Rwethereyet Posted May 30, 2011 Report Share Posted May 30, 2011 In light of the new AQ changes that (seemingly) favour more academically inclined applicants, I have noticed a significant drop in my own motivation to do all that it takes to get a (UBC) admission. I'm already freaking out thinking about contingency plans and already assuming that I will never get an interview at UBC. So here's a thread to generate some optimism for those with overall GPAs (after the proposed drop, and SFU / UVic students included) in the 75% - 83% range. Holla. Let me offer one point of optimism before UBC takes this away too: A larger emphasis on the MCAT this cycle which would allow someone to really study hard and pump out a 35+ to compensate for what UBC thinks is a "disadvantaged" GPA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
hking03 Posted May 30, 2011 Report Share Posted May 30, 2011 The fact of the matter is, if you meet at least the 75% average you have a chance... Otherwise they wouldn't do a full file review. Unless they change the minimum. Don't give up. Good luck and try working on the NAQ or going back for a second degree. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vanksy Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 GPA is still only HALF of the story pre-interview, anyone IP with over 80% should have a reasonably good chance at getting an interview provided that EC isn't horrible. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keepontrying Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 That really depends what the cutoff is this year and if the 92% AQ cap is still being used. I have just about 80% and I needed around 19 NAQ to be slightly above the cutoff last year, so realistically, people with my average must have above average EC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genemo Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 I don't even know I have 80% or not. I was very nervous these days seeing the new policy and the thread on premed. Can't even focus on MCAT study sometimes. I emailed them to ask how they'll convert my GPA but never got reply. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
qwerty7 Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 I don't even know I have 80% or not. I was very nervous these days seeing the new policy and the thread on premed. Can't even focus on MCAT study sometimes. I emailed them to ask how they'll convert my GPA but never got reply. Don't let premed threads stress you out! It's a total waste of time for people to be panicking over the AQ scale - you have no control over how your grades are scored so don't worry about it. Focus on what you can control, like studying for your MCAT and building on your NAQ score. People can get accepted with GPAs in the 70's so it's worth a shot as long as you meet the minimum cut-off. Best of luck!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genemo Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 Don't let premed threads stress you out! It's a total waste of time for people to be panicking over the AQ scale - you have no control over how your grades are scored so don't worry about it. Focus on what you can control, like studying for your MCAT and building on your NAQ score. People can get accepted with GPAs in the 70's so it's worth a shot as long as you meet the minimum cut-off. Best of luck!! Thank you for your words. I was never confident enough to say med school is the only thing I want, so I couldn't stop thinking of other backups. That's also why I cant pursuade myself to devote 100% into MCAT, since I keep thinking even if I get an OK MCAT score, I'm still not going to make it. This feeling is so annoying. But I guess I really have to push it harder. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
vita brevis Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 Don't let premed threads stress you out! It's a total waste of time for people to be panicking over the AQ scale - you have no control over how your grades are scored so don't worry about it. Focus on what you can control, like studying for your MCAT and building on your NAQ score. People can get accepted with GPAs in the 70's so it's worth a shot as long as you meet the minimum cut-off. Best of luck!! Well said! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jojef Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 I'd agree with querty - stress about what you can change, not about what you can't ... much easier said than done, I know I'd say to balance a healthy sense of optimism with a good dollop of reality. Yes, people do get accepted with marks in the mid to high 70s, but these need to be understood for what they are - exceptions. Given the changes this cycle, it's hard to say anything with certainty, but I'd say low 80s should put you in a decent spot if you have strong ECs. It's all really just speculation though. If med is something you're hell bent on doing, and if you're actively taking steps to improve year-over-year, I really do believe that provided you have the baseline AQ required, whatever that may be, you'll get it. May not be when or where you want, but you'll get it. And yep, I hear ya Rwethereyet, I've gone through the same thing myself. Tough to stay motivated if that apparent disconnect between your efforts and your goals becomes established. So I refer back to my previous paragraph PS my 2 cents on the MCAT: I doubt that it will gain more importance this round - Finkler gave the test little, if any weight during his premed admissions talk at SFU earlier this year. I doubt that it will be dropped altogether, but my hunch is that it will continue to be used as it already it - as a flag. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zxcv Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 Check out the McMaster accepted... thread. Very surprising stats. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
thehumanmacbook Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 Check out the McMaster accepted... thread. Very surprising stats. Not surprising when CASPer is worth 47% of your pre-interview mark... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Genemo Posted May 31, 2011 Report Share Posted May 31, 2011 Not surprising when CASPer is worth 47% of your pre-interview mark... Ya, and Verbal worth a lot as well Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eternalkeener Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 Wow, this thread was put out there by nervous applicants who were right!! 50/50 on NAQ and 76% GPA actually CAN'T get you an interview at UBC. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
