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I recommend this program @ Concordia. Read the below thread thoroughly for all details.

 

The material is voluminous but not difficult, although hard work is required throughout. Straight A's are attainable with hard work. It is an excellent prep for medicine and the internships allow you to apply your theoretical knowledge and to develop excellent communication skills with patients as you help to rehabilitate them.

 

Every person I know from this program got into med on their first try in one of the Franco medical schools.

 

http://forums.premed101.com/index.php?/topic/47595-cegepiens-eng-french-who-need-to-choose-an-undergrad-program-leading-to-medicine/

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  • 3 weeks later...

Hi all,

 

First of all good luck to everyone!

 

I am pretty new to this. Kind of hoping for some advice as I am at my wits end with what to do next.I live in QC and I have a bachelors degree in business administration (concentration Accounting/Finance) from the American University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates with a cGPA of 3.05. I graduated in 2010 - started in 2006. I currently work in a business environment - typical corporate office but I often dream of medicine and wonder what is my best route to getting there.

 

I am married - with a child on the way! So this does throw a wrench in the works but I am determined to atleast give it a go. I have take a couple of science prereqs at Dawson College and I've done very well. I am unsure now though, is it best for me to get a second degree? Try for the Carribean? UK? Ireland? try with my currrent stats? If do a second degree, could I maybe do a transfer of some credits from my first degree and finish it off with the best grades possible? I thought about nursing too but here in QC that is a 3 year degree in MCGILL and alot of canadian unis require a 4 year degree to be competitive. Given the stats and chances are already pretty abysmal I dont want to be an out of norm candidate if that makes sense.

 

Any advice is greatly appreciated..

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Hi all,

 

First of all good luck to everyone!

 

I am pretty new to this. Kind of hoping for some advice as I am at my wits end with what to do next.I live in QC and I have a bachelors degree in business administration (concentration Accounting/Finance) from the American University of Sharjah in the United Arab Emirates with a cGPA of 3.05. I graduated in 2010 - started in 2006. I currently work in a business environment - typical corporate office but I often dream of medicine and wonder what is my best route to getting there.

 

I am married - with a child on the way! So this does throw a wrench in the works but I am determined to atleast give it a go. I have take a couple of science prereqs at Dawson College and I've done very well. I am unsure now though, is it best for me to get a second degree? Try for the Carribean? UK? Ireland? try with my currrent stats? If do a second degree, could I maybe do a transfer of some credits from my first degree and finish it off with the best grades possible? I thought about nursing too but here in QC that is a 3 year degree in MCGILL and alot of canadian unis require a 4 year degree to be competitive. Given the stats and chances are already pretty abysmal I dont want to be an out of norm candidate if that makes sense.

 

Any advice is greatly appreciated..

Because you went to school overseas, I have to ask are you a Canadian citizen (or hold permanent resident status)? If not, I believe that most Canadian med schools will not accept international applicants. 

If you are Canadian, with a 3.05 GPA, it will be nearly impossible to gain admittance to a Canadian medical school. If your goal is to remain in Canada, it will be necessary to do additional courses to try and raise that GPA to at least a 3.7ish. You will also need to write the MCAT and hopefully ace it to help further overcome your lower GPA.

Trying for the Carribean, UK, or Ireland is also an option, however:

  • My understanding is that these programs cost in the range of $300,000 over the 4 year program. Is this type of financial burden feasible for you?
  • It is much harder to get the residency you want out of these programs
  • It is sometimes hard to return to Canada to work as a doctor at all (I do know people who have done so, but they had to jump through a lot of hoops)
  • Although the graduation rate of medical schools in Canada is ~95%+, my understanding is that many international medical school programs have a high failure rate

Try to read some threads by other non-traditional applicants to see what options worked for them and how they overcame challenges such as low GPA, balancing school and family, etc. Additionally, you haven't mentioned and extracurriculars or volunteering, so if that is not something you have already done extensively it will be another item that will need investment. 

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You have a long haul in front of you. You need to start all over again with another degree. I recommend you see my post above where I suggested a program at Concordia as an excellent prep for medicine. You will need top grades to have a shot. It is not realistic to try to transfer credits with low grades from a university abroad. Provided you do well and have ECs/volunteering and prepare excellent Personal Narratives and CV, you will have a shot as a Quebec resident for McGill provided you are a permanent resident or a citizen. The other alternatives you bring up are expensive and are unlikely to bring you back to Canada to become a practicing physician.

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