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Sadly, you are correct in that things get harder each year. This year was a record breaking year in terms of applications for schools and I can see next year (and the year after) getting even harder with even more applicants due to this year's heavy all around grade inflation GPA's due to online (and 2 years from now too if next year is also online) to further exacerbate the problem. The average GPA for interview was about 89% this year and I can see it going to 90% next year...you have to keep putting your best foot forward and pushing. When I got in last year in 2020 to a different school in Canada I would look at the stats of the entrance class 5 years before me and would be amazed at how even a few years made in the competitiveness. I really don't know what it's going to be like 5, 10 years in the future in Canada..

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Hey there, just wanted to share that your life does not have to be put "on hold" when you keep on applying. There are tons of students in the program who have pursued alternate careers or went to professional school (e.g. nursing, pharmacy, law) while continuing to apply. Every year, they build more and more hours of experiences to put on their application. So many people I've met are in their late 20s, 30s, and even 40s! 

And honestly, I look up to all of those people cuz they have so much more experience than I do and they're way ahead of me in some ways. 

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@Fromage let me start off by saying that I feel you. It can make you feel bad when you realize that there are people out there applying to med with 90+ grades and have seemed to have figured out life at such an early age. I know that I personally didn't know what the heck I was doing when I started undergrad, and I made mistakes (which is normal for most 18-19 year old kids). I think its important to try your best to not compare yourself to others but rather to just keep comparing yourself to who you were yesterday (soooo cheesy but its true). 

I also think that everything you see online needs to be read with a grain of salt (even what you are reading right this second :P). Most people that I've talked to, which include doctors sitting on the interview committees and med school students who have gotten in with lower grades, have said that it is 100% possible to get in with low to mid 80s. You have to work on your ECs which should be viewed in a positive light! You can do all those other things that you might have thought in your head are second fiddle to med, but are, in fact, pretty cool. And the experience you will receive from doing those other things will help you in some way for a med school application. 

Life is long. In addition to what appears to be a positive trend in GPA, it also looks like the average age of students entering med school is increasing. Grades are definitely important, but so are experiences. I know people who have taught english for 4 years in Japan, biked around Europe to raise money for cancer research, received further education and had full on careers before starting Med school. 

Something that I have seen in this forum that I followed up with was to read "The Alchemist". I recommend you read it if you're looking for a bit of motivation. It's a short book but has some powerful messages. If Med is something that you really want, there is definitely a way. That way might be a bit longer than you like, but you gotta believe you can do it. 

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Hey! As an Ontario student, I just wanted to chime in here on your point about not making cutoffs for OOP schools. I'm not sure what your GPA is, but most Ontario schools (except McMaster) don't treat IP and OOP separately, so you have just as good a chance there as any Ontario student. If med if your dream, I would look into applying to Ontario schools next year! Each one calculates GPA differently, so you might find out that you have a good shot at 1+ schools there 

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  • 4 months later...
On 1/10/2021 at 9:39 AM, TRU1243 said:

@Fromage let me start off by saying that I feel you. It can make you feel bad when you realize that there are people out there applying to med with 90+ grades and have seemed to have figured out life at such an early age. I know that I personally didn't know what the heck I was doing when I started undergrad, and I made mistakes (which is normal for most 18-19 year old kids). I think its important to try your best to not compare yourself to others but rather to just keep comparing yourself to who you were yesterday (soooo cheesy but its true). 

I also think that everything you see online needs to be read with a grain of salt (even what you are reading right this second :P). Most people that I've talked to, which include doctors sitting on the interview committees and med school students who have gotten in with lower grades, have said that it is 100% possible to get in with low to mid 80s. You have to work on your ECs which should be viewed in a positive light! You can do all those other things that you might have thought in your head are second fiddle to med, but are, in fact, pretty cool. And the experience you will receive from doing those other things will help you in some way for a med school application. 

Life is long. In addition to what appears to be a positive trend in GPA, it also looks like the average age of students entering med school is increasing. Grades are definitely important, but so are experiences. I know people who have taught english for 4 years in Japan, biked around Europe to raise money for cancer research, received further education and had full on careers before starting Med school. 

Something that I have seen in this forum that I followed up with was to read "The Alchemist". I recommend you read it if you're looking for a bit of motivation. It's a short book but has some powerful messages. If Med is something that you really want, there is definitely a way. That way might be a bit longer than you like, but you gotta believe you can do it. 

Thanks so much for your message, I love your outlook. The statistics and comparison are definitely disheartening but you're right, I might as well make the best of things while I'm going through the process anyway, right? The Alchemist has been on my to-read list for quite some time now as well, maybe this is a sign to read it next haha. Thanks again :)

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On 1/7/2021 at 7:05 AM, offmychestplease said:

Sadly, you are correct in that things get harder each year. This year was a record breaking year in terms of applications for schools and I can see next year (and the year after) getting even harder with even more applicants due to this year's heavy all around grade inflation GPA's due to online (and 2 years from now too if next year is also online) to further exacerbate the problem. The average GPA for interview was about 89% this year and I can see it going to 90% next year...you have to keep putting your best foot forward and pushing. When I got in last year in 2020 to a different school in Canada I would look at the stats of the entrance class 5 years before me and would be amazed at how even a few years made in the competitiveness. I really don't know what it's going to be like 5, 10 years in the future in Canada..

Yup it really sucks, hopefully more Canadian schools move toward more holistic admissions processes in the near future :(

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