New and confused....

Nontraditional Premed Discussion
1

Well…‘confused’ may not be the word…new? Yes.





I have never joined a forum before and knew I had to join this one after reading all the great advice. Plus, there seems to be quite a few people in a similar situation to my own.





With that being said, allow me to introduce myself…


I am a 27 year old female who graduated in 2006 with a BFA in Photography and a Minor in Art History. I know… a BFA in photography -and now med school? Really? The answer is yes, and I’m sure I’m not the first.


I will not bore anyone with details, but let’s just say my story is very similar to quite a few on this forum;


Mediocre undergraduate career and have experienced a significant change in drive in these past years (some may call it maturity or finding ‘ones way’). However you want to put it, I know now I am ready for the challenge of premed and med school.





My Problems/disadvantages:


27 years old


2.9 GPA (uggh…)


out of school for more than 3 years.





My Advantages:


27 years old - My age has allowed for quite a bit a real world experiences. My academic potential has greatly increased.


Significant travel and ‘relief work’ - Studied abroad in Europe early in my undergrad career. In 2007 I traveled to Ghana post graduation as an ambassador of Sister Cities. I photographed and documented local health care clinics and local surgeries.


Current career in healthcare field - I now work for a wound care and Hyperbaric Medicine company.


I have always been interested in the Humanities of Medicine and until recently have never taken myself seriously enough to even entertain the possibility of Medical school. I lost my confidence somewhere in my undergraduate career and I finally feel I have gotten it back.


My plan is to return to school in the Spring as a second degree senior and major in Biology. I may or may not complete this degree depending on my acceptance into Med School - all pre reqs completed of course.


SO MY QUESTIONS ARE:

  1. What should I expect from ‘starting over’ with a second degree? What are the general rules when it comes to my previous GPA? Do I select the previous grades that I want to transfer?

  2. Should I complete this 2nd undergrad degree - or does this generally matter with Med Schools?

  3. Should I take college algebra again before pre cal and then cal? I havent had a math class in almost nine years -and I dont remember anything from it. maybe a little about balancing equations…

  • I was thinking that I should get my math our of the way first as this will help with CHEM and PHYS. Is this correct? Or can I begin to take Chem I while I take pre cal?


    ANy suggestions and guidance would be greatly appreciated. I dont know much of what to expect in the coming years but I am realistic enough to know that this task will the hardest thing I’ve ever done.


    Im up for the challenge!!


    thanks. Im excited to hear what everyone has to say!
2

Hi! I’m in a somewhat similar situation, only my first degree was in business. My gpa for that degree ended up being a 3.4, but unfortunately I have some old community college transcripts haunting me (with a really horrendous gpa associated with it).


I’ve been a post-bacc working on a second degree (biology major with a chemistry minor) for a year now. Here’s what my experience has been so far. Hopefully it helps you in some way. I think a lot depends on what school you’ll be attending and what their policies are though:

  1. My gpa from previous degrees/universities didn’t follow me over to the school I’m now attending. From what I understand (someone else can probably answer this better), your post-bacc work will be calculated as part of your undergrad gpa and also show up as a separate category on the AMCAS application. Hopefully someone else can confirm this for you. My transcripts weren’t even evaluated when I first started as a post-bacc. It wasn’t until I formally petitioned the biology department for the 2nd degree that an eval was done. They did the picking and choosing. Turned out they want me to do some gen ed along with my major requirements.

  2. I’m under the impression that completing the second degree is not something mandatory in the eyes of adcoms. Again, I’m hoping someone else can help clarify this (for both of us! lol). In light of the fact that my univeristy is requiring me to take some gen ed they say I was deficient in, I will not be finishing my second degree before applying. My focus is on pre-reqs and upper division bio and chem classes. I’m throwing some of the gen ed I need in there just in case as well, but not going out of my way to do it.

  3. My school offers a pre-calc class that’s specifically for people who haven’t had algebra II in a long time. I’ll be most likely taking that in spring. In hindsight, I think I should have started there though. I believe I would have done better in gen chem had I taken that approach. For me, I have to have 2 quarters of pre-calc to get into non-calc physics. You might want to check on the pre-reqs for physics at your school.


    Your EC experience sounds fascinating! What a unique set of experiences you’ll have to talk about in personal statements and interviews!


    Best wishes to you as you begin this new journey!



3
  • In reply to:
1. What should I expect from 'starting over' with a second degree? What are the general rules when it comes to my previous GPA? Do I select the previous grades that I want to transfer?



