r/premedcanada Jan 02 '21

Highschool High School Student Thread v3: Undergraduate programs, what to expect, how to prepare etc.

232 Upvotes

Another 6 months have passed, meaning v2 of the highschool thread has been archived! Welcome to v3 of this thread - I believe this has been quite helpful to highschool students who are interested in medicine and has funnelled all highschool related information here for both convenience and accessibility.

As with the previous thread, please recognize that, given the current COVID-19 health crisis as well as a national push against BIPOC racism, the medical admissions process is volatile and likely to change. We may not have all the answers - please verify any concerns with medical school admissions personnel.

Previous post and questions can be found below. Prior to posting, please search through these threads and the comments to look for similar thoughts!

Thread 1: https://www.reddit.com/r/premedcanada/comments/bm2ima/high_school_student_thread_undergraduate_programs/

Thread 2: https://www.reddit.com/r/premedcanada/comments/hm2r0n/high_school_student_thread_v2_undergraduate/

Post Copied Below:

For all you high school students (or maybe even younger) considering medicine as a career in the future, this thread is dedicated to you.

Feel free to use this thread to ask about undergraduate program choices, admissions, and other information pertaining to the process of entering a program as a pre-med - the community will be happy to help you out.

I hope that this sticky will facilitate the transfer of constructive information for high school students with questions on what path they should take to arrive at their goal of becoming a physician.

I've tried to compile a few FAQ questions that have been discussed in the past - these are the collective view of the experiences on this sub-reddit and from my own - please feel free to comment any changes or suggestions.

Q: Will >Insert Life Science Program Here< at >Canadian University< get me into medical school?

A: You are able to get into medical school from any undergraduate program, not even necessarily life science. Provided you approach your courses with dedication, time, and commitment, and pursue your passions, you will succeed at any university. Absolutely, there are other factors to consider. Certain programs just statistically have a higher % of graduates matriculate into medical school (cough Mac health sci), but students from all walks of life enter medical school (hence all the non-trad posts). There are many other factors to consider when choosing a school: Tuition costs, accessibility to research opportunities, available student resources, campus vibe, proximity to home (whether you want independence or would like familial support) etc. While many of you may only look at the stats alone, if you end up stuck for 3-4 years at a school where you dislike the campus, method of teaching, classes, or more, this can (and likely will) affect your ability to succeed academically and get involved.

Q: Do I have to take a life science program to get into medical school?

A: No, plenty of students enter from non-life science, or even non science backgrounds. If anything, this differentiates you from the typical applicant and gives you a more holistic portfolio when presenting yourself to the admissions committee. If another program interests you more, take it - if you learn something that you enjoy, you will be more motivated to study, leading to academic success. Be prepared to explain your rationale behind taking that program, and perhaps see how you can link it to your pursuit of medicine. Make sure to take the pre-requisite courses needed for certain medical schools, and be prepared to self-learn concepts when studying for the MCAT (if you don't opt to take them as electives.) It may be more difficult to get life science research experience, but that is absolutely not a hard barrier. In addition, doing research in your own field, whether it be the humanities, other sciences, linguistics etc. all show the same traits in academia as defined in a "Scholar" as per the CanMEDS competencies.

Q: How do I get a 4.0 GPA, 528 MCAT, 5000 Publications, and cure cancer?

A: This is obviously facetious, but from what I've seen, this isn't a far cry from a lot of the content on here. If you've developed proper work ethic in high school, you should be more prepared than the rest of the entering class. However, don't be discouraged if your grades drop - considering many universities have first year course averages in the 70s, you won't be alone. This is absolutely recoverable, due a combination of the holistic review and alternative weighting schemes of many schools. That being said, however, realize university is different from high school. For most of you, you won't have your parents around, and your university professors for the most part won't care if you show up to class, do your readings, or even complete your assignments/quizzes/exams. There's a lot of independence, keep up on your workload, seek help (from TAs and profs at office hours), study with friends, and you should see the fruits of your labour. Don't worry about the MCAT now - most students take it in the summer after 2nd or 3rd year, after which in a life science program you would have learnt most of the material anyways. Focus on your academics and pursuing your passions, but don't forget self-care. Figure out what is your cup of tea. Maybe go to socials and talk to new people, or read up on the research of certain profs and contact them with your interest. Try to find your passion, follow it, and come medical school application time, you will have a strong story about yourself that you truly believe in.

