Incentive to Do Well

[Guest Guano]

Through two years of university I maintain a 95% average with a 4.0GPA (includes 2 english courses, 2 arts and 16 sciences/math). However, reading through these discusion boards I get the feeling that GPA is only used to "weed out" applicants to determine who gets interviews. It seems to me that the key to getting accepted is to volunteer and have a kick ass interview. If this is true I really can't see any reason to work my ass off any more. Don't get me wrong, I still participate in sports, volunteer and have a social life. Should I continue to work hard or slack off (I could get 75% in all my courses for the next two years and still have an 85 average and 3.5 GPA and have a hell of a lot more fun).

[Guest Ian Wong]

The key to getting accepted is to be a well-rounded applicant. The catch here is that you need to have the GPA and MCAT numbers to haul in as many interviews as possible. The line of thinking I currently use is that once you finish undergrad, your GPA is pretty much fixed, and there's little you can do to change it. Once you're done undergrad, you can always add on more extra-curriculars and such if those are the lacking bits of your application, but first and foremost, the majority of med school applicants get weeded out based on their numbers.

 

Therefore, get good numbers while in university, and take care of the extra-currics when you've got the time, because there's always time later to add more of them in.

 

Ian

UBC, Med 3

[Guest mn]

What is it that you are naturally inclined to do? Selection for medical school (ideally) is not about rewarding those who have jumped through all the appropriate hoops, but rather finding those who possess the qualities that are considered necessary to be a good physician. Academic excellence (but not necessarily perfection) arises because such a person is bright and inquisitive and likes challenge - naturally. They may engage in activities for the betterment of their community simply because their disposition causes them to gravitate that way.

Conversely, one who tries to list the most of the "right" volunteer activities on their application may find that it works against them. For example, one who visits the elderly just to have it appear on their application (and hates it) is doing no one any favours - and its just not the decent thing to do. Admissions committees are on the lookout for that. Do it because you're interested, you want to contribute and you want to learn - and be able to communicate what you learned.

Probably the hardest part of the process for someone who has really done some introspection and feels that medicine is the way to go, is presenting these qualities in the best light on paper and in the interview.

So...after thinking long and hard about "am I suitable?", go and do whatever it is you are inclined to do. When you write it up just remember to highlight the aspects of your life that demonstrate qualities and experiences that will contribute to making YOU a good doctor.

Good luck, Mary

[Guest PeterHill0501]

Great advice MN...I will be taking advantage of that this coming cycle. Rather than thinking of "new and improved" ways to volunteer I have realized, upon introspection over the last weeks, that I actually have done a ton of humanitarian/volunteer work.

 

Peter

 

P.S. As I said to James, I'm so happy you have been accepted...you are an incredible woman who has come a long way up a steep hill...congratulations...I look forward to hopefully seeing you next year.

 

P.P.S. Hey, I'd like to have you and James over for supper and/or refreshments...email me or have james give you my cell phone number or have james buzz me...

[Guest mn]

Thanks Peter,

 

I appreciate your encouragement and kind words. Also, I think you're probably right about volunteering etc. If you think on it there are probably many facets of yourself that might have slipped your mind and are actually very important - often the simple, obvious things. Many of the best examples of 'why I am a decent human being' are things that you have done never expecting to get credit for and, quite frankly feel a little silly about writing down or talking about. So what. Now is the time. Think about the job description of being a parent - not very glamourous, but...guess what, you're already responsible for the very life and health of a couple of small people, not to mention an intimate understanding of what the parents of your future little patients will be feeling. Don't underestimate the value of some of the 'extras', eg. parent volunteer in the classroom, school trips, soccer etc...

And I don't know about you, but learned a lot about what having aging parents is like this year.

I'm sure the list can go on an on.

 

I certainly don't mean that one should write down, or mention in an interview every time they helped a little old lady across the street, but if you can be counted on to go above and beyond to do the decent thing it doesn't hurt to have a couple of stories in mind.

 

Drop me an email and we'll get together sometime soon. I think James is back in a couple of days....James? are you out there?

 

Mary

[Guest UWOMED2005]

Many schools look at each individual year, and often give weight to later years in your degree. So "slacking off" and getting a 75% in your last two years could torpedo your application at a number of schools, including Western (they look at your LAST year in the admissions decision. More on that in the UWO forum.)

