How do I do this?

[craniopage]

I'm so glad I've stumbled upon an appropriate place to ruminate about my med school aspirations. This site is great. I would love to get some feedback/advice about my situation...here 'tis (and I'm sorry its long!):

I've been an acupuncturist in solo practice for 3.5 years. As an undergrad, I originally wanted to go to med school; I've now come full circle in that. My 13-year-old bachelors degree is in biology and I have a master of science degree in traditional Oriental medicine (dual program in acupuncture and Chinese herbology). Poor decisions about financing the latter endeavor have left me in a ridiculous boatload of debt. I am clear about the fact that I'm not going to be well off as a doctor, especially after reading some of the threads here, and I'm ok with that. I'm just getting by now; might as well be doing satisfying work while I make ends meet, right?

My main area of focus as an undergrad was my social life. I had a great deal of growing to do and a number of personal issues to work out. Essentially, I wasn't ready or willing to do the work in my late teens/early 20's, so I ditched the med school idea and became a biology major. My grades were lackluster, so I'm not sure how best to approach all of this now.

My undergrad cGPA was 3.05 and bpmc was 2.92 -- the latter figure includes many science courses beyond the essential prereqs and I'm assuming that they are to be counted. Is this right?

My masters cGPA was 3.83 and science GPA was 3.88. This brings my total science GPA to 3.31, which looks a lot better than the 2.92. But I'm wondering if admissions committees will view science courses taken at an accredited college of Oriental medicine as being on par with ones taken at a conventional college or university? Will they question the degree of academic rigor involved or simply see that I've really gotten my s**t together over the last decade? Or will they just think that I'm still a slacker?

Back to those prereqs, all taken as an undergrad...there are Cs. Many Cs. In college trig, physics 1 and 2, gen chem 2, gen chem lab 2, and organic 1. I basically have to relearn much of the material for the MCAT, but it mostly comes back to me fairly quickly.

The question: do I need to retake these classes? Thankfully, in the process of writing this, I realized that I NEVER TOOK ORGANIC II (duh!), so I guess I'll be doing that. But what about the rest? I'll be 35 in a couple weeks and I ain't gettin' any younger, so I really want to start school in 2010. I know I need to somehow rock the MCAT for this to happen, but I don't want to delay it til August or September in order to take spring and summer classes and thereby further wreck my chances of getting in. Is that what would happen? Also, classes = $$ka-ching$$!!

I'm having a hard time figuring this stuff out...thanks for your patience in reading and please, please advise!!

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[NTF]

How do you do this?

First of all, you can do this. It may take several years, but your record is definitely salvageable.

First the bad news. You cannot average in your graduate science coursework in with your undergrad sciences. Med schools calculate these GPAs separately and view them separately. Undergrad GPA is highly weighted. Graduate almost ignored unless you did poorly.

The only way to raise that undergrad GPA is take undergrad science courses at an accredited 4 year college.

But your path is clear and doable.

1) take undergrad science courses to beef up that GPA.
You can retake the prereqs - it will help for MCAT prep. But you can also replace them with upper level classes in those fields (I did this with alot of my biology classes)
2) Get biomed or clinical research experience
3) Get patient contact experience
4) Volunteer
5) Do physician shadowing
6) Get good LORs
7) Do well on the MCAT (30+ for lower tier/mid tier, 35+ for upper tier)
8) Write excellent PS


Good Luck! There are plenty of great underdog success stories all over SDN. You'll do fine.

 

[Bacchus]

Let me first say I'm not a nontraditional student. That said, I agree with oldtradfogie.

However, if you retake those classes you may want to consider applying to osteopathic medical schools. The central application, AACOMAS, recalculates your GPA for courses that were taken a second time. Although your first go-around will be seen (because you must report it), your second go-around will be what counts. I'd recommend atleast retaking the pre-reqs if possible. I think your graduate GPA will help you but it cannot and will not erase the past. You're going to have to invest some time in this and I think the ultimate question should be, "Will I be happy when I'm 43-45 and just getting done with my residency?" That gives you a solid 20-25 years before retirement to fulfill your dream. Plenty of time in my book.

 

[craniopage]

Thanks so much nontradfogie and bacchus for your responses!

I had no idea the graduate math/science classes would not be averaged in with the undergrad ones. These were all put together at a PA school I visited (before I realized that my personality would never allow me to be satisfied with PA work). So it looks like I really have to go back to school before I can...go back to school. OK.

Also, I was wondering about the premed suggestions you offered, nontradfogie. Would my three and a half years of treating my own patients as an acupuncturist not be considered adequate patient contact?

I also volunteered as an undergrad for one semester in an emergency unit and one semester in a surgical unit. This was for credit -- I had an advisor with whom I discussed my experiences and I wrote papers -- so I think that's also patient contact, but maybe not considered genuine volunteer work?

Lastly, can you direct me to a resource where I can see what schools are deemed lower/middle/upper tier and why?

I'm very appreciative of both the information and the encouragement.

c

 

[NTF]

Also, I was wondering about the premed suggestions you offered, nontradfogie. Would my three and a half years of treating my own patients as an acupuncturist not be considered adequate patient contact?
It would be considered great experience but I do think you should continue to broaden your experiences in this realm (nursing home, hospice, inpatient hospital). Adcoms aren't following a check list where they say oh he has patient experience he's got that covered. What they are looking for is a consistent history of commitment and a great overall narrative of your journey. It wouldn't take a huge commitment either. Just volunteering at a hospital inpatient unit a couple hours a week is great experience that you can add to your PS, CV, and interview.

I also volunteered as an undergrad for one semester in an emergency unit and one semester in a surgical unit. This was for credit -- I had an advisor with whom I discussed my experiences and I wrote papers -- so I think that's also patient contact, but maybe not considered genuine volunteer work?
Same point as above. Try to continue to broaden your experience.

Lastly, can you direct me to a resource where I can see what schools are deemed lower/middle/upper tier and why?
I used US News and World Report. There is also a school selection spreadsheet on SDN here:
http://forums.studentdoctor.net/showthread.php?t=527971

Check out the Applicant Stickies in the Pre-allopathic or Pre-Osteopathic threads. There is alot of useful information there too.

Just a note though. Lower middle upper tier can be greatly affected by your state of residence. For instance while some state schools have below average scores for matriculants they are nearly impossible to get into for out-of-state applicants.

If you have a mind to do it, it actually isn't a bad idea to switch your state of residence to states like FL, TX, or OH that have alot of state schools that heavily favor instate applicants. Consider taking your post bac classes at a university in one of those states. You may be able to get a job as an acupunturist at a university health center in one of those states and take your classes free of charge.

Good Luck! I'll be rooting for you.