Ubcstudent01 Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 Which med schools in Canada put the most emphasis on GPA during the application process? I recently completed prereqs for ubc medicine with an average of 91 and an overall average of 90. I have absolutely no extracurricular activites besides some minimal volunteering during high school. Although I plan to volunteer extensively for the next year or two, I'm kind of wondering which school I have the best shot at? Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Soap.Bar Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 From what I've heard and researched myself, grades will only get you so far for medical school applications. Having a good GPA and MCAT score DOES take up majority of the weighing in most schools so I don't think there's really a big problem yet, but I would start focusing on ECs regardless of which school you decide to apply to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kasiunut Posted January 26, 2012 Report Share Posted January 26, 2012 I think that the problem with only putting emphasis on grades is that pretty much everyone who applies to medical school HAS good grades...so your ECs are a great way to make yourself stand out. Plus it shows that you are able to manage your time (i.e. doing ECs and getting good grades), demonstrate leadership (which admin committees def want to see) etc. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dino Posted February 2, 2012 Report Share Posted February 2, 2012 Which med schools in Canada put the most emphasis on GPA during the application process? I recently completed prereqs for ubc medicine with an average of 91 and an overall average of 90. I have absolutely no extracurricular activites besides some minimal volunteering during high school. Although I plan to volunteer extensively for the next year or two, I'm kind of wondering which school I have the best shot at? Thanks! I have 2 pieces of advice: 1 - Follow up on your plan to volunteer. 2 - Really follow up on your plan to volunteer. Did you write the MCAT? Whadja get? Two Ontario school don't require an MCAT (Ottawa, Northern), but you must have a good EC life experience, in addition to good marks. In Ottawa, once you get called for an interview, that interview becomes the most important criterion. They offer admissions based on interview scores in the following way. 1 - Top interview score, top wGPA, second wGPA, etc... 2 - Second top interview mark, top wGPA, second wGPA, etc... 3 - 3rd, etc... So, someone with a 3.89 wGPA who aces the interview will be accepted before someone with a 4.00 wGPA who doesn't do so well on the interview. I only know the system for Ottawa, but you can check online on the criteria for your schools of interest. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IamIDP Posted February 2, 2012 Report Share Posted February 2, 2012 Which med schools in Canada put the most emphasis on GPA during the application process? I recently completed prereqs for ubc medicine with an average of 91 and an overall average of 90. I have absolutely no extracurricular activites besides some minimal volunteering during high school. Although I plan to volunteer extensively for the next year or two, I'm kind of wondering which school I have the best shot at? Thanks! To answer your question: UofT's consideration is 60% based on GPA. The other 40% is the deciding factor, which is everywhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
future_doc Posted February 2, 2012 Report Share Posted February 2, 2012 You need to be well rounded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
future_doc Posted February 3, 2012 Report Share Posted February 3, 2012 I reiterate You need to be well rounded. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
apache Posted February 3, 2012 Report Share Posted February 3, 2012 i agree wholeheartedly There seems to be two definitions of well rounded - that of the adcoms, and that of the traditional sense of the word. To 99% of people, a "well-rounded" student is one who gets good marks, spends time with friends, parties, has a girlfriend, travels to Cuba for the winter break (NOT for volunteer work), watches TV, etc. Basically, "well-rounded" in the traditional sense of the word means someone who studies hard and plays hard. Adcoms seem to have a different idea of what well rounded means - a twisted, sinister definition. Well rounded to an adcom is someone who gets good marks, then works on his research project, runs his Cure Cancer Now! club, volunteers at the hospital, and jobshadows a surgeon. People who do this are not considered well-rounded people. At best, they could be considered workaholics, and at worst, antisocial weirdos. NORMAL people do not do these kinds of things in their spare time, so let's just make one thing clear Future Doc, getting into medical school does NOT involve being "well-rounded" in any NORMAL sense of the word. In fact, getting into meds does not involve "being" anything. It simply involves saying you did interesting stuff. The easiest way to get in, which is what most people do, is to put in as little time as possible into these kinds of activities, then embellish in them to such a degree that your characterization of what you did is totally inconsistent with reality. For example, you can volunteer 2 hours a month at the hospital, then write a whole paragraph in your ABS about it saying that it changed your life. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phosgenic Posted February 3, 2012 Report Share Posted February 3, 2012 i agree wholeheartedly nice to see you again muse, havent seen you post in awhile Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
<abstract> Posted February 3, 2012 Report Share Posted February 3, 2012 He's right. The adcom definition of wellrounded seems to mean that one has a fiery drive to do whatever it takes and bow to whomever is required to reach his goal. This is probably why many physicians are maladjusted adults with spoiled child-like temperments. And we should just stop banning AtomSmasher. He's abrasive and his opinions are unpopular, but I've not seen him do anything blatantly trollish, racist, or insulting. There are more ad-spammers who haven't been banned...maybe the mods should concentrate on them and leave AtomSmasher alone. I agree. There needs to be different points of view for a healthy discussion. There have been worse people on this forum than atomsmasher.. Let's not wait until his/her avatar name is Atomsmasher10000000. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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