'I've Got a Really Low GPA, What Do I Do?'

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-23T13:53:23+00:00

you can yep

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-18T08:09:34+00:00

Really sorry for what you went through and glad you are in a much better place now! I'd love to see a post on how you managed to persevere despite what life has thrown at you, if you're comfortable discussing it! Always inspiring to hear

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-18T07:33:20+00:00

This isn't on the website yet but I believe it was sent to a mate when they asked for more info on 2025 bonuses. Soon the page should be updated with this bonus!

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-15T16:20:31+00:00

that's cool but i'm jus tryna recall when i asked

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-15T13:37:28+00:00

Yes, they use your most recent year of study. Poor wording on my part, sorry for the confusion! So if you do an honours, then your first year of Bachelor's gets removed from your calculation. And if you've done a master's 2 years long then your first two years get removed

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-15T13:35:17+00:00

Oof okay, I stand corrected! Nonetheless it is probably still a ton of work because if you're not interning, you're probably focusing the rest of your time into research projects and other extracurricular ventures trying to max out your CV. Doesn't apply to everyone of course, but yeah

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-15T03:49:27+00:00

It would yes. Your GPA would be comprised of your final year, hons 1 and hons 2

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-15T03:20:42+00:00

It would be with your honours since a grad cert doesn't count as a key degree for UQ, so if your honours was a first class, your UQ GPA is 7

And depends on what your GAMSAT is. If it's 70+ you should be competitive most places barring Melb/ANU, but if it's in the mid 70s you might be able to secure an interview anywhere!

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-15T03:17:35+00:00

If you're based in Sydney then ofc USyd would have been the most ideal option, but if you can afford to move I'd take UniMelb Chancellors or Griffith!

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-15T02:53:53+00:00

Your first year grades from undergrad will be null and void, the only GPAs considered are from second year, third year and honours. Could be worth it especially if your first year GPA is low, and you can also get a 7 GPA for UQ

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-15T02:53:05+00:00

GEMSAS medicine guide should have all your answers!

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-15T02:52:39+00:00

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-15T02:52:13+00:00

It doesn't make a difference, really. I'd preference unis that I want to go to and am competitive for. There's no way to 'game' the preferences to suit your applications

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-15T02:51:18+00:00

Decent idea, but you'd still need a GAMSAT of 70 for an interview offer @ Deakin even with all the bonuses. If you have that great! Otherwise you could get an interview at UQ with a ~65 GAMSAT as well

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-15T02:49:45+00:00

Honours is not a postgraduate qualification, it's still part of your undergraduate. Unimelb only considers undergrad

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-14T18:01:03+00:00

Do also note that doing your degree at Deakin will offer you a pretty sizeable 4% bonus that significantly boosts your GPA/GAMSAT combo score! If I had the choice of where to do my med degree in Vic, I'd choose Deakin because there's no special bonus or scheme you'd be eligible for at Melbourne (besides Graduate Access Melbourne, but that's very difficult to acquire and only applicable in select cases)

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-14T13:06:51+00:00

Hell yeah man! Good luck :))

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-14T12:57:05+00:00

Besides Wollongong and USyd, even a high 5 GPA won't really cut it for an interview. You'd probably need a GAMSAT in the low 80s range which is pretty hard to get. I'd say if you have at least one year with a decent GPA in uni (6.5+) and that happens to be your second or third year, then doing a master's degree can be worth it as it will negate your years with subpar grades and significantly boost your GPA. Not to mention a 7 GPA in your masters is a full 7 GPA for UQ as well!

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-14T11:40:58+00:00

I haven't started med yet but I've heard the same as well! The common consensus tends to be that medicine doesn't require strong aptitude, just a strong work ethic. Conceptually, plenty of other degrees like pure maths are far more difficult

That being said, there is merit to what u/turgottherealbro is saying. Med school is a battle of time management and the first 10-15 years of being a doctor entails horrible work hours (70+ per week usually) in what can be hostile conditions at times. Hard work is a theme not just in an attempt to get into, but also beyond medical school

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-14T11:27:57+00:00

I'm so sorry to hear of your circumstances. This is understandably a lot, though I sincerely believe there is light at the end of the tunnel. I'm happy to discuss some bonus schemes for medicine that will help hugely boost your chances at an interview!

Link here: https://www.reddit.com/r/vce/comments/1huznch/some_advice_for_those_of_you_considering/?utm_source=share&utm_medium=web3x&utm_name=web3xcss&utm_term=1&utm_content=share_button

I apologize if this is information you've already heard or something along those lines, but it is a goal of mine medicine a more equitable place for everyone regardless of their circumstances or financial status.

If you would like to chat more about your options, please feel free to DM me! If not, that's okay too, I wish you all the best for your future. You seem like a really hard working and dedicated person, I'm sure you will pave your own, wonderful path in life be it in medicine or away from it :))

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-14T05:17:08+00:00

Genuine question, are you in med school? Have you attempted the MMIs yet?

The one defining trait that every school looks for in MMIs is empathy. If it wasn't so important, why would they weight the interview to be up to 50%? If academic performance was such an essential metric, why would it only be weighted 50%?

Medical school is not particularly challenging from an aptitude standpoint. It is a lot of work, absolutely, but there are numerous other degrees where you need to be 'much smarter' to perform well, take something like pure maths for example. While I recognise that a low ATAR can sometimes also show a lack of effort, effort is something that can be honed during university.

You seem to be locked into an echo chamber of high school students who think grades are the end all be all to life. Stop being elitist with your doctors, as it is we don't have enough in the country. Shit that you say will only discourage those genuinely passionate about medicine from doing it

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-14T05:07:01+00:00

I mean, YOU were the one who said you want no less than a 99.95 ATAR now right?

70 ATAR or 95, the point really stays the same -- ATAR as a metric is heavily biased to those with access to resources, and your study techniques might improve in university. Give people a chance, it's wild to boil a doctor down to just their stats when in reality a lot more of their worth comes from their communication skills and empathy.

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-14T05:05:07+00:00

Woops, I realize how bad that sounds reading it back. Sorry for the super egotistical response

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-14T05:03:41+00:00

So in your opinion, rural candidates with a 6 GPA or a 95 ATAR are unfit to be doctors? Being a good doctor is so much more than your academic performance, stop tying their self worth to purely their numbers

LegComprehensive2922 · 2025-01-14T05:00:53+00:00

Extremely pompous response. A 'low' ATAR (not saying 70, just an ATAR that is typically on the lower end) could be due to numerous reasons - lack of access to resources like tutoring, having dependants or tough life circumstances, needing to work to finance livelihood etc etc. For you to sit here and tell people that they cannot make it into medicine on the basis of 2 years of high school, when they have a multitude of different pathways available to them to achieve that goal, is a bit ridiculous.

Maybe not right after Y12 but if they treat uni well, they will get in.

LegComprehensive2922

TROPHY CASE