I’m new at this.

[kelaurn]

.

[samc5]

You're definitely on the right track, its clear you've given this a lot of thought and planning, I did graduate school and I'm just applying now at 25 so not that far off in age. It seems you have very strong community and extra curriculars so it's all about being able to express that on the lovely ABS/essays, CANMED is your friend for this. Your weighted GPA is good enough for most schools but U of T and Mac use cGA (weighted for U of T if full course load over all years) so be careful of that. I believe the competitive average for Mac is 3.8~ cGPA and 3.9~ for U of T. All you can really do to be competitive and apply is to do your best on the MCAT and see what schools are possible with your scores, you have a strong 2 year GPA, references really only apply for U of T, the other schools are more pass/fail or not even considered (Dal). U of T, Mac, Queens and Dalhousie aren't very heavy MCAT schools you're mostly looking at doing okay overall in the sciences and trying to do as best as you can in CARS for Mac, maybe try a practice test (full-length) to get an idea of where you're starting at and how much you need to improve to get a timeline, but it's very doable to get the scores needed for those schools the main thing that will probably give you trouble is CARS for Mac.I would really just focus on the MCAT as much as you can at this point imo its better to take it a little earlier if you're prepped and to give you space for a re-take if needed in case anything happens on test day, I was sick on my first test which made it a lot harder. Watch out because Dal has an earlier MCAT schedule then Ontario schools. 

[drang]

For some reason, your initial post isn't showing up, so I have quoted it at the bottom.

Here are my thoughts:

Don't be worried about your age! I am 27 and I am in my first year of med school now. I applied several years in a row (5 years) and I finally got in this past summer. I am also definitely not the oldest person in my class either! Age is just a number. And often, being "older" allows you to have more life experience that you can use in your interviews, courses and interactions with patients. I perform the highest in my Professionalism and Clinical Reasoning courses out of all of my medicine courses.

Your GPA is not that much different than mine was. At U of Manitoba, they do an AGPA where they drop your worst 30 credit hours out of your whole degree. So maybe try and calculate where you are at for fun.

I have written the MCAT 4 times and the most significant improvements that I noted in my scores were during the times that I did not work or go to school while I was studying. The last (and the one that got me in!) MCAT that I wrote, I quit my job for the summer and spent the entire 3 months studying. That's something you might have to seriously consider (I know it sucks when you have bills to pay and rent and possibly dependants to support).

Think about applying out of province beyond those ones in Ontario you mentioned. Manitoba is pretty cool....

Good luck!!!  

 

"

I’ve never applied to medical school before. In fact, I spent many years telling myself that I’d never get in, that it’s too competitive, that I didn’t have the personality or confidence to become a physician. However, I slowly found all of that change after spending a year working as an RN in one of the most acute neonatal intensive care units in Canada. Parents, managers, and colleagues all trusted me and believed in me, so why did I spend so much time belittling myself? I’ve done a lot of self-reflection over the last couple of years. I don’t regret being a non-traditional applicant or picking the path that I chose. I used to be insecure about applying to medical school in my late twenties (I’ll be 26 when I first apply, 27 if I get in on my first try...and I know that you often have to apply more than once). Now I’m confident that this was the path that was needed and I obviously would not be here today if nursing hadn’t helped me to change in such positive ways. At one point in my life, it was my absolute dream to become an NICU nurse. However, I find myself wanting to do more. Last August I seriously told myself I was going to get into medical school and haven’t looked back. I don’t have any family members who are physicians and therefore often wonder if I’m on the right track. I am actually the only individual in my family who possesses a university degree. 

This is my weighted GPA: 3.93 (last two years full time)

So far: I’ve shadowed a family physician. I will have over 4000 hours of direct patient care by the time I apply. I’ve been volunteering at a facility that serves as a community resource for underprivilaged populations since 2013 (off and on). I’ve had many roles In this facility, but currently I’m tutoring children. I’ve taken on numerous volunteer positions in university (orientation leader, peer mentor for first year nursing students, etc.). I’ve also started my first clinical research position a couple weeks ago.  

