Hi All!
I’ve been lurking around on these forums for quite some time… simultaneously trying to determine whether or not the journey of going to medical school is even feasible. I’ve always wanted to become a physician, but circumstances in the years thus far have caused me to bottle up those dreams… And now, its brewing up inside me… and I don’t think this time it’s going away. 
I know I’ve read a lot of threads while doing my anonymous lurking, but I’ve come to find that not only is OPM perfect for me and a blessing, but would love some personal advice from those of you who are going through the journey… or have already climbed that mountain and succeeded. 
Before I begin, I’d like to say thank you all for posting your personal struggles and triumphs… I have been truly inspired.
To jump right in, I’d like to say my undergrad GPA is a disaster. I started off as a premed, my eye on the prize… acing my medical school pre-reqs, volunteering, shadowing, and feeding off every moment of it… I truly felt invincible and there was not a shadow of doubt I would become a doctor. I then transferred to a 4 year university and did well my first couple of quarters. Started the Berkeley Review for my MCATS, when basically I soon entered the hardest period of my life.
I did all of this married and with a small daughter. My marriage fell apart and crumbled, and my separation and soon after-divorce was very ugly. My tiny 5 y/o at the time was showing signs that the divorce was affecting her in a very negative way. I withdrew from 2 quarters to make things right with my baby, and ultimately gave up on going to med-school. She was to be my number 1 priority… I was going to commit myself to raising her the best I could while being there for her as much as I could.
When I returned to finish my degree in Molecular Biology, I only did enough to pass the classes and graduate to free up as much of my time as possible… you know, to be this mom who was making it up to her kid b/c I was so guilt-ridden for the hardships the divorce had imposed on her. My grades up until graduation consisted of C-'s, C’s, and even a D. It was a rash decision, an immature decision where I only thought about the moment and not the future.
She’s now a young teenager, and the college light at the end of the tunnel is growing brighter and brighter. I realized… When she’s applying to college, I could apply to med-school, like my original plan, only years and years later.
At this point however, I feel almost clueless. My undergrad GPA is so bad… showing the dreaded downward trend. I feel as though I’m in this ocean of “no you can’t do it, you’re not good enough, you’ve basically screwed everything up”, and I honestly don’t know where to begin to sort out this mess. I’ve read about post-bac programs, but even they require a minimum GPA.
So if any of you here on the wonderful OPM have any advice for me, I would really appreciate it. Do I retake these upper division science courses? Do I look into programs (although I’d have to stay close to home b/c of my daughter)? Do prereqs expire? I’m a single working mother… can this be done?
Thank you for taking the time to ready my very, very long first post… It means so very much to me.
I wish all the best on your individual journeys.
Best,
Ella
Ella - Welcome!!!
You are right about post-bac programs having a minimum GPA. I applied after my youngest of 3 children graduated from college…don’t think you have to wait THAT long as a single mom!
Perhaps the most accessible option for you would be to take the prerequisites at a 4 year school - at a state school if possible. Prerequisites older than 8-10 years should be redone. The information in biology is tremendously different, and retaking the basic prerequs will help to prepare you for a run at the MCAT. Some state universities have a “community scholar” program where you can enroll in classes without going thru application as a degree seeking student. Otherwise, you may have to go thru the application process to be a 2nd degree student, even if you don’t intend to get a second degree. This will get you in to registering for classes.
Do some research - you might want to consider D.O. school as they incorporate grade replacement in calculating GPA. That way, any upper level courses you repeated and did better in would have the later grade substituted.
Perhaps starting with at least Gen Chem I in the spring semester of 2012, and then planning on two academic years to retake your prereqs and take some upper division classes would allow you to work part-time and still do well and complete the needed coursework. Then MCAT’s spring 2014 and applications. Given your situation, I think your strongest application would be to demonstrate success in the basics plus some challenging advanced coursework, and to do well on the MCAT.
Best of luck in pursuing your dream!
Kate
Hi Kate!
Thanks SO much for your advice! As of this very moment, my pre-reqs are between 8-11 years old, by the time I apply (hopefully), they’ll be 11-14 years old… Its sad to think I’d have to retake courses that I’ve done so well in. 
But… whatever it takes! I was thinking about taking a bunch of upper-division, academically rigorous courses to prove that I’m capable of handling medical school… Perhaps I can try incorporating both, starting next quarter/semester depending on which school I choose to go to. Speaking of schools, I’ve done some research regarding the community scholar programs here in my area. Here, I’ve found that we have open universities/extension programs where we can attempt to carry out an informal post-bacc depending on the availability of spaces in the particular courses. I now just need to figure out 2 very important details: how to pay for these classes (I’m just getting by with my current paycheck in academic research, we know how underpaid us research associates really are)… and of course, I will need to meticulously plan an almost 2 years worth of courses at maybe 8-10 units/quarter.
I see you’re a medical student! Congratulations on your successes! Raise 3 kids into happy adults-check. Obtain at least 5 different degrees/certifications-ch eck. Matriculate into medschool-Check!!! Unbelievable and truly inspiring!!!
All the best, and thanks again!
-ella
Welcome Ella!
Kate’s advice is rock solid. I recommend you do NOT try to leap into “taking a bunch of upper-division, academically rigorous courses” yet. This is not a race. You have to repair the damage from 8 years ago, and that means taking things slowly.
Take one or at most two courses the first semester - you don’t jump into the deep end of the pool to re-learn how to swim, and you really shouldn’t leap back into academics with more than 2 classes.
In the past decade it’s likely your higher level math skills have been useless (if not, good news!), which will affect your ability to do well in chem and phys. I’d suggest a basic bio and math class to begin, as both are difficult in different ways.
The informal post-bacc sounds great, but don’t let an advisor bully you into taking 12 credits to start. 
And again, Kate knows what she’s talking about. Even if you’ve perfectly remembered all the content from 10 years ago a lot has changed in biology and even chemistry, and you need that new knowledge to perform well on the MCAT.
Ella -
Hehe! Thanks for the nice review on my “stats”
Kate