Some research experience, volunteering, cgpa 3.2, mcatpendin

[Guest patheticgpayetdetermined]

Hi everyone,

I assume some of my questions may have been asked before and I did find some of the answers in the archives. If you guys can answer some of my questions or atleast provide the link to the archived topics relevant to my questions, i'd appreciate it.

 

So my dillemma is that after 3 years of undergraduate studying at UofT, I have only managed to obtain a cgpa of 3.2. I know that this cgpa is not competetive at all. I wanted to ask whether its worth investing time in a master's degree or I should just head off to Carribean. I have done summer research in the past and it didnt hold my interest for long. I found that research is something that I can do but I am really not interested in. My profession of choice lies in the realm of medicine.

 

So what do you guys suggest? I looked into applying out of province within Canada and I realized that acceptance into other med schools at the very least would require a 3.5 cgpa. Is this information correct?

 

I am writing my mcats this summer and I may consider applying to US schools but once again my cgpa will be a setback in my application.

 

I know I want to pursue a career in medicine but I need some guidance as to what options I can pursue at this point in time. Any help will be appreciated.

 

Thanks

[Guest Jochi1543]

Some schools will only look at your last credits GPA and schools like U of Toronto will let your drop several of your lowest grades (I believe, for those who have a Bachelor's, it's one grade per semester/year (?) of study). You need to research every school's GPA policy and evaluate your chances according to each school's standards. It also helps if most of your lower grades are NOT in the pre-req courses.

[Guest svp2k5]

With a gpa of 3.2, I think you will find it very tough to get into many of the Canadian medical schools. There is always the option of taking medicine in the states. THere is such a wide range of requirements that you will difinetely find a school accepting a gpa of 3.2.

 

A second option is taking a "special year". I know that western accepts this type of plan. Try to get your gpa up this coming year (your fourth year i believe), and stay in school for fifth (or "special") year, and try to improve your gpa more.

 

Another option would be to do a graduate degree, ideally in something that really, really interests you. That way you get the advantage of having a graduate degree, as well as probably increasing your gpa.

[Guest patheticgpayetdetermined]

I am wondering about the extent of influence my graduate work will have on my application. I dont mind doing graduate work but if my undergraduate marks still cripple my applications then all will go in vain.

 

Any thoughts?

[Guest Ollie]

Hey,

 

You might stand a decent chance at UofT and Queen's if you do a graduate degree. It will depend on a few things, such as your GPA in your 3rd and 4th year undergrad and your GPA in your graduate courses. Queen's will use your last year of undergrad plus one year of grad courses in calculating your GPA. UofT will put more emphasis on your senior undergraduate and graduate level courses. As well UofT will put a lot of emphasis on your graduate productivity (presentations, publications). I was in a pretty similar situation to you after my 3rd year. I did pretty well in my 4th year (3.7), did an MSc, and it worked for me!

 

I just read more carefully your original post and you say that you are not that interested in research. That's an issue because if you aren't that interested in your project, then you might have problems putting in the effort necessary to be productive. My suggestion is to look into clinical research (ie not lab work). There's tons of interesting work going on and hopefully you can find something you enjoy and will be happy put the time into.

[Guest patheticgpayetdetermined]

Thanks Ollie for the feedback. I guess knowing that somone was in my situation and did manage to pull through does offer itself as a ray of hope.

 

Also, thanks everyone for their input.