Pre-Med Thread: American Medical Schools, BCPM, and the MCAT

[SIZE="4"]The Pre-Medicine Thread: For Our Prospective Doctors[/SIZE]

[SIZE="3"]Introduction[/SIZE]

[SIZE="2"]I just created this thread because I'm currently going through my undergraduate studies as a pre-med Biology major with two other majors in Public Policy and Psychology. There are a lot of complexities within the American medical system that many people do not think about when they decide to tell their friends and families that they are thinking about becoming a doctor. I created this thread to hopefully cover the basics. This thread will be updated around once a week when I have free time. So it's definitely worth it to take a peak every so often. Since I am a human being I am likely to be wrong on lots of issues and will probably not see the whole picture. Feel free to correct me if you find an error. As a human being, I learn through my mistakes. On a final note, the reason this only covers American medical schools is because other countries run their medical establishments very differently. As an American, I have a personal bias for which I apologize. [/SIZE]

[SIZE="3"]BCPM and Overall GPA[/SIZE]

[SIZE="2"]In college, you will receive your overall GPA. Do not be deceived. When you apply to medical school, they will take into consideration two different GPAs. There is (1) your overall GPA as mentioned before and (2) your BCPM GPA. Your BCPM stands for Biology, Chemistry, Physics, and Math. BCPM is also known as the "science GPA." This means that many courses in political science, humanities, and the arts will not count towards your "science GPA" but will count towards your overall GPA.[/SIZE]

[SIZE="2"]Q: "Which is more important to maintain? My Overall GPA or my Science GPA? Can I still apply to medical school if one is lower than the other?"[/SIZE]

[SIZE="2"]A: "Most medical schools value Science GPA slightly higher than Overall GPA since you could have taken a lot of easy introductory courses in order to boost up your Overall GPA. In general, you should never try to sacrifice one for the other. Try to do your best for both your Science GPA and Overall GPA. If you do extremely poorly in Science GPA/Overall GPA but did extremely well in Overall GPA/Science GPA it doesn't matter. Medical colleges are looking for excellence in both your Science GPA and your Overall GPA."[/SIZE]

[SIZE="2"]Q: "What is considered the minimum Science GPA / Overall GPA to get into Medical School?"[/SIZE]

[SIZE="2"]A: "This depends on a variety of other factors such as whether or not you may have done volunteer work at a hospital, shadowed a doctor [which is not the same as volunteering at a hospital], participated in research, received journal publications in Public Health magazines ect. Generally, the average of all Medical Applicants that applied in 2007 had an overall Science GPA of a 3.6 (A-) and an overall GPA of a 3.7+(A and above)."[/SIZE]

[SIZE="3"]Other Topics To Touch At A Later Time[/SIZE]

[SIZE="2"] - MCATS
- The Difference Between An MD and a DO
- Extracurriculars
- Resume Writing[/SIZE]

[SIZE="3"]Thanks for reading.[/SIZE]

Lord that GPA scares me T.T
I'm gonna be a pulmonologist later in life X_X;;
My dad says volunteering at a nursing home "shows a lot of heart and that you really want to help people, because most people stay away from there" (he said that to my brother who is in college @_@).
Oh Lawd T_T

[SIZE="3"]The standards are pretty ridiculous. I'm thinking about retaking my Chemistry I and my Calculus I because I got a "C" on both courses. I've never failed and I've gotten perfect scores in all my other classes. Yet the way medical schools will look at my application they would probably tell me, "So, did you have a fun freshman year? You party animal."

Also if you take Biology your freshman year in college and you suck at math, you absolutely must get two "As" otherwise you will get screwed by the Chemistry, Physics, and Math triple-rape. If you're unable to get "As" in Biology and you are unable to maintain a "B-B+" average in any of your cores: Chemistry I and II, Physics I and II, Organic Chemistry I and II, Calculus I and II, you should (a) suck it up and retake the course for the "A" so you can hopefully average out with a "B" or (b) give up on being Pre-Med.

I'm personally vacillating in my decision to go Pre-Law or Pre-Med. I'm entertaining the thought of Pre-Dental. But Pre-Med is not for everyone. From what I've heard you get treated like a little kid when you're 25 and doing your Step III medical school shadowing of actual doctors. It's a rough road all the way until the end. Sigh. Residency.[/SIZE]

[SIZE="3"]The standards are pretty ridiculous. I'm thinking about retaking my Chemistry I and my Calculus I because I got a "C" on both courses. I've never failed and I've gotten perfect scores in all my other classes. Yet the way medical schools will look at my application they would probably tell me, "So, did you have a fun freshman year? You party animal."

Also if you take Biology your freshman year in college and you suck at math, you absolutely must get two "As" otherwise you will get screwed by the Chemistry, Physics, and Math triple-rape. If you're unable to get "As" in Biology and you are unable to maintain a "B-B+" average in any of your cores: Chemistry I and II, Physics I and II, Organic Chemistry I and II, Calculus I and II, you should (a) suck it up and retake the course for the "A" so you can hopefully average out with a "B" or (b) give up on being Pre-Med.

I'm personally vacillating in my decision to go Pre-Law or Pre-Med. I'm entertaining the thought of Pre-Dental. But Pre-Med is not for everyone. From what I've heard you get treated like a little kid when you're 25 and doing your Step III medical school shadowing of actual doctors. It's a rough road all the way until the end. Sigh. Residency.[/SIZE]

Man,now you've scared the crap out of me. I'm horrible at math T_T.