Hi everyone, just found this website and thank god it’s here!
Hello-
Now that my wife has finished graduate school it’s my turn! Seriously though my lifelong dream is to become a physician, life experience however led me down a different path. I have a bunch of questions I hope can be answered:
2) My overall undergraduate GPA (BS Chemical Engineering) of 3.22/4.0 is, I’m afraid, relatively low but not out of the realm of possibility. However, this degree was
earned in the Honors Program at my alma mater (accelerated, more challenging coursework).
Does the admissions committee weigh the relative difficulty of undergraduate
major program higher for a “more demanding” program such as Chemical Engineering
versus a “less demanding” program such as a BA in Chemistry, etc. Engineering
School is extremely demanding (probably very comparable to the MD programs),
especially in a compressed four year format, and thus you are forced to
sometimes “prioritize” courses and time management. I’m just trying to assess
my relative chance of success before I invest too much time, money, and energy. Please note that I am NOT making fun, belittling, or otherwise making a statement about one’s choice of undergrad degree.
3) I also have a Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA)- does my
graduate GPA of 3.7/4.0 also count towards overall GPA calculation and
consideration? Does it replace the undergraduate GPA?
4) Finally, as I am a bit older (30) than most students what steps do you
recommend I take towards applying and getting ready for admissions
consideration?
I have been working as an engineer for the first four years out of school, got my MBA while supporting my wife through her MSW program, and have been working in product management and finally finance management. While I do have a great career, it is not fulfilling and my dream is always in the back of my mind.
Thank you and best regards,
DA
Hello and welcome to OPM,
2) Schools do to some extent, look at what classes you have taken. But not the extent they should. I took much harder classes than a friend of mine who was a dance major. I got a lower GPA and she got more interviews than I did. We had the same MCAT score and I had way more clinical experiences, so I assume it was due to the higher GPA. It really is subjective, so it is hard to say whether they will be impressed with your classes or not.
3) You will get 2 GPAs. Your application will list your undergrad and then your grad. It will work in your favor that your GPA for grad school is better.
4) Is harder to answer for you. Do you have all the required courses you need to apply?
Have you taken the MCAT?
DO you have any clinical volunteer experiences?
These are some of the main points you will need to be concentrating on.
Have you shadowed any doctors. This entails following a doctor around in their office or at a hospital or out-patient location. If you want to apply to DO schools which are readily acceptant to older students, then you will need a recommendation from a DO that you have shadowed or interviewed with.
That is just some of the things that come to mind for now. Let us know a bit more and we can help you further.
Hi Amy B, thanks!
I have taken all prereqs (one of the advantages of being a chem e is that all pre-med courses are part of the curriculum anyway),
So I plan on studying for the MCAT in early June…since it has been quite a while this will probably be a year long studying period to reacquant myself with the material (especially biology).
Regarding my undergrad gpa, should I focus only on DO schools instead of MD schools? Looks kind of hopeless from a numbers standpoint, unless of course I kick butt on the MCAT.
I personally am going to a DO school starting in the fall. I want to be a rural primary care doc, so the newest of the DO schools was a perfect choice for me.
I just don’t know about how the grad grades will affect the adcoms impressions of you when compared to the undergrad GPA. It could go either way. But you are correct, it will really hinge on what your MCAT score is. I would say if it is 22-26, DO schools are probably the way to go. But you should really read up on both types of schools and make your choice something that you have rad about thoroughly. I have included some links that should be a help to you about the DO profession
I found this one day after searching the topic
http://archfami.ama-assn.org/cgi/content/full/8/6/477
The below links are from SDN
http://www.studentdoctor.net/do/mdordo.asp
http://www.aacom.org/colleges/
http://www.aoa.net/Consumers/whatdo01.htm
Are you planning on taking the August MCAT this year?
Quote:
[snip…] I have a bunch of questions I hope can be answered:
2) My overall undergraduate GPA (BS Chemical Engineering) of 3.22/4.0 is, I’m afraid, relatively low but not out of the realm of possibility. However, this degree was
earned in the Honors Program at my alma mater (accelerated, more challenging coursework).
Does the admissions committee weigh the relative difficulty of undergraduate
major program higher for a “more demanding” program such as Chemical Engineering
versus a “less demanding” program such as a BA in Chemistry, etc. Engineering
School is extremely demanding (probably very comparable to the MD programs),
especially in a compressed four year format, and thus you are forced to
sometimes “prioritize” courses and time management. I’m just trying to assess
my relative chance of success before I invest too much time, money, and energy. Please note that I am NOT making fun, belittling, or otherwise making a statement about one’s choice of undergrad degree.
3) I also have a Masters Degree in Business Administration (MBA)- does my
graduate GPA of 3.7/4.0 also count towards overall GPA calculation and
consideration? Does it replace the undergraduate GPA?
