Is GPA useful outside academia?

[jobaba]

It's easier to get into med school than when I was young, but still hard.

If you want a guaranteed path to a big house and big bucks and want to ride academics to put you there (avoid the corporate ladder), then my suggestion is dentist.

It is a difficult job, but I would say less intrinsic stress than a MD because at the end of the day ... they're just teeth. You're not going to kill anybody with a decision, though you can mess up their mouth pretty bad.

[EDS_]

Originally Posted by jobaba

It's easier to get into med school than when I was young, but still hard.

If you want a guaranteed path to a big house and big bucks and want to ride academics to put you there (avoid the corporate ladder), then my suggestion is dentist.

It is a difficult job, but I would say less intrinsic stress than a MD because at the end of the day ... they're just teeth. You're not going to kill anybody with a decision, though you can mess up their mouth pretty bad.

Good post but much of the data says it's tougher to get into medical school currently than in the past. Matriculation rates (applicants vs. accepted rates) are down. In 2001 the average rising MS-1's UG-GPA was ~3.60 with a 29.6 MCAT (29.6 = ~508 new scale). Today the avg. rising GPA is 3.74, average MCAT 512 and the extracurricular expectations are much higher. Also the numbers do not take into account the deadweight loss posed by those significantly socially promoted into medical schools..........in that past that kind of thing was more or less unthinkable now it's fairly common.

[mitsguy2001]

Originally Posted by RamenAddict

No one is precluded from medical school with academic difficulties. There are ways around it. It used to be that you could do a DO school in the US, as they tended to be a lot easier to get into. That’s no longer the case, but people still have the option of going to a Caribbean medical school and coming back to the US for residency. The risk with that is that it is usually much harder to match. If she was able to get a match, then it’s clear that she was able to get her act together and pass her exams.

In her case, being a woman, being a minority, and being very attractive likely all worked in her favor. I have no idea where she went to medical school, and I can't find it anywhere online. She was from Miami, so I wouldn't be shocked if she went to med school in the Caribbean.

[jmgg]

AFTER your first couple jobs, your GPA, high school or college, is only useful to brag about down at the local bar.

I still brag about my high school GPA where I studied just barely enough to graduate in the top half of my class. 26th out of 53. I was in too many activities to spend too much time hitting the books, but I was told that it was important to be in the top half, so my goal was met.

Different story in time spent studying in college of course.

[mitsguy2001]

Originally Posted by mitsguy2001

In her case, being a woman, being a minority, and being very attractive likely all worked in her favor. I have no idea where she went to medical school, and I can't find it anywhere online. She was from Miami, so I wouldn't be shocked if she went to med school in the Caribbean.

Actually, I did find the medical school that she graduated from. I won't post it here to protect her privacy, but it's not in the Caribbean, and it sounds like a legitimate school.