Ca 3.8/3.8 gpa, 35 mcat

[kooldood701]

Hey guys, UC undergraduate here. I'd really like to stay in California for medical school, and I know that all (or close to all) med schools here are very competitive to get into. I was just wondering if I should apply more broadly and add a lot of safety schools with these stats:

3.82 GPA, both science and cumulative
35Q MCAT (13 BS, 10 V, 12 PS)
2 years of clinical research, presented at undergraduate poster fair but no publications
2 years of volunteering/shadowing at school hospital
leadership position in honor society (VP and Scholarship chair)
2 scholarships awarded for essays

My extracurriculars are average to me, they don't stand out but they are the bare minimum that seems acceptable for medical school. This worries me, along with the fact that I have not been able to get any research publications out.
Anyways, just wanted your thoughts on whether I should apply out of state too, and perhaps some school list ideas?

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[anguisette]

I think it just depends on how much you want to stay in California vs how much you want to get into any medical school. Your stats and ECs look competitive to me--even for CA schools--but to have better odds at a successful cycle I would definitely recommend applying out of state too. If you know you want to stay in the area and have compelling reasons for it, then apply only to CA schools and take your chances. Just be prepared that CA schools may not favor your app out of thousands.

I have a friend who is only applying to CA schools because of family/timing/location reasons, but he is mentally prepared for not getting in his first try. He will reapply more broadly next cycle if he has to, but he feels so strongly about avoiding relocation that he is willing to accept the risks of applying narrowly this cycle. On the opposite spectrum, I applied everywhere because I wanted to avoid as much as possible having to reapply next cycle. It's a personal decision you have to make.

 

[MrChance2]

According to MSAR you have about a 90% chance to get in. I assume the 10% that don't get in with your stats have some combination of something very weird about them that would creep out patients/no volunteering/extreme late application. If you don't plan on applying very late and don't have something very weird about you then I wouldn't sweat it.

EASILY 10% of people who apply to medical school with an amazing academic record seem to have something very weird about them that would creep out patients from my experience.

 

[red doctober]

Yes, apply broadly in addition to all UCs. Many of the people in MrChance2's 10% are not socially-awkward; they just made the mistake of applying too top-heavily and/or not enough schools.

 

[kooldood701]

According to MSAR you have about a 90% chance to get in. I assume the 10% that don't get in with your stats have some combination of something very weird about them that would creep out patients/no volunteering/extreme late application. If you don't plan on applying very late and don't have something very weird about you then I wouldn't sweat it.

EASILY 10% of people who apply to medical school with an amazing academic record seem to have something very weird about them that would creep out patients from my experience.

Thanks for all the responses, guys. I really do want to stay in California, but I guess it would be smart to apply broadly so that I'm not restricting myself and putting myself in that 10%. Speaking of which, where did you find those MSAR stats, MrChance2?

 

[kooldood701]

Also, do you guys think it's worth it to retake my MCAT? My average for all practice tests was around a 35 (a few decimals higher), but as I got closer to test date, my averages increased to about a 38. I saw online somewhere that most people who retake the MCAT with a similar first score of ~35 end up doing worse, and if they do do better, it's only a 1 point increase on average. However, it is kind of frustrating that I feel like I could have done better, I just don't know if it's worth investing another few weeks/months to study for the test. Thoughts?

 

[Temperature101]

Also, do you guys think it's worth it to retake my MCAT? My average for all practice tests was around a 35 (a few decimals higher), but as I got closer to test date, my averages increased to about a 38. I saw online somewhere that most people who retake the MCAT with a similar first score of ~35 end up doing worse, and if they do do better, it's only a 1 point increase on average. However, it is kind of frustrating that I feel like I could have done better, I just don't know if it's worth investing another few weeks/months to study for the test. Thoughts?

No need to retake the MCAT IMO...

 

[mcloaf]

Retaking a 35, even if you improve, could make adcoms question your judgment.

 

[kooldood701]

Thanks for all the responses, guys. I was hoping to get some feedback on my schoo list, what do you guys think? Cut down, add any schools?

All UC's and USC.
Stanford
Columbia
Northwestern
Georgetown
Emory
Case Western
Boston
Dartmouth
Brown
Tufts
George Washington
Rush
Drexel
Temple
New York Medical College

Possibly:
Rosalind Franklin
Ohio State

 

[gyngyn]

Thanks for all the responses, guys. I was hoping to get some feedback on my schoo list, what do you guys think? Cut down, add any schools?

All UC's and USC.
Stanford
Columbia
Northwestern
Georgetown
Emory
Case Western
Boston
Dartmouth
Brown
Tufts
George Washington
Rush
Drexel
Temple
New York Medical College

Possibly:
Rosalind Franklin
Ohio State

Good list. You could probably take a few off: NY Med, Chicago med.

 

[Cynicalbrit]

Thanks for all the responses, guys. I was hoping to get some feedback on my schoo list, what do you guys think? Cut down, add any schools?

All UC's and USC.
Stanford
Columbia
Northwestern
Georgetown
Emory
Case Western
Boston
Dartmouth
Brown
Tufts
George Washington
Rush
Drexel
Temple
New York Medical College

Possibly:
Rosalind Franklin
Ohio State

I would consider removing Brown, as they have a very low acceptance rate. I believe they take a large portion of their class through 7-year programmes.

I think you have a good spread, so you may want to start adding and removing schools based on preference. Do you want to live in the Northeast? Midwest? How much do you care about climate? If you're willing to put up with the frigid winters of Dartmouth, you may also want to add University of Vermont, which is also a great school, and slightly less competitive. I would also advise against Temple, GW, etc. as they get over 10,000 apps every year, but it's your call. Just remember that the only limits on the number of schools you can apply to are time and money, so if you have enough of both, there's no reason not to take a chance on a reach school.

Best of luck, and try not to steal my spot