Hey all. I am 28 and have 1 year left of my bachelors degree at a good public research university. When I graduated high school I had no money for school so I went to community college. Like other stories I’ve heard here I had reality check issues. I needed to work and the idea of doing well and finishing college, let alone going to medical, seemed like something that just wasn’t going to happen. As an 18 yo with only the internet as an advisor I didn’t even think you could get into Med school if you went to a community college no matter how well you did. I still thought a degree of some sort was going to be essential so I enrolled a few semesters and either withdrew due to work or else did poorly because school did not get my full attention. As a result I have very poor grades from that time.
I am doing well now but I still have to overcome those grades. My question is about GPA. Without going through my whole application, I’m wondering if I should graduate on time with an OK GPA and then do an SMP if necessary -or- stay enrolled an extra quarter or two and take more science courses I don’t NEED for my degree that will boost my GPA. It seems like many of these programs are basically just the opportunity to take more undergrad courses to prove you can do well. I feel like I can do that now without paying $350-$450 a unit. I get a full scholarship now and like I said my university is pretty good. Will taking more courses as part of my degree do the trick or will it look bad? Does it have to be a postbacc or SMP to look good? I think the GPA boost will be the same either way I’m just thinking of how it will look on an application.
Hey! So I’m actually in a similar situation as you and I’m doing just that! I’m not so concerned with obtaining a degree as I am boosting my GPA, so I’m taking upper level undergraduate courses and also planning to repeat a few Chemistry courses to help prepare for the MCAT. In the pre med community we usually refer to it as a DIY post bacc because essentially you’re structuring your courses yourself. So this won’t look bad at all to medical schools, many non trads like myself go this route and are successful.
There are some advantages to doing a formal SMP. You will have access to better pre med advisors and advocates who will have a good perspective on the process and will help guide you through what you need to do. Some programs will even give MCAT prep and connect you with physicians to shadow and volunteer opportunities, they tend to be very structured as to what courses you take, and overall, they are better at holding your hand while you go down this path. The disadvantage is as you pointed out, they are typically expensive.
The advantage of doing a DIY post bacc is that you can take courses at your leisure and courses that you personally feel you need while not breaking your bank account. However, if you choose to go this route, you wont have anybody holding your hand. You will have to be proactive about what you need and how to get there. Everything from finding physicians to shadow, getting volunteer experience, deadlines for LOR committees, it’s all on YOU. There won’t be anyone going out of their way to meet up with you throughout the semester making sure you got your stuff together. You may have a pre med advisor at your college but even if you do, there is a very high likelihood that they may give you bad advice. Please proceed with caution, I’ve heard nightmares of some of the very uninformed and bizarre suggestions that pre med advisors at colleges have told students. This is where this website and the pre med years podcast will be vital for you to get accurate advice. Anything they tell you, always cross reference it with reliable pre-medical sources.
I’m biased in that I’m going the route of doing it myself rather than going the formal post bacc route, I recommend it as I’ve seen many people do it and I also get free tuition like yourself, so I did not want to chip out the higher cost of an SMP. If you are a person that is proactive and independent then you should have no problem. If you feel that you will need more support and structure though, then an SMP might be a safer route.
Good luck!