Low GPA & High MCAT | Where Should I Apply to Medical School? | Ask Dr. S

[@Shemmassian]

What challenges are you facing when developing your medical school list?

[@itsot12]

Literally the first good resource on picking school list I've seen.

[@Shemmassian]

Glad it's helping!

[@kuntong9659]

Great video. I am a high school senior and am choosing between UC Berkeley and Emory for premed. In general, would you recommend a well known school with tough competition or smaller school with better opportunities? Thanks!

[@are2515]

Hi! Thank you for the helpful videos! Some medical schools recommend some courses to take, but do not require them as prerequisites. Should I take them? Some of the recommded courses have material I am not confident in, so I would rather study them on my own time than possibly sacrifice my GPA.

[@Shemmassian]

Read this! www.shemmassianconsulting.com/blog/medical-school-requirements

[@are2515]

@@Shemmassian Thank you so much!

[@mohamedattie9215]

What about high gpa and low mcat ?

[@adrianb.4040]

Good afternoon Dr. Shemmassian. I have a question regarding one of your videos: "AMCAS Work and Activities: The BEST Strategies." You have mentioned that we could add add all honors and awards in one entry, but there is a space only for one contact person, address, phone number, and email address in the application. How can I enter all of them in one entry? Please, let me know. Sincerely, Adrianna

[@Shemmassian]

While we are not sure about the length of the award name, you can group multiple awards in one entry, space permitting. If you need additional entries, that would be fine.

[@adrianb.4040]

@@Shemmassian Thank you very much for your reply and the information.

[@user-nc3uv7gn9f]

thank you for the video... my science and cumulative gpa are both low like around 2.9. I'm taking the MCAT in September. I'm preparing for the exam now but let's say I do well on the MCAT do I still have a chance of getting into top medical schools?

[@Shemmassian]

Top med schools will be tough w/ sub-3.0 GPA. But boost your ECs and your MCAT score to maximize your odds.

[@user-nc3uv7gn9f]

@@Shemmassian yeah thank you! I’m most likely going to take a gap year, is there a video which outlines what I should do after I take my MCAT? Application wise are there certain deadlines which I should look out for?

[@Limitedonathios]

This was amazing. Thank you so much! I wish I could afford your services, it really means a lot that you put out content like this which can help low income students. My question is how many schools should we have on a list with tight finances? My parents' income means I don't qualify for FAP but I am doing this on my own. I feel like I can really only afford to apply to 10 schools (my stats are the average for accepted MD) I am planning 1/2 DO and 1/2 MD. Or should I wait another 2 years to save up another 4k before applying?

[@Shemmassian]

You're welcome, Amy! So glad we could support you with these resources. Sorry to hear that you don't qualify for FAP. Given how competitive the process is, we strongly advise you to apply to 20+ schools, especially if your stats are around the average for accepted students. Whether you want to borrow finances or wait for a future cycle would be a personal decision, but we hope this gives you the direction you need!

[@shriyakata105]

Hi! Next year I will be attending my first year at Northwestern University, and there we have a language requirement. For my language, I want to take Korean, however, my dad says that I must take Spanish because it will help me when applying to medical school. I was wondering, what do you know on this matter and what do you recommend I should do?

[@Shemmassian]

Hello Shriya! Thanks for your question. We suspect that the reason your father recommended you take Spanish is because some med schools are located in areas that have a significant population of individuals who are primarily Spanish-speaking. At those schools, knowing Spanish will be an asset. However, there are also medical schools in some areas (e.g., LA, NYC) with a high number of people who are primarily Korean-speaking. At those schools, knowing Korean will be a plus.

[@shriyakata105]

@@Shemmassian Thank you so much for your response! So just to clarify for medical school admissions, especially to locations in those specified areas, do they bring equal application competitiveness?

[@Shemmassian]

@@shriyakata105 You're welcome! That's a very difficult question to answer because it's not just knowing the language, but also your commitment to communities that speak that language. For instance, if you learn Korean and do tons of work with the Korean American community, then that would be super compelling.

[@adamtickal8795]

I have a 515 and a 3.34 with an upward trend. This GPA is below the 10 percent bars at most med schools, even ones where my MCAT is way above average. Do you have any suggestions for how to pick schools?

[@Shemmassian]

The video covers this!

