Guest Jake Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 The people on this board have been sooo helpful and i am totally greatful for all the help they have given me before. So I am looking for more (ok, i am a leacher what can i say ) sooo. Here is my situation: overal cummulative gpa, counting everything (summer courses etc) = 3.3 UofT adjusted GPA = 3.66 MCAT: VR:10 PS:8 BS:8 WS:S I have lots of great extracurriclulars and lots of medical experience (worked as a phlebotomist, lab tech at medical lab, ekg tech performing ekgs/ecgs, etc.) shadowed docs, volunteered in hospitals, seniors residences, physiotherapy clinics etc., etc. I have clinical research experience (4 years worth). I think I am a good all around applicant but with slightly lower MCAT PS and BS and with slightly low GPA. I got rejected pre-interview from Mac and UofT. I would like everyone's advice on waht to do now. I have no intention of a back-up plan as being a physician is all i want to do and if i don't get in in canada after another couple of trys i am willing to leave the country. My options for now are as follows: 1) another bachelors degree (2 yr long bscn at york is on my mind but some other bachelors could be possible) 2) a course-based 2 year long masters degree. (which has the disadvantge that I would need to skip this med school app cycle because i would not be finished my masters in time) 3) working for a year and making some money but nt going to school 4)a research based masters degree that may or may not take more than 2 years. 5) something else i have not thought of??????? I look forward to hearing your responses :-) and I promise cookies and coffee to anyone who responds (provided we ever actually meet, hopefully in med school! ) Jake Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jochi1543 Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 Well, well, well, what kind of cookies are we talking?:hat First off, if I were you, I'd retake the MCAT and try to get higher scores. As far as your GPA goes, was it more or less the same for all your undergrad years, or did you have some good years and some @#%$ ones? If your GPA has been modest consistently, Master's may not be a very good idea, since you'll be graded much more harshly, and are thus likely not to improve your grade situation at all. Working won't help your application much either, unless you can find a job that is very closely related to medicine/community health issues, etc. Given that, I'm really leaning towards another Bachelor's, preferably in something you're good at, even if it's not science-related - to boost your GPA and diversify your application. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jake Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 Thanks for the quick reply there! Here is my answer to your question about my gpa: YOUR QUESTION: As far as your GPA goes, was it more or less the same for all your undergrad years, or did you have some good years and some @#%$ ones? MY ANSWER: My last 2 years were low, and my first year was great. The reason for my low GPA is tha tI have about 5 "bad apples" bringing the whole thing down, as can be evidenced by the jump to 3.67 when UofT removes some of them. I have A=s and As in the majority of my courses but i also have 2 Ds and a 3 Cs along with some B+s. Most of my poor grades were because of medical, economic, and family problems I was having during those courses, thus keeping me from doing my work properly (i am just making excuses here but I really did go through some hard times) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest muchdutch Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 Well, bearing in mind that I too have not got into med school, I would work on your grades. In any way you can (MCAT and GPA). You already seem to have plenty of research and clinical experience as well as great extra curriculars so you can use all of that to wow the interviewers. But the problem is getting to the interview. And for the majority of Canadian schools, getting to the interview is primarily and heavily weighted on your grades. As to how to go about this, that really depends on you and on your interests. My advice would be to go for the masters. It won't necessarily be that much harder than a bachelor's degree - I've heard from both sides of the spectrum from people I know in various master's programs that it's way easier and that it's a bit the same or a bit harder, but not that much harder. The research or thesis based masters can be, and often is, done in two years. The advantage to going for a master's rather than another bachelor's is that some schools will give you extra 'points' in your rating if you have a masters or a PhD. But then again, a BScN will guarantee you a job for the few years that you may not get into med school which sure sounds nice too. Just be sure that whatever you sign up for, you will be happy doing because there's nothing worse than getting involved in something you dislike, and then having that show up on your transcript! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jake Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 Thanks muchdutch! Keep em coming........i am buying and baking cookies as we speak Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TKP 123 Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 Is another bachelor degree really necessary? If this is solely for getting into med school, do you think doing another non-science bachelor a waste of time (if you think you like science more)? If I were you, I am leaning towards going out and work for a yr, while continue to gather more life experience, which is good for your future (med school or not). I don't think your GPA is that bad, while you can re-do your MCAT. