Science GPA for DO schools: Wheeee

[DD214_DOC]

Hey all. I have a question. When the DO schools publish the average Science GPA of accepted students, is this the "AACOMAS GPA" or the undergrad GPA? I'm guessing the first.

Also, help me in this conundum.

My AACOMAS science GPA will be around a 3.55 if I don't take any extra courses. The other courses I can take are biochem, genetics, and physiology. Would any of you recommend or strongly encourage one of these courses for the MCAT? If so, which?

If I choose one class, my AACOMAS SCGPA gets bumped up to a 3.59. Which one should I choose if I go this route, as far as most helpful for the MCAT?

If I choose two, my SGPA gets bumped up to a 3.62. Which two should I choose?

Or will a SGPA of 3.55 be sufficient for DO schools, and I shouldn't bother taking any of them?

I ask because if I double major like I am intending to do, I won't have room to fit all three in, maybe not even two of the three. Thanks for the advice.

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[sacroiliac]

genetics and/or cell bio (if possible) get my vote

 

[Plinko]

Any of the science courses you listed will be helpful during your first year. But for the MCAT, I would definitely say Genetics. When I took the MCAT a few years back over half of the passages from the Biological Sciences section dealt with some aspect of Genetics. The fact that I had just finished Genetics in college prior to taking the MCAT definitely accounted for at least a two point bump in my score. Biochemistry and Physiology at the upper division undergraduate level, while definitely an inherent part of any medical school curriculum, are more beyond the scope of the MCAT than is Genetics.

In so far as your science GPA is concerned, you are fine. I wouldn't worry too much about it. A 3.55 is well within, if not above, the average range for most DO (as well as MD) schools.

One more thing, while you sound like a very good student, you always have to consider that unforseen obstacles (e.g. an anal professor that rarely gives out As, etc.) are always a possibility. I think your best bet is to suscribe to the ideology that "if it's not broke, don't fix it."

Good luck.

 

[daveyboy]

Biochem and genetics will help you on the MCAT alot more than physiology. Try to choose a professor that gives hard multiple choice tests, i.e. tests like the MCAT.

 

[normalforce]

If I were you, I would go with the double major and skip the three classes. Your GPA is fine. Genetics would be the only one that would give you any significant help on the exam, but genetics is not all that difficult to master (especially the stuff on the MCAT).

Go for the double major and if you can, take a prep class or online prep class for the MCAT.

Good luck,

Normalforce

 

[KylieP54]

I would agree with Normalforce, definitely take the genetics...over half of my bio section on the mcat was genetics. It dealt with all of that stuff. Your GPA is just fine, don't stress about that. Good luck!

 

[San_Juan_Sun]

I'll be the voice of dissent . Physiology helped me a great deal. Biochem is also very good. Of course, so is cell bio. I guess I'm just biased when acetylcholine receptors showed up on my MCAT, and I was very pleased that I'd taken physiology that semester. Good luck with whatever you decide, you probably won't go wrong with any of those courses.