What does it REALLY take?

[kmnfive]

well after my hiatus from school, a careful review of my transcripts, this is what i have come across.

i have allot of Repeated Classes, Odd number of W's -- well too many (like 5 or 6 i think).... is it too late for me to get into a cali school?

im a non traditional, worked, travled around, studied in different states for short periods and.. now im back home. ..and im 22 and im just starting out the pre-med curriculum. (well seriously anyways) i still have to take some BCPM classes. and my mcat. i suppose this is all in all wishful thinking if i do WELL on my mcat. but i think -- rather pray to hope -- that if i studied well enough i know i can rape that test (knock on wood) but again i do have allot of repeats --- and allot of W's .....

so probably the best i could do with my marks, all in all.. would prob be a 3.5 or so overall GPA and the highest GPA for science would be like a 3.7 i could get right now. this is if i get STRAIGHT A's for the next 2 years of my remaining undergraduate career.

im not a bio or chem or science major ( im philosphy ) ... and the thing is ... those who have the 3.5 to 3.7 GPAs and have been accepted are those who are in harder majors like engineering and chem / natural sciences.. etc... so yeah im a bit concerned.

im asking... do cali schools filter out GPA first ? or MCAT? ive heard different stories supported either side of the arguement. i suppose i could goto a DO school.

i dont know. i dont wanna give up. i seriously wanna take this all the way through and give it my best.

could anyone offer any ideas, rants, suggestions, advice?

thanks everyone.

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[gary5]

I'd say that you need to prove that you can perform consistently. Maybe 2 years of solid grades with no exceptions and no Ws. Some upper-level science would help. I think a 3.5 GPA is good enough, typical. Be sure to do clinical volunteering. Be sure to get a 30+ on the MCAT. If you really want to be a doctor, Cali shouldn't be a requirement. You can move temporarily if you need to.

 

[kmnfive]

bump.

 

[cheesypoofs]

When I was 22 I was a poli sci major and suddently decide I wanted to got medical school. My grades were already 3.7 range but I had several W's, too. Here's what I did:

I got a general studies degree with honors, science degree would have taken to long to completely abandon my course work

took the MCAT 7 times!!! That is one test I could never conquer, my highest was 23 mcat. Meanwhile worked in clinical hospitial environment until Masters

so I was told to do a Master's in Science--3.7 gpa (2003)
now working in research

And as if last thursday at age 28 I have been accepted to medical school

Let me tell you the best thing I did was talk to the admissions dean of my local(state) medical school when I first decided to do this at 22 and constantly kept him abreast of my hard work and numerous volunteer hours.

Good luck and if you really want this it might take several years.

Also, along the way everyone (but my husband) told me in one way or another that I could not do this and I was wasting my time. Several times I had every reason to quit but i did not.

 

[LP1CW]

Cheesypoof, that's great. What an amazing story. I must confess, I would have had some strong doubts after taking the MCAT 7 times. 7 times? I didn't even think you could take it more than 3 without permission. Good luck with everything.

 

[kito]

Originally posted by LP1CW
I didn't even think you could take it more than 3 without permission.

Word.

 

[cheesypoofs]

you can take it as much as you want and yes all you have to do is get a letter from the dean of admissions. it is not a big deal

 

[kmnfive]

thats pretty inspirational.

anyone else have a good story?

 

[NRAI2001]

Cheesypoofs what med school were u accepted into?

 

[kmnfive]

yes what school was it.

 

[cheesypoofs]

Louisiana State University, just a state school, but with that MCAT it was my only hope.

 

[Manual]

No shame....

Where your degree is from really won't matter in a couple years anyway.

 

[NRAI2001]

Louisiana State University, just a state school, but with that MCAT it was my only hope.

Congradulations

 

[BerkeleyPremed]

Congratulations CheesyPoof, that is a very inspirational story. It just goes to show that with enough hard work, persistence, drive, and ambition...you can always accomplish whatever you want. I'm very happy for you.