yugerry Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 Excuse my language but if that's actually true UBC is full of S7*&. Eternal...I don't know what to say. UBC has obviously messed up designing their new evaluation criteria. If the say minimum to apply is 75%, to me it means that if you ace the NAQ and have 75% you should get an interview. This is just ridiculous. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubcMDhopeful Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 Excuse my language but if that's actually true UBC is full of S7*&. Eternal...I don't know what to say. UBC has obviously messed up designing their new evaluation criteria. If the say minimum to apply is 75%, to me it means that if you ace the NAQ and have 75% you should get an interview. This is just ridiculous. Well you never know what the applicant pool is going to be like. So just to be safe I dont see whats wrong with having a 75% minimum. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
keepontrying Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 Excuse my language but if that's actually true UBC is full of S7*&. Eternal...I don't know what to say. UBC has obviously messed up designing their new evaluation criteria. If the say minimum to apply is 75%, to me it means that if you ace the NAQ and have 75% you should get an interview. This is just ridiculous. It's ridiculous because while AQ appears to be a percentile scale, NAQ isn't and so folks like eternal would have an incredibly difficult time getting in despite a spectacular (perfect!) NAQ score. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
eternalkeener Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 Thank you for your support. I am talking to the powers that be and writing a letter. I find it ridiculous as well especially given UBC's and Finkler's 'missions'. Not to mention the province's missions. Plus those grades that sunk my gpa were awarded when things beyond my control were happening, I wrote a letter of explanation, and they ignored it completely. I know I have a case and I will represent it and all the applicants this might affect. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubcMDhopeful Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 Thank you for your support. I am talking to the powers that be and writing a letter. I find it ridiculous as well especially given UBC's and Finkler's 'missions'. Not to mention the province's missions. Plus those grades that sunk my gpa were awarded when things beyond my control were happening, I wrote a letter of explanation, and they ignored it completely. I know I have a case and I will represent it and all the applicants this might affect. Well to be frank,due to the competitive applicant pool, any system they follow will leave out qualified applicants. It appears that UBC has decided to put more emphasis on academics which places some students at an unfair disadvantage. If a system puts more emphasis on life experiences and non academics another set of qualified applicants would be put at an unfair disadvantage. There is no perfect system. At the end of the day the school can choose which way they want to go and they would be totally justified in doing so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zunik Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 Well you never know what the applicant pool is going to be like. So just to be safe I dont see whats wrong with having a 75% minimum. Why is everyone pointing at the applicant pool, like a surge of smart folks applied this cycle all at once? I do not think it is the applicant pool. UBC decided to put more emphasis on GPA and that seems to be the ongoing trend since last year. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zunik Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 Wow, this thread was put out there by nervous applicants who were right!! 50/50 on NAQ and 76% GPA actually CAN'T get you an interview at UBC. Frustrating...I know. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubcMDhopeful Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 Why is everyone pointing at the applicant pool, like a surge of smart folks applied this cycle all at once? I do not think it is the applicant pool. UBC decided to put more emphasis on GPA and that seems to be the ongoing trend since last year. Sorry I should have clarified more, I meant the applicant pool in general. I was not being specific to this year. What I meant is that whatever UBC does (as long as there is some sort of systematic system), there are so many good applicants that they wont go wrong. This has also been true in the recent past Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canucklehead Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 In light of the new AQ changes that (seemingly) favour more academically inclined applicants, I have noticed a significant drop in my own motivation to do all that it takes to get a (UBC) admission. I'm already freaking out thinking about contingency plans and already assuming that I will never get an interview at UBC. So here's a thread to generate some optimism for those with overall GPAs (after the proposed drop, and SFU / UVic students included) in the 75% - 83% range. Holla. Let me offer one point of optimism before UBC takes this away too: A larger emphasis on the MCAT this cycle which would allow someone to really study hard and pump out a 35+ to compensate for what UBC thinks is a "disadvantaged" GPA. Hey Just wondering how you know that the MCAT will be worth more this year? I've actually been hoping for a while that UBC would put more weight in the MCAT as it is the only standardized measurement out there. Thanks Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ubcMDhopeful Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 Hey Just wondering how you know that the MCAT will be worth more this year? I've actually been hoping for a while that UBC would put more weight in the MCAT as it is the only standardized measurement out there. Thanks I am not sure if there is any evidence saying the MCAT is weighted more this year. Keep in mind the post you quoted was posted 6 months ago. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Canucklehead Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 I am not sure if there is any evidence saying the MCAT is weighted more this year. Keep in mind the post you quoted was posted 6 months ago. hmm ok, pretty frustrating that ubc requires you to prepare for and write that 6 hour beast and then pretty much disregards how well you do when its selection time. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
murphy303 Posted November 21, 2011 Report Share Posted November 21, 2011 The problem to me is that there is almost no possible way to redeem yourself once you have a lot of credits and insufficient GPA. In the USA, an amazing MCAT score can bring up a bad GPA. Not so in Canada (well, maybe a verbal score might help at McMaster or Calgary...) But if I can come back from 76% on 151 credits, then so can anyone! But I'm not gonna lie and give false hope: If your GPA is really bad it will take crazy hard work to come back from it, meaning years of dedication... But it can be done. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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