 

Med schools usually are looking for a well-rounded applicants. . . maintaining a good balance of activities that interest you and/or allow you to explore various aspects of medicine to see if you actually find them interesting (ie research, working/volunteering in a hospital) to make sure you really want to do medicine and aren't just applying because "ER is a really cool show." But if you can keep up that 4.0 GPA while doing so, then by all means go ahead! At many/most schools having a 4.0 GPA is still an advantage, probably not as much of an advantage as in the rumours you've heard.

[Guest Liana]

A few more points that hopefully haven't been addressed.

 

You're right in noticing that marks have declined in absolute importance in recent years, but they still definitely count. It's not likely, but (especially if it came down to you and another applicant) an ad comm could look at your transcript and wonder why your marks declined - what would that say about you as a potential physician if you were satisfied with coasting with "good enough"?

 

In that vein, it is good to put in an effort for your own benefit, rather than for someone else's. Having an 85% vs a 95% average doesn't make a huge difference, but you should ask yourself how you will spend the extra time you've gained from not studying as hard. If you're going to use it progressively - to develop yourself or to get involved with a worthy cause, then it may be something worth considering, but if you're just going to devote extra time to Tetris or shopping, you should ask yourself if this is a habit that you truly want to pick up. Trust me, giving in to laziness or addictions is only going to cause yourself trouble in the long run.

 

Something else to consider is that GPA and percentage average are not the same thing. Sure, you have a 4.0 right now, but if you were to get a 75% grade in every course you take from this point on, your GPA for your final two years would be 3.0, making your overall GPA 3.5, and not very competitive. If you aimed to get an 80% in every course, but didn't push yourself too excessively to get 90s, then your GPA would be fine and you may benefit from the stress relief or extra time or whatever is motivating you to strive for lower marks.

 

That said, although marks may be used as a flag does not mean that they aren't important. For instance, McMaster, which, at first glance, doesn't care a lot about marks, actually bases 50% of the total score they use to choose you versus 7 other applicants just to get an interview. If you're applying to Mac right out of undergrad, you're probably going to need strong marks (GPA 3.65+) to get an interview, unless you're an Olympic medal winning president of a developing African community consisting entirely of orphaned paraplegics.

 

Generally, unless you're a resident in a province that isn't Ontario or BC, you'll probably need at least a 3.65 GPA to get an interview. If you want to go to school in any province that isn't your own, you'll probably need something higher than that (3.9+). If you would like to attend U of T or Ottawa, you'll need about a 3.85 to get a good shot at getting an interview. After the interview, you're right, marks don't count as much, but some schools do include your GPA in calculating whether you're admitted.

 

More importantly, if you maintain a high GPA, you increase your eligibility for scholarships. If you're considering doing an MD/PhD you might also want to keep your average high.

 

So marks do certainly count. You don't need to strive to maintain that 95%, but you should probably try to keep your marks in the high 80s to be safe. You're obviously capable of getting a great GPA, and since you're not compromising yourself in terms of personal development, a strong GPA can only help you; you wouldn't want to reduce your chances at certain schools just because you didn't feel like putting in the effort.

 

Ultimately it's up to you: You need to ask yourself what you will gain by giving school less of an effort. Marks can still open doors for you, but you certainly don't have to force yourself to keep up a 4.0.

[Guest me]

" unless you're an Olympic medal winning president of a developing African community consisting entirely of orphaned paraplegics. "

 

ROTFL!!!!!!!!!!! Thanks for a good laugh.

[Guest medstudent]

For med school scholarships are far and few between, I've heard of financially based bursaries but that's about it.

 

It makes sense because how would they decide who to give scholarships to, all of us med students are totally awesome in all areas (marks, community involvement,compassion etc)

 

It would be an impossible task.

[Guest Liana]

Depends on the school, but they do exist. (Just look at the other forums for examples of recipients). I don't know how they're awarded, but I imagine they're almost totally GPA-based.

 

Probably the most important (and realistically beneficial) aspect of keeping up the high marks would be being competitive as an out of province student to most schools. If you're even considering applying outside of your province, having or not having a 3.9 GPA can totally make or break your application.