Poor Performance and Lost Plans

I go to UNC Chapel Hill and was planning on majoring in Biology or Chemistry in order to pursue a pre-medical track. I just finished my freshman year with very much less than stellar grades (First semester a few B's and an A and second is 3 Cs, a B and an A). My GPA is now sitting at a terrible 3.06. I am an extremely intelligent person but I made bad priority choices as well as set bad study habits and ended up where I am. I have not been the person that I want to be and think I can be and this summer I am going to intensively work to change my bad habits and really utilize the intelligence I have to its fullest.

However,

The grades that I received have put me almost definitely out of the running for med school, at least at UNC Chapel Hill. CH's average GPA of an accepted med student is 3.6 which is beyond my reach at this point almost. I love the idea of helping people and I think I have the brains and desire to be a doctor but I feel as though I have made too many mistakes in my freshman year to be successful in this field.

What would be your advice on my path? Are there other medical schools I should look at or should I consider another profession? I, of course, am interested in the money of being a doctor but that is not the most important thing by far. I am drawn to the independence of being one's own boss, I like a lot of subjects including science, art, communications, social sciences, and others. I am confused mostly because I can see myself doing so many jobs and being happy but I really wonder if I will feel fulfilled doing something less prestigious than a doctor or the like.

Please help me out...I am sorry for my confusion and if there are any quetions I can answer I will do so as soon as possible. Thank you for reading this.

There are several things that are considered when evaluating medical school applicants, and you have to realize that your performance your first year can be mitigated by performing well your sophomore, junior, and senior years. A 3.06 GPA at the end of your freshman year is not the end of the world. Listen, you have two full years to improve it. If you had ended your junior year with that GPA, then it would be a different story.

Take it from someone who applied, was accepted, but pursued a graduate degree in the sciences rather than medical school, you will be evaluated on GPA, MCAT scores (probably the second most important), and other things. Also, if you are really concerned now, then you can retake the courses you got C's in.

Also, a 3.6 is just an AVERAGE. There will be people who have 3.3 or 3.9's who were accepted (in fact, there will be 50% who did, statistically); and you are only looking at one statistic. Continue doing what you're doing--pursue medical school, but also have a backup in case you are not accepted. This is a necessity and can sometimes seem harsh, but it's just being sensible.

Take your summer to ask yourself what you really enjoy. Is there some other field (including science, like research, teaching, etc.) that you enjoy? What about something non-science?

If you can, drop classses that are C's. Take some extra classes to build up your GPA.

Thank you. I know I have a hard road ahead. Will improvement, especially marked improvement between my years be taken into account by a review board? If so, will it play a role in or against my favor and how much?

Pained and Lost in Belmont, North Carolina said: Thank you. I know I have a hard road ahead. Will improvement, especially marked improvement between my years be taken into account by a review board? If so, will it play a role in or against my favor and how much?

Yes. Med school review of applicants is a holistic process. I can't say, and no one can, how much, but improvements are looked upon favorably--in any instance.

Keep trucking.