I’ve never written the MCAT. This is the aspect of the application that I’m struggling with the most. I’ve started studying a year in advance given that I am working a full time job on top of the research position and volunteering in the community food bank. I met with my manager and discussed dropping my hours in April, and she agreed. I’m currently booked to write the MCAT in June, but am contemplating pushing it back to August to allow more breathing room. 

In terms of references: I have a good relationship so far with my research advisor (I obviously hope to develop this over the next year), my manager, and many of my clinical instructors from nursing school. 

I’d like to apply to UofT, McMaster, Queens, and Dalhousie (I went here, loved it, wish I could go back)

Do you experienced premed students feel that I’m on the right track? Do you think there is anything I could be doing better? 

Thanks for reading all of that. I appreciate you.  "

[Happy_go]

14 hours ago, drang said:

For some reason, your initial post isn't showing up, so I have quoted it at the bottom.

Here are my thoughts:

Don't be worried about your age! I am 27 and I am in my first year of med school now. I applied several years in a row (5 years) and I finally got in this past summer. I am also definitely not the oldest person in my class either! Age is just a number. And often, being "older" allows you to have more life experience that you can use in your interviews, courses and interactions with patients. I perform the highest in my Professionalism and Clinical Reasoning courses out of all of my medicine courses.

Your GPA is not that much different than mine was. At U of Manitoba, they do an AGPA where they drop your worst 30 credit hours out of your whole degree. So maybe try and calculate where you are at for fun.

I have written the MCAT 4 times and the most significant improvements that I noted in my scores were during the times that I did not work or go to school while I was studying. The last (and the one that got me in!) MCAT that I wrote, I quit my job for the summer and spent the entire 3 months studying. That's something you might have to seriously consider (I know it sucks when you have bills to pay and rent and possibly dependants to support).

Think about applying out of province beyond those ones in Ontario you mentioned. Manitoba is pretty cool....

Good luck!!!  

 

"

I’ve never applied to medical school before. In fact, I spent many years telling myself that I’d never get in, that it’s too competitive, that I didn’t have the personality or confidence to become a physician. However, I slowly found all of that change after spending a year working as an RN in one of the most acute neonatal intensive care units in Canada. Parents, managers, and colleagues all trusted me and believed in me, so why did I spend so much time belittling myself? I’ve done a lot of self-reflection over the last couple of years. I don’t regret being a non-traditional applicant or picking the path that I chose. I used to be insecure about applying to medical school in my late twenties (I’ll be 26 when I first apply, 27 if I get in on my first try...and I know that you often have to apply more than once). Now I’m confident that this was the path that was needed and I obviously would not be here today if nursing hadn’t helped me to change in such positive ways. At one point in my life, it was my absolute dream to become an NICU nurse. However, I find myself wanting to do more. Last August I seriously told myself I was going to get into medical school and haven’t looked back. I don’t have any family members who are physicians and therefore often wonder if I’m on the right track. I am actually the only individual in my family who possesses a university degree. 

 

This is my weighted GPA: 3.93 (last two years full time)

 

So far: I’ve shadowed a family physician. I will have over 4000 hours of direct patient care by the time I apply. I’ve been volunteering at a facility that serves as a community resource for underprivilaged populations since 2013 (off and on). I’ve had many roles In this facility, but currently I’m tutoring children. I’ve taken on numerous volunteer positions in university (orientation leader, peer mentor for first year nursing students, etc.). I’ve also started my first clinical research position a couple weeks ago.  

 

I’ve never written the MCAT. This is the aspect of the application that I’m struggling with the most. I’ve started studying a year in advance given that I am working a full time job on top of the research position and volunteering in the community food bank. I met with my manager and discussed dropping my hours in April, and she agreed. I’m currently booked to write the MCAT in June, but am contemplating pushing it back to August to allow more breathing room. 

 

In terms of references: I have a good relationship so far with my research advisor (I obviously hope to develop this over the next year), my manager, and many of my clinical instructors from nursing school. 

 

I’d like to apply to UofT, McMaster, Queens, and Dalhousie (I went here, loved it, wish I could go back)

 

Do you experienced premed students feel that I’m on the right track? Do you think there is anything I could be doing better? 

 

Thanks for reading all of that. I appreciate you.  "

Thanks . the OP deleted it

[drang]

11 hours ago, getrich said:

Thanks . the OP deleted it

Oh okay! Thanks