Borborygmi Posted March 5, 2009 Report Share Posted March 5, 2009 I'd appreciate any experiences anyone has with a situation similar to mine. I can't be unique . I'm currently 28, and have been working in advertising for 7 years. I recently left senior level positions as a creative director upon the realization 2-3 years ago that I wasn't truly following a career of meaning. This isn't to say medicine is the only means of attaining a meaningful career--I'm aware of that. I've always had a seemingly innate interest in medicine. Leaving my career wasn't easy with a significant salary and awards under my belt. In 2007 I started transitioning back to school by doing part time courses while working full-time, amongst other things. I did 6 courses in a year all of which were 90+%, other than calculus which was an 82%. This year is my first year back to full-time studies. I'm at UofT in Life Sciences. My gpa after this year will be between 3.68 and 3.82 (a percent average of approximately 84-86%), all dependent on one course which is at the 80's cusp. I'm taking a 4/4 course load right now while working freelance 25 hours a week, being on two boards, starting research in April, while paying mortgage/car etc. I intend to be doing 5/5 course load next year and my gpa should be 3.9+ given next year's course selections. My main, and potentially huge problem is two-fold. I'm pretty old to be doing this, and two, my first undergraduate level performance was VERY poor. I did 2 years of a general science undergrad at the UofA, and I don't exaggerate when I say my gpa was very poor. This was a mixture of uncertainty and feeling lost, and a huge amount of home life badness going on. Needless to say I've experienced much since then, working globally, living in 6 cities, winning awards, etc. Will those 2 years of undergrad severely affect my application to medical programs? I do know I'm at a huge disadvantage in many respects. I'm curious if anyone has been in a similar situation, or know of similar situation amongst successful medical school applicants? I'd appreciate any thoughts or advice. Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DOC_Ma Posted March 5, 2009 Report Share Posted March 5, 2009 I'd appreciate any experiences anyone has with a situation similar to mine. I can't be unique . I'm currently 28, and have been working in advertising for 7 years. I recently left senior level positions as a creative director upon the realization 2-3 years ago that I wasn't truly following a career of meaning. This isn't to say medicine isn't the only means of attaining a meaningful career--I'm aware of that. I've always had a seemingly innate interest in medicine. Leaving my career wasn't easy with a significant salary and awards under my belt. In 2007 I started transitioning back to school by doing part time courses while working full-time, amongst other things. I did 6 courses in a year all of which were 90+%, other than calculus which was and 82%. This year is my first year back to full-time studies. I'm at UofT in Life Sciences. My gpa after this year will be between 3.68 and 3.82, all dependent on one course which is at the 80's cusp. I'm taking a 4/4 course load right now while working 25 hours a week freelance, being on two boards, starting research in April, while paying mortgage/car etc. I intend to be doing 5/5 course load next year and my gpa should be 3.9+ given next year's course selections. My main, and potentially huge problem is two-fold. I'm pretty old to be doing this, and 2, my first undergraduate level performance was VERY poor. I did 2 years of a general science undergrad at the UofA, and I don't exaggerate when I say my gpa was very poor. This was a mixture of uncertainty and feeling lost, and a huge amount of home life badness going on. Needless to say I've experienced much since then, working globally, living in 6 cities, winning awards, etc. Will those 2 years of undergrad severely affect my application to medical programs? I do know I'm at a huge disadvantage in many respects. I'm curious if anyone has been in a similar situation, or know of similar situation amongst successful medical school applicants? I'd appreciate any thoughts or advice. Thanks. I just want to say something...even though I am not similar to your situation but still......... 1. 28 is not old 2. looking at your achievement and work experience I think that would put you in advantage than most us traditional undergrads in terms of medical school application. 3. The requirement for mature student (25+) is much lower than traditional undergrads. (another bonus for you) 4. your previous degree won't have much effect on your application if you are getting a new one. In the end I think you are golden for medical school if you keep getting that 3.9+ GPA and really nothing to worry about. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youngdad Posted March 5, 2009 Report Share Posted March 5, 2009 You have a couple things going for you 1. You are not old 2. You are doing well in school right now Three important questions 1. What was your gpa for those poor years? 2. What will the cgpa be at the end of your degree? 3. What province are you from? If your cgpa is no good after the good years you might have to do another degree or masters. But If you are a BC or maritime resident the schools give a lot of weight to your awesome background. Your cgpa may not be too bad and it will show an upward trend. Get a decent MCAT score and you have a shot. Your life experience is your strong suit and you should play that hand as much as possible. If you can nail the school down and MCAT, I think med schools will want to interview you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Borborygmi Posted March 5, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 5, 2009 1. What was your gpa for those poor years? 