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Madz25 Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 Hi there, It sounds like you have a ton of extracurrics and health care experience which is great! I agree with what the above posters said: definitely re-do the MCAT and try to bring up your GPA. I really don't know what to suggest on how to go about doing that as I haven't looked into doing a 2nd BSc or starting a masters. If your last 2 years were better then it would be less of a problem. Schools like to see you bring up your marks despite a rough start. It shows you learned, put in the time and effort etc. etc. Just my 2 cents. Madz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest peachy Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 6) A 'victory lap' year, where you graduate and then take another year of undergrad courses to raise your GPA. Or, delay your graduation, take more courses next year, and graduate at the end of your fifth year. If you get good grades this year (your fourth year) then that could raise your GPA enough to get interviews next year, potentially. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest mesoderm Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 I think you have a great chance of getting into med-school. Not every school looks heavily on academics - i.e. UBC, even UT for that matter - I know this one guy who got an interview at UT with a 3.6 gpa or something. With your experiences, once you got the interview you are in. So it really doesn't matter what you should do. Do anything you want and re-apply and apply to more schools - you will definitely be accepted. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jose007 Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 Can't you try to repeat courses in which you have slighly lower marks in. umm.. How would meds look upon that, I'm just curious. It will definately increase your GPA if you do well in them (like get 10-15% more than before). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest citrinez Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 If I were you I would re-do the MCAT, do a course based masters in something you enjoy, keep doing some form of volunteer work ( even though you got plenty, maybe add something you never tried before, like skydiving!) and ensure that when you re-apply you make sure that you showcase all of your experience in a way that highlights important individual aspects from each of your experiences and how it has shaped you as a person. Goodluck! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest TimmyMax Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 Hey, Can't you try to repeat courses in which you have slighly lower marks in. umm.. How would meds look upon that, I'm just curious. I would highly discourage this- UWO will not count repeated courses towards a full courseload (ie: if you repeat one course, you would have to take 5.0 full courses above and beyond the repeated course to qualify as full-time. Not sure how other schools view repeated courses, but that's the UWO policy on this issue! IMHO, you should rewrite the MCAT and try to improve that mark and do a 5th year of undergrad and reapply, but that's just my two cents! Best of luck! Timmy Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest NurseEpi Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 Hi there, Like everyone has already said, I would try retaking the MCAT and see if you can't bump up your scores. It may compensate for a lower GPA at some schools. As for second degree options, it really is a personal choice and depends on what other things you could see yourself doing down the road if medicine doesn't (gasp) work out. Although I agree with the previous posters in that if your undergrad GPA is a bit lower, a research based Masters might not be a sure thing for getting higher marks. That being said, I know several people who had less than stellar undergrad GPAs, but then thrived once they got into grad school and started doing work that was more interesting to them. Myself included. My only advice would be to look into the schools you're interested in very carefully, because some are less accepting of a course-based masters when it comes to giving bonus marks and you'll have fewer opportunities to demonstrate your productivity. Good luck with whatever you choose, NurseEpi PS...some cookies travel very well in the mail if they're packaged well...I really like peanut butter cookies with a little chocolate rosebud on top...just a suggestion Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest jgray2 Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 i only skimmed the previous replies, so i'm sorry if i repeat what others have said. quick answer: my vote: do an undergrad victory lap and upgrade your mcat. long answer: i would not pursue a masters because many schools will not even look at graduate marks. for example, uwo, queens, mac won't (except to give you marginal bonus points here or there). if you do decide further undergrad work, i would take something that you know you're good in. did you take any options where you consistently scored A/A+? if you don't have any backup plans, and if you're not willing to make any, then totally do a B.B.S -- bachelors of basket weaving. the person who said that having a higher mcat that may compensate for a lower gpa is only partially correct. this only applies