(20/7=2.86), so your GPA is 2.86, which is slightly less than a B average. You then divide the accumulated grade points by the number of units and you have your GPA. So for your two classes you have accumulated 20 grade points for the 7 units. That's 4 units times 2 points for 8 points. Let's say you also take a 4 unit class (common in Mathematics, for example) and receive a C grade. If you take a three unit class and receive an A grade, you receive 3 units times 4 points (for the A), which gives a total of 12 grade points for the course. The process is the same whether you are working on secondary or college grades. An A grade receives 4 points, a B=3, a C=2, a D=1, and an F=0. Each grade is assigned a number of grade points. GPA assumes a grading scale of A, B, C, D, F. Most college courses have a load of three units (approximately three hours of lecture and six hours of homework per week for each semester), but the number can vary from fractions of 1 to more than 5. In secondary school, most courses carry the same number of units, but this is not true at the college level. Basically, it goes as follows: Each course is given a certain number of "units" or "credits", depending on the content of the course. It is a standard way of measuring academic achievement in the U.S. What do these numbers mean and how should I calculate my GPA?Īnswer: GPA stands for Grade Point Average.
So you will probably have to retake the MCAT.I keep hearing about GPA and how some students have a GPA of 3 or 4, etc. And most schools are going to stop accepting the old MCAT scores soon, too. An MCAT score of 26 is not going to cut it. An overall GPA of 2.4 is not going to cut it. What are you struggling with?Ī science GPA of 2.7 is not going to cut it. You need to figure out why you’re not doing well in school. Why Are You Struggling Academically as a Premed? Currently, he is working on physical therapy research and teaching. He got an MCAT score of 26 (on the old MCAT). His work experience includes clinical research (4 years) and being a lab assistant at a medical school (anatomy lab and orthopedic surgical training center).
Our poster has worked in basic research labs for 3 years, published 2 papers, and done poster presentations at international conferences.
He was not prepared for the classes but needed the job to pay rent and help his soon-to-be wife at that time to pay for physical therapy school. His overall Science GPA of 2.7 is because of classes taken while doing research, which are graduate-level courses taken in order to be able to work in a lab. Because of his low undergrad GPA, our poster is unable to get premed advising help from the school where he’s taken his postbac courses so far. He graduated in 2002 with a very low GPA (2.01) and has taken classes since then for a postbac GPA of 2.7 and science GPA at 3.3. Our poster this week is in need of help and advice for applying to medical school. OldPreMeds Question of the Week:Īs usual on the OldPreMeds Podcast, our question is taken from the Nontrad Premed Forum. Listen to this podcast episode with the player above, or keep reading for the highlights and takeaway points. In today’s episode, I answer some questions from a student who is struggling with a low undergrad and postbac GPA around 2.4, along with a low MCAT score.įind out what options you have when facing these kinds of significant academic difficulties as a premed.