Hello all, this is my first post here. I am thirty years old, and mother of four children ages 2 to 7. I have applied to eighteen MD and five DO programs as of mid-June and I am slowly recieving secondaries, though mostly from the schools that don’t screen. I have two MCAT scores, one that is a 30 and from 1999, and one from 2005, which is a 29. My GPA is 3.62 but my science GPA is a 3.03 because of an F in physics. This was actually an incomplete I did not go back and finish, and I am taking physics II now and expect an A. I realize I might have waited to apply until I actually had that A on my transcript but it is too late to do anything about that now. My other science grades are strong, A’s and B’s.
Yesterday I got an email from the admissions coordinator at Mercer, which was a top choice for me, saying that my grades and MCAT scores are too old for her to assess whether or not I would be able to complete their program. It is true that all my science is from 9 or 10 years ago but I graduated as recently as 2003 in political science, taking seven classes a semester and nearly making all A’s, and I did retake the MCAT in 2005 and make a comparable score to my first score. Clearly, at least to me, my cognitive abilities have not deteriorated since 1999. Moreover, I have been working as a state-certified EMT in rural Alaska over the past year, which required coursework and exams–but it seems this has been disregarded.
I started this application process pretty high, and now, less than a month later, have begun to wonder if I was out of my mind to think I could get into any MD program. I am beginning to feel like I will be lucky to get in anywhere, even PCOM, which is a relatively new DO program in Atlanta that many students are weary of. Any similar experiences or words of advice would be appreciated. Also, anyone have any clue on whether it is possible to get loans for medical school with less than perfect credit? I know it is premature to be worrying about this, but it’s something I think about constantly–actually getting in to medical school and then not being able to go for money reasons.
Thanks for listening.
Val,
I think the major issues against you are your science GPA and the age of your pre-reqs. You may have done very well in your recent poli sci coursework with a heavy load, but unless that included science courses, the adcom point of view is going to be that you haven’t proven that you can handle the science load of medical school. It’s very easy to think that you took this incredibly difficult load and did well, thus, you should be able to do well in med school. I took 20 credit hours a quarter of all math/science for two quarters and thought “gee, that wasn’t all that difficult - med school can’t be that much harder”. I was wrong - it was considerably harder.
The age of your pre-reqs could be a biggie, as well. Many schools have limitations on how old your pre-reqs can be. At 9 to 10 years old, your pre-reqs may be too old or nearing the cut-off for many schools. This is often not something that you can easily find out on a website. A lot of schools don’t have formal policies on this anywhere, but in practice rarely consider someone who’s pre-reqs are older than whatever age they have informally established. I think they like to not make it a formal policy because there are cases where the age of the courses clearly doesn’t matter - someone with an advanced science degree, a 40+ MCAT, etc.
I would update the schools with your physics grade as soon as you have it. That will help. If possible, I think you should consider enrolling in some science coursework for the fall. Not necessarily retaking the pre-reqs, but perhaps taking other useful science courses (biochem, A&P, microbiology, immuno, genetics). Doing well in a couple of upper-level courses in the fall and being able to update schools with them might earn your application some more consideration. Even if it doesn’t help you out this year, it will certainly be helpful if you decide to reapply.
I sincerely hope that you get an interview at least a couple of schools (and an acceptance or two), but if you are determined to go to medical school, you should probably consider buffing up your application over the next year with some new science grades.
Also - I wanted to address the financing issue in a separate post.
Medical students are eligible for the full amount of government subsidized and unsubsidized loans regardless of credit. This past year that amount was $40,500 (higher at some schools due to higher costs). That sounds like it should be sufficient, but the reality is that $40k doesn’t cover the full budgeted amount of tuition and living expenses at most schools. It comes close at state schools (assuming you are an resident). If it is a private school or you are not a resident, that amount may not even cover tuition.
If you are going to need private loans to cover the extra costs and living expenses, the credit issue may come into play there. Private loans do look at past credit history and there have been people accepted to medical school who ended up being unable to go because they didn’t qualify for private loans.
If you get interviews anywhere, I highly recommend you ask about how much you will need to borrow from private lenders and, if you have an opportunity to speak individually with someone from financial aid, how likely they think you are to qualify for private loans. You could also contact one of the private lenders and see if they will give you an opinion on whether or not you will qualify for their loans.
I have to agree with the above post. I am not sure who gave you advice regarding applying but doing this w/o recent science grades is not wise. Medical schools have to accept folks that can pass the medical school curriculum. The only way to prove this is with RECENT science courses. The MCAT is just ONE exam taken on ONE day. I would urge you to retake some science courses, get nothing less than A’s and maybe a B here or there and then re-apply.
Val,
I do agree with Emergency and efex101 that you should have some recent science grades to convince everybody that you are still capable of taking advanced science classes and do well. But since you’ve already applied this year, don’t let all the time and money you’ve invested in the application process be wasted! It looks like you’ve applied to a good number of schools and there is a chance that you’ll get few interviews and let’s hope one or two acceptances.
