sanders Posted September 27, 2015 Report Share Posted September 27, 2015 Hi Everyone, So, I have recently come to realize that becoming a physican is what I want to do. I did my undergrad at McMaster and completed a degree in Electrical and Biomedical Engineering (B.Eng), and now I am doing a thesis-based Master's in Biomedical Engineering at University of Toronto. Now, I realized that OMSAS does not evaluate grades the same way McMaster did, for example, it dosen't matter if you took a 4 credit or 5 credit course, the course is given the same weighting as a 3 unit course. This seems really unfair because the reason those courses were 4 or 5 unit courses was to motivate people to take harder courses that required a lot more effort then a 3 unit course, and the extra units were a means of compensating for the very likely lower grades one would get, and the time, and effort one would have put into those difficult courses. Upon conferring my degree, I got a commulative average of 10.2 equivalent to a 3.7 something on the 4.0 scale. But, because omsas dosen't take into account the weighting of the courses, my total OMSAS gpa is around a 3.54 which is very low Has anyone else had this issue with this part of omsas? Is this different weighting something only engineering program do? I have no idea what I can do at this point. I know some school look at your last 2 years and for those schools i have a 3.75 Gpa which is okay (I guess), but this really narrows down my options. In case this will help you understand my situation, I have listed my GPA's for each year according to OMSAS's grading scheme, then the grades listed my transcript below: OMSAS 1st Year: 3.36 2nd Year: 3.32 3rd Year: 3.63 4th Year: 3.86 I actually have on my transcript: 1st Year: ~ 3.3 (9.2/12) 2nd Year:~3.3 (8.9/12) 3rd Year: ~3.7 (10.2/12) 4th Year: ~3.9 (11.2/12) Do you guys think I have a chance in Ontario at all? Has anyone been in my situation, and if so did you get in? Or any tips would be helpful at this point. I am definitely pursuing medicine because that's what I really want to do. Any help is appreciated. Thanks in advance. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sdj78we9jtf2o3mgfvj298j Posted September 27, 2015 Report Share Posted September 27, 2015 I think you converted incorrectly. Course weight DOES matter, so 4 credits =/= 5 credits =/= 3 credits. You're supposed to convert ALL of your marks individually. It's a little complicated but I encourage you to make an OMSAS account and click on the post-secondary education tab on the left then fill in all your grades and course weights. You should get something more accurate. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
IMislove Posted September 27, 2015 Report Share Posted September 27, 2015 Too late for this year though. You can wait until next July to make one and try it, that way you got a better idea . Unless there is another way that's reliable. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sanders Posted September 27, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 27, 2015 Hi There, Thanks for replying so quickly, I have entered my grades in the postsecondary school tab. The problem is that they ask you to input the credits, I called OMSAS and confirmed that they don't use the credits for any other reason, but to identify the length (half or full year) of course. They said this: A 3, 4, or 5, unit course is given a weighting of 1 course (half a semester), and a 6 or more credit course is given a weighting of 2 courses (2 full semesters). Thus, 3,4,5 credit courses are considered equivalent in the GPA calculation, sadly. And they don't seem to care about the situation i am in. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aravar Posted September 27, 2015 Report Share Posted September 27, 2015 some ppl do another undergrad to boost their grades. you could look into whether that would be a good option for you. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Edict Posted September 27, 2015 Report Share Posted September 27, 2015 some ppl do another undergrad to boost their grades. you could look into whether that would be a good option for you. Lets be realistic though, he has a bachelors and a masters, a second bachelors followed by a medical degree followed by residency is a bit much. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aravar Posted September 27, 2015 Report Share Posted September 27, 2015 yea true. i skimmed the grades, didn't see the part about having a master. not sure what the best route would be here. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sanders Posted September 28, 2015 Author Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 Would a great MCAT score help my case? Or would American schools be a better option? Though I would prefer staying in Canada. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RicardoKaká Posted September 28, 2015 Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 Seems like your GPA would be ok for McMaster? (I think), write the MCAT and kill it (especially VR) and you may have a shot - also Queens and Western look at most recent 2 years (so if that weighted is over 3.7 I'd apply there as well). You probably cant apply to: - Ottawa - NOSM - UofT Hope this helps Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
phoenixfire Posted September 28, 2015 Report Share Posted September 28, 2015 You may have a chance with Western if you're SWOMEN. You may have a chance with McMasters if you ace CARS on the MCAT (it's not VR anymore) and Casper. With your cGPA of 3.54, you'd be in the bottom 5-10 percentile of the class so you really have the odds stacked against you. http://fhs.mcmaster.ca/mdprog/documents/Classof2017.pdf But realistically speaking, I'd look into the US or alternate career options. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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