Good overall GPA, low sGPA

[kmvNY0427]

currently have two preqs to complete and fear they will drop my sGPA more. Currently have a 3.34 overall and a 2.80 sGPA. How concerned should I be? How serious do schools look and consider sGPA? 

HELP

 

[Josiah]

You have lots of options here! Worry not! Those GPAs could totally get you into PA school albeit you may have a more difficult time than others with a higher GPA. I am not certain exactly how it all works, but from my understanding, schools take all of your (volunteering, shadowing, GRE score, letters of recommendation, and personal statement, GPA, science GPA, and everything else) stats and compile it all into one score. So, the higher the overall score you have the better chance you have. (Someone please correct me if I am wrong about this!)

 

So, your best chance to get in would be to improve all or many of the other aspects of your application (volunteering, shadowing, GRE score, letters of recommendation, and personal statement etc). A lower GPA doesn't automatically count you out, but it would lower that "overall score" that school look at when determining interviews, acceptances, waitlists, and rejections. 

 

Also, you can always retake some courses and improve that GPA and science GPA. Don't be afraid to take some a gap year either.

 

You got this!

[KalebPAS]

You're going to need to take some upper-level science classes to try to do some GPA repair for the sGPA. That is going to automatically get you rejected from some programs without some improvement. They have cut-offs set at 3.0 at some programs, and even though some schools say that the minimum is 2.75 that does not mean that they will interview you -- simply means that they will accept your primary application. You can't take it from a 2.8 and make it a 3.5, that would be incredibly difficult and maybe unreasonable depending on how long you have left in undergrad.

 

Take some post-bacc science courses, show that you can handle the rigor and the material. Have a good upward trend, high PCE, and quality experiences.