Question about Med School Chances

[hopeS.O.]

Hey Guys! I hope you're doing well. I am a current junior getting an honors Biology B.S. And a Psychology B.A. at the University of Arkansas and I was wondering what my chances were for medial school because I have been fretting considerably.

As of now I have:
- A 4.0 science and cumulative GPA
-almost 2 years of biology and psychology research
-medical and public health study abroad
-2 years as a Chemistry tutor (paid)
- an honors college ambassador and premed student mentor
-a ton of scholarships including research grants, study abroad grants, and some named scholarships
- a member of phi beta kappa since the end of sophomore year, as well as AED and Psi Chi
-member of P.R.I.D.E. and started and was secretary of an RSO for two years.
- Volunteer - by the end of the year I will have
* about 110 hours of clinical volunteering total.
*about 60 hours of non-clinical volunteering - recycling and a domestic violence shelter.
- Shadowing - 10 hours shadowing a radiologist and 40 hours shadowing an OB/GYN.

In addition, I have applied to 10 REUs for this summer with the hope of getting into at least one.

Please tell me what you think and what I could reasonably do to improve my chances. Columbia is my dream school, but as someone with no ties and not having gone to a better school, I understand it is not feasible. However, I am hoping that in this hope I will attain success somewhere. Thank you for your help.

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[hopeS.O.]

I have also realized that I need to move this thread but I don't know how. I'm so sorry.

 

[songl4a]

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[amazing tekkers]

Congratulations on your acceptance

 

[hopeS.O.]

You probably already know this but it bears repeating, you need to get your sGPA up. Consider adding another major like chemistry or physics .

Funny story though, I had a chemistry major that I had to drop due to time conflicts. But seriously, I am honestly nervous to the point that this is all I think about.

 

[s5260205]

Have you taken MCAT? It's meaningless to talk about your chances if you haven't taken your MCAT yet. Aim for 35+ (or the equivalent percentile in the new MCAT) and you should be golden for every school.

If you are applying next cycle, you want to have your MCAT done before June, meaning you should take the exam in either April or May (spots are almost all taken though). If you are going to wait for a year to apply, I would suggest preparing for your MCAT this summer during your REU so you won't have to worry about it next year.

 

[HCHopeful]

Hey Guys! I hope you're doing well. I am a current junior getting an honors Biology B.S. And a Psychology B.A. at the University of Arkansas and I was wondering what my chances were for medial school because I have been fretting considerably.

As of now I have:
- A 4.0 science and cumulative GPA
-almost 2 years of biology and psychology research
-medical and public health study abroad
-2 years as a Chemistry tutor (paid)
- an honors college ambassador and premed student mentor
-a ton of scholarships including research grants, study abroad grants, and some named scholarships
- a member of phi beta kappa since the end of sophomore year, as well as AED and Psi Chi
-member of P.R.I.D.E. and started and was secretary of an RSO for two years.
- Volunteer - by the end of the year I will have
* about 110 hours of clinical volunteering total.
*about 60 hours of non-clinical volunteering - recycling and a domestic violence shelter.
- Shadowing - 10 hours shadowing a radiologist and 40 hours shadowing an OB/GYN.

In addition, I have applied to 10 REUs for this summer with the hope of getting into at least one.

Please tell me what you think and what I could reasonably do to improve my chances. Columbia is my dream school, but as someone with no ties and not having gone to a better school, I understand it is not feasible. However, I am hoping that in this hope I will attain success somewhere. Thank you for your help.

Rock the MCAT. That's about all that's left. Maybe find something that can bring diversity to a medical school class as well. What are your hobbies? For instance, I enjoy music so I have many hours in a band and also run a karaoke business. You are very cut and dried "pre-med." Distinguishing yourself in other ways is never a bad idea.

Always remember, this is constructive criticism! Your app is solid the way it is. I was just suggesting an over-the-top!

 

[hopeS.O.]

Have you taken MCAT? It's meaningless to talk about your chances if you haven't taken your MCAT yet. Aim for 35+ (or the equivalent percentile in the new MCAT) and you should be golden for every school.

If you are applying next cycle, you want to have your MCAT done before June, meaning you should take the exam in either April or May (spots are almost all taken though). If you are going to wait for a year to apply, I would suggest preparing for your MCAT this summer during your REU so you won't have to worry about it next year.

Hi. Thank you for your time. I am taking the MCAT May 22nd and I've already started studying. I know that I need to do quite well on the MCAT. I was just really worried about everything aside from that in this post; of courses the MCAT itself and studying for it is a massive worry on it's own. I just thought it best to either have the rest addressed or formulate an action plan to remedy the problems.

