Honestly if you have dreams of the top schools it almost pays to spend a year to get the ECs in order for a longer time. It would be a shame to squander outstanding scores by applying before you have the whole package.
I considered that, and am still seriously considering it. But I plan on continuing the ECs until I actually matriculate, and I've put a bunch of damage control into it this summer. Like a volunteer job with lots of patient contact and a good deal of shadowing is lined up. Also, isn't there a tradeoff with med schools expecting more out of you with that extra year?
Also thanks to NYB for his advice - I'll be sure to keep a lid on the arrogance during interviews
Speaking of which, what's the best way to let schools about ongoing developments after the AMCAS itself is submitted? I feel like if I can do that in a good way, I'll be a lot better off.
You are currently potentially going to be seen as too one dimensional. An uber smart research type without much else. This is something you can fix if you aren't in too much of a rush. If you don't fix it, you might not get into all the places you ought to. You'll probably get interviews, don't get me wrong, and then it will be up to you to get in someplace. But I'm guessing with a more rounded app you would do even better.
Unfortunately I'm a pretty one-D as a person; I'd probably fail a Turing test on a really bad day. I'm hoping to flesh it out with the tutoring and previous experience in hospitals. And the fact that I want to go MD/PhD I think will slightly help my chances.
In general, it seems like you're suggesting that past the secondary, admissions basically hinges on the interview. Is that really true? If so, I think I'll do fine - I have a feeling I can get some good practice interviews done, and the committee said my interviewing skills were good.
On a pedantic note, I'm not sure being one-dimensional in the way that you suggest is really a bad thing; I realize my app makes it seem that I'm One-D, and in some ways I am. But people that actually talk to me refer to me as focused, but with a variety of interests that don't necessarily manifest on an application. Is a slew of ECs really the way to prove whether a person is three-dimensional? Or does it just show lack of focus?