[@adamtickal8795]

I recognize the metric you used, but there are very few schools where my GPA is above even the 10 percent mark. Even if I use the unconservative school selection tool, I have only found 4 schools that fit in MSAR which regularly take out of state applicants

[@jaredtop_]

I have the same question. Can an above-90th percentile MCAT score be relied upon to make up for a below-10th percentile cumulative GPA?

[@Obamnaz]

I have a 3.15 cumulative GPA and a 3.31 science. I took the science classes more seriously. I thought that for sure I’d have to do a SMP, but it seems like there’s a chance I can get straight into a DO school with a high enough MCAT. Am I right ? I can also bump up my GPA to 3.18 cumulative and 3.35 science if I get A’s on my final two pre reqs. I am Latino if that helps, I know affirmative action makes it easier for minorities. Thank you for your video btw

[@codes114]

How did it go?

[@Obamnaz]

@@codes114 i got in DO school with no masters! Also I had 2 MD interviews that I turned down

[@alvaropalacios8291]

First :) Hi Dr. Shemmassian, I am a first-year student in Germany, here degrees last 3 years. I wanted to apply to medical school in the US, you think I can get advice from now? My major is Biochemistry. Is it viable to do grad school first in the US or Canada and then apply to med school?

[@Shemmassian]

Hello! Some med schools in the US require a year or more of within-US education, so pursuing a grad program in the States before applying to med schools could be a good idea for you!

[@hudaali4856]

If I have bachelors In Nursing in kenya, do I need to redo or can I directly do the MCAT. Please help. How long can i take for me to do the Mcat

[@emilyguo6899]

If you have a strong GPA (4.0) and overall MCAT score (519), but your CARS score (126) is lower than the 10th percentile CARS score of that school (127), how will that school view you?

[@Shemmassian]

Hello Emily! Given your exceptional GPA and overall high MCAT score, medical schools will likely still view you as a top academic applicant, even if they have a 127 CARS 10th %ile score. Nice work!

[@theindianstallion6134]

@@Shemmassian I'm a bit disappointed with my MCAT score, 508 (130, 125, 127, 126), especially since I was scoring 515+'s on AAMC practice exams. However, I have a 3.939 BCPM GPA, 3.833 AO GPA, and 3.914 CPA. I am considering retaking if I don't get interviews by Christmas. I have sent my primaries already to 19 schools but I'm a bit nervous especially since I set my sight on Tufts, Dartmouth, and UPitt (which I have applied to before getting my mcat score). What do you think?

[@daveyjones3016]

What is considered a low gpa ?

[@Shemmassian]

Depends on the school! Make sure to always check your GPA relative to the school's 10th/25th/50th percentile numbers.

[@99mviews81]

Hello. My name is Muhammad Mustafa from pakistan.I am currently studying BS zoology 1st semester from virtual University of pakistan i am taking online classes and this university system is based on recorded lectures we have to just go for practicals and the remaining days i will have to study in home because i have choose home base study rather than campus base. I need guidance about Mcat and i have some questions too.i hope you will answer. Is US will accept my degree of Virtual university for persuing medicine ? How much minimum Gpa will be required to pass MCAT?

[@OmiMajumder]

Currently in the process of creating a school list. I have MSAR and am a little concerned with my sGPA and cGPA being in the 10th percentile for many of my top choices. I understand that the screening cutoffs are usually >3.0 and my cGPA (3.68) and sGPA (3.48) are safely above. I have to admit not being a passionate or diligent premed student during my first undergraduate experience where I completed most of my prerequisites at a prestigious university. I have since returned to college for computer programming, but decided to pursue medicine again. I took the MCAT and scored a 526. Are any schools unrealistic with this combination of GPA and MCAT? Thanks!

[@george8006]

Hi Dr. S. I plan on applying this cycle, with a very above average mcat, but a very below average gpa due to not knowing I wanted to go to med school in the beginning of my undergrad. I’m sitting around the 2.9 mark I’ve retaken many classes and have an upward trend. And have excellent EC’s and I am a URM. Do I have a chance of getting into a DO school?

[@Shemmassian]

While we don't know your MCAT scores and your specific extracurriculars, we have seen students with your GPA get into DO schools, so it could be doable in your case!

[@naira7852]

Hey dr. Shemmassian hope u r doing good . Rn I am just doing my high school and I am dreaming of getting into med school one day. It would be amazing if u people would help me for the same... So Do shemmassian group would help for my med school journey for CANADA ? I wrote 2 different emails before couple of weeks but no response . Anyways pls let me know would appreciate it ❤️ Thank you