2. What will the cgpa be at the end of your degree? 3. What province are you from? 1. If I were to convert to a 4.0 scale, it'd likely be in the 1.8-2.0 range. In my second year, I literally had to move away to remove myself from my home situation, and I did so without withdrawing from my courses, leaving failure in all my finals etc. Needless to say, I was enormously caught up in my home life at that time. 2. Well cGPA for just this degree will likely be high 3.8 to 3.93 or so I'd suspect, not including the part-time studies I did prior to transitioning into the full-time work. If I were to include my original gpa...... I don't even know, but it wouldn't be competitive obviously. 3. I'm originally from Alberta. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youngdad Posted March 5, 2009 Report Share Posted March 5, 2009 1. If I were to convert to a 4.0 scale, it'd likely be in the 1.8-2.0 range. In my second year, I literally had to move away to remove myself from my home situation, and I did so without withdrawing from my courses, leaving failure in all my finals etc. Needless to say, I was enormously caught up in my home life at that time.2. Well cGPA for just this degree will likely be high 3.8 to 3.93 or so I'd suspect, not including the part-time studies I did prior to transitioning into the full-time work. If I were to include my original gpa...... I don't even know, but it wouldn't be competitive obviously. 3. I'm originally from Alberta. cgpa stands for complete gpa so it would have to include those years. Do you know what it would be with them taken into account? I'm pretty sure Calgary places 50% of their pre-interview score on cgpa. Not good news for you. Don't know about UofA. I should mention, I am not a med student. I have done a lot of looking into this stuff though. I have 4 pretty good years and one atrocious year under my belt. I am hoping my trend shows I learn from my blunders. I am currently finishing my undergrad and in the middle of 2 med school interviews. I am 26, married and I have a 15 month old son. At my home institution I feel a bit old, but at my first interview I felt quite young. You will fit right in when you get to that point. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Borborygmi Posted March 5, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 5, 2009 Appreciate your response youngdad and good luck at your interviews! I hope you do well. Such a good feeling to come that far, so congratulations. Re: cgpa. If my ballpark estimate of my poor years are approximately correct, then assuming I maintain the cgpa I suspect during my time at UofT, my cgpa would end up being a sad 3.2. Despite the UofT gpa being 3.85 or so. This is obviously my main concern... especially considering that occurred 10 years ago which is, essentially, a lifetime. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supafield Posted March 5, 2009 Report Share Posted March 5, 2009 3. The requirement for mature student (25+) is much lower than traditional undergrads. (another bonus for you) . What schools give a mature student bonus once you turn 25? Lol being 24, it would be nice to know if I have to apply again next year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CD90.2 Posted March 5, 2009 Report Share Posted March 5, 2009 Hmm, as someone starting med next sept at the age of 28, I would have to agree with the other posts, 28 is young... both my two other colleagues started at 29 and 30, respectively. Med games might be a challenged through, how's your drinking, dancing, etc. skills? =) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Borborygmi Posted March 5, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 5, 2009 Med games might be a challenged through, how's your drinking, dancing, etc. skills? =) My drinking is a 4.0, but it has to be haute beer or candy drinks, and my flinstone flop was published. Hmmm so it seems I'm getting really mixed feelings about my situation.... probably not a good thing. Appreciate the feedback nonetheless. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
youngdad Posted March 5, 2009 Report Share Posted March 5, 2009 Some schools have a 10 year rule where those old grades are completely forgotten. This is not a tease, I know UBC does it. If your Alberta schools do it you may be in great shape. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smm99 Posted March 6, 2009 Report Share Posted March 6, 2009 What schools give a mature student bonus once you turn 25?Lol being 24, it would be nice to know if I have to apply again next year. Pretty sure they don't actually. I'm 27 this year, and my app was looked at the exact same way as everyone else's! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smm99 Posted March 6, 2009 Report Share Posted March 6, 2009 cgpa stands for complete gpa so it would have to include those years. Do you know what it would be with them taken into account? I'm pretty sure Calgary places 50% of their pre-interview score on cgpa. Not good news for you. Don't know about UofA. Actually, 50% of the pre-interview score is on ENTIRE ACADEMIC PERFORMANCE, not just cGPA. It includes whether or not you've done their recommended courses, and likely other factors as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
