Thank you in advance for any advice I am given, I know grad students are busy! I find myself in something of a predicament. I am a second-year medical student, but after a year of rather tortuous reflection it has become apparent to me that this is not my path. My primary interest has always been in the intersection between medical practice and theology, and I have found myself increasingly confronted by the fact that the problems I’m interested in addressing within the medical world will not actually benefit significantly from completing my medical education. I am strongly considering transitioning into a graduate program in theology, either an M.A. or M.Div. I know that if I do, I will need to get that ball rolling quickly if I want to meet the January deadline most programs have.
I am entirely unsure about my own competitiveness. Personally, I do not care much about the prestige of an institution for the sake of prestige as such, but only insofar as I could feel relatively confident that I would be able to move on from there to a doctoral program that would give me the tools and resources to have a voice in the conversations that interest me. Like most medical schools in the country now, mine is pass-fail, and as such there is little useful information for admissions committees on my current transcript. My undergraduate GPA was a 3.5, with majors in biology and theology. I tend to see very high GPAs reported here and am unsure how much of a detriment that will be to my application. My general non-STEM (and theo major) GPA was a 3.9 (chemistry was NOT my strong suit) and I am unsure whether I should expect that my perhaps lower cumulative GPA would be overlooked in favor of my theology GPA at top tier programs, or if I’m fretting over nothing. Other than that, the only thing that commends me is a few presentations in ethics/theology, and one in STEM, without any actual publications. Secondarily, I worry that leaving medical school in favor of divinity school will be perceived less as a carefully selected career change and more as a sign that I am flakey and perhaps not liable to finish the course of study that I would be applying for.
With my perhaps lower GPA and unusual story, what programs am I realistically competitive for? I have had a hard time estimating that using only the resources I have found online, and do not have access to advising in this realm in my current context. Any realistic direction is very much appreciated!
