The Republic of Texas XXXIII: Lone Star State Pride

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My last question on this is, if I have mid-low tier stats (3.68cpga, 3.7sgpa(upward trend) 29mcat(10,10,9P) would the other oos over look the fact that I am from Texas and look at my application the same as someone who had my stats from California?

Hmm. I wonder what my chances are to getting accepted to Texas medical schools with my raw stats? I am ORM, but they might not have that many Asians in that state lol.

Thanks L Christmas!
You have a good shot in Texas! Just apply early. OOS schools usually won't look at a Texas resident the same way as a California resident because they have to invest money for the interviews and with state tuition so much cheaper and so many schools in our state, they usually think that if Texas wants the applicant, then they don't have a shot, and if Texas doesn't want them, they probably don't either. I've seen a lot of things similar to that on this site. :)

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My last question on this is, if I have mid-low tier stats (3.68cpga, 3.7sgpa(upward trend) 29mcat(10,10,9P) would the other oos over look the fact that I am from Texas and look at my application the same as someone who had my stats from California?

Hmm. I wonder what my chances are to getting accepted to Texas medical schools with my raw stats? I am ORM, but they might not have that many Asians in that state lol.

Thanks L Christmas!

If you do want to go to a TX medical school, then you'd better be a TX resident unless you're an exceptionally well-qualified applicant.

If you do not want to go to a TX school, then you're better off saying you're a CA resident as @clairephillips explained above.

If you just want to go to medical school somewhere and you're a competitive applicant, then your chances as a CA resident are actually pretty equal to those of a TX resident. Acceptance rates for TX residents are actually about equal to the average of other states.

But if you just want to go to medical school somewhere and you're a below average applicant, then your chances are much better as a TX resident as you're much more likely to be interviewed by the lower-tier TX schools than by the lower-tier non-TX schools that are everyone else's safeties.
 
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If you do want to go to a TX medical school, then you'd better be a TX resident unless you're an exceptionally well-qualified applicant.

If you do not want to go to a TX school, then you're better off saying you're a CA resident as @clairephillips explained above.

If you just want to go to medical school somewhere and you're a competitive applicant, then your chances as a CA resident are actually pretty equal to those of a TX resident. Acceptance rates for TX residents are actually about equal to the average of other states.

But if you just want to go to medical school somewhere and you're a below average applicant, then your chances are much better as a TX resident as you're much more likely to be interviewed by the lower-tier TX schools than by the lower-tier non-TX schools that are everyone else's safeties.
As always, you give such great insight! Always know it'll be a good post when I see@DokterMom :)
 
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If you do want to go to a TX medical school, then you'd better be a TX resident unless you're an exceptionally well-qualified applicant.

If you do not want to go to a TX school, then you're better off saying you're a CA resident as @clairephillips explained above.

If you just want to go to medical school somewhere and you're a competitive applicant, then your chances as a CA resident are actually pretty equal to those of a TX resident. Acceptance rates for TX residents are actually about equal to the average of other states.

But if you just want to go to medical school somewhere and you're a below average applicant, then your chances are much better as a TX resident as you're much more likely to be interviewed by the lower-tier TX schools than by the lower-tier non-TX schools that are everyone else's safeties.
DokterMom, I think you were the one that originally said what I said! I just couldn't remember whether it was you, or one of our other trusted advisors. :)
 
I plan to apply around the same time I graduate (spring 2016). I'd like to include senior grades in my transcript. The problem is that final grades don't get released until May 22...assuming that I have MCAT score, LORs, PS, etc. except spring grades ready to go, is that date considered early, or late?

@DokterMom Btw I love your icon. Downton Abbey is amazing and Maggie Smith is a legend.
 
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I plan to apply around the same time I graduate (spring 2016). I'd like to include senior grades in my transcript. The problem is that final grades don't get released until May 22...assuming that I have MCAT score, LORs, PS, etc. except spring grades ready to go, is that date considered early, or late?

@DokterMom Btw I love your icon. Downton Abbey is amazing and Maggie Smith is a legend.
That's still extremely early, relax.
 
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Wooo!!! Thank you DoctorMom, Accueil, L Christmas, and Clairephillips for your time and insight!

Best of luck on all your endeavors. I will probably be back with more questions when they come up! Thank you again for all your help!!
 
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Does anyone know of any Texas waitlist movement? The consensus is that movement will be the first half of May instead of the second half this year.

Edit: Other than the few spots given about a week ago
 
Does anyone know of any Texas waitlist movement? The consensus is that movement will be the first half of May instead of the second half this year.

Edit: Other than the few spots given about a week ago

I don't think so. I guess things will get rolling early next week.

Just a random thought:
UTSW's first wave post Match was at 7:30 pm. So if someone is on that list, I'd say that's the cutoff each day / today.
 