 

[s5260205]

Hi. Thank you for your time. I am taking the MCAT May 22nd and I've already started studying. I know that I need to do quite well on the MCAT. I was just really worried about everything aside from that in this post; of courses the MCAT itself and studying for it is a massive worry on it's own. I just thought it best to either have the rest addressed or formulate an action plan to remedy the problems.

Don't worry too much about the rest of your applications. You should focus 100% on your MCAT now (perhaps even reduce some hours in your extracurriculars). I'm sure you will do great, given your stellar GPAs and background in biological and social sciences.

 

[hopeS.O.]

Rock the MCAT. That's about all that's left. Maybe find something that can bring diversity to a medical school class as well. What are your hobbies? For instance, I enjoy music so I have many hours in a band and also run a karaoke business. You are very cut and dried "pre-med." Distinguishing yourself in other ways is never a bad idea.

Always remember, this is constructive criticism! Your app is solid the way it is. I was just suggesting an over-the-top!

I am definitely taking your and everyone else's input constructively. You guys are taking time out to help me and I cannot thank you enough. Fingers crossed for the MCAT - I have been derailed in my study plan for the past week due to being exorbitantly ill. Hoping to rectify that soon. I have also thought a lot about the distinguishing part of my application and all I really have is a passion for equality and the eradication of medical stigma especially as it pertains to aid, and women and animals rights. That's the stuff I care about and I have no other talents aside from speaking some foreign languages.

 

[hopeS.O.]

HCHopeful and s5260625 thank you so much for encouragement and help. I really appreciate it.

 

[WedgeDawg]

Right now you need to study for the MCAT and kill it. In terms of ECs, find something you're passionate about and stick with it. Passion seems to be one of the few things that truly stands out to admissions committees (as evidenced by what you do and how you talk about them in your essays and your interviews). Best of luck!

 

[Kaelis]

I didn't realize they handed out Phi Beta Kappa so early. This likely means that you can also put some language skill on your app.

 

[WedgeDawg]

I didn't realize they handed out Phi Beta Kappa so early. This likely means that you can also put some language skill on your app.

Some schools give people with 4.0s (or alternatively like the top 20-30 people in each class) early Phi Beta Kappa near the end of one's junior year and then extend it to everyone else who is eligible near graduation.

 

[hopeS.O.]

Some schools give people with 4.0s (or alternatively like the top 20-30 people in each class) early Phi Beta Kappa near the end of one's junior year and then extend it to everyone else who is eligible near graduation.

Yeah, I had around 89 hours when I ended sophomore year, so I was technically a junior. About 11 juniors have been invited to join at my campus.

 

[Kaelis]

Yeah, I had around 89 hours when I ended sophomore year, so I was technically a junior. About 11 juniors have been invited to join at my campus.

Mhm, I see. In that case, I'll just parrot the people before me. Congratulations on your successes (and on the humble brag ;] ). Be sure to put any interesting hobbies you have if there is space on your app. They make for fun talking points during interviews!

 

[hopeS.O.]

Mhm, I see. In that case, I'll just parrot the people before me. Congratulations on your successes (and on the humble brag ;] ). Be sure to put any interesting hobbies you have if there is space on your app. They make for fun talking points during interviews!

I wish I did in fact feel successful. It may feel like bragging, but I really don't feel confident at all about any of it. Hence, the "humble" part, I guess . It feels like I haven't done even halfway enough to do anything. The other day I just had a massive meltdown, where I was like "Who wants to be a doctor? - not me" while ranting at my roommates about the meaninglessness of my college career; it was great.
Like even with PBK, like yes it's a good honor society, but at the end of the day, it's just an honor society. Additionally, my shadowing and volunteering feel exorbitantly lowly. Maybe I feel that way because all throughout college I've heard and felt like you need to do everything as well as seen some well-qualified applicants not do so well.

 

[Afford]

I wish I did in fact feel successful. It may feel like bragging, but I really don't feel confident at all about any of it. Hence, the "humble" part, I guess . It feels like I haven't done even halfway enough to do anything. The other day I just had a massive meltdown, where I was like "Who wants to be a doctor? - not me" while ranting at my roommates about the meaninglessness of my college career; it was great.
Like even with PBK, like yes it's a good honor society, but at the end of the day, it's just an honor society. Additionally, my shadowing and volunteering feel exorbitantly lowly. Maybe I feel that way because all throughout college I've heard and felt like you need to do everything as well as seen some well-qualified applicants not do so well.

I think everyone feels that way because you always see everyone's positive side. As long as you get a good MCAT and your letters are strong, I believe you have a good chance at getting into a good med school. If you want to get into Columbia, that's something that I feel is based off of luck. It really boils down to whether the reviewer likes your application enough and the interviewers like you enough. Even people with amazing applications with amazing life stories don't get into every med school. I looked at a couple of MDApplicant profiles and there are plenty of people with Harvard interviews, but silence from Yale and vice versa.