supafield Posted March 6, 2009 Report Share Posted March 6, 2009 Pretty sure they don't actually. I'm 27 this year, and my app was looked at the exact same way as everyone else's! Yah, that's what I thought... Thanks though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest BluePin Posted March 6, 2009 Report Share Posted March 6, 2009 Create a speadsheet of school requirements. There are schools that will be more appropriate to your situation: UBC-- allows you to disregard coursework older than 10yrs in application. Queens-- only looks at last 2 years of 3 or more course load if overall GPA is too low. Western-- only last 2 years of 5 course load. Dal-- as western but more flexible. UofO & T-- have weighting formulas that emphasize more recent work. Most (but not all) schools will look only at the second degree, if you actually complete a full second undergrad. Again, look at the actual school admissions requirements... they are a far better source of information than this board. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted March 6, 2009 Report Share Posted March 6, 2009 I'd be really happy if I got bonus points for being an old pre-med. Oh well! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DOC_Ma Posted March 7, 2009 Report Share Posted March 7, 2009 I'd be really happy if I got bonus points for being an old pre-med. Oh well! actually I think it might be mcmaster that gives a bonus to mature students (25+) check check tho, my memory could be wrong. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
engineer2doc Posted March 7, 2009 Report Share Posted March 7, 2009 28 is reasonably young. You will be out syringe in hand by the time you are 36 if you do 2 more years study. That's almost 30 years of medicine before you retire normally (which you probably won't). Plenty of older people get in - just check the stats. Now if only I was 28 again.... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Halcyon Posted March 7, 2009 Report Share Posted March 7, 2009 actually I think it might be mcmaster that gives a bonus to mature students (25+) check check tho, my memory could be wrong. Nope, they don't. I got rejected from Mac this year and I'm 25+. No bonus. Wishful thinking though Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sv3 Posted March 7, 2009 Report Share Posted March 7, 2009 at any schools that I've looked at in Canada. I'm over 25 and I can honestly say you shouldn't get a bonus just cause of age. Some schools will give you a slight bump in their formula or add a small amount to your GPA if you have a Masters or PhD. If your older and think you should get a bonus, try to show it in your ABS/essays by elaborating on your experiences since you left school. That's where the whole "being older" thing could pay off if done properly....or so i hope. sv Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Borborygmi Posted March 9, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 9, 2009 Thanks for the helpful responses everyone - I definitely appreciate it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ccoh Posted March 10, 2009 Report Share Posted March 10, 2009 I started med 2 years ago at age 35...28 is definitely not old Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmorelan Posted March 10, 2009 Report Share Posted March 10, 2009 I started med 2 years ago at age 35...28 is definitely not old Hehehe, med school seems to make people think that they are old 25 years before most people would say they are I would agree 28 is definitely not too old to do anything! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Borborygmi Posted March 11, 2009 Author Report Share Posted March 11, 2009 Hehehe, med school seems to make people think that they are old 25 years before most people would say they are I would agree 28 is definitely not too old to do anything! I certainly appreciate that. Keep in mind I do have 3 more years of undergrad left in order to make the gpa requirements for the schools, and that brings me to 32 (turning 29 this year)..... plus my main main main concern is my past really poor academic standing. If I were doing this fresh, I wouldn't really be concerned because of my 'life experience' (which is quite subjective anyways). It's the hiccups I've experienced academically that will do me in potentially... I'm hopeful anyhow, and have other plans if it doesn't work out.... but then again, I'm fairly persistent . Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smm99 Posted March 12, 2009 Report Share Posted March 12, 2009 I certainly appreciate that. Keep in mind I do have 3 more years of undergrad left in order to make the gpa requirements for the schools, and that brings me to 32 (turning 29 this year)..... plus my main main main concern is my past really poor academic standing. If I were doing this fresh, I wouldn't really be concerned because of my 'life experience' (which is quite subjective anyways). It's the hiccups I've experienced academically that will do me in potentially... I'm hopeful anyhow, and have other plans if it doesn't work out.... but then again, I'm fairly persistent . I can't speak for adcoms, but I would think that a poor past performance followed by a really great "second round," especially with a few years in between, wouldn't look that bad, actually. It would show that you recognized what you did wrong the first time, and took definite steps to correct it and do better the second time. I think that it shows maturity and dedication to head back to school after a previously "un-stellar" experience. Just my opinion, for what it's worth. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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