Guest jumbeans Posted February 23, 2002 Report Share Posted February 23, 2002 I am currently a 3rd year cell biology and Genetics major at UBC. I have a huge problem! My first year average was 58%.. I worked my butt off and got an 80% in second year. I'm also getting an 80% average this year. Am I still competitive for med school? if yes.. which one should I apply to have the best chance? (canadian med school please) Also, are summer courses counted toward overall GPA? If I send in my application at the beginning of 4th year? and they offer interviews before 4th year is done.. then how is it possible for the committee to review my 4th year final marks? How important are pre-req averages? Are they selection factors as well? How important are the MCAT scores? Is having the minimum requirement enough? What are the factors that will affect my chances of getting an interview? Is it just based on my overall average? Are there schools that do look at non-academics when offering interviews? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Ian Wong Posted February 23, 2002 Report Share Posted February 23, 2002 Hi, You've asked a ton of questions, most of which have been answered at different times throughout this discussion board. I'd encourage you to browse through the old messages, as they are often very informative. All Canadian med schools are competitive without exception. Your best chance of acceptance will be at the med school where you are considered "in province". If you apply to an out-of-province med school, generally they will hold you to a higher standard than their in-province applicants. Summer courses may or may not be counted, depending on the individual med school. Check each med school website to find out the details. You will often receive your interview invites without having your fourth year marks, as (and you've guessed this already) the interviews will occur before you've finished all of your fourth year courses. Some med schools may expect you to maintain a certain average/satisfactory performance in fourth year, and could potentially revoke an acceptance letter if you fall short of their thresholds. Again, this varies with each med school, so check with them. Pre-req averages may be more important than the overall average, as they are the only courses that each applicant is guaranteed to have in common. Certainly they are a selection factor. MCAT scores are required at all English Canadian med schools but McMaster and Ottawa. Again, different schools assign different weights to your MCAT scores. The factors that influence your receiving an interview also vary with each med school. Generally, they will consist of your: autobiography, reference letters, GPA, MCAT scores, volunteering, extracurricular activities and past experiences, and research. Most every school looks at non-academics when giving out interviews, but your non-academics will have to be VERY strong to overcome weak academics. I couldn't say how competitive your marks are at most med schools, but the average GPA for accepted students at UBC has hovered around 80-82% for the last several years. www.premed101.com/stats.html#Marks Again, there's lots of good info in the old posts. I'd invite you to take a gander at them. Ian UBC, Med 3 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest eye hope its my turn Posted February 23, 2002 Report Share Posted February 23, 2002 Hello there, I know EXACTLY what you are going through. I've been there. First, relax and stay positive about things. So what, you had a bit of a rough start, it's part of life, and character building. If med is what you really want to study and pursue as a career, please don't get discouraged. Everyone has their own path to med school and the same goes for you. Ian has provided you with great advice by checking out the earlier posts. They are extremely informative and encouraging. In the interim, I really suggest you do whatever it takes to keep your marks up, and prepare yourself to write the MCAT. Find out the academic eligibility requirements for the Canadian schools and take it from there. Never give up though buddy. If med is what you want, then you'll get it. It's just a matter of time... Hang in there. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Nicky Posted February 28, 2002 Report Share Posted February 28, 2002 Hi, Wow, am I glad to know someone out there is going through or has been through my problem too. I'm just finishing my first year of university and i think my gpa will likely be around the high 60 to 70 too. I'm quite scare of my chances to make it into med school, but friends and families who have been in med have told me that everything is still possible. Your marks is real proof of how much improvement you have made and I'm sure that the med school will take that into consideration. There is still the MCAT left to write and I'm sure if you did well on it, it will be a good indication of your diligence. Good luck and all the best. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest UWOMED2005 Posted March 1, 2002 Report Share Posted March 1, 2002 Most med schools require a MINIMUM gpa to be considered for interview or acceptance. Fortunately, med schools vary in how they determine that minimum. . . Sounds like your best bet might be Western. We base our interviews on making a minimum GPA (3.65) in your LAST year and your BEST year. What that means is that to get an interview, you only need ONE year in undergrad with a 3.65. After getting that interview, they'll decide whether to conditionally accept you on that ONE year but your acceptance only becomes confirmed if you get 3.65 in your LAST year as well (note - for those two years, BEST and LAST, you must maintain a FULL courseload.) Just to make it completely clear, say you are applying out of 4 years and your GPAs are 1.7, 3.8, 1.7 because personal reasons interfered with your first and and third year (or not, doesn't actually matter. . .) You would get an interview at Western (as long as your MCATs are good), and if that goes well, you may get a conditional acceptance. Upon receiving that conditional acceptance for this year, if your final years GPA was 3.64 your acceptance would be RESCINDED. If you got 3.65 or above, you'd be in and I'd see you around medsci (Western building where the faculty of medicine is) next year. Unfortunately, schools are highly variable in their criteria so a poor first or second year might cut down your chances and made it more difficult to get in. Don't despair though - you can still get in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest SZ Posted March 3, 2002 Report Share Posted March 3, 2002 Does the "best year" need to be composed of a traditional Sept-Apr academic year? In my first two years, I've had two good semesters (semester 2 and 3) and two bad ones (1 and 4). I don't suppose they might consider a year as the two best semesters rather than the best traditional year? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest UWOMED2005 Posted March 3, 2002 Report Share Posted March 3, 2002 It would be nice (and make sense) if things worked that way. . . but unfortunately they don't. Of course, if you've only finished 2 years then there's always 3rd and 4th year. Those were the years that counted towards my application - first year I took a unique problem out east at King's college that counted for almost my entire year and only got a B+ (a "great" mark according to the program directors but not according to the medical schools) then second year I only took 4 courses one semester because I had an extra credit from taking that program and I had no idea that would eliminate that as a year towards med school! Unfortunately, medical school admissions aren't always entirely fair. To process the hundreds to thousands of applications they get most schools have designed "systems" to select applicants, and if you don't match the criteria used by that system, even if you would make a GREAT doctor, it's hard to get in. That's why it's key to learn the "system" each school uses and make sure you make academic choices (ie deciding whether or not to drop a course) to maximize your chance of getting in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest ThugJaan Posted March 3, 2002 Report Share Posted March 3, 2002 Queen's only uses your overall GPA and requires it to be in the top half of the applicant pool (usually 3.55 or so). UofT will eliminate/half-value your worst year if you take 5 courses every year. Ottawa uses a kool WGPA where it is like (3xyr3 + 2xyr2 + 1xyr 1)/6 or something to that effect. If you are any good at math you will observe that 1st year is a measly 1/6th of your GPA. So, if you do end up screwing up one year, fate-willing it hopefully is 1st year. The later on it gets the more damaging it can become. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Archived
This topic is now archived and is closed to further replies.