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[I]
> Dear Rich
>
> Hi, I am a pre med major in my sophomore year of college
at the
> University of Southern California. During my freshmen year
I
> recieved D's in both the first semesters of Biology and
G. Chem.
> I took the second semesters of both and got C's. Currently
I am
> retaking the first semesters to change the D grades. My
college
> allows you to replace the first year grades below a C- with
new
> grades of a retaken courese. Will my retakign of these courses
> hinder my chance of getting into med school. Do I have anyshot
> at all especially with the C's in the second semesters of
bio and
> chem...should I retake those too??? Please help!!!
>
> Aneesh
>
------ reply 09/25/99
It is possible to salvage your chances of being accepted to
medical school.
Most medical school admissions committees make allowances for
poor freshmen
performance if there is substantial improvement during future
semesters.
Some colleges replace grades but indicate that a course was retaken,
others
simply replace the grade. Either way, if you do well the second
time around
this will improve your chances. Of course, the later situation
would be the
most beneficial. You do have a chance, but you need some A's,
in Orgo,
Physics etc. If you do well from now on, the damage will not
be too great.
Good Luck!
-Rich
[II]
> Where would i be able to find
the minimum scores for MCAT that different
> medical colleges in the US require for entrance.
>
>
> Derek
----- reply 09/25/99
Mean MCAT scores are available in the MSAR, but I know of
no resource which
lists lowest or minimal scores.
-Rich-
[III]
> Rich,
>
> Hello. I will be attending the U of M- flint campus for
my Junior and
> Senior years of college. I am new to premed. (I would like
to be a
> dermatologist. ) And I read one of the questions you had
in your web site. It
> said that the school that you are transfering from could
have an affect on
> their accepting you...Is this true? And how will I know
if I should attend a
> different university? Thank-you for your time.
>
To level the GPA playing field, medical school admission committees
evaluate
applicants academic record in light of the difficulty level and
grading
practices of the school from which the applicant is from. For
lesser known
schools information in this regard is kept. Deciding which school
to go to
is complicated by a large number of issues, along with the more
familiar
concerns are state residency requirements, the presents of a
medical school
at the University you are attending and the number of students
accepted from
that school, the number of medical school seats available in
the state and
the number of in-state applicants, etc. But, going back to the
first issue,
the more rigorous and well respected the school, the more a good
GPA means.
Good Luck,
-Rich
[IV]
> Rich,
>
> My name is Chris and I am 27. I graduated with a BA in History
from Boston
> University with a 3.0 and an MA in Teaching with a 3.4.
I have been in the
> Army for the past 4 years as an Arabic Linguist, and now
I would like to
> pursue a career as a doctor. I have no science courses or
other
> pre-requisites. I have heard that there are one year intensive
programs to
> complete the science requirements. I am very adept at taking
standardized
> exams and I interview well. Where should I start? Do I need
letters of
> recommendation? Just how hard is it to get into a medical
school program
> (I am not looking at the "big" schools)? Your
assistance will be greatly
> appreciated.
>
> Chris
------reply 10//03/99
Most intensive programs are nothing more than the same courses
all premeds
take, but scheduled so that the class times and tests do not
conflict. Some
"post-bac" programs may be more specialized then this,
but you'll need to
check with each school for the particulars.
Basically you need to complete 2 years of Chemistry, 1 year
of Biology, and
1 year of Physics. For additional information about the entire
application
process see Medical School Admissions Requirements "MSAR"
book, available at
some college bookstores, or on-line through the AAMC site,
http://www.aamc.org/.
If you take full loads of these courses, and do well -- GPA
3.6 and make
three 10's on the MCAT, you have, all other things being equal,
an even
chance of being accepted in a single application cycle. For more
info on the
MCAT, pick up a free copy of the MCAT registration packet at
a local college
-- available in February; additional materials are available
at the AAMC web
site.
You will need letters of recommendation, see
http://www.premed411.com/pages/app.html
Take care,
-Rich
[V]
> Dear Rich:
> I have a serious question that I hope that you can answer.
