5th year for GPA?

[Bobaroni]

Hi all, 

My GPA is currently this for each year:

Year 1: 3.89

Year 2: 3.89

Year 3" 3.92

Year 4: 3.90

I was going to finish year 4 with a 3.93 - but I don't know what happened with my final exam of undergrad and dropped to a 3.7 in that course. Will that severely hurt my chances as my wGPA for Ottawa  would have been a 3.92/3.91 instead of the 3.90 that it is now. Also would it make sense to take 5th year to increase my GPA to be more competitive for Ottawa. 

MY GPA for other schools is: 

Mac cGPA - 3.90

UofT = 3.94

Queens/Western = 3.91

Thanks for the help.

[celg3]

I have a 3.90 wGPA for Ottawa and I got in this year :) if your EC’s are strong and you do well on the Casper it may not be necessary to do a 5th year

[zackattack881]

It does depend a lot on your ECs as well as your Casper. I'd say that if you're on the strong side for EC and you nail Casper, you don't really need a 5th year. But I've heard of people with lower GPA's then you get in uOttawa (also depends on your stream). Don't give up and keep working hard and you'll get in this year hopefully

[Donald_Duck]

Always try if you are above cutoff. They are prioritizing things more and more other than grades now...

Apply so long as you are above the minimum GPA cutoff. 

Mr Duck

[Bobaroni]

Hey thanks for the responses everyone. 

I just wanted to ask if it would make sense to take a 5th year to raise my GPA. This likely would only be for Ottawa as I think I am competitive already for other schools in terms of GPA. 

[GITG]

40 minutes ago, Bobaroni said:

Hey thanks for the responses everyone. 

I just wanted to ask if it would make sense to take a 5th year to raise my GPA. This likely would only be for Ottawa as I think I am competitive already for other schools in terms of GPA. 

Your application is a lot more than your GPA. But on GPA factor alone, you are in a good shape for every school in Ontario including Ottawa. No need for the 5th year IMO 

[rmorelan]

I wouldn't jump at a 5th year as others have said - where do you said with respect to the MCAT and ECs - which seem at this point way more important to your ultimate acceptance?

[anonymouspanda]

On 5/19/2018 at 10:47 AM, Bobaroni said:

Hi all, 

My GPA is currently this for each year:

Year 1: 3.89

Year 2: 3.89

Year 3" 3.92

Year 4: 3.90

I was going to finish year 4 with a 3.93 - but I don't know what happened with my final exam of undergrad and dropped to a 3.7 in that course. Will that severely hurt my chances as my wGPA for Ottawa  would have been a 3.92/3.91 instead of the 3.90 that it is now. Also would it make sense to take 5th year to increase my GPA to be more competitive for Ottawa. 

MY GPA for other schools is: 

Mac cGPA - 3.90

UofT = 3.94

Queens/Western = 3.91

Thanks for the help.

Hi guys, I need some similar advice. Also debating a 5th year because of my sub-par GPA

Year 1: 3.86
Year 2: 3.88
Year 3: 3.80
Year 4: 3.91 

My GPA for Ontario med schools is: 

Mac: 3.86
Western: 3.90
Queens: 3.86
uOttawa: 3.87 
UofT: 3.89

Also, if I do part-time, will those grades count for McMaster since they don't require full time studies?

Thank you!!

[Egg_McMuffin]

1 hour ago, anonymouspanda said:

Hi guys, I need some similar advice. Also debating a 5th year because of my sub-par GPA

Year 1: 3.86
Year 2: 3.88
Year 3: 3.80
Year 4: 3.91 

My GPA for Ontario med schools is: 

Mac: 3.86
Western: 3.90
Queens: 3.86
uOttawa: 3.87 
UofT: 3.89

Also, if I do part-time, will those grades count for McMaster since they don't require full time studies?

Thank you!!

I wouldn't do it. Another year of courses comes with its own risks. Your GPA is fine for most of the schools on the list (a bit low for Ottawa I think- maybe someone else can chime in). I think your efforts are better spent on the other aspects of your application. 

[FlyingScottsman]

On 6/25/2018 at 9:29 PM, anonymouspanda said:

Hi guys, I need some similar advice. Also debating a 5th year because of my sub-par GPA

Year 1: 3.86
Year 2: 3.88
Year 3: 3.80
Year 4: 3.91 

My GPA for Ontario med schools is: 

Mac: 3.86
Western: 3.90
Queens: 3.86
uOttawa: 3.87 
UofT: 3.89

Also, if I do part-time, will those grades count for McMaster since they don't require full time studies?

Thank you!!

I think your GPA is highly competitive for most of the ON schools. Ive definitely known people to get accepted with a GPA similar to yours at those schools (except uottawa where Ive consistently only talked to people with 3.9+ wGPAs). It might be worth doing a 5th year if you want to be more competitive to apply to uOttawa. I did a 5th year and it ended up being a good decision for me. I furthered my research (got a 1st author pub), took more classes I was interested in by completing a second BSc, and increased my GPA to a 3.9+. It depends on whether you are motivated to do the 5th yr (if the pros > possible cons), because you probably have a really good chance at the other ON schools (depending on your other application components). PM if you want to discuss further

 

(Your part-time studies will count for Mac, but if you go part-time be careful as this might mean you no longer qualify for certain special GPA weighings at Uni’s like UToronto where they remove your lowest course marks for example)

[Bluecolorisnice]

On 5/19/2018 at 10:47 AM, Bobaroni said:

Hi all, 

My GPA is currently this for each year:

Year 1: 3.89

Year 2: 3.89

Year 3" 3.92

Year 4: 3.90

I was going to finish year 4 with a 3.93 - but I don't know what happened with my final exam of undergrad and dropped to a 3.7 in that course. Will that severely hurt my chances as my wGPA for Ottawa  would have been a 3.92/3.91 instead of the 3.90 that it is now. Also would it make sense to take 5th year to increase my GPA to be more competitive for Ottawa. 

MY GPA for other schools is: 

Mac cGPA - 3.90

UofT = 3.94

Queens/Western = 3.91

Thanks for the help.

I think you should still apply to Ottawa. If you do well on your casper, you could get an interview and possibly an offer.  GPA of 3.9 is competitive. Doing a 5th year is also a good idea because->higher GPA can only help. If you are confident you can get 3.95+ in your final year, it could really help improve your chances for medschool. I'd say go for it but also apply to other schools before starting your 5th year. GL