get a schedule for your degree plan.</p>

<p>Best wishes!</p>

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<p><a href=“http://www.usuhs.mil/”>http://www.usuhs.mil/&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

<p>Uniformed Medical school will be one of your choices, as a veteran. They have a lower admit standard.</p>

<p>However, unless your medical condition can be controlled, Your medical career, including schooling, can not be materialized, especially it was the reason for your military discharge.</p>

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<p>USUHS requires all applicants to be military-service eligible since concurrent with medical school enrollment, matriculants also are commissioned as military officers.</p>

<p>If the OP has been discharged due to a medical disability from the Air Force, he likely will not meet the physical enlistment standards.</p>

<p>Here’s a summary of disqualifying medical conditions for applicants to USUHS</p>

<p><a href=“http://www.usuhs.edu/adm/catalog/AdmissionRequirements.pdf”>http://www.usuhs.edu/adm/catalog/AdmissionRequirements.pdf&lt;/a&gt;&lt;/p&gt;

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<p>Thank you all for the replies. I haven’t checked in for a while since I’m in the middle of doing my out-processing for separating from the military and heading back to the US. To answer a few questions I saw:</p>

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<li><p>My condition is stable, which is the main reason why I will be fully retired from the military instead of only temporary retirement or a regular medical discharge.</p></li>
<li><p>I was planning on applying to USUHS, but I’ll have to see if my disability is waiver-able. Considering I’m being fully retired, though, I doubt it.</p></li>
<li><p>I will probably look to start school next Aug. I thought about trying to get into school right away, but I figured taking a break will give me time to look at different schools and what they can offer me, possibly go on campus tours, search on-line for scholarships so I can save most of my GI Bill for med school, and finally so I can save some of my retirement pay checks for any future expenses.</p></li>
<li><p>Fortunately, I am single. Even though I would like to have a family in the future, there is no way I could afford, time and money-wise, to both provide for a family and go to school at the same time. Especially medical school. I’m sure some people do it, though, and they have my utmost respect.</p></li>
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<p>Since you would not be an incoming freshman, getting scholarships (at least enough to make a dent in costs) is unlikely. </p>

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<p>Since you are independent, it cant hurt to look at Amherst. They do favor ve=ts and they are financially very generous. I know during my D time there that they admitted vets. Even though your test scores are a bit low for them…you should def look into them. </p>

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<p>I’m not sure that the test scores will matter. This student already has an AA, so would be like a CC transfer. </p>