¶ Grace's Non-Traditional Student Question
I am writing because I am an older non-traditional student . I have a BA in psych , but my GPA is low . It's been nearly 13 years since I graduated . Do you have any suggestions on how I can become a better candidate ? Before applying to med school , I was accepted into master's in public health .
So if you were to give her a roadmap and you were to say step one , do this , step two , do this , step three , do this For her . What would be step one ? Do this step to
¶ Four-Step Roadmap to Medical School
do this , step three , do this for her . What would be step one for her ?
So if grace , if grace were , if grace were my student that I was working with , based on the information that I have , what I would tell her is step one call a few schools or you know , I always got to make a plug go to the SMA conference this year year it's in St Louis , but go to the pre-med exhibit hall , right , the medical school exhibit hall , and
talk to every single recruiter there's usually 60 or more . Talk to every single recruiter at every single school and tell them your story and ask them if that 10 years and beyond would be a problem for them in terms of your prerequisites , would you qualify to apply with 10 years and beyond ? That's number one .
Number two chances are the answer is going to be yes . So if the answer is yes , I would say just not even to go for the MPH . I would say go and take your rewrite , because that's going to take you .
Yeah , what if that MPH is at Harvard ?
It'll only matter . But what does it matter ? Right , Because the master's in public health is not going to get you into medical school without prerequisites I got to be devil's advocate .
because I got to be devil's advocate .
Of course , if you don't . But if she doesn't meet the criteria , then she doesn't meet the criteria , regardless of the masters , because the master's degree in and of itself does not help you to get into medical school . That's not what helps you . So that's what I would tell her . That's step two , step three , you know , figure out from there .
Like , as long as she does well , I would say honestly , if she does well in her prerequisites , you know , doing this post-bac work that she would be doing , then take the MCAT or start preparing for the MCAT , because she at that point she wouldn't necessarily need to do an MPH , right . She wouldn't necessarily need to do that .
Question Does it help to create like a vision board , like almost like , like you said , you're you're , in essence , creating a post-baccalaureate program , right , post-bacc program , which is , you've already graduated from school , but you're creating this program that's going to get you ready to get into med school , right ?
The question I have , though , is like should she say like all right , this , like this semester , I'm gonna try to get this done . The next semester , I'm gonna try to get this done the next semester , after that , I'm gonna try to say for , like , physics , and in the semesters after that , I'm gonna try to say for English ?
Should she do something like that , or like how does that ? how did , how did they create the timeline ?
So
¶ Science Course Load Strategy
typically it's going to be at least two years . Okay , at least .
Now we're talking .
And the reason that I say at least two years is because , right , some people could be like , well , you know it's . You know if we're talking only about the sciences it's biochemistry , or ? I do not recommend taking more than two sciences , especially if you've been out of the game for a long time , which 13 years is a long time .
I don't recommend taking more than two sciences at a time .
Is that like running us trying to run a 630 pace when you ain't never done like ?
Basically Right , because what happens is a lot of premeds fall into this trap . This is another trap that they fall into . Well , but medical schools like to see that you took a heavy load . No , they don't . They want to see that you got a good grade . That's what they want to see In the prereqs .
You could take the load , you could put everything on your back . You could be what is it Atlas ? You could put the world on your shoulders .
But if you can't get that damn globe up the hill , it don't matter how much weight on your back . Who's this sisyphus ? That's the one who keeps pushing things up and it comes back down .
Atlas is the one who just is standing there holding the globe whatever the hell you do , I look greek well , I just figured I .
The only reason I know it is because you taught that to me in high school .
I didn't teach nothing to do any of anything .
You always , you always trying to take , take , take a shot , step four , step four get into med school okay , so step one , step one is ask , ask the schools if they will accept 10 years plus . Step two was what .
Step
¶ Timeline and Biochemistry Importance
two was then . Chances are because they'll say yes to then take your prerequisites . It's going to just open up more options for you in terms of medical schools that you're going to apply to . Step three is as long as you do well in your post-baccalaureate work , you can start preparing and taking the MCAT . And then step four , apply to med school . Get in .