My name
> is Carol and I'm a 21 year old biomedical science major
at Texas A&M. I am
> going to be a five year senior. In other words, I'm going
to graduate a year
> late. I have a good GPA at about 3.6, but I have dropped
classes in the
> past. Do I have a real chance at getting into medical school?
Is there
> anything that I can do that would help make up for my obvious
lack of
> discipline in school? Please e-mail me back at CDDonn@aol.com.
Thank you so
> much for your time and help.
> Thanks,
------reply 10//03/99
If you drop classes for just one semester it is no big deal.
If you dropped
classes for two semesters, it will raise eyebrows. If more, a
good reason
would be nice. Lack of discipline would not qualify. As long
as you have
taken a number of full load semesters (15 credits or more) and
done well
during those times, those dropped classes shouldn't be to much
of a problem.
If they occurred only during a finite period of your academic
career when
you were having some emotional or physical problem, that would
be less
problematic than if they were present through out your academic
record,
without any specific causal factors. What you can do from now
on is to take
full loads of challenging classes, stick with them, and do well.
Good Luck!
-Rich
[VI]
> Does it make sense to pursue
taking the MCAT even if I don't have a pre-med
> background to obtain a level of interest in the field and
more importantly to
> assess a level of ability?
>
> Thanks much.
>
------reply 10//03/99
No.
-Rich
[VII]
> Please advise what preperation
courses there are for the medcats in my area
> NYCity and ct , stamford ct etc and when thanks Marnie i
am looking into to
> this for my daughter who is out of the country doing Missionary
work
>
------ reply 10/09/99
A complete list of test preparation services is available
in the yellow
pages for the areas you referred to. Out of town yellow pages
are available
at public libraries or at law schools.
-Rich
[VIII]
> I'm not the best at using the
internet, but somehow I found your site,
> which I think is fabulous. I'm looking for what schools
are out there. I
> know of UCLA, John Hopkins and other top name schools, but
know most are
> out of my league. I'm also looking abroad in other English,
German or
> Spanish speaking countries. If you could send me anymore
info, i would
> highly appreciate it.
------ reply 10/09/99
Thanks. Your best bet for U.S. schools is the Medical School
Admission
Requirements Book, available at most college bookstores or at
the AAMC
website: http://www.aamc.org/. Sorry, but I do not know of similar
books, or
on-line resources, that relate to locations outside the U.S.
-Rich
[IX]
> Hi I have a few questions I
hope that you can answer.
> I am in the Army right now and stationed in Korea. I
> want to be a doctor, obviously or i wouldn't be
> emailing you. I guess my major problem is that i want
> to be a doctor and don't know the best way to get
> there...especially being in the army right now. I
> would really appreciate it if you would email me any
> suggestions that you may have.
> thank you for all your help,
------ reply 10/19/99
Order a copy of the Medical School Admission Requirements
Book from the AAMC
web site. This book should provide the information you need.
I have a
link to the AAMC site at http://www.premed411.com/pages/pmr.html.
Just a thought, if you plan to stay in the Army, the U.S.
Government may
help pay for your medical school expenses.
Good Luck!
[X]
> Dear Sir,
>
> Hi, My name is Vinnie. I was wonderng if you
>> could help me out with this problem. I graduated>
> from
>> high school in 1997 and have spent the last two>
> years
>> in a foreign medical school. I have completed all of
>> my pre-med requirements and have completed some
>> medical school requirements as well. I am currently
>> studying for the MCAT in April. Could you please>
> give
>> me some advice on what I should do now!! thanks>
> a
> stressed medical student,
>> vinnie
>
------ reply 10/19/99
Basically, the process for applying to a U.S. Medical school
would be the
same for you as for anyone else. Included in your application
would be your
educational records, background, etc. If accepted you would,
almost
certainly, start over as a first year medical student.
The only special circumstance I can think of would relate
to state and
regional residency policies, see pages 30-31 in the Medical School
Admission
Requirements book 2000-2001.
What you should do, is prepare for the MCAT, and begin getting
your primary
application in order.
Good Luck!
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