Need application help.

[LtG84]

Hey SDN.

I am applying this year and sent out my application in late June. I have some questions about how adcoms will see me though.
I have a 522 on the MCAT and 3.7 cpg and sgpa.
I am an army vet- served 2 tours in Iraq. I came back with pretty bad PTSD but that was a few years ago and luckily therapy and medication helped me. I also was involved in an accident in Iraq and lost my left arm. I'm not looking to go into surgery, but will only having one arm be a huge detriment? Will they assume i'm still suffering from PTSD?
I have shadowed and researched quite bit and have been volunteering in my local hospital. I hope to get into any med school, but worried that my injury will cause hesitancy. Thanks.

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[Catalystik]

I am applying this year and sent out my application in late June. I have some questions about how adcoms will see me though.
I have a 522 on the MCAT and 3.7 cpg and sgpa.
I am an army vet- served 2 tours in Iraq. I came back with pretty bad PTSD but that was a few years ago and luckily therapy and medication helped me. I also was involved in an accident in Iraq and lost my left arm. I'm not looking to go into surgery, but
1) will only having one arm be a huge detriment?
2) Will they assume i'm still suffering from PTSD?
I have shadowed and researched quite bit and have been volunteering in my local hospital. I hope to get into any med school, but worried that my injury will cause hesitancy.

First off, Thank You for your service.

1) Medical Schools often have published technical standards, including expectations for physical abilities. You may meet these standards with "reasonable" accomodation. Examples (you can google the schools you targeted, for more relevant information):
https://medicine.umich.edu/medschoo...dmissions_requirements_TechnicalStandards.pdf
http://www.med.wisc.edu/education/md/admissions/technical-standards/112
https://som.georgetown.edu/about/prospectus/technicalstandards
https://medschool.duke.edu/educatio...ssions/admissions-process/technical-standards

What each school considers to be "reasonable" is up to them. Personally, I'd be disappointed in any med school not willing to go above and beyond to help you become a successful member of their student body. I can link you to a thread about a successful applicant with paraplegia if you need more school suggestions.

2) How will they know you have PTSD? It's up to you to disclose this, or not.

 

[Crayola227]

keep in mind too med schools tend to be more forgiving about trying to help you through, maybe not so much residencies

I would, while in med school, pick up the kind of experience that would make transitioning to non-clinical work easier, like clinical trials experience, research experience, an MPH, a biostats degree, etc

just in case you end up in a residency program that ends up boning you

 

[LtG84]

First off, Thank You for your service.

1) Medical Schools often have published technical standards, including expectations for physical abilities. You may meet these standards with "reasonable" accomodation. Examples (you can google the schools you targeted, for more relevant information):
https://medicine.umich.edu/medschoo...dmissions_requirements_TechnicalStandards.pdf
http://www.med.wisc.edu/education/md/admissions/technical-standards/112
https://som.georgetown.edu/about/prospectus/technicalstandards
https://medschool.duke.edu/educatio...ssions/admissions-process/technical-standards

What each school considers to be "reasonable" is up to them. Personally, I'd be disappointed in any med school not willing to go above and beyond to help you become a successful member of their student body. I can link you to a thread about a successful applicant with paraplegia if you need more school suggestions.

2) How will they know you have PTSD? It's up to you to disclose this, or not.

keep in mind too med schools tend to be more forgiving about trying to help you through, maybe not so much residencies

I would, while in med school, pick up the kind of experience that would make transitioning to non-clinical work easier, like clinical trials experience, research experience, an MPH, a biostats degree, etc

just in case you end up in a residency program that ends up boning you

Thanks guys! I'm hoping to go into psych, but I don't think I want to do that much non clinical work. I'm hoping to work with veterans and people suffering with PTSD in the future.
I know my accident limits me in some ways, but I've always been eager to try and figure out new ways of doing things. I hope that some med schools will see that. I'm not asking for special treatment, I just want to be given a chance based on my grades and EC's.

 

[LtG84]

@Goro @gyngyn do you guys have suggestions where I should apply? I'm from California unfortunately. I sent out the initial app with about 20 schools, but they were mainly California schools and private schools on the East coast.

