Do you know any OOP accepted to McGill below 3.7?

[raiees2002]

Hello, 

Of course there is no official cut-off, but given 10 OOP with historic average of >3.9,  should i even consider McGill with GPA below 3.7?

i would have a solid EC letter for my low first year GPA, (2nd and 3rd were 3.8-3.9); and my second degree is a professional degree.

any thoughts?

 

[la marzocco]

I am not sure what the range is for OOP matriculants, but 3.7 GPA is definitely on the low end. Looking at the available data - the OOP interviewees had an average GPA of 3.95 and a mode of 4 - that is the same for those who got accepted. This is to just give you some perspective. If your GPA is below 3.7, this is going to be an uphill battle.

McGill weighs the GPA at 70% of the pre-interview score. 60% comes from your GPA, and 10% comes from the "academic context." You can read about that on the McGill website. Academic contexts assess the difficulty of the course work, progression towards a professional degree, etc. In your case, you might be able to compensate your low GPA with this 10% academic context component - given your second degree is a professional one. 

20% of your pre-interview score is going to be CASPer - given your GPA score, you will likely have to do very well on the CASPer to garner an interview spot. 

Remaining 10% of your pre-interview score is from your CV - not sure if you have any research, pubs, volunteerism, etc. If this is also a weak area, I would discourage you from applying because performance on CASPer is hard to predict and if your weak GPA is coupled with a weak CV, your chances of getting an interview is close to nil. This is all speculation of course, so take this as my two cents. 

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If you are invited, then great news! Your post-interview score which determines your ranking for acceptances is based on your PREREQUISITES score - NOT your overall GPA. This is the basket GPA of your basic science requirements. Assuming you did well on these (i.e., > 3.8), then you should be good. Besides, this is only going to be 20% of your score now. 

MMI is going to be key, like all med schools. It will drive 80% of your score. Make sure you have a good grasp on the MMI process.

[raiees2002]

Thanks qnzjlo, 

as per cv, I have had multiple hospital experiences (3-4 diff hospitals) as part of my professional degree; abroad internship at a hospital; volunteers at hospital; 8 months of research during school in 2 labs with 1 presentation but no pubs; great leadership positions within school ; exec member of a club during my professional degree; lots of tutoring; sports accomplishment; scholarships during undergrad and professional degree; I also have strong references . 

How would you compare it to successful applicants you have heard of? Poor? average? Good? 

[la marzocco]

54 minutes ago, raiees2002 said:

Thanks qnzjlo, 

as per cv, I have had multiple hospital experiences (3-4 diff hospitals) as part of my professional degree; abroad internship at a hospital; volunteers at hospital; 8 months of research during school in 2 labs with 1 presentation but no pubs; great leadership positions within school ; exec member of a club during my professional degree; lots of tutoring; sports accomplishment; scholarships during undergrad and professional degree; I also have strong references . 

How would you compare it to successful applicants you have heard of? Poor? average? Good? 

I think those stats are great, end of the day the background of everyone is very varied. 

I personally had no research experience, but that was compensated by my publications in a few law journals. I wouldn't even say my CV contained a lot of experience that is necessarily considered relevant (at least at face value) to a medical career, but I think it's how you frame your CV that matters - show those soft skills - the leadership, the communication, etc. 

[la marzocco]

3 minutes ago, 1997 said:

I would apply if I were you, if you can explain your lower first year GPA (don't give them a silly excuse), then they will probably at least review your dossier. The Casper test is what you will need to do well on.

I agree - now having heard your ECs, you should apply. Again, GPA weakness will create an uphill battle given the score itself accounts of 60% of the pre-interview score. You should fare well in the 10% academic context and the 10% CV. Just kick butt on CASPer!

[yych208]

Curious,

Do we know if the essay questions are still used this year (eg. the one on resilience)?

[la marzocco]

37 minutes ago, yych208 said:

Curious,

Do we know if the essay questions are still used this year (eg. the one on resilience)?

No - that was part of the Personal Narratives (PN) component of the application. These essay questions used to be worth 20% of your pre-interview grade. This component has been completely replaced by the CASPer test for the 2017-2018 admission cycle.

[raiees2002]

Thanks folks! These are great insights.

regarding CASPer, do we get a "score" at the end? If so, what kind of score is considered competitive or as one said "will kick butt"?  ; )

and i présume i only get to write CASPer once before the admission cycle, is this correct?

[la marzocco]

12 minutes ago, raiees2002 said:

Thanks folks! These are great insights.

regarding CASPer, do we get a "score" at the end? If so, what kind of score is considered competitive or as one said "will kick butt"?  ; )

and i présume i only get to write CASPer once before the admission cycle, is this correct?

You don't get your results (from what I remember correctly). Do you best.

https://www.mcgill.ca/medadmissions/applying/elements/casper

"You are encouraged to familiarize yourself with the test structure and technical requirements by exploring the sample CASPer content at www.takeCASPer.com, and ensure you have a quiet environment to take the test." <-- probably a good idea to go through some sample content?

If you are francophone, you can also opt to write it in French - I believe UdeM or Laval call it TECT (test d'evaluation des competences transversales). 

[Pippa756]

On 8/1/2017 at 1:43 PM, raiees2002 said:

Thanks folks! These are great insights.

regarding CASPer, do we get a "score" at the end? If so, what kind of score is considered competitive or as one said "will kick butt"?  ; )

and i présume i only get to write CASPer once before the admission cycle, is this correct?

You don't see your results the company that administers the test sends them straight onto the relevant med schools.