Early Bird Advice

While there is a great deal of information out there for those already in undergraduate and graduate studies, there is relatively little support for high school / secondary school students who express a desire in medicine as well as first years who are often overwhelmed by their classes and do not have a sufficient grasp of the whole admissions process. This article is not meant to add pressure (for either high school students or undergraduate students), but merely to outline some of the facts and realities that, looking back, would be useful for such students to know.

1. Choice of University/College

The reality is, where you go for undergraduate education can both directly and indirectly impact your chances. Certain schools are known for their academic rigour while others (esp. colleges) are known for a lack of it. Consider that most medical schools will accept your GPA at face value (especially for schools that have cut-offs) - if you are an academically weaker student and you choose a university known for being academically challenging, then you are literally digging your own grave. Having said that, for more subjective application processes, realize that they will see everything about you and it is perfectly in their right to view your 3.8 GPA from a college as subjectively 'inferior' to a 3.65 from an esteemed university. Secondary to that, you should carefully consider how well-supported students are in terms of extracurricular activities, academic challenges, etc. Essentially, you don't want to be limited, academically or personally, by the school you choose.

2. Choice of Major

Most Canadian medical schools do not look at the rigour of the program. Therefore, if everyone in the Engineering department at your school gets a 2.2 GPA average while for most other majors the average is a 3.0 GPA, you should really reconsider a major in engineering. Of course, this flies in the face of "do what you love" but realitical it is unfortunately not the ideal situation - if what you love is something that you know you will do well in, go for it; if it is in someone you think you will do poorly in... you may just be kicking yourself 4 years down the road.

3. Making Connections

It is never too early to make connections. Talk to your professors - EVEN the ones in 300- and 400-student classes. Email them - ask them about their research, about projects they or their colleagues have open for students. When it comes time to submitting applications and reference letters, someone you've worked with for 1-3 years will write a substantially better reference than a supervisor you had for a 3-4 month summer project.

4. The Importance of GPA

Whether you agree or not, having a poor GPA will severely limit your options. While some schools provide leniency for a poor 1st year (either they take the most recent 2-3 years or they drop the lowest year - see School Profiles), many do not. The transition from high school to 1st year can often seem challenging but it is important that you maintain a focus on doing well right from the get-go.

5. Grades/Percents/GPA Conversions

Depending on your school, you will get a grade (A+, B-, etc.), a percent (93%, 73%, etc.), a GPA (4.0, 3.3, etc.) or some combination of the above. Because of the lack of standardization, many application processes will convert your marks into one in their system, so that it can be objectively compared to an application from a different school with a different grading scheme. Unfortunately, such a conversion scheme will often be a penalizing factor; so it is important to be aware of what your school's marking scheme is as well as how it would be converted when applying to other schools. I will show you an example to illustrate my point:

• At UBC, a 76-79% is a B+, an 80-84% is an A-, an 85-89% is an A and a 90%+ is an A+. in the OMSAS grade conversion, which takes UBC letter grades, an A+ is a 4.0, A is 3.9, A- is 3.7 but B+ is 3.3.
• Therefore,  a student with a 82% and a 80% has a 3.7 OMSAS GPA (2 A-'s = 3.7 average) and an 81% average
• a student with 96% and 79% has a 3.65 OMSAS GPA (A+ & B+ = 3.65 average) and an 89% average

6. Summer-Time

Nobody can dictate what you do with your summers, and admittedly the appeal of an extended vacation is a strong one. However, realize that the applicant pool is very competitive (and is increasingly competitive year-after-year); so spending at least 1 or 2 summers doing something productive (research, exchange, volunteering, etc.) will provide a strong boost for your application