 

[cheesypoofs]

Thanks to all, really appreciate the kind comments. My opinion is yes you must be somewhat smart to go to medical school but I think most of us are just hard working, HIGHLY motivated people.

Good luck to all.

 

[kmnfive]

no shame in that, i mean it IS a medical school.

 

[Goofyone]

Its gonna take ti-ime.
A whole lot of precious time.
It's gonna take patience and time,
to do it right, child.

It's gonna take mo-ney.
A whole lot of spending money.
It's gonna take plenty of money,
to do it, to do it, to do it, to do it,
to do it, to do it right.

 

[kmnfive]

bump

 

[skypilot]

Don't limit yourself to state medical schools. Even a private medical education is a great investment. Even in general practice you will be able to pay off the loans quickly if you use your brain and don't go out and buy a house and a beemer when you graduate!

 

[Nutmeg]

Originally posted by skypilot
Don't limit yourself to state medical schools. Even a private medical education is a great investment. Even in general practice you will be able to pay off the loans quickly if you use your brain and don't go out and buy a house and a beemer when you graduate!

People who want Beamers are my primary concern about medical school. Scary.

 

[kmnfive]

i never said anything about beemers.

 

[skypilot]

That is no secret. It doesn't bother me if someone wants to make money as a doc. As long as they put the patients above everything else and money is a much lower priority it doesn't bother me at all.

I agree that scary is someone who puts the money before the patients as a priority.

 

[NRAI2001]

I would still become a doctor even if they weren't paid very well, but since they are paid quite well thats just an extra bonus.

 

[kmnfive]

 

[kmnfive]

u know i wonder what REALLY takes. apart from people who have gotten bad grades or whatever...

i mean ive seen plenty of people with HIGH stats and only get into a few schools -- in which they considered safety schools.

but i guess everyone has a different angle when it comes to showing off your stuff.

 

[kmnfive]

bump

 

[dstn2bmd]

Originally posted by skypilot
That is no secret. It doesn't bother me if someone wants to make money as a doc. As long as they put the patients above everything else and money is a much lower priority it doesn't bother me at all.

I agree that scary is someone who puts the money before the patients as a priority.

Ditto...everyone deserves to live abundantly (in all areas of life). Remember putting money before patients robs the whole purpose of being a physician and it substracts from the abundance of other areas besides financial.

OK....I'll get off my soap box now. It's such a bad habit.

Heb

 

[kmnfive]

at the risk of being tarred and feathered.. im gonna just say this.

not to say that MY intentions are PURELY altruistic. but i think less than half of the people here on SDN want to become doctors out of TRUE desire.

whether subconsciously or intetionally, i do beleive that most of you do not have it in your hearts to become doctors out of real passion for the field of medicine.

and its rare. but nothing is of your fault. we cant entirely be in control of our lives. there are obsticles and forces that try to impede our goals and posion our dreams. so this is a means of defense i suppose. to ensure not only the financial well being of your lives, but also the respect and the social acceptance that we all seek. some people do it for the image.. others, for greed. and the rest.. well its a connundrum of placid desires to be sometthing more than the rest of the managable populus. we are faced with these trials, and we have yet to really know.... that are all in fact... sadly... naive. we dont know that we "dont know" .. the truths in life is not what you think of it, but its what you feel. what you get out of a days work. the "flight or fight", or social darwinism has allot to do with this.

we chose our paths. gain our strengths. live our lives, and try to mend our mistakes.

but mostly for those who choose to chase top professions... well. what can i say?

ok. i'll stop =)

 

[NRAI2001]

Originally posted by kmnfive
at the risk of being tarred and feathered.. im gonna just say this.

not to say that MY intentions are PURELY altruistic. but i think less than half of the people here on SDN want to become doctors out of TRUE desire.

whether subconsciously or intetionally, i do beleive that most of you do not have it in your hearts to become doctors out of real passion for the field of medicine.

