moneyking Posted January 11, 2017 Report Share Posted January 11, 2017 Hello, I'm in a sort of dilemma. I'm in my last year of undergrad at UTSC, majoring in neuro and psych. My cgpa stands at 3.88 (uft), 3.86 (if 85-90=3.9), however my last 2 years went pretty well and my wgpa for some schools are like 3.94,3.91,3.92~. With all that said, I will be writing the MCAT over the summer. I don't have any research experience atm, and I am not in any financial trouble. Any advice/recommendations will be appreciated. Thank you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pterygoid Posted January 11, 2017 Report Share Posted January 11, 2017 I'd recommend a 5th year if you possess the finances. It provides an opportunity to remain involved on campus while increasing your cgpa. A masters will put you in a 2 yr commitment, and likely invest you in a lot of research (is this something you're interested in?) A year-off from school, you would still want to show adcom that you are involved within the community (you would likely need to drop your university extracurricular since you would graduate). You also won't get to increase your cgpa. This just my opinion of course. This was my thought process when I decided to take a 5th year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
freewheeler Posted January 11, 2017 Report Share Posted January 11, 2017 -Do a masters program only if you would be ok pursuing it for the next 2 years and genuinely enjoy it -A fifth year can be a great option if you take the minimum credits required to be a full-time student at your institution, take courses that you are genuinely interested in and can excel in to raise your GPA a bit while continuing any on-campus ECs you have and also taking on some new ECs on or off campus -Only take a year off if you end up working full-time and continue volunteering alongside that and are satisfied with your GPA -Don't worry about research, you don't need it to receive admission to medical school -Take this summer to write the MCAT and do some volunteering alongside your studying if you can balance the two Of course I don't know what your entire application looks like, but at this point the biggest boost in your candidacy will come from a strong MCAT score. Good luck. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bambi Posted January 11, 2017 Report Share Posted January 11, 2017 You are in a good place. It does not look like you need a 5th year. Either work, do ECs, volunteering or travel. Only go for a Masters if it is something that really interests you or if you want it for a Plan B. If I were you, I would enjoy the year off whatever I do, and anything you do that relates to CanMEDS competencies, be it work or whatever, is fine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Artier Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 All you have to do at this point is score well on the MCAT and you're good to go. Spend your year however you would like. Regardless of what you choose, try to get a couple of hobbies, volunteer, work, research, etc. commitments in if you want to boost your EC's more.Another option would be to spend it doing something practical that could lead you to an alternate career path you would enjoy (PT, OT, MPH, etc.). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RicardoKaká Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 Pursued and finished my MSc and landed my first interview ever, I think having a cGPA > 3.80 on OMSAS and wGPA > 3.90 for many schools puts you in a good standing in Canadian medical schools. I get its always more competitive to have higher... but an extra .01 in the grand scheme of things is pretty small compared to the EC gains and unique experiences you may get in a MSc.... Just my 2 cents, explore your passions and don't just do a 5th year if its going to be a measly bump IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
slickvic Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 Pursued and finished my MSc and landed my first interview ever, I think having a cGPA > 3.80 on OMSAS and wGPA > 3.90 for many schools puts you in a good standing in Canadian medical schools. I get its always more competitive to have higher... but an extra .01 in the grand scheme of things is pretty small compared to the EC gains and unique experiences you may get in a MSc.... Just my 2 cents, explore your passions and don't just do a 5th year if its going to be a measly bump IMO. QUESTION: I'm in a similar dilemma - 3.96 cGPA (3.97 for Toronto), I would say I have a lot of very good/varied ECs (landed interview at Queen's last year, didn't get accepted). I'm worried I won't be accepted this year and am planning backups too I'm not sure if I'm reasoning through my options logically and would like feedback : - 5th year: I think this is out of the option for me seeing as how my GPA is already pretty high ? - Master's: I would be up to doing a Masters, but I heard for a masters you have to COMPLETE the program to be accepted, is this true? I.e., if you're in the 1st year of a 2-3 year masters, you can't apply in the 1st year? - Taking year off: seems the most reasonable to me, I would work/volunteer and rewrite my MCAT (125 CARS is holding me back) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peace2014 Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 QUESTION: I'm in a similar dilemma - 3.96 cGPA (3.97 for Toronto), I would say I have a lot of very good/varied ECs (landed interview at Queen's last year, didn't get accepted). I'm worried I won't be accepted this year and am planning backups too I'm not sure if I'm reasoning through my options logically and would like feedback : - 5th year: I think this is out of the option for me seeing as how my GPA is already pretty high ? - Master's: I would be up to doing a Masters, but I heard for a masters you have to COMPLETE the program to be accepted, is this true? I.e., if you're in the 1st year of a 2-3 year masters, you can't apply in the 1st year? - Taking year off: seems the most reasonable to me, I would work/volunteer and rewrite my MCAT (125 CARS is holding me back) Take a year off, rewrite MCAT Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kinesinwalk Posted January 12, 2017 Report Share Posted January 12, 2017 Hello, I'm in a sort of dilemma. I'm in my last year of undergrad at UTSC, majoring in neuro and psych. My cgpa stands at 3.88 (uft), 3.86 (if 85-90=3.9), however my last 2 years went pretty well and my wgpa for some schools are like 3.94,3.91,3.92~. With all that said, I will be writing the MCAT over the summer. I don't have any research experience atm, and I am not in any financial trouble. Any advice/recommendations will be appreciated. Thank you! Academia and medicine are two very different things. If research/learning is your thing and you have the time and patience, go for academia. It will barely help you for med admissions though, but I'd say it's a very rewarding experience. You can get into med fine with your gpa. Just be patient and persistent. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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