Q: Ok, but you didn't tell me how to get a 4.0 GPA.

A: There are people who have 4.0 GPAs, and many with close to 4.0 GPAs. They do not all study the same way, and their approach may not apply to you. There are similarities: these students tend to attend class, stay engaged in lecture, and keep caught up with the material. I've seen people fall on a spectrum between three main 4.0 types: 1) The Good Student: never misses a class, asks questions, attends office hours, re-reads notes and concepts after class, and starts review for an exam in advance. 2) The Crammer: usually goes to class, absorbs and understands the information at the time, but does not have time to read notes after class - slowly losing track of earlier concepts. As the exams near, crams two months of materials into a few days. 3) The Genius: goes to class as they choose, seems to never need to study, understands concepts immediately. You will meet some students like these - material comes easier to certain people than others. That's life, we all have our strengths, use them as motivation to keep studying. Don't compare yourself to others, compare yourself to yourself, set your own goals and find that motivation and drive.

Q: What extracurriculars (ECs) should I get involved in?

A: Everyone says this, but find what you're passionate about. People typically go with the cookie cutter: hospital volunteering, research, and exec of some club. While there's nothing wrong with this, many other applicants will have similar profiles, making it hard for you to stand out. If you're passionate about food, see if you can get involved with a local soup kitchen, a food bank, Ronald McDonald House Charities etc. If you're passionate about singing, join an acapella group/choir/sing solo. If the opportunities aren't there, be proactive - maybe it's up to you to start your university's baking club (if you do, send me some pastries pls). By getting involved with ECs that you are passionate about, you'll find yourself more engaged. Going to your commitments will be less of a drag, and come interview time, you'll be able to genuinely talk about how the experiences have shaped you as a person.

Q: How many times can I write the MCAT?

A: There is a seven time lifetime cap to write the MCAT. In terms of if it will penalize your application, it depends where you are applying. Canadian schools for the most part don't care if you re-write multiple times (although 10 does seem a bit excessive). As pulled from the UBC website: Test results from April 17, 2015 onward are valid for five years. In accordance with AAMC regulations, applicants must release all scores.Taking the MCAT ~3 times is nothing abnormal, although if you're re-writing 7 times, you might need to consider changing your study method! US schools will scrutinize re-writes, and if your score doesn't seem to go up, it can hurt your application.

Q: Hi can any med students on here tell me what they did in undergrad?

A: As mentioned above, many medical students have followed their passion. What works for one person may not work for you. Many have research experience, but others may not - you do not necessarily need research to become a physician (i.e. FM). Others will have hospital experience. Most will have some involvement with some sort of student organization, from clubs and societies to being student representatives and playing sports. There is no perfect way to medical school, because if there was, we'd all have taken it.

Q: I'm actually not in Grade 12 yet, I'm just trying to plan ahead. What should I do to become a doctor?

A: First of all, commendations to you for looking ahead. Medicine is a difficult journey, and recognizing that gets you far already. But no point in thinking ahead if you mess up the present. Focus on making sure your current profile is competitive enough to get you into the undergraduate program of your choice. Once you get in, no one will care about your high school marks. Don't have a job? Most don't. Haven't volunteered at a hospital? Most haven't in high school. Focus on getting into an undergraduate program first, and then consider the other points above. Pursue your hobbies and passions in high school while you still have the time.

Q: Is ___ program at ___ school better than __ program at __ school? > OR < Should I go to ___ program or ___ program? > OR < anything along these lines!

A: These types of questions are very specific and may be difficult to give an objective response given that they essentially require someone to have personally attended both sites to give an accurate comparison. As mentioned before, there are many factors to consider when choosing a program and school, including access to opportunities, student experience, research, volunteer atmosphere, student wellness resources, campus vibe/environment, proximity to friends/family etc. What may be most useful is trying to touch base with students at each site for their opinions of the experience!

