Hi, I am a 21 yr. old recent graduate of FIU with a Bachelor’s in Recreation and Sport Management with a 3.55 GPA. I have worked at NCAA Division I Football, Basketball,Volleyball, and Soccer games as a Ticket Intern. But I have decided to pursue a career in medicine. I have researched several different careers from athletic trainer to physical therapists to physican’s assistant but I have decided that I am more interested in becoming a physican.
I don’t have any prerequisites completed besides some English courses and psychology that I took during undergrad. My current plan is to take the basic (chemistry,biology, organic chemistry, physics, anatomy & physiology) pre-requisite classes at Santa Fe community college in Gainesville. I am starting to doubt that a little though. I hate to begin an application with a negative right off the bat. But I have emailed a advisor at UF about taking pre-med classes as a transient and she wrote back “that they usually don’t allow it because of large demand of student but they might allow it during the summer when because they are fewer students during the summer.” So I was contemplating about taking the upper division courses like biochemistry, toxicology and immunology at UF if offered during the summers after I have completed all my other classes.
I have emailed all of the D.O. schools and most of them replied the same way “We will take it but you will be less competitive compared to students who took the classes at a 4-year university.” Almost everyone said that I should just take the classes at UF.
Also, I would like to know how to go about approaching a doctor that you would like to shadow. I have a list of a few doctors in the neighborhood and I am planning on going to their offices to ask. I would just like to know what everyone else’s experiences have been when it comes to shadowing.
I also would be interested to know of any pre-med advisors (I don’t have a pre-med advisor at Santa Fe) that anyone has worked with to improve your application.
Also, any advice about preparing for the MCAT such any specific books that I should get?
I am looking for any advice I can get so please don’t hold back.
Thank You,