**2016-2017 URM Medical School Application Thread**

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Quick question: does anyone know any top schools that are URM-friendly with merit scholarships?

Now this answer is based on my URM friends who applied MD-only (I didn't run into the issue since I'm in a dual degree program): UPenn, Stanford, JHU, Harvard(?), CCLCM (not specific to URMs since they cover tuition for their whole entering class) are the few I remember. With your stats, you should get some pretty good offers (apply top heavy)

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Now this answer is based on my URM friends who applied MD-only (I didn't run into the issue since I'm in a dual degree program): UPenn, Stanford, JHU, Harvard(?), CCLCM (not specific to URMs since they cover tuition for their whole entering class) are the few I remember. With your stats, you should get some pretty good offers (apply top heavy)
Screwed up and put the name of one school I'm applying to in an essay in my primary app, so all the other schools see it. I don't know if they will even give me a chance.+pissed+:boom::diebanana:(just a few depictions of how I felt looking over my app after submission...)
 
JHU only gives need based scholarships. I heard Priztker gives nice merit scholarships.


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Just checked it out! Unfortunately, they don't take AP credits for prereqs, so I cant apply. Thanks so much for the response though!

But you were a biochem major, did you end up taking any of the upper level courses for them? A lot of schools will use that to satisfy that requirement. Obviously you had to for bio, maybe Chem qualifies as well.


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Screwed up and put the name of one school I'm applying to in an essay in my primary app, so all the other schools see it. I don't know if they will even give me a chance.+pissed+:boom::diebanana:(just a few depictions of how I felt looking over my app after submission...)

Maybe it's not as bad as you think, what's the context of the other school's name in the essay?


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I basically said I hope to work hard at bcm.
I'm not sure how this will look in a primary application, but I know this has happened to a student in secondaries, but since the student's stats were great, they still got a chance to interview and ended up getting into the other school. Hopefully, this will be overlooked.
 
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I'm not sure how this will look in a primary application, but I know this has happened to a student in secondaries, but since the student's stats were great, they still got a chance to interview and ended up getting into the other school. Hopefully, this will be overlooked.
I pray so!
 
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I'm not sure how this will look in a primary application, but I know this has happened to a student in secondaries, but since the student's stats were great, they still got a chance to interview and ended up getting into the other school. Hopefully, this will be overlooked.

Yeah I don't have any examples of it happening on the primary.

My concern is with this situation, it's not that you said something like that, but that some more "particular" adcoms would just dismiss it because they see it as rushing/not paying attention. Hopefully they don't hold it against you, you do have the stats on your side, so some might swallow their pride.


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Yeah I don't have any examples of it happening on the primary.

My concern is with this situation, it's not that you said something like that, but that some more "particular" adcoms would just dismiss it because they see it as rushing/not paying attention. Hopefully they don't hold it against you, you do have the stats on your side, so some might swallow their pride.


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Yeah, I see your point. I have been freaking out about this since I sent that app in. I thought that was my reach school (since I applied to all the other schools in TX) so I sent it. Then I was encouraged to apply elsewhere, and that was when I noticed the mistake.
 
Yeah, I see your point. I have been freaking out about this since I sent that app in. I thought that was my reach school (since I applied to all the other schools in TX) so I sent it. Then I was encouraged to apply elsewhere, and that was when I noticed the mistake.

Oh! That makes sense. That's really unfortunate. Just make sure you emphasize your interest in specific schools on the secondary, and why you really want to go there!


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Hey guys, I'm a bit of lurker and have been really nervous about posting. But I figured I'd do ahead and give it a shot. I'm applying this cycle as a traditional student. Let me know what you guys think!

-cGPA: 3.91 sGPA: 3.86
-Major: Biochem
-MCAT: 506
-EC: On the E-board of the pre-med chapter on campus, head of mentorship program for underrepresented students pursuing STEM careers
-Volunteering - ~200 hours of clinical volunteering, split between a local hospital and hospice care, 500+ of non-clinical volunteering that included working with the elderly and the disabled
- Teaching - 400 hours of tutoring of various subjects in the sciences. Promoted to the help session leader within the tutoring department for two separate subjects
-Research: ~800 hrs split between clinical and basic labs with a possible publication
-AA male

Patiently waiting to be verified along with everyone else. But everyone here looks really impressive! Crossing my fingers that someone will give me a shot. But regardless, good luck to everyone!
you can also apply anywhere you want, especially since you're male.
Please apply to all the ivies you can see yourself going to
 
What do you guys think of my school list?