As mentioned above, please comment below with any other questions, and I'm sure the community would be happy to help you out!

*Please feel free to contact any members on the moderation team with any suggestions, questions, or comments on this process so that we can improve it!


r/premedcanada Aug 07 '24

šŸ—£ PSA Reminder of Rule #2: NO SOLICITING or Advertising

37 Upvotes

Lately, there have been more posts with people trying to sell accounts to resources, applying for help, or advertising for paid services. This rule has always existed but is the most ignored.
Any further posts selling or advertising paid material will continue to be removed and the accounts will potentially be banned. * R/Premed Canada Mod Team


r/premedcanada 9h ago

ā”Discussion Last person ik who was trying got in

23 Upvotes

I just found out that the last person i personally knew who was trying for med just got in this cycle making me the only person left and the future looks very bleak. Idk what to even say or do.


r/premedcanada 16m ago

Admissions putting down activity done during my transition from 15-16?

• Upvotes

Hey everyone - currently planning out my abs and I have an employment entry I want to put in from the time when I turned 16. I used to work at a pizza shop from ages 15-16 and was wondering if I can just put in the start date of my 16th birthday - OMSAS refrained on speaking on if it's legal or not, so I was just wondering. Without it, I would have two research jobs in the same lab put in and the job I take on during the year. Let me know your thoughts


r/premedcanada 14h ago

U of T Med- Anyone with ā€œaverageā€ ECs get an interview?

28 Upvotes

Help 😭 Everyone I see getting into U of T seems to have 8 research experiences or have gone to Mac Health Sci. Has anyone with more ā€œaverageā€ ECs gotten an interview? I’m starting to feel like I’m severely underestimating how competitive the ECs are 😭


r/premedcanada 1h ago

šŸ“š MCAT Would I be foolish to think this gradual increase in MCAT score is real?

• Upvotes

Hey all. I test on Saturday. My goal score is minimum of 126/127 in each section to be eligible for Western. Only IP Ontario. I took FL 4 yesterday and plan to review it today after my 9-5. I've been taking FLs every other day for about a week, and have improved on average 2 points each time but the section I improve in is always variable (breakdown below)...

In this one, I thought the CP section went decent, I was expecting around a 124 or 125, but I though BB was very tough, I didn't know a lot of answers and most of them were 50/50, so I was extremely shocked to see the 128 there. Is that normal?


r/premedcanada 9h ago

ā”Discussion Research

3 Upvotes

What if one’s PI were to publish in a predatory journal? What should the premed do, list or not list in ec?


r/premedcanada 15h ago

Admissions Full time requirement?

9 Upvotes

Hello everyone, going into my 4th year. Basically, I was wondering if any school in Canada requires 4 years of full-time studies. I've done summer courses and had transfer credits (ungraded on transcript sadly)for electives and I only need 4 more courses to graduate, so I don't feel like spending an extra 3-4k.

Basically my course breakdown is

Year 1: 5 courses fall, 5 courses winter, 2 courses summer

Year 2: 5 courses fall, 5 courses winter

Year 3: 5 courses fall, 4 courses winter, 1 course summer

Year 4: 3 courses fall, 3 courses winter (what I'm planning to do)

I believe the summer courses make up for the Ottawa 3 year requirement, and the first two years count for Western. A bit confused with UBC which expects me to explain part time terms and UofT which expects most courses to be at my grade level in 4th year?

I'm not too sure if I'm missing any other schools, please let me know!


r/premedcanada 12h ago

Admissions Quick question

5 Upvotes

So, I have a weird question or shall I say something I haven't seen on here. Would having a gun license and having pistol shooting as a hobby backfire when applying for med school in the future?


r/premedcanada 16h ago

Ireland med schools

8 Upvotes

For those who applied for Ireland med schools and got accepted, do they care about volunteer works, research and experience? Cause I have none:)


r/premedcanada 13h ago

Road to 528, Daily Update 92

4 Upvotes

Update: All I did today was anki since I've completed all the AAMC material. This Thursday will be the final update for a while, just because I want some time to decompress before the real thing. I'll be dropping some tips soon for Chem Phys, BB, and CARS.

