Medical Education US

Hi,
I have a masters in computer science and have been working for alomost 3 years now. I am planning on changing careers and would like pursue med school but I do not have the required biological courses. I have two options.
Option - 1 To enroll into a full time post-bac program and finish the course work. +ves: Better chances of getting good grades, Will get a comprehensive recom letter, possibility of getting into a med school through a linkage program. -ves: Glide year, Will not be working so won't be able to save for med school

Option 2 - Take required courses part time while working full time.

What do you guys suggest? Any ideas/suggestions are more than welcome.

Thanks,
Maya

I don't really have experience with the post-bac programs, or know of people who have done those, so I can't comment.

I do know several people, though, who took their courses part-time while working days, took the MCAT, and successfully got into medical school.

I wish I could give you more info on the post-bac programs. If you happen to find some resources elsewhere, please sure what you find with us here.

Thanks.

I looked into both options (doing post-bac at Harvard Extension or Boston University, and also a very structured program at Tufts. Tufts rejected me from their program, and I opted against BU and Harvard Ex... but got into med school anyway). In the end, I ended up completing the coursework on my own -- I had a bachelor's degree in German and a master's in Health Promotion, and definitely had other premedical science classes that I had to take!

Part of my decision was related to scheduling difficulties with the post-bac schools (as well as Tufts rejecting me from their post-bac program, obviously), and part of it was dealing with some of the people in charge of the programs. In the long run, I was able to register for the courses on my own, so I did. The only real drawback was that I could not use the schools' official application/letter of recommendation assistance, but I organized all of that application crap myself and was able to get plenty of letters from profs, bosses, and prior military commanders and medical officers.

If you need the structure, or think it would help you, then a post-bac program is a fine idea. Just look into the school and the program before you sign on. Some are really excellent, and some are poorly managed. If you are more of a self-starter, you probably don't need it. That is just my opinion, of course, but it worked out for me!

[ Edited by Corpsman-Up on 2006/5/16 22:43 ]

Does it matter where you get your BA, or where you take your science classes? I ask this because if the latter is more important, I could go to a cheap state school and then apply to a post bac program at an elite university.

There are some variables here.

Where do you want to go to medical school? If you are hung up on attending Big Name College of Medicine, then maybe it makes a difference. However, some outstanding state school graduates get into those programs, as well. If you would be happy at a state (or any other) medical school, then save yourself the money and just make sure you kick butt in classes and on the MCAT.

Is money an issue right now? If it is, then go to the place you can afford, and kick butt in classes and on the MCAT.

Where are you in the process? If you are still deciding where to go for undergrad, then you don't NEED a post-bac program! You can work your pre-med courses into the undergrad curriculum and save yourself time and money. Assuming, of course, that you kick butt in classes and on the MCAT.

You may have caught the recurring theme, here.

Could you speculate as to why you were rejected by BU and Tufts? Do you think your rejections had anything to do with your undergradate grades, or even grades and test scores from high school? Did the schools give you any reasons for turning you down?

Hmm. Well, since you had the balls to ask (I wouldn't have), I might as well answer.

I was rejected by Tufts post-bac specifically because I had some early poor grades, over a decade previously. BU's and Harvard's post-bac programs were willing to take me, but I found the BU program advisor at that time to be kinda annoying, and the Harvard evening classes didn't fit with my work schedule. Most importantly, I had learned in the interim exactly what I needed to do to get into medical school, so I just decided to take the classes on my own at that point. (High school performance, at that stage of things, is essentially a moot point.)

Again, these were structured post-bac programs, and whether you get into (or decide to complete) one of them can have little influence on whether or not you get accepted to medical school...

Good luck.