I only just managed to pass my Bachelor of Science degree majoring in Microbiology. Thats because I wasnt even thinking about work and career at that time. I was foolish. Now I know how important doing well can be. What can I do to rectify my earlier mistake of not doing my best at UNI?
I know there must be a way can someone advice me?
And how can I prepare myself for the tests and interviews?
Or should I not prepare and just deal with it but I dont want other more competitive candidates to grab all the places.
ofloozo
Oh... God. You have a LOT to sort out. First off, if you had a lousy GPA, didn't take the MCAT or the DATs, and didn't focus too much on networking, resume building or research / hospital experience, then you have a long way to go. Realize that you're competition in either fields will be earnest / eager predents / premeds the world over who have known their career path for years and spent years perfecting this, and though interviewers/med schools will go easy on a rocky freshman year GPA, they may not be so kind with a rocky 4-year GPA.
But enough with the negatives.
The first thing you need to do is hike on over to the Career Center @ your school and/or have a LONG chat w/your former advisor. Figure out some sort of plan. Hopefully, you're still an eager young'in who REALLY wants to do this. If you are, aim for some research opportunities and a 5th year / 6th year for a master's program to work on boosting your GPA and your resume. In your downtime, you might want to talk to some people who are in hospital work. Even working at the front desk might allow you to see things first hand at a hospital/dentist office.
The MCAT/DAT is what will really be tricky. Most ppl who want to go into dentistry/medicine have taken the MCAT/DAT by spring/summer of junior year, filled the applications and have matriculated long before the end of senior year. Contact a Kaplan / Princeton agency and see what you can do about these mandatory tests. Since you'll have extra years in microbio, this might help you score higher than a green upperclassman. The interview might be a tad awkward as they review things like GPA (esp. science GPA), and your performance. Don't forget that med schools are looking for people w/ a good head on their shoulders and also they are looking for good people. I have a lot of fellow classmates who are the smartass/smarmy type who REALLY forget that. Don't. Just be honest and show them how hard you're trying to turn this around. You're probably not the only non-traditional student they've ever interviewed.
Last of all, though you are a not in a traditional situation, it's important not to be discouraged. These days, the average medical school age is around 26, and many older people (I'm talkin' 40+) are going back to school not for some Saturday classes, but for their MDs (sorry if this is a little doctor heavy; I myself am premed XP). So, if this (these?) are really your professional goals, don't stop trying! You don't want to look back on this years from now and wonder what might've been.
BEST OF LUCK!!!!!!!!!!!
Orignal From: Medical or Dental School and what if I just managed a pass in my degree?
Post a Comment