Since my application cycle has ended and the new one started today, I thought I would share the lessons I learned this past year.

Do your research! To me, there really isn't a great mystery to what makes a strong application (i.e. academics, clinical experience, physician shadowing, leadership, research, and community service). SDN has so much great advice, and I used it to ensure I would be a competitive applicant. And of course, we all know the mantra of SDN which is to apply early (I submitted TMDSAS on June 1)! It makes you more competitive and helps alleviate stress.

To build my application, I tried writing my personal statement first but had major issues getting started so I abandoned it. I moved on to the activities section to help jog my memory of everything I had done during college. After I had compiled all my activities, I did some reflection on what they had in common. I built my PS around a common theme found among almost all of my activities. To me, good writing tells a story, so that's what I did in my PS (i.e. it had a beginning, middle, and end). After I wrote my first draft, I had a professor whose opinion I highly valued critique it. In addition to basic English things like syntax and word choice, I gave her the exact prompt from TMDSAS and asked her how well she thought I answered the question. Make sure you actually answer the prompt and not a question you like better! I also gave my PS to several of my parents' friends who are in business; while not familiar with med school admissions, they make hiring decisions and have extensive experience with writing. I got some great insight from them, so I recommend getting people who do a lot of writing for a living read your essay to give a different perspective.

For secondaries, get them done! I really struggled with some of the prompts, but I eventually cranked them out by forcing myself to sit down and just type. Once I got my first drafts, it became much easier to craft a final product.

The next step of the process was the most exciting and terrifying part of the process for me: the interview. I didn't do any mock interviews, but prepared by thinking of how I would respond to standard questions (what is a challenge you've experienced, strengths/weakness, teamwork, etc.). Since I applied early, I was fortunate to be in the first round or two of II at the schools who invited me. I really recommend perusing the interview attire threads to get an idea of what you should wear. Everything is covered well in those threads, but the gist is you want to be business professional. IMO, don't take any risks and just buy something conservative.

I had good experiences in almost all of my interviews; most were very conversational (meaning it wasn't really a Q&A, but more a meandering path of one thing leading to the next). I also used the day to evaluate the school. Keep in mind that the schools are in essence putting on a show as they are trying to convince you to attend their school. This made getting a true evaluation more difficult because it was a very controlled environment.

The final part of the process is the excitement and relief of an acceptance. To make a final decision on where to attend, I took into account the opportunities each school afforded its students, the outcomes of its graduates, and the place I felt I could be most successful and happy. I actually had a very negative experience during a portion of my interview day at Baylor (read about it on the BCM page, if curious), but I ended up choosing it anyway as I think Baylor fared the best on the three indicators I mentioned.

It's crazy that exactly one year ago, I started my application and now the process is complete. It's been quite the whirlwind, and I'm excited for the future! I hope this (crazy long) post was helpful. It was very cathartic for me reflecting on the year haha.

Summary of my app cycle:
Applied to all TMDSAS (excluding TCOM) schools, Baylor, Mayo, and Vanderbilt
Interviewed at Baylor, UTSW, UT Houston, UTHSCSA, UTMB, and A&M
Accepted to Baylor, UTSW, UTHSCSA, UTMB, and A&M
Matriculating at Baylor :)
 
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Summary of my app cycle:
Applied to all TMDSAS (excluding TCOM) schools, Baylor, Mayo, and Vanderbilt
Interviewed at Baylor, UTSW, UT Houston, UTHSCSA, UTMB, and A&M
Accepted to Baylor, UTSW, UTHSCSA, UTMB, and A&M
Matriculating at Baylor
Wow, awesome job!
 
My last question on this is, if I have mid-low tier stats (3.68cpga, 3.7sgpa(upward trend) 29mcat(10,10,9P) would the other oos over look the fact that I am from Texas and look at my application the same as someone who had my stats from California?

Hmm. I wonder what my chances are to getting accepted to Texas medical schools with my raw stats? I am ORM, but they might not have that many Asians in that state lol.

Thanks L Christmas!

Based on my personal experience last cycle, I applied to all the texas schools and 20 additional OOS schools. Ended up receiving interviews at many OOS schools as well as all the texas schools. So basically, I dont think the anti-texas bias is as strong as it's made out to be.
 
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Thanks for that info, @DirkN. I also plan on applying to a good number of OOS schools, and it is good to hear that at least in your case, it was not completely fruitless.

Did you receive the majority of OOS interviews much later in the cycle (January/February)? I do wonder if committees leave Texas applicants to be considered later and try to fill the class with higher yield applicants first.
 
Based on my personal experience last cycle, I applied to all the texas schools and 20 additional OOS schools. Ended up receiving interviews at many OOS schools as well as all the texas schools. So basically, I dont think the anti-texas bias is as strong as it's made out to be.

Interesting - Do you mind sharing your stats and what OOS schools sent II's.
 
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