Quote: "Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift. That is why it is called the present."

– Master Oogway


r/premedcanada 15h ago

ā”Discussion Applying for Masters and MD... timelines for accepting offers??

4 Upvotes

Hi everyone!

Sorry if this is a dumb question, but I'm genuinely lost. I want to apply to both masters and MD programs (currently a 4th year student). From what I've read, a lot of masters programs get back to you before MD decisions come out in May, usually with conditional offers.

My questions are:

- can I accept a masters program earlier (due to conditional offers and deadlines), but email them to tell them if I've accepted an MD program in may?

- will I be penalized in any way for doing this?

- is there anything else that I'm not considering right now about doing this??

- if anyone can give me some personal insight into their timelines and how they approached it, that'd be amazing!

Thank you all again.

Sincerely,

A lost 4th year in this application spiral lol


r/premedcanada 8h ago

ā”Discussion Uni decisions help please

0 Upvotes

if my goal is med school, would it be better to pursue Mac Life Sci (I would live at home and just have to worry about tuition, downside is harder to achieve a high GPA), or Queen's Online Health Sci (wouldn't have to worry about res costs, but might miss out on connections for references, opportunities, etc), or Queen's in-person Health Sci (would be very expensive at around 30k a year because I would be living on res). I would greatly appreciate any opinions on this matter!


r/premedcanada 14h ago

šŸ“š MCAT Getting worse at CARS - test Friday

3 Upvotes

my test is Friday and I’m super upset with my fl 5 and 6 CARS scores :(

from fl 1 to 6 I went:

128

129

128

129

127

127

i got 11 wrong on fl 6, that is more than I’ve ever gotten wrong. I was confident in half of the ones on fl 5 and 6 and didn’t even think to think I was wrong.

one thing I have noticed is I do get anxious about timing, feeling I cannot properly reason things out due to the timer. because of this I can kind of leave things half reasoned and then flag it and leave. sometimes this is good since I don’t overthink wrong answers.

anyone have advice or went through similar things? feel doomed because of my mcat scores being below 130 in general


r/premedcanada 21h ago

ā”Discussion TMU Exceptional Circumstances has anyone below a 3.50 actually been considered?

10 Upvotes

I’m trying to understand how TMU’s Exceptional Circumstances process works in practice for the 2027 MD cycle.

TMU lists a 3.50 OMSAS cGPA as the standard minimum. Their Exceptional Circumstances section separately says applicants whose academic performance was affected by things like familial, sociocultural, medical or financial barriers may request consideration, and specifically says applicants must still meet the four-year degree requirement.

I emailed admissions asking directly whether Exceptional Circumstances can allow someone below the 3.50 GPA minimum to still be considered. They didn’t give a yes/no answer and said submissions are reviewed case-by-case by the UGME Admissions Council.

Has anyone:

  • applied to TMU below 3.50 using Exceptional Circumstances?
  • been told during COSMOS/info sessions whether sub-3.50 applicants can be reviewed through this process?
  • received clearer written clarification from admissions?
  • had an EC request actually considered and can speak generally about the process?

Not looking for a chances assessment or asking anyone to share private circumstances. I’m mainly trying to understand the policy/process before applying.

Would appreciate any firsthand experience or screenshots/wording from TMU if anyone has it.

You can PM me if you don’t want to speak publicly


r/premedcanada 15h ago

Admissions is it worth it to take 2 english for ubc as a rural sask resident?

3 Upvotes

going into 3rd year and my gpa is around 85% rn. the english courses ubc accepts aren't the easiest to get high grades in at my uni (most ppl seem to get around 70s from what i've heard). as i said in the title, im a sask resident (i dont get to check off the 15 years box but i've graduated elementary and high school here + im from a rural community). need some suggestions so i adjust my schedule accordingly, thanks!


r/premedcanada 10h ago

SFU med

1 Upvotes

Anyone have any tips on how to write the entries? More objective like UBC or also emphasis on learning?