You know , I don't necessarily , and the timeline .
You mentioned something about the timeline , yes the timeline .
The timeline essentially is going to be at least two years , if not three , just depending on you know when you apply to medical school . So for someone like Grace I might recommend that she apply after she is done with all of her prerequisites .
I might even recommend to Grace that instead of just four semesters right like two years would equal four semesters maybe go even an extra semester to take biochemistry and some other higher level course .
Only because , especially when you're talking about MCAT , there's quite a bit of biochemistry on the MCAT and Frankly , for me I think biochemistry is actually the key to understanding a lot in medicine . Bio and chemistry and orgo and physics . I mean that's cool and all , but I don't really need it . Facts I didn't know .
I couldn't understand . I finally understood diabetes once I understood biochemistry . So I'll leave it like this .
I'll leave it like this and the curves and stuff like that . Yeah , I'll leave it like this , I'll leave it like this and stuff like that . Yeah , I'll leave it like this .
I've seen the email . The email says the Bronx doula
¶ Casting a Wide Application Net
. So she is the Bronx doula , so I'm assuming she's in New York . My one advice is you know New York mugs , they don't like to expand their net outside of New York and you know , applying to medical school in New York y'all is hella competitive . There's a lot of people trying to get into new york to go to med school , for residency and so forth .
So the bronx doula , grace , listen , don't be shy to like , open up your net and start looking into pennsylvania , into the midwest , into the southeast , into the southwest . You may have to do that , especially if it's sounding like your kids are grown .
You know I'm saying Go ahead and do your thing , because it's hella competitive trying to get into a New York school and you're going to drive yourself crazy trying to do that . So I'm not saying you can't do it , but it's just it's tough to do that .
So , yeah , I mean , it's definitely tougher . It's not impossible , right , it's definitely tougher . But I say this to all of my students you know that cast a wide net , you know what's the worst that could happen is that now you have options .
You know , now you have options and so you know , the option that you wanted hopefully appears , but if it doesn't , at least you have other options . Because I've seen students cast a very small net and not get any fish at all . And I'm like , well , you know , to a lot of those students I'm like you should be in med school already .
And they're looking at me like , wait what ? And I'm like , yeah , show me the list of schools that you applied to . I look at the list and I'm like , okay , like you should have been in med school .
SUNY .
New York downstate , and that's it .
Wait , wait what just one school you apply to come on , yo stop playing yo . You better apply to kcu , that's it apply to western . You better apply to all these other schools . But anyway , listen , this was a great great master class renee thank you very much for answering that question for Grace , the Bronx doula . We appreciate you writing in .
This was a really good question . That's why I let this go extra long . Normally we don't like to let these questions go this long , but that was dope . So listen . Anybody else who's got questions whether it's pre-meds , med students , residents listen .
Any questions that you got , we always got the answer to it because we know everything and listen you know that's not true , edutainment purposes only .
We know everything as you think it , as you wait till .
You see what the next question is gonna be wait till you guys see what the next question is gonna be . You like damn nino , everything yo I got relationship advice I'm not telling you . I have relationship advice , med school advice , professional advice'm all . I got all that .
But listen , any , dr Renee , you want to anything else you want to say before we get out of here , because we got to get out of here .
¶ Final Advice and SMA Conference
Good luck Grace .
Yo , she'll let us know how it's going . If you have any further questions , write to us , okay .
And go to the SMA conference which is Easter , the week of Easter , St Louis is Easter , the week of Easter , st Louis , that week before . Easter yeah , so go to snmaorg and see if you can't register . And , yeah , hopefully you get to go and talk to all of those schools that are going to be there .
So , All right , y'all , We'll catch you guys on another episode of Docs Outside the Box . Grace , good luck to you . Let us know what's going on . Peace , what's good ? Everyone . This is Dr Nii Yo . This is the end of this segment . I appreciate you for listening , but this ain't the end .
If you want more , go ahead and click the next button on your favorite podcast app Listen . That's next for more banter between me and Dr Rene . That .