undergrad

[sag21]

credits.

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[LizzyM]

So much can happen between now and then.
Keep up your GPA, get some clinical experience (paid or volunteer), do some unpaid service in your community to help those in need, get involved with some research endeavor on campus or through a summer research program. Develop some hobbies, have some fun or otherwise engage on a team with a common goal, work on the team long enough to get some leadership experience, if at all possible.

Then come back with a "what are my chances" post 24 months from now and we'll let you know if you'll be a competitive applicant.

 

[LizzyM]

Now you are asking a different question, I think.

Are you asking, "should I go straight through to medical school as part of a combined bachelors-MD program after only two years on my undergrad campus (using AP and CC credits) or should I take an additional two years to earn a masters degree recognizing that I will give up my place in the combined degree program? I have a 3.9 GPA and have an interest in attending my in-state medical schools which accept AP and CC credits."

 

[Frigidcold]

Both these questions are very difficult to gauge given the information (and lack thereof) you're providing.

The people I know who have given up their combined program acceptance did so because they knew they were competitive for top med schools.

 

[LizzyM]

Have you taken the MCAT? Have you priced the cost of MCAT prep and the cost of the test itself as well as the opportunity cost involved in preparing for the test (at least 300 hours you won't have to do other things). If the combined program waives the MCAT, you have to factor in that time and money.

Have you considered the cost of applying both in terms of application fees as well as the time required to write many short paragraphs (work and activities), a longer personal statement, and short essays for the secondary applications. Although your state schools are cheap, do you fit with their mission and are you an automatic admit or will you be one of several thousand applicants vying for one of ~100 seats? Do you realize that most medical school applicants apply to 13 schools or more (some apply to 25-30).

A lower cost school can be an attractive option but getting into it is not a foregone conclusion and it is too hard without having your MCAT score and activities list to predict whether you will be competitive for any specific school.

 

[chilly_md]

There is the additional fact that you will start medical school earlier by continuing with your combined program. That is 1 or more years worth of a physician’s salary, which definitely exceeds the difference in tuition.