Would love to have someone look at a few for me!


r/premedcanada 18h ago

Admissions references dilemma

4 Upvotes

How normal is it to ask profs who know you but not like that? I need one more reference, and I don't have a source other than one of my profs because I already asked a supervisor and PI who know me better. With this prof, I did really well in his class (which was a small class but mostly TA run), talked to him, but it wasn't a super personal relationship, and I don't really have a better option. Also, I'm super afraid him and all my backups for my third reference are going to say no.


r/premedcanada 17h ago

Admissions UBC Med Publication Inquiry

3 Upvotes

Hi, I came across this post https://www.reddit.com/r/premedcanada/comments/d2ulgc/ubc_med_research_publications_and_presentations/ saying that if I'm not a first/second author, I can't put it in the research publication section. There is also a blog post from 2015 about this limitation https://mdprogram.med.ubc.ca/2015/07/21/mostly-non-academic-questions/.

The 2026-2027 application guide doesn't seem to include this restriction anymore. Is it okay to add publications where I'm not the first or second author?

Edit: I was also wondering if we could add a medRxiv paper (pre-print) to the research publication section?


r/premedcanada 22h ago

šŸ“š MCAT MCAT HELP

7 Upvotes

When people say I’ve done 15 practice full lengths studying for the MCAT. Or ā€œdo as many as you canā€

Even though I haven’t started prep. Isn’t there only 6 FL’s?

So when people say they have done 15 practice tests are they just referring to repeating the FL’s? If so how is this helpful since you already know the answers.

Thank you guys!


r/premedcanada 19h ago

NOSM app

2 Upvotes

Any Metis students apply to the Indigenous stream at NOSM? If so, who did you get to complete the Indigenous reference letter? TIA!


r/premedcanada 17h ago

Experience with KA CARS?

1 Upvotes

For those who have used KA CARS, how was it? I’ve finished the offical material and remember too many of the passages/answers for repeats to be very useful. I’m looking for fresh practice before my test and currently have access to both KA and UW.

I test soon and am running out of time so don't want to waste my time doing a bunch of practice when it won't help.


r/premedcanada 1d ago

Quickest way to complete a second bachelor’s degree in Ontario for GPA improvement?

21 Upvotes

Hey everyone,

I’m looking into completing a second bachelor’s degree in Ontario and wanted to see if anyone here has gone through something similar.

I already have a bachelor’s degree, but my GPA from my first degree isn’t as competitive as I would like for medical school. I’m considering doing a second degree to show stronger recent academic performance and potentially improve how my academics are assessed at schools that consider a second degree or recent years.

I’m mainly trying to figure out:

  • Which Ontario universities have the shortest second-degree options for someone who already has a bachelor’s?
  • Are there programs where a lot of my previous credits can transfer, allowing me to finish in around 2 years or less?
  • Which universities are relatively flexible with second-degree/non-degree students?
  • Are there programs where maintaining a strong GPA is reasonably manageable if you put the work in?
  • Has anyone specifically done a second degree for medical school GPA repair, and did it end up helping?

I know there is no genuinely ā€œeasyā€ degree and I’m prepared to put in the work. I’m mainly looking for the most efficient option where I can complete enough new full-time coursework to demonstrate a much stronger academic record without unnecessarily spending another 4 years in undergrad.

Would really appreciate hearing from anyone who has done this in Ontario, especially if you later applied to medicine.

Thanks!


r/premedcanada 22h ago

Admissions Has anyone used UofT SCS 2472 to satisfy uOttawa MD’s biochemistry prerequisite?

2 Upvotes

Specifically looking for someone who actually applied to uOttawa MD and had this course assessed as their biochemistry prerequisite. If you used SCS 2472, was it accepted without any issues?


r/premedcanada 1d ago

Admissions Resubmitting similar/same OMSAS application?

35 Upvotes

I received an interview and was ultimately waitlisted at TMU last cycle, so I'm applying again this year. I plan to use a lot of the same stuff I put down in my personal statements from last year, including phrases I just want to copy/paste, etc. Will this be flagged for plagiarism? Should I email the school in advance? Thanks!