3.83, 37 MCAT - school list help?

[barbiegirl62]

Hi everyone!

I was wondering if you guys could help me out with my school list. I've been hearing a lot of different things from different people and now I'm a little confused.

• Asian female from California
• Current junior at an Ivy League university (within top 10 universities)
• cGPA: 3.81, sGPA: 3.83
• MCAT: 37 (January 2014)

Research:

• Been conducting schizophrenia research since freshman year. No paper published but I've been there forever/have been trying to get a paper out (experiment just keeps failing). Getting a good recommendation from my PI, though.

Extracurriculars:

• In a sorority since freshman year, no leadership positions.
• Write for 3 magazines (one fashion one, one food-related one, one science one); basically I like to write and do stuff related to that.
• Tutoring weekly since freshman year.
• New student orientation leader.
• Worked at the calling crew on campus.

Volunteering:

• Volunteered abroad 3x on medical brigades (I also just really like to travel).
• Volunteering at a hospital on campus (typical pre-med volunteering stuff like discharging patients, etc.) since last year.

My top choices are schools like Columbia, UCSF, Stanford and Cornell, but I'm aiming for schools like NYU, Mt. Sinai (obviously I would ideally want to be in NYC if that hasn't become clear yet) and in-state schools like UCLA and UCSD. What other schools should I be looking at? I have UCI/UCD as safeties in my head, but not sure really what else.

Thanks in advance for any help/advice! Really appreciate it.

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[487806]

Hi everyone!

I was wondering if you guys could help me out with my school list. I've been hearing a lot of different things from different people and now I'm a little confused.

• Asian female from California
• Current junior at an Ivy League university (within top 10 universities)
• cGPA: 3.81, sGPA: 3.83
• MCAT: 37 (January 2014)

Research:

• Been conducting schizophrenia research since freshman year. No paper published but I've been there forever/have been trying to get a paper out (experiment just keeps failing). Getting a good recommendation from my PI, though.

Extracurriculars:

• In a sorority since freshman year, no leadership positions.
• Write for 3 magazines (one fashion one, one food-related one, one science one); basically I like to write and do stuff related to that.
• Tutoring weekly since freshman year.
• New student orientation leader.
• Worked at the calling crew on campus.

Volunteering:

• Volunteered abroad 3x on medical brigades (I also just really like to travel).
• Volunteering at a hospital on campus (typical pre-med volunteering stuff like discharging patients, etc.) since last year.

My top choices are schools like Columbia, UCSF, Stanford and Cornell, but I'm aiming for schools like NYU, Mt. Sinai (obviously I would ideally want to be in NYC if that hasn't become clear yet) and in-state schools like UCLA and UCSD. What other schools should I be looking at? I have UCI/UCD as safeties in my head, but not sure really what else.

Thanks in advance for any help/advice! Really appreciate it.

Any shadowing or community service experiences? Your magazine activity is pretty unique. Apart from that, you're pretty much good to go.

 

[Ace-Co-A]

Looks like a solid application. Best of luck. Your best bet is to get the advice of faculty members who post on SDN (especially Goro, Catalystik, LizzyM, & gyngyn).

 

[Catalystik]

Hi everyone!

I was wondering if you guys could help me out with my school list. I've been hearing a lot of different things from different people and now I'm a little confused.

• Asian female from California
• Current junior at an Ivy League university (within top 10 universities)
• cGPA: 3.81, sGPA: 3.83
• MCAT: 37 (January 2014)

Research:

• Been conducting schizophrenia research since freshman year. No paper published but I've been there forever/have been trying to get a paper out (experiment just keeps failing). Getting a good recommendation from my PI, though.

Extracurriculars:

• In a sorority since freshman year, no leadership positions.
• Write for 3 magazines (one fashion one, one food-related one, one science one); basically I like to write and do stuff related to that.
• Tutoring weekly since freshman year.
• New student orientation leader.
• Worked at the calling crew on campus.

