Last edited:
Need advice on what medical schools to apply to.
- Thread starter OniGary
- Start date
- Joined
- Oct 14, 2011
- Messages
- 20,323
- Reaction score
- 15,354
Congratulations on getting into the Georgetown SMP. Their advisors are always helpful, and I'm sure they can give you specific advice. My instinct says it would be a bad idea to send an application in before you finish a year of the SMP. You don't need to take the MCAT again.
You should be able to all the SMP advisors now even before your classes start. You do need more US-based clinical experience.
You should be able to all the SMP advisors now even before your classes start. You do need more US-based clinical experience.
Hi! Thank you for the reply. Is there a certain number of US based clinical hours I should be aiming for or is it more like having that experience to show adcoms that pursuing health is what I want to do. Also why do you suggest that I need more US-based clinical experience?
- Joined
- Oct 14, 2011
- Messages
- 20,323
- Reaction score
- 15,354
Have you talked with the advisors at Grorgetown yet? I'm sure they would have told you what I have. You need some experience with US Healthcare if you wish to go to medical school here. At least 150 hours total, though they could suggest less or more. They saw your application to give you more specific insight.
- Joined
- Mar 3, 2021
- Messages
- 4,206
- Reaction score
- 4,437
That is unfortunate because schools are not going to want to interview students who need to improve their GPA if they have no SMP grades to show them. As an international student, it is very difficult to gain acceptance to a US medical school. You would need to complete the SMP and gain significant hours in the US for both clinical experience and non-clinical volunteering (at least 200 hours each). Shadow a few different specialties for a total of 50 hours too.
All the Canadian medical schools are not worth applying to. Any international students accepted there likely attended the respective undergrad school or another school in Canada. You will need to apply to the DO schools that accept international students.
- Joined
- Nov 4, 2011
- Messages
- 28,440
- Reaction score
- 54,200
Many of the schools on the list take very few international applicants. When they do, it's often an internal candidate.
Others are mission-based (e.g. Howard). Do you fit the mission? CUNY is a small school that is essentially a bac-MD program for Sophie Davis.
Is that your only scored MCAT? Do not re-take an unexpired 519!! It's the 96th percentile with a confidence interval that includes the 98th percentile.
Do you speak Spanish?
Others are mission-based (e.g. Howard). Do you fit the mission? CUNY is a small school that is essentially a bac-MD program for Sophie Davis.
Is that your only scored MCAT? Do not re-take an unexpired 519!! It's the 96th percentile with a confidence interval that includes the 98th percentile.
Do you speak Spanish?
Last edited:
I was just admitted recently. I did contact them but I haven't heard back from them yet. Thank you for your time!
- Joined
- Oct 14, 2011
- Messages
- 20,323
- Reaction score
- 15,354
Let us know what they tell you.
About applying during the SMP year, the assistant director sent out an email to the admitted students saying that applying during the SMP year was specific to only Georgetown's program. Georgetown's program was designed so that I could send schools my grades from the block 1 courses (which are all classes taken with med students) before the application cycle closed. The directors of the program also mentioned that I could update schools as the year goes on. I don't know if that information helps.
Also thank you! I will look into DO schools.
I think based on my hours I do not. I have been going on medical mission trips to underdeveloped countries and areas (India, Philippines x2, Mongolia, parts of Korea) since I was in the 6th grade, but I am not sure if those can be included into my volunteer hours. That is not to say that I didn't learn anything from those trips. Those trips definitely have made an impact on me.
Yes that is my only scored MCAT and okay I won't retake the MCAT. Out of curiosity, can I ask why you heavily advise against retaking the MCAT when I have an unexpired 519? How would adcoms view a second attempt?
I do not speak Spanish. Only Korean and English.
Thank you!
Last edited:
- Joined
- Nov 4, 2011
- Messages
- 28,440
- Reaction score
- 54,200
Ponce is in Puerto Rico...
Hello!
Sorry for the very late reply. There have been a change of events and I thought it would be better to reply once things had settled down and I could provide some more tangible results.
I graduated undergrad with a sGPA slightly over 3.0 and an cumulative GPA of around 3.4.
I am not attending Georgetown's SMP program. There were some complications that arose that made me change my mind about attending the program. The advice of the members who responded to this post certainly did play a role as well. I did not apply to medical schools for this cycle.
I am currently attending Case Western's MSMP program. With how things are going I am confident that I will get a 4.0 at this program.
