Hello all,
My name is Andrew, I just found this site and I just wanted to introduce myself. I’ve read some of the forums and found the responses to be encouraging, which is great. After spending over 10 years in the corporate world and working my way up from salesman to general manager with 100 reports I was laid off this past August. I have dreamt about being a physician for the past 5 years and I am now afforded the opportunity which I am seizing with all of my soul. With the support of my wife and 4 yr old twin daughters I went back to school full time in preparation for the MCATS this August 2009. I graduated from a University in 1998 with a B.S. in Business Administration with a GPA of 2.0. Last semester (at a local CC) I took 12 credits including A&P 1, Chm 1, & Micro 1, and recieved a 3.0. This semester I am taking 20 crdts A&P 2, CHM 2, PHY 1, BIO 1, ORGNC 1. Over the summer I will take PHY 2, BIO 2, & ORGNC 2, as well as the Kaplan review on the weekends for the MCATS in August. I know I don’t need all of these courses until I matriculate into med school, but I also know that I’ll need them to be successful on the MCATS. I will get a 3.6 GPA overall when all is said and done, and I will get a 32Q on my MCATS as well. I will be accepted into med school for 2010, I will graduate med school, and I will become an emergency room physician.
Thank you.
You got a 2.0 in your previous degree, a 3.0 taking a three class quarter, and you anticipate finishing with a 3.6 after taking a five class quarter? Do you tend to rush things?
You might want to ease your pace. Nobody will care how many quarters it takes you to complete your prereqs, but they will care what your GPA is - and they may be more skeptical about classes taken at a community college.
Prereqs and MCAT prep simultaneously? Ouch.
You appear to be setting yourself up for a brutal quarter with a chaser of disappointment.
Slow and steady wins this race.
Hi Andrew! It’s hard when life throws a curveball at you, but it sounds like you let it become something positive…motivation to finally live out your dream.
I would agree with Bill though. I know it’s hard to be patient (trust me!) but…you really are taking on a lot and at the end of the day you may regret overloading yourself. If it’s possible, consider pulling back and reducing your load. At this point in the semester, you can probably grab an incomplete for one of the courses and just work on it this summer. Doing well is important, especially for those of us who have deficiencies to make up for!
Good luck this semester and … keep us posted.
Kris
There is a common mantra among us pre-meds and among the med students and the already made it to the physician stage people here at OPM “it’s not a sprint but a marathon”! You will hear it repeated over and over among all of us and it is definitely a valuable lesson to learn…welcome to the board. This is definitely a great place to be.
Andrew, Welcome…
I feel your excitement. I had a plan. A one year plan to complete as many of my prereq with a 4.0…Im currently at 3.8 GPA in my sciences…3.47 GPA in undergrad. I had been a business owner for the past 10 years. So, I know the feeling of getting things done NOW. And I would like to encourage you to go for the gusto. You know your limitations, like no other. I have had so call advisors tell me I would never make A’s with my class loads and I did. No one knows your commitment to what you have set your focus on, but you.
My encouragement to you is make sure that your outcome is on target with your set objectives. You must understand that your application (your story), GPA and MCAT are critical to you getting pass the first round. So, build your best story possible. Make sure that in your prereq you are get the highest possible grades, A’s. Make sure your time is well spent between your commitment to family, volunteering and course work. Make sure you are hitting your target points.
As a professional business man, Im sure you know and understand the importance of making sure your actions are inline with what you want to accomplish at the end of the day, week, month, or quarter.
Remember, Your story did not start the moment you decided to walk towards med school. Your story start from the moment you graduated from high school, which Im sure you’ve done a lot of remarkable things. Build on your strengths.
Keep the prize before you. Develop a realistic plan that is going to get you what you want, getting into medical school and becoming a physician. Do your research. Proceed with caution. Run with wisdom in a way that your may endure to the end. I can not tell you what your pace should be, but do your reseach and make sure your target points are within acceptable means of what med school admission’s boards are looking for.
Best wishes on your journey…
J