[snip…]
Many med schools recognize that an engineering degree demands greater “academic” time than a non-engineering degree, and that you may have had perhaps less opportunity for all the extra-curriculars that they expect from (still-in or just-out-of-college) applicants. They also tend to take the difficulty of the undergrad institution into account when evaluating your credentials. But not always. And sometimes you need to help them understand this.
I’m going to disagree with Amy B. a bit. Schools usually give more importance to an ugrad gpa than a grad gpa, particularly if the graduate degree is not in the sciences. One is expected to do very well in a master’s program…after all, why get a master’s if you aren’t fascinated by the subject and just raring to get A’s? I don’t know if you have the science pre-reqs finished, but if not, here’s your chance to “show improvement” and also boost (a tiny bit), your ugrad gpa (by taking post-bacc classes).
Don’t forget, for the non-trad applicant, it’s important that AdComms understand how you got from “that” career (whatever it may be) to wanting to do medicine. They have to understand the path, and that no matter how wandering, does it make sense? That you (the applicant) have challenged yourself that this truly is the career for you, that you do know that you are passionate about this new career and understand what it entails.
Cheers,
Judy
Quote:
Regarding my undergrad gpa, should I focus only on DO schools instead of MD schools? Looks kind of hopeless from a numbers standpoint, unless of course I kick butt on the MCAT.
Hi there,
You should not limit yourself to DO schools only, unless you totally LOVE the DO philosophy and only want to attend a DO school. I was 46 when I entered medical school and didn’t have a DO school within shooting range so I HAD to apply only to MD schools. To my surprise, I got into all of the schools that I applied to. (Just lucky for sure!) The point here is choose a variety of schools. Choose your state schools, choose some schools with a national reputation and choose some DO schools.
Be sure to apply to a good number of schools if you can. Apply to as many schools as you can afford. Your chances of getting accepted increase with an increased number of schools.
You are going to need to “ROCK” the MCAT. That means to shoot for the highest score that you can get. Since your GPA is on the low side for medical school, you need to minimally have a score above 30 with no single score less than 9 on any section.
While some schools do take into consideration that engineering is generally a more “rigorous” major than business administration, don’t count on this to take you in. You need to make sure that your application is as strong as possible. You may also want to consider hiring the services of a professional medical school admissions counsellor as you are non-traditional with a borderline GPA applying in a time when non-tradional applicants are very numerous.
Good luck and welcome to the group!
Natalie
i don’t mean to sound completely ignorant, but what is a “professional medical school admissions counsellor” and how would someone go about finding one of these??? 
Well, I am pretty sure that if you google “Medical school admissions counselor” you’d be able to find lots of folks. Just as there are consultants to help aspiring college students get into the right college, there are any number of people who work with prospective medical students to help them put together a strong application.
We at OPM are very proud to feature banner ads from Judy Colwell, who is a superb counselor. Look at the top of the screen as you move around the forums and you’ll see her business advertised. Judy provides superb services to individuals, but she ALSO provides all of us here on the forums with terrific advice, AND she gives a bang-up session on med school admissions at our convention each year, AND she is donating a consult service to our silent auction at this year’s convention. I’m glad to have the chance to publicly acknowledge everything Judy has contributed to OPM. We have all benefitted greatly from her expertise!
I’m weighing in on this topic too 
…
Your own on-campus (pre-medical) advisors know a lot; Judy Colwell knows a LOT MORE! She worked in the admissions dept of Stanford’s med school for 10 years before starting her consulting practice. The difference is that most pre-med advisors have a more limited experience, almost necessarily, because of being grounded to their school and the med schools that they have an established relationship, IMHO. It’s not bad. What’s good (terrific) about Judy Colwell is that she has a decade of experience in a major med school’s admissions dept, she’s well travelled, has visited lots of med schools, and has councelled many pre-meds who have successfully entered med school with her help.
Will she “get you into med school”? Nope. But she’ll get the best “you stuff” out of you and help you work that into your applications and interviews. IOW’s, she’ll see the best in you and get you to do it.
I’ve know her for 5 years from MomMD and OldPreMeds. She’s done a lot for us here, including donating a consulting session(s) to our annual conventions raffle fundraiser. And she’s doing that again for us in Denver (June 10 - 14th, so that’s another reason to join us there! 
).
There are other people out there that consult for med school admissions. Some of them call “your” med schools frequently about you, but that’s NOT a good idea.
You have an interesting background and are doing well, so you do stand a good shot at getting in. Good luck!
I’m blushing!!! Thank you Mary and Mary for such support and votes of confidence. I hope I can continue to live up to your commentary.
Smiles,
Judy