Over the summer I was able to get US clinical experience. I worked as an administrative/medical assistant at a private GI clinic for 8 weeks (roughly 280 hrs interacting with patients). I spent the majority of my time interacting with patients. Also the inside of a stomach looks pretty rad!
I see that non-clinical volunteering experience is a weak point. I have applied to volunteer at Ronald McDonald house charities and am waiting to hear back from them. Hopefully I will be able to start soon. I have also completed the training for crisis text line. I hope to start volunteering there this winter.
I hope to do research here as well. I am currently working with my advisor at the MSMP program to find a suitable research lab.
I know that "hoping" to do things is not a tangible result so is it okay if I send updates as these "hopes" become real accomplishments?
Also a side note, I've been lied to! Cleveland is a cool city.
Once again thank you!
- Joined
- Nov 4, 2011
- Messages
- 28,440
- Reaction score
- 54,200
Loma Linda and the Jesuits love those mission trips (many other schools are not so sanguine).
Re: the unexpired re-take, nobody is looking for perfectionists. It's a particularly unfortunate characteristic in a physician. A 519 is plenty good enough for any school. It is the strongest part of your application at the moment. Your impediments for MD are your gpa and international status.
- Joined
- Mar 3, 2021
- Messages
- 4,206
- Reaction score
- 4,437
Updates should not be counted on. Decisions can be made before you get a chance to send those.
A 4.0 in Case’s SMP is a nice accomplishment. You do not need more research. Spend the time on non-clinical volunteering. See what schools on MSAR accepted 3 or more international students and I can filter from there. You will need DO schools still as I mentioned before.
Med Schools that accepted more than 3 or more international students:
- TCU
- Boston
- Case Western
- Columbia
- Duke
- Emory
- Dartmouth
- Georgetown
- Harvard (one can dream)
- Howard
- Icahn
- Johns Hopkins
- Northwestern
- NYU
- Both Long Island and the one in NY
- UPenn
- Stony Brook
- Saint Louis
- Thomas Jefferson
- Stanford
- State University of New York Upstate Medical University
- Tulane
- UC Davis
- UCLA
- Chicago
- University of Colorado
- UConn
- University of Hawaii
- University of Illinois
- UNC
- UPitt
- UVA
- Vanderbilt
- Washington University in St. Louis
- Wayne State
- Cornell
- WVU
- Yale
DO that accept Internationals
- AZCOM
- CCOM
- KCU-COM
- LUCOM (I do not have any intentions of applying here. I went to high school in Virginia and I know that I will be miserable at Liberty)
- MSUCOM
- NSU-KPCOM
- UNECOM
- WCU-COM
- WESTERN
- RVUCOM
- Joined
- Mar 3, 2021
- Messages
- 4,206
- Reaction score
- 4,437
Did you attend undergrad or live somewhere else besides Cleveland since you are at Case's SMP? I suggest the following from the above if you ace your SMP:
1.TCU
2. Boston
3. Case Western
4. Columbia
5. Duke
6. Emory
7. Dartmouth
8. Georgetown
9. Icahn
10. Northwestern
11. Stony Brook
12. Saint Louis
13. Thomas Jefferson
14. Tulane
15. University of Colorado
16. University of Illinois
17. UPitt
18. UVA
19. Vanderbilt
20. Washington University in St. Louis
21. Wayne State
DO that accept Internationals (be sure you can afford them as some may want you to show you have the money upfront, ditto the MD schools):
AZCOM
CCOM
KCU-COM
MSUCOM
NSU-KPCOM
UNECOM
WCU-COM
WESTERN
1.TCU
2. Boston
3. Case Western
4. Columbia
5. Duke
6. Emory
7. Dartmouth
8. Georgetown
9. Icahn
10. Northwestern
11. Stony Brook
12. Saint Louis
13. Thomas Jefferson
14. Tulane
15. University of Colorado
16. University of Illinois
17. UPitt
18. UVA
19. Vanderbilt
20. Washington University in St. Louis
21. Wayne State
DO that accept Internationals (be sure you can afford them as some may want you to show you have the money upfront, ditto the MD schools):
AZCOM
CCOM
KCU-COM
MSUCOM
NSU-KPCOM
UNECOM
WCU-COM
WESTERN
I went to high school in central Virginia. The GI clinic that I worked at was in Virginia near where I went to high school.
I went to undergrad at Temple in Philly.
Thankfully, money will not be a problem for me.
Thank you for your advice!
- Joined
- Mar 3, 2021
- Messages
- 4,206
- Reaction score
- 4,437
West Virginia might be worth trying then.
