School List (Community Service Heavy/Clinical Hours Light)

[Analog_Emeritus]

Hi,
I'm applying this cycle, but my school list is ~40 long, and pretty top-heavy I think. I would love advice on where to trim/add based on my profile.

I think my volunteering is a strong aspect of my application, and I would want to go to a school with a genuine service focus. I have heard that Jesuit schools are a good place for this, but also heard that places like Rush want lots of clinical experience, which is definitely the focal weakness of my app.

Thank you so much!

Overview:

1. 3.8 cGPA and 3.8 sGPA – Biology and Social Science Majors
   4.0 Grad GPA – Public Health Masters
2. MCAT: 526 (132/130/132/132)
3. Resident: CA
4. ORM
5. T25 Undergrad
   T5 Grad
6. Clinical Experience: ~300 hours scribing
7. ~2000 hours in 2 labs, 3 non-first author pubs (1 in review), 1 non-first author abstract
   ~300 hours public health research 2 first author pubs (both in review)
8. Shadowing: 50 hours, 3 doctors, all primary care
9. Around 700 hours tutoring at a prison, and helping lead the program.
   Around 3000 hours working to open a new hospital in East Africa, 1000 hours of which were in person, rest remote. Returning to site to finish this project (non-volunteer) in my application year.
10. No non-addressed other ECs
11. Deans list, graduation with honors

School List:

1. Albert Einstein
2. Boston University
3. Brown
4. Columbia
5. Cornell
6. Creighton
7. Dartmouth
8. Drexel University
9. Duke
10. George Washington University
11. Georgetown
12. Harvard
13. Hopkins
14. Howard
15. Loyola University
16. Meharry
17. Mercer
18. Morehouse
19. Mt. Sinai
20. NYU
21. NYU Long Island
22. Penn
23. Rush
24. Stanford
25. SUNY Downstate
26. Temple University
27. Tufts
28. Tulane
29. U Chicago
30. U Miami
31. U Michigan
32. UCD
33. UCI
34. UCLA
35. UCSD
36. UCSF
37. USC
38. USF
39. Vanderbilt
40. Yale

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[Mr.Smile12]

When did you do this tutoring in prison? Was this part of your public health program?

 

[Analog_Emeritus]

When did you do this tutoring in prison? Was this part of your public health program?

This was my last two years of undergrad.

 

[chilly_md]

You can aim high. Some schools will resource protect you to save interviews for candidates more likely to matriculate there, and others are just not a fit at all (such as HBCUs and some state schools). Remove:

Drexel
George Washington
Georgetown
Howard
Loyola
Meharry
Mercer
Morehouse
Rush
SUNY Downstate
Temple
Tulane

You can add Saint Louis, WUSTL, Emory, Rochester, Hofstra, Western Michigan, Pittsburgh.

 

[Faha]

Mercer does not admit non residents. Howard, Meharry and Morehouse admit mainly applicants from the African American community.
Also remove Creighton. Drexel, Temple, Rush and Loyola since they will "yield protect" with your stats. You should receive several interviews from the other schools on your list. Add Washington University (in St. Louis-Almost a guaranteed interview with your stats).

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I also think the HBCU's might resource protect too. Network with students and admissions staff at the schools high in your wishlist, and make them want you.

 

[Analog_Emeritus]

You can aim high. Some schools will resource protect you to save interviews for candidates more likely to matriculate there, and others are just not a fit at all (such as HBCUs and some state schools). Remove:

Drexel
George Washington
Georgetown
Howard
Loyola
Meharry
Mercer
Morehouse
Rush
SUNY Downstate
Temple
Tulane

You can add Saint Louis, WUSTL, Emory, Rochester, Hofstra, Western Michigan, Pittsburgh.

I appreciate this advice, thank you! Will definitely add WUSTL, and remove most of the list you sent.

I guess my main concern is that when I see people with high stats but an unsuccessful cycle, the main feedback they get seems to be that their school list is too ambitious, so I was trying to add schools with a wider range, especially given my weakness on the clinical side of things. Do you feel like that's not a concern here?

For schools like Rush, Georgetown, and Howard, I get that I might be over the average stats, but I also think they'd be good fits for me from a mission/cultural perspective, so they're genuinely very high on my personal list. Is it really just not worth applying because they don't accept people with too high of an MCAT?
(similar situation with the HBCUs, I understand my odds are lower there as a non-black student, but again, I have personal reasons for really liking them, so I'm thinking of them as reach schools, but perhaps I should not apply to so many.)

 

[Analog_Emeritus]

Mercer does not admit non residents. Howard, Meharry and Morehouse admit mainly applicants from the African American community.
Also remove Creighton. Drexel, Temple, Rush and Loyola since they will "yield protect" with your stats. You should receive several interviews from the other schools on your list. Add Washington University (in St. Louis-Almost a guaranteed interview with your stats).

Thank you! That's encouraging to hear about WUSTL. It does feel a bit frustrating to have schools I really like that are out of range for yield protection reasons, but I appreciate the honest feedback here.

 

[chilly_md]

I appreciate this advice, thank you! Will definitely add WUSTL, and remove most of the list you sent.

I guess my main concern is that when I see people with high stats but an unsuccessful cycle, the main feedback they get seems to be that their school list is too ambitious, so I was trying to add schools with a wider range, especially given my weakness on the clinical side of things. Do you feel like that's not a concern here?

For schools like Rush, Georgetown, and Howard, I get that I might be over the average stats, but I also think they'd be good fits for me from a mission/cultural perspective, so they're genuinely very high on my personal list. Is it really just not worth applying because they don't accept people with too high of an MCAT?
(similar situation with the HBCUs, I understand my odds are lower there as a non-black student, but again, I have personal reasons for really liking them, so I'm thinking of them as reach schools, but perhaps I should not apply to so many.)

Those applicants usually were strong academically but had limited ECs. Or they applied strictly to schools such as Harvard, Yale, Johns Hopkins without including schools such as Rochester, Hofstra, or USF. Ensure your personal statement also answers why you want to be a physician and be in medicine as some students end up talking extensively about research and it comes across that they should be PhD students instead.

There is little reason to apply to those schools because you could receive an acceptance to another school that you might like better. They also know this. Since you are near 40 schools, it is best you don’t apply to more that have a lower chance of considering you. It’s already a lot of secondaries. You could apply to George Washington if you want since they are big on public health and policy and your masters is in that. They may also like your global work in East Africa.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I appreciate this advice, thank you! Will definitely add WUSTL, and remove most of the list you sent.

I guess my main concern is that when I see people with high stats but an unsuccessful cycle, the main feedback they get seems to be that their school list is too ambitious, so I was trying to add schools with a wider range, especially given my weakness on the clinical side of things. Do you feel like that's not a concern here?

For schools like Rush, Georgetown, and Howard, I get that I might be over the average stats, but I also think they'd be good fits for me from a mission/cultural perspective, so they're genuinely very high on my personal list. Is it really just not worth applying because they don't accept people with too high of an MCAT?

I would talk with admissions representatives at these schools who will still encourage you to apply anyway. Ask how many they matriculated with your stats.

(similar situation with the HBCUs, I understand my odds are lower there as a non-black student, but again, I have personal reasons for really liking them, so I'm thinking of them as reach schools, but perhaps I should not apply to so many.)

Have you gone to the NAMME conference to talk with faculty from those schools? Maybe they can get a better sense of why you would be successful at their programs.