(Pre-med student) I have a GPA of 3.9469 weighted I think 3.7 unweighted (Not sure) my school does not give unweighted. I rank 67 out of 285 (Top 25%). 4 AP classes. 3 advanced, and I’m taking 2 more AP’s senior year with 4 advanced. I have volunteered for about 80 hours at a hospital, library, and carnival combined, and add another 35 hours for nhs. 4 honor societies Latin honor society, National, Mu alpha theta, and French honor society. Have 4 local awards. I’m president of international club. Treasurer of Psychology club. and member of anime club. I play no sports whatsoever. Current highest SAT score of 1690. 1720 superscored ( I know it sucks and the math + CR is super easy, but I’m slow). I live in VA. Can afford max 50k for undergrad.
If I don’t get into any of these colleges then I guess it would be community, but for pre-med I hear that’s not recommended since it’s two year. If possible I would like more than reach and match because I don’t know what those terms mean. I kinda relaxed too much in highschool, but I don’t think I did that bad even though I put in minimal effort. Thanks in advance to those who reply.
You need a school where you can do well academically and take the premed required courses. It seems like you’ll be able to afford most schools so that shouldn’t be an issue.
Can you retake the SAT, or take the ACT?
Your scores aren’t terrible, but your GPA is much better.
$50,000 for undergrad, as in all four years? This would mean you have $12,500 per year.
You may want to look into CCs. Most four year schools are at least $20,000 annually, even in-state.
So ultimately your MCAT score will be critical to getting into med school. It is a red flag to me that you are struggling with the SAT; you will likely also struggle with the MCAT. Pre-med can be any major as long as you fulfill the pre-med requirements. I’d advise that you major, or at least minor is something with good job prospects in case med school admissions don’t work out.
@newjerseygirl98 Its 50k per year. Itried the SAT 4 times and my score doesnt go up by much because I haven’t had much time to practice with pacing. I personally find the AP exams easier than the SAT
" Itried the SAT 4 times and my score doesnt go up by much because I haven’t had much time to practice with pacing"
What is the point of taking it 4 times if you don’t practice? This is like banging your head on the wall and being surprised each time because it hurts. Advice for the MCAT? Easy. Practiice. A lot. Like everyone else who is taking the test.
Oh! If you can afford 50K per year, that’s great. I wouldn’t recommend CCs then. You should try the ACT, if you can’t improve on the SAT.
Here’s some schools in the southeast:
-Clemson University (reach)
-Lipscomb University (match)
-Mercer University (match)
-Samford University (match)
-Southeastern University (match)
-University of Arkansas (low reach)
-University of Louisville (match)
Furman is test-optional, located in beautiful Greenville, SC. Very strong Pre-Med. Elon in NC would be another consideration, and they love full-pay kids.
But I agree with comments above that if you struggle with timing on the SAT, the MCAT is going to be more of the same unless something changes. Taking the test multiple times is not “practicing.” Can your family afford to hire a test tutor for you?
The “experts” I have spoken to have universally recommended trying both tests, as invariably students do better at one v. the other. That may not be a big a distinction with the “new” SAT, which appears to have moved closer to the ACT.
You school or library should have practice tests available for you to give it a try and see if you perform better on one over the other.
Actually, most students do very similarly on the ACT and the SAT, but for a few there is a significant difference. Are you one of those? Do the practice test.
But before investing the time, check to make sure that if you do take the ACT, that the score will still be accepted. Many schools won’t look at tests taken after December for the coming admission year.
Assuming you’re a senior, it’s too late for the ACT. If you’re a junior, it may be a good idea but if you’re slow with the SAT, the ACT will be even worse.
Apply to test-optional colleges.
I would recommend you major in Economics (with extra courses in statistics) and add the premed core. This way, if the MCAT results are similar to the SAT results, you have a career to fall back on or excellent opportunities while you take a glide year.
Possibilities that would be supportive of you as a premed student and have good economics/business programs:
St Michael’s (in Burlington, Vermont, a really cool college town); Denison; Wheaton, MA; St Lawrence; Allegheny; Muhlenberg; UScranton; Lake Forest Chicago; Clark.
Here’s a full list of top tier, test optional colleges: http://www.fairtest.org/sites/default/files/Optional-Schools-in-U.S.News-Top-Tiers.pdf
A bit more complicated, Rhodes College; St Olaf; Dickinson. Also possible:Temple; Fairfield; Ithaca; TCNJ; Loyola Maryland.
Thanks for all you input guys I have the same fears as you guys have guessed: the MCAT. My GPA I’m pretty sure I can keep up. But I do have a question if that’s okay. The one class I struggled in the most was Geometry. I did really good in Algebra and Algebra II/ Trig. My Math score in the lowest of all my SAT scores. Is my SAT score really going to be the same or similar to my future MCAT? Science is my strongest subject, and unlike the SAT I plan to start practicing little by little early on. Do you guys have any suggestions to help me study? I don’t want the same score. @MYOS1634@N’s Mom @ColdinMinny
Don’t think about the MCAT right now: Focus on getting into college and through the pre-med prereqs: Org and inOrg Chem, bio, physics, calc, etc…Those classes, especially when treated as weeders, have killed many pre-med aspirations. If you can get through those classes with the GPA you need (think 3.75 or higher), then you can go to the premed forum here on CC, where there is a great deal of advice on next steps. Like the SAT, you can indeed raise your score by practicing for the MCAT - but that a concern for another day.
I have the same fears as you guys have guessed: the MCAT. My GPA I’m pretty sure I can keep up. But I do have a question if that’s okay. The one class I struggled in the most was Geometry. I did really good in Algebra and Algebra II/ Trig. My Math score in the lowest of all my SAT scores. Is my SAT score really going to be the same or similar to my future MCAT? Science is my strongest subject, and unlike the SAT I plan to start practicing little by little early on. Do you guys have any suggestions to help me study? I don’t want the same score.