URM (Mexican American), MCAT: 507 (eq to a 29-30 on the old exam), cgpa 3.5 (strong upward trend), sgpa is 3.55 (strong upward trend).
ECs: over 1000 hours as a phlebotomist in a plasma center located in an underserved area, 30 hours hands on clinical volunteering at a free health clinic (underserved area as well), 40 hours volunteering at a hospital, 50 hours shadowing an orthopedic surgeon, anesthesiologist, and a cardiothoracic surgeon.
From what I see, you have no extracurriculars. You have a job, Clinical/nonclinical volunteering (VERY few hours) and a lot of shadowing.
What have you been involved in at school? What leadership positions do you hold? Do you speak spanish? Have you helped the Mexican community? Where is your research??

Don't apply to Brown or UCLA,. Brown mostly takes their own undergrads, and your EC's, volunteering, and research are severely lacking for UCLA. I think everything else you stand a decent chance at
 
Something that really annoys me about some of these secondaries is that you can ONLY pick Hispanic OR Black... what am I supposed to pick if I am both?
 
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I'm aware of the tables striated for race. My point was, were you emphasizing that the PP apply because there is a huge deficit for black males (which I'm aware of), or were you emphasizing that because PP is a black male they will have an even better chance.

I asked because the phrasing was "apply wherever you want especially since you're male" (paraphrasing). Was curious if the data for URMs were dissected further by gender, making it clear that black males would get accepted more than black females at a significant higher rate. Or if you were expressing the need for more black males.



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Something that really annoys me about some of these secondaries is that you can ONLY pick Hispanic OR Black... what am I supposed to pick if I am both?

I didn't know that it was a one or the other for secondaries. That is ridiculous. So if you have two on your primary then what, it's a test of which you're committed to more? Lol


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I'm aware of the tables striated for race. My point was, were you emphasizing that the PP apply because there is a huge deficit for black males (which I'm aware of), or were you emphasizing that because PP is a black male they will have an even better chance.

I asked because the phrasing was "apply wherever you want especially since you're male" (paraphrasing). Was curious if the data for URMs were dissected further by gender, making it clear that black males would get accepted more than black females at a significant higher rate. Or if you were expressing the need for more black males.



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Black males have a leg up over black females. Not because he is male, but specifically because he is a black male
 
Black males have a leg up over black females. Not because he is male, but specifically because he is a black male

Which is my question. What is the difference in admission rate for black males to black females?


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I didn't know that it was a one or the other for secondaries. That is ridiculous. So if you have two on your primary then what, it's a test of which you're committed to more? Lol


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Yea! I can't remember which ones now because it's all a blur, but for at least a couple it was a pick ONE. And actually all the other choices disappeared if you picked Hispanic, so there was no option once you chose. Like.... wtf, do biracial people just not get representation?
 
You can view this https://www.aamc.org/download/321474/data/factstablea9.pdf but it isn't really helpful because it's who chooses to identify, and it does not account for the sample size when compared to those who actually got in

That doesn't answer the question. That just shows that there are less males, which I am aware of. It's okay if you don't have an answer for that, I didn't think there was so I wanted to make sure. It would be interesting to see if there was data on it already.

Since class sizes are generally well balanced by sex, and the overall need of URMs, period, is high. I don't see there being a significant difference in acceptance rates between males and females who identify as African-American/Black. I just think the general need for minorities would supersede the need to match male to females rates within one race (that is a small fraction of a class), making being female less advantageous.


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Yea! I can't remember which ones now because it's all a blur, but for at least a couple it was a pick ONE. And actually all the other choices disappeared if you picked Hispanic, so there was no option once you chose. Like.... wtf, do biracial people just not get representation?

Unfortunately, in a lot of ways no. I run into this problem with public schools/government agencies for my kids all the time.

It's odd that they didn't convert to the more "PC" Hispanic- white, Hispanic-black, White non-Hispanic, etc. which I find to be just as asinine as only having white/black/hispanic. You still can't put a combination.


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That doesn't answer the question. That just shows that there are less males, which I am aware of. It's okay if you don't have an answer for that, I didn't think there was so I wanted to make sure. It would be interesting to see if there was data on it already.

Since class sizes are generally well balanced by sex, and the overall need of URMs, period, is high. I don't see there being a significant difference in acceptance rates between males and females who identify as African-American/Black. I just think the general need for minorities would supersede the need to match male to females rates within one race (that is a small fraction of a class), making being female less advantageous.