and its rare. but nothing is of your fault. we cant entirely be in control of our lives. there are obsticles and forces that try to impede our goals and posion our dreams. so this is a means of defense i suppose. to ensure not only the financial well being of your lives, but also the respect and the social acceptance that we all seek. some people do it for the image.. others, for greed. and the rest.. well its a connundrum of placid desires to be sometthing more than the rest of the managable populus. we are faced with these trials, and we have yet to really know.... that are all in fact... sadly... naive. we dont know that we "dont know" .. the truths in life is not what you think of it, but its what you feel. what you get out of a days work. the "flight or fight", or social darwinism has allot to do with this.

we chose our paths. gain our strengths. live our lives, and try to mend our mistakes.

but mostly for those who choose to chase top professions... well. what can i say?

ok. i'll stop =)

How do u know that u are one of those people, maybe u think u maybe one those people . I think for most people that its a combination of reasons for y becoming a physician. I hope most premeds have realized that there are other professions were u can make a lot more money doing a lot less work.

 

[kmnfive]

Originally posted by NRAI2001
How do u know that u are one of those people, maybe u think u maybe one those people . I think for most people that its a combination of reasons for y becoming a physician. I hope most premeds have realized that there are other professions were u can make a lot more money doing a lot less work.

did you read what i said?

i said my intentions ARE NOT COMPLETELY ALTRUISTIC.

i suggest you learn how to read before you slap a judgement.

 

[kmnfive]

bump.

 

[OrthoFixation]

Originally posted by Nutmeg
People who want Beamers are my primary concern about medical school. Scary.

This is an odd statement. Why would you care what someone chooses to drive? Granted, I can see why a motivation for medicine just so you can drive a $50K car is not the best, but whatever your motivation is, you must keep it in front of you constantly.

I guess a $50K Tahoe or Caddy is OK in your eyes? Is it the yuppy image that you despise? If that is the case, there are a whole bunch of Harley owners you should have a beef with.

You guessed it, I own a BMW 328i and love it. Bought it new in '96. All it took for me was a test drive and I was sold. They are awesomely engineered cars with great handling and power. Then again, I race cars for fun so I am not your typical consumer.

Sounds like you had a run-in with a Beemer owner or three?


BTW kmnfive, 22 doesn't qualify you as a non-trad to most if not all. Sure you have a different set of circumstances, but most consider non-trad as >30, usually out of school 5-25 years, many times married with kid(s). Not that it matters. Good luck to you. Keep at it and you will succeed. Maybe consider an advanced degree with a good GPA to offset the choices of your past that decimated your ugrad gpa. Positive progression is critical to many (or so I have been told).

 

[kmnfive]

OrthoFixation: thank you for your kind words, i'll keep it under my hat for a rainy day.

so back to beemers.

you guys all think that when you finish med school you will be humble with your low to mid 6 figure salary and avoid nice cars?

yeah right. i would love to see one of your docs in the future driving a geo metro. maybe you'll buy cheap cars and ram into things and have fun with them just because you know you can buy 50 of them.

whatever.

lies.. all lies.

 

[Childe]

why does every thread end up as a money discussion?

 

[kmnfive]

it just comes to show you that many, if not more than half of the people on this forum, is overly concerend with money. and that whole fake altruistic bourgeois attitude that people project is fake, and ultimately as mask.

not to say that my intentions are ever so untainted but thats another story.

 

[Brickhouse]

Originally posted by cheesypoofs
When I was 22 I was a poli sci major and suddently decide I wanted to got medical school. My grades were already 3.7 range but I had several W's, too.

Good luck and if you really want this it might take several years.

I too decided to medicine after graduating from college, with a BA in sociology! I'd even dropped out of school when I first started college and had a quarter worth of W's!! But I just started from scratch, went back and did all my pre-meds, volunteered, worked, etc. Thank god only took the mf'n MCAT once, and here I am at 27, waiting by the phone with everyone else, having two upcoming interviews. So cheesypoofs....here's to you, awesome job! And to the rest, walk confidently in the direction of your dreams, you can do it!