The Unofficial Guide to First Year - University of Oklahoma Health ...

UNOFFICIAL GUIDE
BREAKDOWN OF FINAL GPA
One thing you will notice is that your first and second years combined do not add up to the
weights of either your third of fourth year of medical school. Now before you start to kick back
in to the dream world of slackerdom, know this: Historically, generally speaking, you graduate
in the same quartile in which you finish your second year. So, this is not the time to mess
around.
“What’s a quartile?” you may ask. At the end of every year, the entire class is divided into
fourths by cumulative GPA. The first quartile has the highest grades, and so on down the line.
This matters to you because quartile and class ranking count big when you are applying for
residencies. Simply put: the higher your class rank, the more options you’ll have.
Do not look at the chart above and say, “Gross anatomy is only worth 3% of my total GPA so I
don’t have to worry about it”! It’s never a good idea to shrug off any class, both for the reason
mentioned above and also for the fact that what you are learning during each year of medical
school continues to build on itself as you go along. Plus, you’ll have to know this information
for your board exams as well as your patients’ well-being. So, go ahead and establish a strong
foundation at the beginning – it can only help you out as time passes.
“How is my GPA calculated?” GPA is calculated by letter grades and not by the actual
percentages you score in each class. Percentage grades are only used if the Dean’s office has to
break a tie or determine the exact cut-off for a small number of scholarships, of for the degree
predicate of “Distinction”. If you obtain a perfect 4.0 GPA, you will graduate with “Special
Distinction”. Exactly 1/6 of the class graduates with “Special Distinction” or “Distinction”.
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