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All I can tell you is that I've been told by adcoms that black males are more sought after.
 
From what I see, you have no extracurriculars. You have a job, Clinical/nonclinical volunteering (VERY few hours) and a lot of shadowing.
What have you been involved in at school? What leadership positions do you hold? Do you speak spanish? Have you helped the Mexican community? Where is your research??

Don't apply to Brown or UCLA,. Brown mostly takes their own undergrads, and your EC's, volunteering, and research are severely lacking for UCLA. I think everything else you stand a decent chance at
I've been told clinical exposure doesn't have to come from volunteering, so working at the plasma center definitely qualifies as clinical experience. I speak Spanish conversationally (can understand it perfectly, I do have some issues going from english to spanish). The only way I've helped out the Mexican community is through the free clinic by translating and taking on the Hispanic patients. No research :(

Thanks for the heads up on Brown and UCLA btw.
 
I've been told clinical exposure doesn't have to come from volunteering, so working at the plasma center definitely qualifies as clinical experience. I speak Spanish conversationally (can understand it perfectly, I do have some issues going from english to spanish). The only way I've helped out the Mexican community is through the free clinic by translating and taking on the Hispanic patients. No research :(

Thanks for the heads up on Brown and UCLA btw.
Yes, that's correct. You might have misread what I was saying: you listed the job and volunteering experiences as EC's, which they aren't. I just listed the different categories of what you have (clinical and nonclinical volunteering, work experience, etc.)

Although you can get clinical experience in other ways (such as your job, as you said) it does not make up for volunteering experiences. I think generally a good number to hve is 300 volunteer hours combined (clinical and nonclinical) overall based on what I've been reading on here (people usually recommend at least 200 clinical). The job is great, but they also like to see that you gave back your time for free (unless the clinic you translated at was not a paid position, in which case that would more than fulfill your volunteer requirement)

I know that some schools are very service-based and have a minimum number of volunteering hours you have to have before applying. I'm not sure if those are any of the schools on your list, but you might want to double check just in case. I think you have a decent chance of being accepted this cycle, but to increase it you should do something about your lack of research/EC's/volunteering. If you post it on the What Are My Chances? Thread you'll get more accurate advice from adcoms
 
Yes, that's correct. You might have misread what I was saying: you listed the job and volunteering experiences as EC's, which they aren't. I just listed the different categories of what you have (clinical and nonclinical volunteering, work experience, etc.)

Although you can get clinical experience in other ways (such as your job, as you said) it does not make up for volunteering experiences. I think generally a good number to hve is 300 volunteer hours combined (clinical and nonclinical) overall based on what I've been reading on here (people usually recommend at least 200 clinical). The job is great, but they also like to see that you gave back your time for free (unless the clinic you translated at was not a paid position, in which case that would more than fulfill your volunteer requirement)

I know that some schools are very service-based and have a minimum number of volunteering hours you have to have before applying. I'm not sure if those are any of the schools on your list, but you might want to double check just in case. I think you have a decent chance of being accepted this cycle, but to increase it you should do something about your lack of research/EC's/volunteering. If you post it on the What Are My Chances? Thread you'll get more accurate advice from adcoms
Yes, the free health clinic was volunteering i.e. I was not paid for it. Still, that only puts me
Yes, that's correct. You might have misread what I was saying: you listed the job and volunteering experiences as EC's, which they aren't. I just listed the different categories of what you have (clinical and nonclinical volunteering, work experience, etc.)

Although you can get clinical experience in other ways (such as your job, as you said) it does not make up for volunteering experiences. I think generally a good number to hve is 300 volunteer hours combined (clinical and nonclinical) overall based on what I've been reading on here (people usually recommend at least 200 clinical). The job is great, but they also like to see that you gave back your time for free (unless the clinic you translated at was not a paid position, in which case that would more than fulfill your volunteer requirement)

I know that some schools are very service-based and have a minimum number of volunteering hours you have to have before applying. I'm not sure if those are any of the schools on your list, but you might want to double check just in case. I think you have a decent chance of being accepted this cycle, but to increase it you should do something about your lack of research/EC's/volunteering. If you post it on the What Are My Chances? Thread you'll get more accurate advice from adcoms

Yes, the free health clinic was volunteering i.e. I wasn't paid for it. That said, I'm only around 70 hours for volunteering. I posted the thread on WAMC and they basically agreed with my list. I was just curious what you guys thought. I plan to add 2-3 reaches to my list. Which do you think I should add?
 
