Applying to Medical School

So, you decided that you want to apply to medical school? That’s awesome! You may already be thinking of questions such as:

How do I apply to medical school? How hard is the MCAT, and when should I take it? What kind of marks do I need to have? Which courses should I take? You are not the only one thinking about this! Think of this application process as an excellent opportunity for you to self-reflect on your skills, character traits, and what makes you a unique applicant for medical school At the same time, this process will allow you to confirm whether or not medicine is the career that you wish to pursue in the long run. This Journal is about guiding you through your queries and providing thorough and detailed information to support you along the way. If you still have questions, contact any of our MMHS executive team members, and we would be more than happy to address them for you!

Becoming a doctor, as you are probably aware, takes years of dedicated preparation, starting from high school to undergrad Well-roundedness is a key quality This means that you don’t just need good grades and a solid understanding of science but you also have to show commitment to one’s personal development and contribution to the community mcmaster.ca/md-program-admissions/who-should-apply/additional-notes-on-academic-requirements

In addition to extracurricular activities and a competitive GPA, you must meet the prerequisite courses for each school you wish to apply to. You will also have to take the MCAT and meet each school’s cutoff scores. Finally, letters of reference from individuals who can comment on qualities that would make you an excellent physician are also required. To achieve all these tasks requires a strong work ethic, time management skills, constant self-evaluation, and, most importantly, passion. In the following subsections, we will review some frequently asked questions about medical school. If the FAQs do not answer your queries, feel free to contact any of the MMHS executives for more information.

1.2 What GPA Range do I need for Medical School ?

The cutoff GPA varies each year, so please check the respective section in this Journal for information on the school of interest. Currently, the chances of admissions in Ontario can range from 2% to 8%, which means you need as high of a GPA as possible to be competitive. This could mean a cumulative GPA of 3.80-4.00 on the OMSAS scale.

However, if you have a couple of low grades or if your marks in first year were not the highest, don’t give up just yet (but also, don’t let this trend continue!) Some schools may drop your lowest grades, while some weigh more on your two best years Nevertheless, you must try to keep your GPA as high as possible. If your GPA does not meet the minimum academic cutoffs, your extracurricular activities, letters of reference, or supplementary achievements will be of little use.

Additionally, it is VERY important to look into the admissions requirements for each medical school you wish to apply to and make a chart of their prerequisites, how they calculate your GPA and the cutoff average for GPA. Most of this information is already contained in this Journal, but in many cases, your circumstances might differ from other applicants. It is highly suggested that you send an email to respective admissions offices to confirm whether or not you are eligible for weighting, if your course meets a prerequisite requirement, and so on.

1.3 What about the courses that are extremely difficult to do well in ?

One approach is to take more “difficult” pre-requisite courses during the summer, where some schools may not count them as part of your GPA calculation For instance, the University of Ottawa1 and University of Toronto2 medical schools don't count your summer school grades in calculating your weighted GPA; however, the McMaster Michael DeGroote School of Medicine3 will include marks from supplementary and summer courses in the GPA calculation. Nonetheless, the key to this is to try your best regardless! Although a course may seem quite difficult, you may be surprised by what you can accomplish by working your hardest. In addition, a superb GPA is one of the essentials to a great application, so make sure you understand what each school requires and write it down. Tacking it to your wall not only provides motivation for times of studying, but you will also be proud of yourself when you apply with a high GPA that you worked hard for and earned!

University of Ottawa Faculty of Medicine. Eligibility [Internet]. Available from: https://med.uottawa.ca/undergraduate/admissions/application-process/eligibility-requirements University of Toronto MD Program. GPA and GPA weighting [Internet]. Available from: https://md.utoronto.ca/gpa-and-gpa-weighting McMaster University MD Program. Academic Requirements and Criteria of Evaluation [Internet]. Available from: https://mdprogram.

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1.4: Should I be taking a full course load ?

It is recommended to maintain a full course load during your undergraduate degree. Many medical schools provide weighting formulas that allow you to drop a couple of your lowest grades from the GPA calculation if you have met this requirement, as it demonstrates your ability to stay focused and handle multiple areas of study at once (which is an essential skill in medicine). For example, if you have completed every year of your undergraduate studies as a full-time student with a full-course load, the weighted GPA formula at the University of Toronto will remove one of your lowest grades for each year of undergrad (i.e., three lowest grades will be dropped if you are in third year)2. This formula can definitely help boost your GPA to make your application even more competitive.

If you don’t have a full course load at the moment, make sure you check the weighted GPA formula the schools you are applying to use, so that you know how they calculate your GPA and whether they take certain academic years into consideration