2nd/3rd year GPA Cutoff

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<threadtitle>What are the pro's of attending U of A Meds?</threadtitle>

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<username>Nops</username>

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<title>What are the pro's of attending U of A Meds?</title>

<pagetext>I'm applying to 5 schools, (U of A, Calgary, Ottawa, Queen's and Dal), and I have little to go on in terms of choosing between them (not that I'm saying I'll have a choice -- when it comes down to it, I'll go anywhere I get accepted, happily).

 

I've spent most of my life in Alberta (Edmonton), but I live in Fredericton now, so I'm technically a Maritimer.

 

I think Edmonton (the city) is too big, and it's entirely TOO close to my extended family. On top of that, it's a tough school to get into. I do like the selection of restaurants, shopping, etc. in the river city.

 

I have never been to Kingston, have been in Halifax a few times, never been to Ottawa, and have spent very little time in Calgary.

 

I would prefer a 4 yr program to a 3 yr program just because I'd like a break in the summers.

 

I like the idea of a PBL curriculum, but I think most of the schools are heading that way anyhow.

 

Kingston is beautiful from all I've heard, but I have not had any concrete examples of WHY.

 

I'd love to hear from those in the know the pros and cons in their own estimation.

 

Ciao!

 

Bil

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited the subject title to make it more specific, and in doing so, trying to make the question more appropriate to each individual medical school forum. -Ian

[Guest summervirus]

There are some old threads that talk about some of the pros and cons of the UofA. I suggest that you take a peak. Here are some that might interest you:

 

1. Info on classes

 

2. Problem-based learning

 

3. "Choosing between U of A and Queens" and "Rural Focus? (Choosing between Alberta and Queens)"

 

4. Reasons for choosing U of A

 

5. Living In Edmonton

 

It seems like you know some of the qualities that are important to you (e.g. curriculum, length of program, city life, etc.) The above threads touch on those topics a bit.

 

There are also a number of threads that I didn't even mention that are helpful. Just do some digging. If after reading them, you still have questions about the UofA, we'd be happy to answer you.

 

Good luck.

[Guest Megs]

Hi Nops,

 

Perhaps I can comment a bit on some of the cities - I've lived in Calgary, Edmonton, Ottawa, and close enough to Hali. Obivously you know what Edmonton is like. Calgary is, in my opinion, a really great city with lots to do and see, and is very clean. And being under an hour from Banff and within view of the rockies doesn't hurt either. Ottawa is basically as cold as Edmonton (or at least as wintery). It is a beautiful city - especially downtown - with Parliament and all the cool shops and the galleries. Living in the capital is quite an experience. Halifax, as well, is incredible. Actually, I would love to do a residency there. It is very funky - tons of cool little shops and a great night life that you can discover while you are there. Peggy's Cove and similar scenery is about 20 minutes away. I find (as I"m sure you have too) that Maritimers are super friendly, so that is a nice aspect. As far as the schools go, I can only plug for U of A. I love so many aspects of the school. I think you'll get a really great medical education here - many of the people i've talked to enjoy the mix of PBL and class. Hope that helps.

 

Megs

[Guest Nops]

Thanks for the response, and the long string of threaded posts. It had everything I was looking for.

 

Now I guess I'll have to wait again . . .

 

Bil

[Guest nanoarray]

I'm a first year dental student at UofA. We dents study with meds during the first two years. So far, I like the courses very much. This year, we have PBLs for Triple III. It was pretty good. From what I heard about Triple III, this course has been modified quite significantly. The prof said students from last year have difficult time in deciding what antibiotics to give to patients, so they modify the course a bit in that respect and this year we learn what to prescribe antibiotics based on clinical presentation of the patient. As a result, the exam questions are more clinical, instead of purely memorization of bugs and drugs, I guess. There are still tons of info in immunology that requires memorization, though. But, I found that if I spent time in understanding the principles of immunology, that actually helped me quite a bit in understanding pathogenesis of various bugs. So, the immunology is well integrated with microbiology.

 

Besides lectures, we have PBL for Triple III now. We also have a presentation assignment for PBL groups. Basically each group was given a topic related to immunology and microbiology and then presented it at the end of the course. The presentation was awesome this year. Lots of acting. For me, the best part of the presentation was a medical student imitated Dr. Kinga (the parasites lady). From the way she introduced herself on the first day of the parasite class to the way she teaches. Every piece of details was captured and imitated so well. That was incredible. We had so much fun and laugh during the presentation this Tuesday morning. It was quite relieving for us before we actually had the final exam this Friday. One group actually presented on how to make Anthrax!!! Unbelievable.

[Guest Tricolore20]

Hey!

 

I heard that last year, if you were a 2nd or 3rd year applicant, the minimum GPA for students with interview was a 8.6 (overall GPA I presume).

 

Was this the lowest mark last year amongst all the people, after the MCAT and Personal Attributes were considered? I'm around there, but Im afraid that my MCAT and attributes may drag me down.

 

If it was 8.6 last year, then according to this years conversions, the cutoff would be 3.88. But then again, I could be completely off base.