 

[LizzyM]

I will predict at least seven interviews and at least 2 offers by March 1, 2017. Come back and tell me how my crystal ball is working. (I tend to be conservative in my estimates.)

 

[LtG84]

I will predict at least seven interviews and at least 2 offers by March 1, 2017. Come back and tell me how my crystal ball is working. (I tend to be conservative in my estimates.)

Haha thanks!! The fact that i'm even applying to medical school is so surreal. I never thought I would be in the position to do so. I'm so grateful that I get to submit and have the opportunity when a lot of guys didn't get to come home. There was a time that I wasn't sure I'd make it home. I don't take that for granted, and tried to convey that in my essays.

 

[Chromium Surfer]

Thank you so much for your service, and I wish you the best in your app cycle and more importantly in life! Please update us on how your cycle goes!

 

[Goro]

First off, many thanks for your service to our country. Hooooahhhh!

I am an army vet- served 2 tours in Iraq.


Here's a story I enjoy telling: Years ago, when I was a tech at Sloan kettering Cancer center, there was a nephrologist on staff/faculty there. She a tiny withered arm. How tiny? Like T. rex forearm!
If it didn't stop her, I don't think that it will stop you.


I came back with pretty bad PTSD but that was a few years ago and luckily therapy and medication helped me. I also was involved in an accident in Iraq and lost my left arm. I'm not looking to go into surgery, but will only having one arm be a huge detriment?

Irrelevant! You GPA and MCAT shows us that it's not a factor affecting you acadmics. I've had Iraq/Afghanistan vets as students as well. Top of the class, they were.
Will they assume i'm still suffering from PTSD?


I have shadowed and researched quite bit and have been volunteering in my local hospital. I hope to get into any med school, but worried that my injury will cause hesitancy. Thanks.[/QUOTE]
See suggested list:
Harvard
Wash U
Yale
Stanford
U Chicago
U Penn
U VA
U MI
U Colorado
U AZ
U VM
Ohio State
Jefferson
U IA
UCSF
UCLA, UCSD, UCI, UCR (IF you’re from the Inland Empire)
U Cincy
Miami
Albert Einstein
Tulane
Loyola
Emory
BU
USC/Keck
JHU
Mayo
Pitt
Northwestern
NYU
Vanderbilt
Columbia
Sinai
Cornell
Duke
Case
Hofstra

 

[summergirl]

I predict a Harvard interview, seriously.

 

[LtG84]

Thank you so much for your service, and I wish you the best in your app cycle and more importantly in life! Please update us on how your cycle goes!

Thank you! And I wish you the best of luck if you're applying this cycle as well.

@Goro - Thank you for the list! My question is how competitive do you think I am for the UC schools. I don't care which one, but my family, especially my wife and kids are on the west coast. My kids are very young, but we've settled here. If I only got into a certain school not in California we would make do, but I would really like to stay here. And that's incredible about the nephrologist. Makes me more excited to get IIs.

@summergirl - Haha my gpa is just average for national matriculants so I would be grateful with anything honestly. But thank you very much for that vote of confidence!

 

[Goro]

Let's research, disabled veteran, high stats....you're golden. Just keep in mind that everybody in the US wants to get into a UC.

Thank you! And I wish you the best of luck if you're applying this cycle as well.

@Goro - Thank you for the list! My question is how competitive do you think I am for the UC schools. I don't care which one, but my family, especially my wife and kids are on the west coast. My kids are very young, but we've settled here. If I only got into a certain school not in California we would make do, but I would really like to stay here. And that's incredible about the nephrologist. Makes me more excited to get IIs.

 

[DingoPingo]

Thank you for your service.

I look forward to hearing about your many acceptances.

 

[precisiongraphic]

Lieutenant- good luck on your app.

Google "Kellie Lim ucla cnn" and read about this triple-amputee UCLA grad. Since you're in CA, I might even suggest that you reach out to her (perhaps via LinkedIn) and see if she has any advice.