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- Mar 10, 2016
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Hey all!
I'm a longtime lurker on this site, and I just wanted to share where I am so far in the app cycle. I am hoping to gain some advice on how to proceed, so please bear with me as this post may be long!
I applied this past cycle 2015-2016 with the following app:
Residency: CA
Stats:
cGPA: 3.89 (from top 20 public university)
sGPA: 3.8
MCAT: 27, 29
ECs (at the time of first application):
-2000+ hours working in dev. biology lab
- 4 years of competitive dancing on national award winning collegiate dance team
-served on board of said dance team for 1 yr (my senior year)
- served as VP and Prez of a different club for 2 consecutive years
- 40 hrs shadowing
-100+ hrs volunteering in cardiology clinic
-completed a research award grant awarded by the AGA
-various honors and awards for academic performance throughout undergrad years
-service in Global Brigades in Honduras for 2 consecutive summers (cumulative 100 hrs)
List of Schools I applied to:
SUNY downstate
stony brook
U of Rochester
GW
OUWB
Georgetown
FIU
TCMC
Quinnipiac
U of Michigan
SUNY Buffalo
U of Virgina
Tufts
Tulane
U Vermont
cooper rowan
NYMC
EVMS
UC Davis
U maryland
Wake Forest
Albany Medical College
Penn State
UCSD
Temple
wayne state
Drexel
U Utah
VCU
UC Irvine
UCLA
WVU
Submitted on June 7th, secondaries all done by mid to late August (most finished by end of July)
I received interviews from Quinnipiac and U of Vermont, and have been waitlisted by both. Everywhere else at this point I have been rejected.
My weaknesses:
MCAT: I know that many of you are going to say I am barely within distance of US MD with these scores, and for those who want to demean me, you can save it---I have already gone through many telling me as such. I had hoped that my others ECs would overcome it, but it has become clear I will need to take it again for a reapp.
Residency: It is what it is, but there is a plan to rectify that I will detail soon.
Interviews: It is possible I underperformed at these, and should I get more in another cycle, I will devote far more time to prep.
Written PS: I had a lot of eyes on my PS and my secondaries, but I guess I will expand the net further in a future app.
What has changed since my last app:
-1 full year of being a research associate in the lab that I worked in as an undergrad, transitioned to a full-time position upon graduating, so now upwards of ~3500 research hours.
- Recently published in December 2015 with two more publications on the way
-poster presentation at a regional dev. biology conference
- 100 hours of shadowing between a gastroenterologist and a pediatrician with a potential to gain some more before another reapp
-250+ hours clinical volunteering ( and will be continuing in upcoming year)
- Worked as a fitness instructor for this past year, which was a new and unexpectedly inspiring job which has only further cemented my passion for medicine and will feature in a future PS. I will continue to work this job this upcoming year.
-Starting volunteer at a Women's Center
-Potential Position as a CRC in the research hospital affiliated with my school. If I get the position, I would be working it for two years.
My Plan to apply in the 2017-2018 cycle:
-Rectify MCAT by taking it in August 2016
-Apply with the rest of my app early, similar to the timeline I followed for my previous app cycle
-Apply as a Michigan resident, which I have now gained status as since I have been living and working here for a year and will continue to be here for the upcoming year before a reapp a year from now (Note: different from CA resident in initial cycle)
-Apply DO as well ( which I did not do last time)
My Question to the SDN community is:
1. Is this plan sound or is the additional year unnecessary and should I be applying this cycle?
2. What else can I improve plan-wise or EC wise?
3. Is there anything else I am missing?
4. How much will a three time MCAT + reapp hurt?
Please keep the feedback as constructive as possible! And thanks for all who made it through the post!
I'm a longtime lurker on this site, and I just wanted to share where I am so far in the app cycle. I am hoping to gain some advice on how to proceed, so please bear with me as this post may be long!
I applied this past cycle 2015-2016 with the following app:
Residency: CA
Stats:
cGPA: 3.89 (from top 20 public university)
sGPA: 3.8
MCAT: 27, 29
ECs (at the time of first application):
-2000+ hours working in dev. biology lab
- 4 years of competitive dancing on national award winning collegiate dance team
-served on board of said dance team for 1 yr (my senior year)
- served as VP and Prez of a different club for 2 consecutive years
- 40 hrs shadowing
-100+ hrs volunteering in cardiology clinic
-completed a research award grant awarded by the AGA
-various honors and awards for academic performance throughout undergrad years
-service in Global Brigades in Honduras for 2 consecutive summers (cumulative 100 hrs)
List of Schools I applied to:
SUNY downstate
stony brook
U of Rochester
GW
OUWB
Georgetown
FIU
TCMC
Quinnipiac
U of Michigan
SUNY Buffalo
U of Virgina
Tufts
Tulane
U Vermont
cooper rowan
NYMC
EVMS
UC Davis
U maryland
Wake Forest
Albany Medical College
Penn State
UCSD
Temple
wayne state
Drexel
U Utah
VCU
UC Irvine
UCLA
WVU
Submitted on June 7th, secondaries all done by mid to late August (most finished by end of July)
I received interviews from Quinnipiac and U of Vermont, and have been waitlisted by both. Everywhere else at this point I have been rejected.
My weaknesses:
MCAT: I know that many of you are going to say I am barely within distance of US MD with these scores, and for those who want to demean me, you can save it---I have already gone through many telling me as such. I had hoped that my others ECs would overcome it, but it has become clear I will need to take it again for a reapp.
Residency: It is what it is, but there is a plan to rectify that I will detail soon.
Interviews: It is possible I underperformed at these, and should I get more in another cycle, I will devote far more time to prep.
Written PS: I had a lot of eyes on my PS and my secondaries, but I guess I will expand the net further in a future app.
What has changed since my last app:
-1 full year of being a research associate in the lab that I worked in as an undergrad, transitioned to a full-time position upon graduating, so now upwards of ~3500 research hours.
- Recently published in December 2015 with two more publications on the way
-poster presentation at a regional dev. biology conference
- 100 hours of shadowing between a gastroenterologist and a pediatrician with a potential to gain some more before another reapp
-250+ hours clinical volunteering ( and will be continuing in upcoming year)
- Worked as a fitness instructor for this past year, which was a new and unexpectedly inspiring job which has only further cemented my passion for medicine and will feature in a future PS. I will continue to work this job this upcoming year.
-Starting volunteer at a Women's Center
-Potential Position as a CRC in the research hospital affiliated with my school. If I get the position, I would be working it for two years.
My Plan to apply in the 2017-2018 cycle:
-Rectify MCAT by taking it in August 2016
-Apply with the rest of my app early, similar to the timeline I followed for my previous app cycle
-Apply as a Michigan resident, which I have now gained status as since I have been living and working here for a year and will continue to be here for the upcoming year before a reapp a year from now (Note: different from CA resident in initial cycle)
-Apply DO as well ( which I did not do last time)
My Question to the SDN community is:
1. Is this plan sound or is the additional year unnecessary and should I be applying this cycle?
2. What else can I improve plan-wise or EC wise?
3. Is there anything else I am missing?
4. How much will a three time MCAT + reapp hurt?
Please keep the feedback as constructive as possible! And thanks for all who made it through the post!