*Peeks out from my lurking shadow*
Hi loves! Just checking in for mutual positivity. I can't believe the time has come. Feels like I've been waiting for this season forever. Hopefully it won't be too much of a bumpy ride.

About myself, but preserving anonymity and all that jazz..
3.5/31-33 on new MCAT
ECs veryyyyyyyy leadership heavy LOL i received a leadership award from a nat'l org amongst 5-6 other awards
started mentorship program for underserved students and PhDs
will be around 4K clinical hours by hopeful matriculation
clinical research (IRB certification, etc), no personal pub
Quirky hobbies
3.5 years clinical volunteering with children with disabilities
Applying to 10 schools I'm supposedly within range for (but really, theres no medical school thats ever in range because the process is such a crap shoot), and 10 semi reach/hella reach schools

REALLY hoping for a holistic view because my stats are nothing to run home about. Sending posi vibes and hearts your way <3
 
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*Peeks out from my lurking shadow*
Hi loves! Just checking in for mutual positivity. I can't believe the time has come. Feels like I've been waiting for this season forever. Hopefully it won't be too much of a bumpy ride.

About myself, but preserving anonymity and all that jazz..
3.5/31-33 on new MCAT
ECs veryyyyyyyy leadership heavy LOL i received a leadership award from a nat'l org amongst 5-6 other awards
started mentorship program for underserved students and PhDs
will be around 4K clinical hours by hopeful matriculation
clinical research (IRB certification, etc), no personal pub
Quirky hobbies
3.5 years clinical volunteering with children with disabilities
Applying to 10 schools I'm supposedly within range for (but really, theres no medical school thats ever in range because the process is such a crap shoot), and 10 semi reach/hella reach schools

REALLY hoping for a holistic view because my stats are nothing to run home about. Sending posi vibes and hearts your way <3
That's a lot of impressive ECs! You will get wonderful acceptance opportunities by God's grace!
 
*Peeks out from my lurking shadow*
Hi loves! Just checking in for mutual positivity. I can't believe the time has come. Feels like I've been waiting for this season forever. Hopefully it won't be too much of a bumpy ride.

About myself, but preserving anonymity and all that jazz..
3.5/31-33 on new MCAT
ECs veryyyyyyyy leadership heavy LOL i received a leadership award from a nat'l org amongst 5-6 other awards
started mentorship program for underserved students and PhDs
will be around 4K clinical hours by hopeful matriculation
clinical research (IRB certification, etc), no personal pub
Quirky hobbies
3.5 years clinical volunteering with children with disabilities
Applying to 10 schools I'm supposedly within range for (but really, theres no medical school thats ever in range because the process is such a crap shoot), and 10 semi reach/hella reach schools

REALLY hoping for a holistic view because my stats are nothing to run home about. Sending posi vibes and hearts your way <3

I feel the same, I've been on SDN since k started college, it feels like the twilight zone that I'm done, and applying this year!


I think your stats show that you are more than capable and those ECs set you apart! Make sure to apply to both underserved focused and research focused schools. Best of luck! Looks like secondaries and IIs are already coming out! So nerve-wrecking!




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That's a lot of impressive ECs! You will get wonderful acceptance opportunities by God's grace!

From your lips to God's ears lol and you are a stat/research powerhouse, I am sure you'll get into the school of your top choice
 
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I feel the same, I've been on SDN since k started college, it feels like the twilight zone that I'm done, and applying this year!


I think your stats show that you are more than capable and those ECs set you apart! Make sure to apply to both underserved focused and research focused schools. Best of luck! Looks like secondaries and IIs are already coming out! So nerve-wrecking!




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It's so nerve wracking right? Ahh. And thank you for the kind words. My list is definitely more mission based, I want them to see me as a fit, you know?

I think you'll be just fine this cycle. Sending all the good juju to your typing hands. Kill the secondaries.
 
It's so nerve wracking right? Ahh. And thank you for the kind words. My list is definitely more mission based, I want them to see me as a fit, you know?

I think you'll be just fine this cycle. Sending all the good juju to your typing hands. Kill the secondaries.

Side note: googled nerve wrecking/wracking and according to grammarist it's actually "nerve-racking" Rack meaning torture. Learned something new!

And I'm only worried about my MCAT in a few weeks, feeling confident but so nervous. Feel good about everything else grade-wise/letters and ECs and I may be getting my third pub this summer so much going on! Lol

I'll pre-write secondaries in August while I wait for my score.


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I just got my first II! OMG SO EXCITED! LECOM-B!
 
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