to ucalgary and ualberta (marginal help b/c of the relative weighting), and manitoba (useless if you don't meet their gpa cutoff). in other words, for getting good results on the mcat to be useful, you'd need to back it up with continued solid undergrad work. the person who suggested working and gaining life experience may not have experienced the horrible feeling of being just under one of the posted cutoffs. if mother teresa had an "8" in verbal reasoning, not even she would be able to get an interview at queens or uwo (unless, of course, she was swomen). lastly, for the purposes of u of t, remember that non-personal qualities make up only 20% after the interview whereas your academics = 60%. my stats are somewhat similar: 3.68 adjusted for toronto. i haven't gotten my pfo yet, but because i am out of ontario, i'm pretty sure i'll be getting one soon. i'm doing a victory lap in sociology because although it wasn't very practical job-wise, it would boost up my marks slightly (i estimate a 3.75 next cycle). i had the 60%/20% spilt on my mind when i turned down a decent job offer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest SherriONT Posted March 15, 2006 Report Share Posted March 15, 2006 Ever thought of applying to the US/Caribbean/other international schools? I know that there are obvious drawbacks associated with attending these schools, including $$, reputation, coming back to Canada, etc; But, if you REALLY want to be a physician and are sick and tired of the waiting and the rejection, it's always another option. Doing another bachelor's degree could end up costing you money, time, and anxiety (because you're under pressure to get really good marks). It all depends on how much time and patience you've got...My friend applied for 3 years in a row, got rejected EVERYWHERE, and then finally got accepted to UofT on her 4th try (it was the ONLY school she got accepted to in 4 years of applying). She's happy to be there now, but also says that she would have seriously considered applying to a foreign school after the 1st round cause she would have been a doctor by now! Just some thoughts. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jake Posted March 16, 2006 Report Share Posted March 16, 2006 Wow! Thanks for all the great replies, everyone! About doing another year of undergrad; does this really help me that much? I am not willing to not graduate this spring for reasons i dont want to get into. so i will be graduaitng. if i do another year of undergrad, it will be at a different school. how does this help me? i thought med schools will still look at my degree stuff as more important? no? also, what woudl i take in this extra year? i guess i would register as a non-degree student? is this really a better idea than the 2 yr masters of science, course work based? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest scooter Posted March 17, 2006 Report Share Posted March 17, 2006 Hey, Throwing my hat into the ring. I would say take the whole summer off of working full-time and study like you were insane (u will be afterwards nonetheless) for the MCAT and get those marks up. Then take it and apply to every bloody school in the country!! (u might need a full-time job to fund your application craze). I really shot myself in the foot by only by applying in-province (NB). If you had exactly reasons why your marks are not stelar then outline them and write "I had X extentuating circumstances making my marks low, however, as demonstrated by my 45T MCAT i am a perfectly capable academic". A lot of schools will consider this. MUN told me last year that they weren't sure of me b/c my gpa wasn't stellar (about an A- last 2 yrs and B+ for all 5 yrs) but htey said they would be more comfortable if they had an MCAT that backed up my ECs. Ireland is a reputable option as well. Though it is competitive as well. If you got the money your gpa is competitive in teh States. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Jake Posted March 18, 2006 Report Share Posted March 18, 2006 Taking into consideration what everyone says I am leaning towards going to another university (closer to my home) and doing a year of undergraduate work as a visiting student. That is, I will graduate now and do a year on top of that. I believe this is what everyone means by "victory lap?" I am going to take prereqes for some out of province schools just in case I need that option down the road. And I suppose I will also take some fun easy courses as well. My goals will be high gpa and getting the prereqs. What do you all think of this? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest scooter Posted March 20, 2006 Report Share Posted March 20, 2006 Hey, Good plan. I have two recommendations for you: 1st take physics- this has screwed me a lot b/c i didn't take it - even though i did fine on that part of the MCAt, OK not fine but decent. 2nd Don't take 1st year courses if it can be avoided. The obvious observation from the Adcom is that you did another year to help your gpa (some schools really don't mind it) BUT they will notice if you have Introduction to Communication, Psy, Human Bio, ect all the easy courses. This is one of hte reasons 1st year courses are dropped - they are a lot easier. Show the adcom that you are a competent student who just had a little trouble in your first years so you wanted to prove yourself and "get more" science under your belt to better prepare you for Med School. So Anatomy ect would be a good option. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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