All courses will be reported on your application. The MD application will list your GPA from your original undergrad one place, your post-bacc GPA will be calculated separately, and they will calculate a cumulative GPA. They will also break it down into BCPM (biology, chemistry, physics, mathematics) and non-BCPM. If you didn't take much math and science the first time around, it is still possible to have a killer BCPM GPA even with a relatively low ugrad or total GPA.

As far as transferring courses, it's probably going to depend on what the university you're attending wants to do. Again, you will need to report ALL coursework and submit transcripts for them when you apply.

  • In reply to:
2. Should I complete this 2nd undergrad degree - or does this generally matter with Med Schools?



It doesn't matter to the med schools. Enrolling as a degree-seeking student is usually more a matter of being eligible for financial aid and for registration purposes. At some schools, it can be virtually impossible to register for the pre-reqs as a non-degree student.

  • In reply to:
3. Should I take college algebra again before pre cal and then cal? I havent had a math class in almost nine years -and I dont remember anything from it. maybe a little about balancing equations..



Personally, I would recommend retaking it. I actually found the math came back to me fairly quickly and I probably could have reviewed it on my own, however I had no idea how to use the stinking graphing calculators that everyone uses now, so the course was invaluable in terms of learning how to use the calculator. In any case, you want to make sure your math skills are absolutely up to par before taking chemistry or physics. For chemistry, mostly algebra skills and scientific notation. For physics, you will need a good foundation in algebra and trig. As for calculus - you really don't need to take it unless it is a requirement of some of the med schools you are applying to. (A few do require it, but most don't)

  • In reply to:
I was thinking that I should get my math our of the way first as this will help with CHEM and PHYS. Is this correct? Or can I begin to take Chem I while I take pre cal?



As above on the math skills. As for taking Chem I with pre-calc, I would check with your school. If pre-calc is not a pre-requisite for Chem I, you are probably okay taking the two of them together.
4

Thank you for your replies!!! They have been very helpful in making some decisions. I have just changed my enrollment status to 2nd degree seeking (biology major) and plan on taking


Pre Cal and a biology class in the Spring - as long as I can figure out how to use the calculators! I have also spoken with some accounting majors (my boss is a CPA) and they say pre cal is really algebra II - so hopefully I will be in the right spot. I will make a final decision and Math when I speak with my counselor / advisor. I also have made an appt at my university’s disability center.


I have ADHD (did I forget to mention that?)- And I believe this was the culprit during my first undergrad career. I intend on identify any strengths and weaknesses of my academic ‘style’ and using this knowledge to better myself as a student. After all, I feel that ADHD is more of an annoyance or a road block than an actual disability. Once you understand how you ‘learn’ - the easier it is to be a successful student. Are there many medical students with ADHD?

5

Just wanted to say hi! I’m 27 as well but due to “life” I’m still trying to finish out my first degree and then apply to med school. Good Luck!!!

6

Hi, Oscaymayfield.


I took algebra based physics with my last math class having been over ten years ago. I found that it was a lot of basic algebra with some slope/graphing involved plus trig (but just good old SOHCAHTOA). I really didn’t remember any of it, but I caught on fairly quickly and didn’t have any problem. It really depends on how confident you are in your prior math skills. I was really good at math when I was younger and I had the added advantage of having used some basic trig in navigation applications (I sailed across the Pacific Ocean).


The school where I took chemistry required that students take an Intro to General Chem class before starting the Gen Chem sequence. I was upset about this at the time, but it turned out to the be the best prep for all of my science classes because it went over a lot of the algebra in slow, easy detail. If your school offers a lower level G Chem that prepares students for regular G Chem, I would take that. When I took G Chem I and II, I aced them completely, just because I had this little class before. It put me way ahead of the game, more so than a math refresher would have. Also, I took a bio for non-majors class prior to general bio, and that gave me a little exposure as well. At the time, I was really trying to dip my toes in the water, as I had majored in English and I really didn’t know how well I was going to do. But, it went really well and I found the information easy to grasp. In general, I find it easier to learn if I already have some sort of prior knowledge with which to connect new information. Remember, its okay to warm up and test the waters before throwing yourself in whole hog.


Remember, the easy classes that help you to build a foundation will count as hours that will help you to raise your GPA. I also started at a low GPA (2.7), and I’m now at a 3.1 (I’ve taken a TON of hours). Not great, but better. However, since I did not take any science classes previously (and this is where liberal arts people benefit), my science GPA is a 3.9. So, do your best, take your time, and build a foundation. If that includes math, take math. Physics is a lot of math, but it isn’t necessarily difficult math (if you can use the quadratic formula, you’re in good shape). Chemistry contains math, but its not overly difficult math either. Chemistry does not require calculus AT ALL. O chem is almost devoid of math, and biology will contain a little math, but mostly memorization of processes and concepts.


Good luck!