3.95 GPA, 37 MCAT, Modifying School List

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ThrowAway999

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CA Resident, ~3.94 sGPA, 3.95 cGPA, 37 MCAT. Looking for advice about my school list.

High stats, very average application otherwise.

Research:
~800 hr research (1 poster)

Volunteering:
~250 hr volunteer hospital
~40 hr tutoring/mentoring kids in underprivileged elementary school

Tutoring:
~300 hr peer tutoring

Shadowing
~40 hr shadowing (family practice, neurologist, ophthalmologist)

Work Experience:
Have worked at a dentist's office during the summers for 25 hr/week (Around 300 hours per summer)

Awards:
Achieved highest combined score in a series of prereq classes at my undergrad

Leadership:
Helped start a club at my school within the last few months, but haven't accomplished much yet. Plans are in the works - hopefully before interviews come around.

School List (Total 25 schools)

California (7):
UCSF
Stanford
UCLA
UCSD
UC Davis
UCI
USC

Extreme Tier (5):
Harvard
JHU
Wash U St. Louis
University of Chicago Pritzker
University of Pennsylvania

Still High Tier (13):
NYU
Mt. Sinai
Pitt
Vanderbilt
Cornell
Emory
Duke
Columbia
Michigan
Northwestern
Ohio State
Wake Forest
Case Western

Not sure if I'm too "top-heavy" or what. Let me know. Highly appreciated.

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Seems like a good list for you. You may want to add a couple of safe schools though: Vermont, Cincinnati, Miami, Temple, Jefferson etc.
 
I have a similar list, and am similarly worried about being too "top heavy". A few suggestions: Temple, Drexel, Loyola, Rush, and that should give you a buffer.
 
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Nothing wrong with aiming high.

I suggest:


UCSF
Stanford
UCLA
UCSD
UC Davis
UCI
USC
Harvard
JHU
Wash U St. Louis
University of Chicago Pritzker
University of Pennsylvania
NYU
Mt. Sinai
Pitt
Vanderbilt
Cornell
Emory OR BU
Duke
Columbia
Michigan OR U VA
Northwestern
Ohio State OR SUNY DS OR SUNY SB OR U AZ
U Miami
Hofstra OR Einstein OR Rochester
Consider Tulane if you like great food, and hot and humid
 
Nothing wrong with aiming high.

I suggest:


UCSF
Stanford
UCLA
UCSD
UC Davis
UCI
USC
Harvard
JHU
Wash U St. Louis
University of Chicago Pritzker
University of Pennsylvania
NYU
Mt. Sinai
Pitt
Vanderbilt
Cornell
Emory OR BU
Duke
Columbia
Michigan OR U VA
Northwestern
Ohio State OR SUNY DS OR SUNY SB OR U AZ
U Miami
Hofstra OR Einstein OR Rochester
Consider Tulane if you like great food, and hot and humid

Thank you for the suggestions.

Is there any reason you didn't include Case Western? (I liked their University Track program)
 
Goro's list is the move. At the end of the day this is still a number's game. IF you got numbers like these and have sufficient clinical exposure and volunteering experience there's nothing wrong with going bomb's away with top 20 schools.

You do have to be careful about being screened out at schools where your MCAT is above the 90th percentile. Common safety schools with MCAT averages around 30 are where that can be possible. That's a big reason why the "safeties" Goro listed such as Miami and Tulane have averages around 33 and state schools like U of Arizona, SUNY and Ohio State you will be OOS for the standard is going to be higher and hence the schools average MCAT isn't particularly relevant to you.
 
Honestly, I would literally just apply to every top 20 that strikes your fancy except for University of Washington, all UC Schools except Riverside, USC-Keck, UVA, Case Western, Hofstra, and 2-3 of Rochester, Einstein, and Emory. Goro's list is on point.
 
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