How to Apply to Med School with A Low GPA
If you have a low GPA and are applying to medical schools in Canada, you’re not alone. Many students find themselves in this situation for various reasons, including health issues, family responsibilities, or other extenuating circumstances. While it can feel discouraging, there are a few strategies to mitigate this drawback and still submit a strong application. Here's how you can enhance your profile and improve your chances of getting accepted.
Showcase your other scholarly attributes
A low GPA doesn’t mean that you don’t possess crucial skills and qualities that medical schools seek. In particular, medical schools believe that medical professionals need to integrate the following characteristics and abilities:
Professional
Communicator
Collaborator
Leader
Health Advocate
Scholar
These comprise the key roles of the CanMEDS Framework. While grades fall under the “scholar” role, this role is much more expansive. Medical schools are interested in seeing that you’re eager to continuously learn, teach, and contribute to research. They seek applicants who are inquisitive and effective decision makers, as these qualities predict how scholarly you’ll be as a physician and your likelihood of practicing in ways that are evidence-informed.
Looking at your profile, how else can you showcase the scholar within you?
You can highlight your involvement in any phase of the research process, including recruitment, experimentation, analysis, or manuscript production. If you’ve researched scientific literature on community health and social determinants of health to lead a community project, that would be a great example to use. Additionally, demonstrating your curiosity and ability to teach through mentorship, counseling, workshop facilitation, and similar roles can effectively showcase your scholarly attributes.
Another way to highlight your scholarly attributes is by excelling in the MCAT. To earn a high score, plan well ahead of application deadlines. Use reliable resources and create a comprehensive study schedule. The AAMC offers a free guide to help you build your study plan, which includes free or low-cost resources, tools to assess your knowledge, and sample study schedules. Additional prep courses, such as Khan Academy’s free resources, as well as the following paid options can also be beneficial:
Make the most of your application
Your autobiographical sketch and personal essays offer the perfect opportunity to tell your story and highlight what you bring to the table. Use them to showcase your unique strengths and experiences. What initiatives have you led? How have you shown growth over the years? What major challenges have you overcome and how?
Answering these questions in an authentic and compelling manner will show admissions committee members that, despite a less competitive GPA, you have exhibited commitment, discipline, and problem-solving skills in other valuable ways. These qualities are essential for succeeding in the demanding environment of medical school, and committee members need to be assured that you possess them.
Many applications also include an optional essay in which applicants can describe any extenuating circumstances that contributed to their academic performance. Admissions committees assess your grades across the entirety of your undergraduate career along with anything that might have impacted them and how you reacted to these situations. Since all of these factors combined allow them to predict your future academic success, this essay is crucial. Use this space to demonstrate your growth, whether by highlighting the improvement in your grades over time, the coping mechanisms that you’ve learned, or the organizational and time-management skills you've developed.
Once all of your essays are completed, ask yourself the following questions:
Did I actually answer the question being asked?
Is there a clear narrative? Or does it feel like a list of my past experiences?
Can I touch on other experiences that are more relevant to the essay prompt?
Can I restructure my response to make it more effective?
Are there any spelling or grammatical errors?
Have your friends and family look over your work and ask them the same questions. Sometimes, we overlook obvious details, so a fresh perspective can be incredibly helpful.
Apply to The Right Medical Schools
Before deciding on which schools to apply to, it’s important to understand the profiles of previously accepted students. This insight can help you identify which schools you have a higher chance of gaining entry to. You can do this by analyzing schools’ most recent application statistics, which we’ve compiled for you here. Remember, admission averages are not cut-offs; they are inclusive of applicants with lower scores, reflecting a holistic review process that values diverse strengths and experiences.
That being said, having a GPA lower than the published averages of those accepted doesn't mean you shouldn’t apply, assuming you meet the school’s minimum GPA requirement. Your application can stand out in other ways. This is where a well-crafted strategy and expert guidance are essential.
When compiling your list of medical schools, consider whether applying to institutions outside of Canada is a good option. For example, Australian and Irish medical schools often accept applicants with lower GPAs compared to Canadian schools and offer curricula that are largely similar to those in Canada. Some of these schools don’t even have GPA cutoff scores for admission. You can learn more about their application requirements through Atlantic Bridge and GEMSAS.
However, these programs can differ in length, teaching methods, and assessment styles compared to Canadian schools. Additionally, practicing in Canada after attending these schools typically requires passing additional licensing exams.
Delay Your Application
If you have a low GPA and you don’t have extensive work, volunteer, and research experience, it’s probably a good idea to put off applying until you can build your resume.
Working or volunteering in healthcare is a great place to start. This experience will deepen your understanding of the field, provide a realistic perspective, show how you react to various situations, and help you assess your ability to handle the emotional demands of healthcare. It’ll also help you develop the skills that are relevant to a medical setting and that you’ll be able to leverage as a future medical professional. These can include
Effective communication
Interpersonal skills
Attention to detail
Technical skills
Furthermore, you’ll learn about concepts that are fundamental to every healthcare setting, including patient safety, interprofessional collaboration, and the importance and benefit of good bedside manners.
Working in healthcare before medical school also offers valuable networking opportunities. You can learn from professionals about their studies, career insights, and coping mechanisms. These connections can enhance your understanding and potentially serve as references for your medical school applications.
During this time, you might also pursue a graduate course of study. A research-based program will help you develop key research skills that medical schools are seeking. Taking a graduate program is also a great way to demonstrate your capacity to succeed in advanced coursework. It’ll also enhance your critical thinking and problem solving skills, demonstrate your commitment to scholarship, and give you additional networking opportunities.
Though these are beneficial ways of spending this time ahead of your medical school applications, there are other ways you can use your time that are great for your personal development as well! You can read all about them here.
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While these are some of the ways you can strengthen your medical school application if you have a low GPA, there are many more strategies to explore!
Interested in learning how we can support you through the medical school application process? Book a free consultation with one of our experts! You will learn about how we conduct a thorough assessment of our clients’ skills and experiences to develop a customized plan that will maximize their chances of admission to their dream program.
We look forward to supporting you on your medical school journey!
