covarubious Posted July 10, 2013 Report Share Posted July 10, 2013 Hi all, med school has been a dream of mine for many years but various circumstances have... delayed my application. I was wondering if age plays a factor in the application process for U of C and how old is too old? I will apply next year and at that time i will be 38, luckily I look much younger. lol My GPA is not great, weighted is 3.64 but I was also working 2-3 jobs, running multiples student groups, and doing research at the time. (Also won highest gpa award 3 out of the 4 years lol) My EC's are very strong, lots of long term stuff (12 years working for Toronto General) with lots of hours and lots of leadership, research with multiple conferences and a few publications on the way, strong letters of reference, masters degree, and yes Alberta residency. Thoughts? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheBoss Posted July 10, 2013 Report Share Posted July 10, 2013 I was wondering if age plays a factor in the application process for U of C and how old is too old? I'm pretty sure Ian Walker said age doesn't matter in admissions, and in my opinion go for it! You're not at all too old I say. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
frozenarbitor Posted July 10, 2013 Report Share Posted July 10, 2013 For sure, go for it. You sound like a great applicant. Age is not a factor in med school admission. However, keep in mind that certain specialties (such as surgery) have a younger retirement age, thus age might be held against you when it comes to CARMS if you are not very flexible in term of specialty. Also your family (assuming you are married) might have to relocate with you for residency. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
covarubious Posted July 10, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 10, 2013 Thanks for the replies! I was hoping my age wouldn't be a big hinderance; I really like U of C because of the 3 year program and its scoring. For GPA I meet the cut off for full review but not suer competitive but I can make up points in the Global Assessment of Academic Merit and Evidence of Specific Non-Cognitive Attributes. I figured surgery would be our of my grasp loll And after working in an ENT cancer ward for 3 years I'm ok with that. lol I did get to watch an amazing procedure though, trach and maxillary swing procedure. Crazy! I was thinking family medicine but from experiences from other friends over the years you never know what specialty is right for you until you have done it. And no kids here so can move pretty much anywhere. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sunshine4Isa Posted July 10, 2013 Report Share Posted July 10, 2013 From what I've seen so far for the class of 2016, there are a few students (maybe 6-7 so far that we know of) who will be in their upper 30s and even some in their 40s! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vidhya Posted July 10, 2013 Report Share Posted July 10, 2013 I can concur with Sunshine, I'm one of the "older" folk in the 2016 class, and there are at least 6-7 of us at minimum. There are 2 or 3 on our Facebook page that are in their early 40's, so I'm guessing we have a decent chunk of the class over 35 - at least 10%? I have to say, throughout the interview process I never once felt that anyone (faculty, staff, current students) judged me as too old. Everyone was incredibly friendly and supportive. Since I think my pre-MMI score was probably modest, I think my interview score is what put me over the edge, so they can't have had an issue with it...even privately. Moreover, I've put on a few pounds with my sedentary work the last 10 years, so I had what I thought was a double negative.....old and overweight! However, I made it in! I think you're never too old. A 20 year old could be hit by a bus before they're 30, a 40 year old could work until they're 90 because they like it, who knows what could happen. EDIT: I forgot to add, anyone else remember that "Med Students" show in the mid-2000's that was filmed at McMaster? It was a 30 min documentary that I remember catching during the daytime a while back. They had one first year student who was in his early 50's. I believe he was a former accountant and wanted to follow his med dream. After I saw that I knew I wasn't going to give up applying for a while. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
covarubious Posted July 13, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 13, 2013 Thanks for all the great replies! Definitely encouraging. I think the only nagging doubt left if the longevity in the career and the time you need to pay back all the debt. A perk of being... older is that many of us have our undergrad debt paid off and medicine can be a career you work at long beyond the typical retirement age. I mean if you love it and you are still sharp enough to do it, why retire? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CapillaryWave Posted July 14, 2013 Report Share Posted July 14, 2013 Too old. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rmorelan Posted July 14, 2013 Report Share Posted July 14, 2013 Too old. ha There is always an upper limit! Beyond that and it is pretty wide open. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
covarubious Posted July 15, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 15, 2013 IMO the latest I would start medical school would be 26. I want to start residency when I'm 30. Good luck, I hope it works out for you! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lokiki Posted July 20, 2013 Report Share Posted July 20, 2013 Hey all, I interviewed at UofC this year, and I'm 33. I didn't get accepted unfortunately, but I think my GPA was around 3.8 (after the 10-year-rule). It was funny, the "older" people at the interview kind of gravitated towards each other. A few of us wound up sitting together at the post-MMI thing, and funny enough, I think most of us do "look younger". Bottom line- it's totally fine to apply at your age. Maybe I'll even see you at the interview this year! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vidhya Posted July 24, 2013 Report Share Posted July 24, 2013 Hey all, I interviewed at UofC this year, and I'm 33. I didn't get accepted unfortunately, but I think my GPA was around 3.8 (after the 10-year-rule). It was funny, the "older" people at the interview kind of gravitated towards each other. A few of us wound up sitting together at the post-MMI thing, and funny enough, I think most of us do "look younger". Bottom line- it's totally fine to apply at your age. Maybe I'll even see you at the interview this year! That's good to know! I didn't go to the post-MMI event this year. I had this mental image of walking in and the bar going completely quiet...somewhere in the background a person would say..."need some help grandma?" Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
covarubious Posted July 24, 2013 Author Report Share Posted July 24, 2013 That's good to know! I didn't go to the post-MMI event this year. I had this mental image of walking in and the bar going completely quiet...somewhere in the background a person would say..."need some help grandma?" Or worse start screaming Nark! Nark! Nothing worse then being mistaken for the professor when you go to class. Luckily I look a lot younger then I am... (knock wood lol) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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