FutureDoctor Posted June 5, 2015 Report Share Posted June 5, 2015 Hello I have completed two undergraduate degrees and my wGPA for UofT comes to 3.83 and an MCAT score of 10P,11V,10B. I am about to begin my masters (thinking of course-based now). I have diverse and long term ECs and wonder what my realistic chance will be at UofT med. I was actively involved in caring for a family member who had a serious illness at the time (acting as the primary contact for all care providers, accompanying to hospitals, helping communicate, etc) all throughout my undergrad and the depth of the responsibility that I had did significantly affect my GPA. Given those extenuating circumstances, would my wGPA help me at UofT or is it too low to be considered? Any input will be appreciated. Thanks FutureDoctor Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FutureDoctor Posted June 6, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 6, 2015 I realize it's difficult to answer as the situation is pretty unique. Can someone comment on the competitiveness of my wGPA of 3.83 if possible please? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdj78we9jtf2o3mgfvj298j Posted June 7, 2015 Report Share Posted June 7, 2015 So a 3.83 traditionally wouldn't be competitive but since you have extenuating circumstances (which UofT takes seriously), and you're about to do a Masters, I'd say it's worth applying. I can't say for certain what your chances are but I think you have a shot. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FutureDoctor Posted June 7, 2015 Author Report Share Posted June 7, 2015 Thank you chocolatecheese, appreciate it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ieatpremeds Posted June 24, 2015 Report Share Posted June 24, 2015 Hello I have completed two undergraduate degrees and my wGPA for UofT comes to 3.83 and an MCAT score of 10P,11V,10B. I am about to begin my masters (thinking of course-based now). I have diverse and long term ECs and wonder what my realistic chance will be at UofT med. I was actively involved in caring for a family member who had a serious illness at the time (acting as the primary contact for all care providers, accompanying to hospitals, helping communicate, etc) all throughout my undergrad and the depth of the responsibility that I had did significantly affect my GPA. Given those extenuating circumstances, would my wGPA help me at UofT or is it too low to be considered? Any input will be appreciated. Thanks FutureDoctor It's possible to get in with that wGPA, and given your EC's I'd give it a shot. Would suggest applying to McMaster, based on the info. you provided you could have a great shot there. One thing I would suggest is make sure you have very strong reference letters, U of T takes these into account more so than other schools. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Riverpeth Posted July 23, 2015 Report Share Posted July 23, 2015 You mentioned that you were considering a course based Master's, however I would look into the specific details regarding what UofT considers a graduate degree, as I read on another post that they only confer a grad advantage to those who completed a thesis based Master's degree. Just something to consider.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
canuckythe Posted July 31, 2015 Report Share Posted July 31, 2015 I'm fairly certain that UofT uses MCAT and wGPA only as a cutoff. With solid EC's you should have a good chance! Don't worry about what the average entering gpa is. There may be many confounding variables that lead to a wGPA that high. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peace2014 Posted July 31, 2015 Report Share Posted July 31, 2015 I'm fairly certain that UofT uses MCAT and wGPA only as a cutoff. With solid EC's you should have a good chance! Don't worry about what the average entering gpa is. There may be many confounding variables that lead to a wGPA that high. really?? As a cutoff? That is really hard to believe. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
amichel Posted August 1, 2015 Report Share Posted August 1, 2015 MCAT as a cutoff, yes. GPA, heck no. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SpencerV Posted August 1, 2015 Report Share Posted August 1, 2015 really?? As a cutoff? That is really hard to believe. I think for GPA it is more accurate to say there is a minimum and the rest of your application can be used to compensate for a slightly lower average. GPA is certainly not a cutoff...the average GPA rose to 3.96 this year and to me this suggests that they give the GPA a lot of weight for most applicants. MCAT, as far as I can tell, is just a cutoff but last year there was someone on this forum with a really low VR score that still managed to get through so there is still grey area and possibly room for the rest of your application to make up for any faults. This is a benefit of U of T's more holistic approach to med applications, I guess. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Brule Posted August 4, 2015 Report Share Posted August 4, 2015 I think my wGPA was like 3.88 or something, so not too different from yours, and I did a graduate degree. I think your masters would be a great way of compensating for any potential deficit in grades; however, I think you're only seen as an undergrad if you do a course-based masters, so I would consider doing a 2-year research-based one. I think that would help you a lot. Definitely apply! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graduate08 Posted August 4, 2015 Report Share Posted August 4, 2015 I think my wGPA was like 3.88 or something, so not too different from yours, and I did a graduate degree. I think your masters would be a great way of compensating for any potential deficit in grades; however, I think you're only seen as an undergrad if you do a course-based masters, so I would consider doing a 2-year research-based one. I think that would help you a lot. Definitely apply! This is from the U of T website: (I guess they allow course-based masters to be included under Grad Apps) Note: If you completed or are currently completing a course-based graduate program, you are not required to submit an academic CV. You are, however, required to submit a letter from your graduate program office confirming your program completion date. The deadline for receiving this letter is October 1, 2015. http://www.md.utoronto.ca/admissions/information/requirements/Graduate.htm Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dr. Brule Posted August 8, 2015 Report Share Posted August 8, 2015 This is from the U of T website: (I guess they allow course-based masters to be included under Grad Apps) Note: If you completed or are currently completing a course-based graduate program, you are not required to submit an academic CV. You are, however, required to submit a letter from your graduate program office confirming your program completion date. The deadline for receiving this letter is October 1, 2015. http://www.md.utoronto.ca/admissions/information/requirements/Graduate.htm Then I definitely stand corrected! OP should continue on with a course-based masters if that's what they're most interested in. I wonder, though, whether a research or course-based program would act more in your favor. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
penguin04 Posted August 8, 2015 Report Share Posted August 8, 2015 This is from the U of T website: (I guess they allow course-based masters to be included under Grad Apps) Note: If you completed or are currently completing a course-based graduate program, you are not required to submit an academic CV. You are, however, required to submit a letter from your graduate program office confirming your program completion date. The deadline for receiving this letter is October 1, 2015. http://www.md.utoronto.ca/admissions/information/requirements/Graduate.htm The Graduate student CV IS the grad application. It's what they use to supplement the academic component of a grad student app so that a lower GPA can get in as long as they have sufficient research experience. What this quote indicates is that a course-based masters isn't considered a Graduate degree in the fact that it doesn't help the academic component of your app in the way a research based one does. They ask for a letter from your program about completion because they don't want to be held responsible for you leaving a program high and dry without warning. I hope this helps PS "You" in this post is a hypothetical "you". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Graduate08 Posted August 8, 2015 Report Share Posted August 8, 2015 The Graduate student CV IS the grad application. It's what they use to supplement the academic component of a grad student app so that a lower GPA can get in as long as they have sufficient research experience. What this quote indicates is that a course-based masters isn't considered a Graduate degree in the fact that it doesn't help the academic component of your app in the way a research based one does. They ask for a letter from your program about completion because they don't want to be held responsible for you leaving a program high and dry without warning. I hope this helps PS "You" in this post is a hypothetical "you". So are you saying that students applying with a course-based master's are not eligible for the lower GPA acceptance? Aren't they at an advantage as they are applying via the graduate pool of applicants? I am just a bit confused because UofT mentioned the course-based info under their "graduate applicants" page. Please let me know. Thanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bambi Posted August 8, 2015 Report Share Posted August 8, 2015 I just read the U/T link related to graduate programs. From my reading, a course based graduate applicant is entitled to apply with a 3.0 GPA. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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