Volunteering:

• Volunteered abroad 3x on medical brigades (I also just really like to travel).
• Volunteering at a hospital on campus (typical pre-med volunteering stuff like discharging patients, etc.) since last year.

My top choices are schools like Columbia, UCSF, Stanford and Cornell, but I'm aiming for schools like NYU, Mt. Sinai (obviously I would ideally want to be in NYC if that hasn't become clear yet) and in-state schools like UCLA and UCSD. What other schools should I be looking at? I have UCI/UCD as safeties in my head, but not sure really what else.

Thanks in advance for any help/advice! Really appreciate it.

In addition to Agent B's questions:
Who are you tutoring?

Do you have any peer leadership roles (which top schools like to see)?

Any posters/presentations of your research?

How many active clinical experience hours will you have at the hospital by the time you apply? Did you interact with patients during your research?

 

[Goro]

You're golden... aim high. MSAR Online is your friend.

Hi everyone!

I was wondering if you guys could help me out with my school list. I've been hearing a lot of different things from different people and now I'm a little confused.

• Asian female from California
• Current junior at an Ivy League university (within top 10 universities)
• cGPA: 3.81, sGPA: 3.83
• MCAT: 37 (January 2014)

Research:

• Been conducting schizophrenia research since freshman year. No paper published but I've been there forever/have been trying to get a paper out (experiment just keeps failing). Getting a good recommendation from my PI, though.

Extracurriculars:

• In a sorority since freshman year, no leadership positions.
• Write for 3 magazines (one fashion one, one food-related one, one science one); basically I like to write and do stuff related to that.
• Tutoring weekly since freshman year.
• New student orientation leader.
• Worked at the calling crew on campus.

Volunteering:

• Volunteered abroad 3x on medical brigades (I also just really like to travel).
• Volunteering at a hospital on campus (typical pre-med volunteering stuff like discharging patients, etc.) since last year.

My top choices are schools like Columbia, UCSF, Stanford and Cornell, but I'm aiming for schools like NYU, Mt. Sinai (obviously I would ideally want to be in NYC if that hasn't become clear yet) and in-state schools like UCLA and UCSD. What other schools should I be looking at? I have UCI/UCD as safeties in my head, but not sure really what else.

Thanks in advance for any help/advice! Really appreciate it.

 

[barbiegirl62]

Thanks for your responses, guys! I did some physician shadowing (podiatrist) the summer of my sophomore year but I'm not sure there's really much to write about there...do I still include it?

For tutoring, the group that I'm in tutors lower-income children (elementary school) in West Philadelphia. I've also tutored for pay - SAT Math (not sure if that's noteworthy either, it was a private thing and not through a program). I've held leadership positions in two global health clubs on campus. I don't think I'll have that many clinical hours by the time I apply - maybe around 50. Is that going to hurt my application a lot?

Sorry for all the questions :/

 

[Catalystik]

1) I did some physician shadowing (podiatrist) the summer of my sophomore year but I'm not sure there's really much to write about there...do I still include it?

2) For tutoring, the group that I'm in tutors lower-income children (elementary school) in West Philadelphia. I've also tutored for pay - SAT Math (not sure if that's noteworthy either, it was a private thing and not through a program).

3) I've held leadership positions in two global health clubs on campus.

4) I don't think I'll have that many clinical hours by the time I apply - maybe around 50. Is that going to hurt my application a lot?

1) It would be a really, really good idea to get in some US physician/US facilty-based shadowing before you apply. Fortunately this is something you can do over a short period of time where lack of longevity won't hurt you. It's fine to include the podiatric shadowing, but if it's all you list, be prepared to explain, "Why not Podiatry?" which will be hard to respond to if you have no basis for comparison.

2) Teaching of any kind enhances one's application. How many volunteer tutoring hours do you have over how many semesters?

3) Looks good, but the explanation of what you accomplished is what will get you points.

4) Yes, it will probably hurt you, though abroad experience might augment that in some adcomm eyes. What was your role in Medical Brigade?

 

[chillaxbro]

Podiatrists aren't physicians btw