How much leeway do I have here...

[bman992]

.

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[WesternRedCedar]

Depends alot on your ECs/research too.

 

[bman992]

Lets assume I have good/not great ECs (which I do...shadowing,volunteering), decent research (3 semesters + 1 summer.. but no pub), and good recs

My worry is mainly my GPA here (which dropped due to 1 semester with 3 Cs)

 

[WesternRedCedar]

Upward trend?

 

[bman992]

The 3 Cs came 2nd semester sophomore year. After that I do have an upward trend up to 3.5, 3.6, 3.66, and this ongoing semester prob 3.7+

 

[WesternRedCedar]

Not too bad then! Get a solid MCAT and should be fine for mid-tiers and some reach schools. Get the MSAR!

 

[bman992]

Thanks for the reply!

 

[WesternRedCedar]

Your original question if you would get a bump in your gpa, that's doubtful. Maybe if you are being compared to someone with similiar stats for a seat, then the rigour of your school(if it is even know to the medical school in question) may be taken into consideration.

It's too subjective, and schools on opposite sides of the nation may not know the details about other schools. Maybe the local state medical school may know your institute, but don't expect everyone to be familiar.

 

[jlescher]

If you get a 33-35 then you could reasonably apply to some top schools. 3-4 if you apply to 15-20 total. The problem is, those schools get 5-10k applicants and the people they selected have the whole package and your GPA is a bit low. Even if you get your gpa up to a 3.5-3.6, that still the bottom 10% of the class at top ranked programs. Nevertheless, you have to dream and you might get lucky. You will learn the process is pretty random.

 

[bman992]

.

 

[Goro]

No, why would they? Med schools get 1000s of apps for only 100-200 seats. It's a seller's market. You're numbers are below avg, but not lethal. Aim for low-tier and new MD programs, and any DO program.

Will admissions add some points to my GPA? Can I apply to some higher tier schools and still have a decent shot? (not top 20 med schools ofc)[/quote]

 

[bman992]

.

 

[OneTwoThreeFour]

Huh so I guess BME and top tier undergrad school will not contribute much...

Nope. Because you aren't applying for a BME job and many top tier undergrads have been tied to grade inflation.

There is no way to correct for BME vs chem vs bio majors without some large spreadsheet comparing various majors at various schools over the last decade or so, and no way admissions wants to deal with that anyway. So instead, it's acknowledged without being corrected for in a meaningful way.

From my understanding, that is.

 

[bman992]

.

 

[jlescher]

I actually just looked up premed success rates from my school to MD schools for GPA 3.4-3.59 with 33-35 MCAT, and its 87%! with 30-32 MCAT its 80%. The name must count for something with these stats

It has nothing to do with the name of your school. It has to do with a 34 being roughly the 90th % on the MCAT, and that GPA being on the low end of average. Those stats are likely to yield an acceptance assuming the applicant has strong ECs. Schools ranked in the top 20 are a different matter (ie probably not going to happen). It's not uncommon for people to apply to 20+ schools and the stat you are looking at just means they got into 1. Not necessarily a top program. At schools ranked around 50 and lower that GPA is on the low end of the average range. With that said, med school ranks don't matter a whole lot. Your USMLE score and what you did during med school > than the name of the school.

It's also fairly unusual for someone to have a 3.4 and get a 34+ on the MCAT. I'm not saying you won't do it, it's just unusual.

Stats don't get you into med school either. They are just a bench mark at most schools. You pass a threshold and you are either acceptable or not. A high MCAT (33-35) shows you are better at standardized tests than almost everyone else, and that helps to balance a slightly below average GPA. After that, ECs mean a lot more and tend to be the deciding factor.

 

[jlescher]

You also didn't mention which state you are from, which plays a major factor in admissions. If your UG is located in a med school dense state like PA or NY it will increase acceptance rates. State schools select ~75% of the class from the in-state application pool. The more state schools there are, the easier it is for residents of that state to get accepted. This holds true as long as the state has an average number of UG institutions.

 

[Jamie561]

Huh so I guess BME and top tier undergrad school will not contribute much...

Hopkins won't help you here.

 

[bman992]

.

 

[BestDoctorEver]

I don't go to Hopkins... but I am instate for Maryland. From what I hear, most Hopkins BMEs don't do med school.
I still find conflicting opinions on this topic though, guess I won't know until I apply!

Your GPAs are on the low side for med school, but not too low. If your MCAT score is within your expected range (33-35), you probably will get in somewhere if you have good ECs. But it might not be a school in the top 20.

 

[masaraksh]

Nope. Because you aren't applying for a BME job and many top tier undergrads have been tied to grade inflation.

There is no way to correct for BME vs chem vs bio majors without some large spreadsheet comparing various majors at various schools over the last decade or so, and no way admissions wants to deal with that anyway. So instead, it's acknowledged without being corrected for in a meaningful way.

From my understanding, that is.

Actually, yeah there is a pretty easy way to add a lot more depth to the meaning of one's GPA. The school needs to simply put the average grade for the entire class next to the students grade on the transcript. (My Uni did that for all classes > ~20 ppl).

It is very simple for schools to do and would be very informative. For example getting an A- when the avg is a B- is more impressive than getting an A- when the avg is an A.

 

[OneTwoThreeFour]

Actually, yeah there is a pretty easy way to add a lot more depth to the meaning of one's GPA. The school needs to simply put the average grade for the entire class next to the students grade on the transcript. (My Uni did that for all classes > ~20 ppl).

It is very simple for schools to do and would be very informative. For example getting an A- when the avg is a B- is more impressive than getting an A- when the avg is an A.

That would work but schools won't do it. How would it look, for example, if Harvard bio majors averaged an A-?

 

[masaraksh]

That would work but schools won't do it. How would it look, for example, if Harvard bio majors averaged an A-?

Yeah, schools won't do it. Yet this is the single simplest way to put grades into perspective.

I am not sure what you mean by your Harvard bio majors comment.

 

[OneTwoThreeFour]

I meant schools that practice grade inflation would not want people to know.

Yeah, schools won't do it. Yet this is the single simplest way to put grades into perspective.

I am not sure what you mean by your Harvard bio majors comment.

 

[masaraksh]

I meant schools that practice grade inflation would not want people to know.

Well, they can just spin it as 'our students are all very smart and hard-working'. I think that is both true and very reasonable. I don't think this would hurt the school itself.

fwiw, my Uni did this and I think more schools should do that. That way, employers, scholarships committeees, adcoms, etc can look at your grades in a much more meaningful perspective.

 

[OneTwoThreeFour]

Well, they can just spin it as 'our students are all very smart and hard-working'. I think that is both true and very reasonable. I don't think this would hurt the school itself.

fwiw, my Uni did this and I think more schools should do that. That way, employers, scholarships committeees, adcoms, etc can look at your grades in a much more meaningful perspective.

I hear you and I don't disagree necessarily. I just was answering OPs question. It could also be said, though, that your idea is a rabbit hole for larger institutions. Some classes in a major are harder than others. Some teachers in sections of the same class are harder. If people weren't complaining about school to school GPA on here They would be complaining about class to class

 

[bman992]

.