DO NOT GET DISCOURAGED!!! Last year when I was applying, before I got any secondaries from the schools that screened, I received a rejection letter from one school. It was mid-July! And guess what? I just kept working on the rest of my applications, b/c I knew there were schools out there who would be interested in me.
And remeber that some schools take their time to send out their secondaries, and even longer to process them. I didn’t interview in my top choice school until February! If it’s going to be the case with you, you should have more than enough time to take few more sciecne classes and show them that you’re a qualified candidate! It might be a long time before you get accepted. I didn’t get accepted until late May (and my top choice school sent me an acceptance letter on June 27th!). Just get ready that you’ll get many rejections, and you’ll have to make hundreds of phone calls, and wirte many more letters and e-mails, and you’ll have to ‘bug’ people to listen to you, and to reconsider your application! But do not GIVE UP!!!
Kasia
Thanks for the encouragement. I decided yesterday (after consulting with my spouse on the feasibility of it) to take a full load of science courses this fall, specifically genetics, micro, A+P I, and Immunology. I made a 96% on my first physics II exam so I think I can pull an A in this class. Physics is by far the most difficult science for me (and the only one I ever score a single digit in on the MCAT); an A in this class would really boost my confidence. I don’t doubt my ability to get A’s the others, only Physics daunts me.
If I don’t get in this year, that’s all right. Next year I will have a full transcript of fresh science classes to bring to the application process. My dad, who lives in Texas, has also suggested I move out there near him(I am in GA now) because Texas has eight medical schools and he thinks I’d have a better chance of getting an acceptance as a Texas resident. This is also an option.
Thanks again!
Val -
Before you move off to Texas, make sure you find out what requirements you have to meet to become a Texas resident for purposes of applying as one. It’s not quite as simple as just moving there. In most states, it takes at least a year (unless you have circumstances that meet special criteria) to become a resident for the purpose of applying as an in-state resident and/or qualifying for in-state tuition. For example, in Ohio, if your spouse moves with you and gets a job, you would most likely qualify for “instant” residency.
Good luck with your courses. Don’t overextend yourself. Don’t hesitate to drop the courses if necessary rather than taking anything lower than a B.
Last time I remember hearing a specific discussion about Texas residency requirements, you had to work there for a YEAR before you would be considered in-state.
It’s not just Texas that has specific residency rules for tuition breaks. Most states give a substantial break to in-state students at state schools, a “perk” of state citizenship that they guard carefully. So anyone who’s thinking of moving anywhere in order to get a leg up on the process, be sure to do your homework before you move!!
Mary
I am already nervous about the W’s on my transcript from years ago. I haven’t dropped courses recently and because of how W’s look I think I’d rather get a B than have any more W’s on my transcript. Any advice on this? How do adcoms actually see W’s?
I’ll have to check into that thoroughly before relocating. I grew up there and my father has always lived there so I am hoping that will help me get residency.
You’re correct - you don’t want to take W’s unless you absolutely have to. I was more referring to dropping a course before that happens. Schools vary on how long into a term you have to drop without the course appearing on your transcript. In most cases, it is usually enough time to get your first test grade back.
- Emergency! Said:
I have to disagree with this. Many schools give you only a week where you can add/drop a class...in which time you rarely have an exam.
- Krisss17 Said:
- Emergency! Said:
I have to disagree with this. Many schools give you only a week where you can add/drop a class...in which time you rarely have an exam.
If you're right then that sucks! I've attended schools were you wouldn't get a 100% refund if you didn't drop the class within the first week. However every school I've attended, quite a bit
, give you a few weeks before you can drop the class without it appearing on your transcript. If you have to do decide within the first week then you have to judge things based on very limited time with the prof.Heck I just finished a class where we had the 1st prof replaced after the 3rd week and our first test wasn't until the 6th week of class.
Let me rephrase that then to “in SOME cases you have enough time to get your first test back”. As I stated, the policies vary widely from school to school. You will need to check with the school you are attending to find out the deadling to withdraw without the course appearing on your record as a W.
My experience seconds what Krisss said. The time difference between drop/add and withdraw is usually all about the school’s refund policy. Once you pass the point where you could get all of your money back for the class credits, the school is obligated to put something on your transcript. Sometimes, in the event of a truly serious hardship, it may be possible to get some money back farther down the road. Such circumstances are usually subject to negotiation with the dean/bursar/registrar folks. A ‘W’ is always preferable to a failing grade, and may be roughly equivalent to a ‘C’ as far as it’s ability to get your app sorted into the ‘no’ pile instead of the ‘yes’ pile. I hear that one can usually expect such transcript blemishes to come up as a topic during interviews.
- Val Cagle Said:
Thanks for listening.
Hi Val,
For what it's worth, your scores sound pretty competitive for osteopathic programs especially if you can replace that F. I agree with others that 9-10 years might be considered too old at a lot of schools. Best of luck,