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Hello all,
I started reading the threads and suggestions on this forum a few years ago around when I first started college. I have since tried to use them as a guide in the decisions I've made so far seeing as I would really like to get into an M.D./Ph.D. program. I've only got a year and a half left of school, only the next half of which will appear on my med school applications (I think?) since the applications' due dates are next fall for me. That being said, I was just hoping you guys could tell me if I'm on the right track to a top-tier M.D./Ph.D.
I transferred to a large Florida public university from a community college a year and a half ago with a 4.0 GPA. Now that I'm at the university, I've taken up a triple major in Physics (B.S.), Chemistry (B.S.) and an Honors College Research Major (basically a major that makes you do 30 credits and two "super theses" of research) as well as a Math minor. I am also going to graduate from the honors college here. I've taken most of the higher level courses required for chemistry degree and am about two courses away from finishing the physics degree. Since transferring, I've gotten straight A+'s (with the exception of one course that only offered an A). That is, I still have an overall GPA of 4.0 and I am expecting rather high quality letters of recommendation.
I haven't read if M.D./Ph.D. programs put a lot of weight to awards, but I won the Chemistry Student of the Year award two years in a row (once for Organic Chemistry and again for Physical Chemistry). I also recieved a few fairly prestigious scholarships from Phi Theta Kappa while at my community college and was Volunteer of the Month at the hospital I volunteered at.
In addition to volunteering in the Emergency room, I was also on the executive board of directors at that particular hospital's volunteer auxiliary as recording secretary for two terms. I have a lot of other extracurricular activities (vice president of three science organizations, quiz bowl, chess club, ballroom dancing, etc) but I read that med schools don't give a crap, so I won't go into any more detail with that unless requested.
I did volunteer and paid work at a neurological research clinic for over a year while I was at my community college and have over 1300 hours volunteering in an Emergency Room. I also have around 40 hours shadowing a neurosurgeon; neurosurgery and neuroscience being my greatest interests for the M.D. portion.
As for research, besides the aforementioned clinical work, I've been in a physics research lab for a year and a half doing biophysical optics. For that I have built (from scratch) and programmed the software to run a dynamic light scattering device that is capable of measuring the size, molecular weight, and diffusion coefficients of small molecules. The molecule it was built to measure is amyloid proteins that are associated with neurodegenerative disease. So far I have had mostly my own independent project, and I feel I'm very close to putting a paper of some kind out there as first author (not sure if it will be published, but hopeful). I've been told by some that my current research, while great for a physics grad school application is not going to impress M.D./Ph.D. committees as it isn't "translational medicine". That is, that my research doesn't somehow translate into some type of medical use. I don't fully understand that comment since the whole goal of the project is to learn more about the mechanism of Alzheimer's. Do you have any thoughts on this?
Assuming that my biophysics research isn't enough, I'm looking to get into some lab focused more on clinical research at the medical school here since I need to do two theses for my research major anyways. If I do get into one it will most likely be some sort of neuroscience or perhaps cancer research. There is also the possibility that I will get into a summer REU at a far higher ranked college (UC, Harvard, etc), so I might end up doing that instead. What are your suggestions in this instance?
I've recently started getting serious about studying for the MCAT but I have no idea how I'm going to score yet. I'd like to say I'm shooting for the 40s but I really just want to do the best that I can.
Also I was hoping you could confirm or refute what I have come to think are my greatest weaknesses so far:
Anyways, sorry for the long post, but I figured I would put myself out there for feedback since I still have time to do more of what I'm doing or some of something different before applying to medical school. Becoming an M.D./Ph.D., especially from a top-notch school is my dream, so I would REALLY appreciate your help!!
Let me know what you guys think! Even if no one responds, I still greatly appreciate all of the guidelines and threads that have been put up on these forums that I have used. Thanks!!!!!!!
P.S. Pay no attention to my M.D. Apps profile, Its over 2 years old and I never really got around to filling it out.
I started reading the threads and suggestions on this forum a few years ago around when I first started college. I have since tried to use them as a guide in the decisions I've made so far seeing as I would really like to get into an M.D./Ph.D. program. I've only got a year and a half left of school, only the next half of which will appear on my med school applications (I think?) since the applications' due dates are next fall for me. That being said, I was just hoping you guys could tell me if I'm on the right track to a top-tier M.D./Ph.D.
I transferred to a large Florida public university from a community college a year and a half ago with a 4.0 GPA. Now that I'm at the university, I've taken up a triple major in Physics (B.S.), Chemistry (B.S.) and an Honors College Research Major (basically a major that makes you do 30 credits and two "super theses" of research) as well as a Math minor. I am also going to graduate from the honors college here. I've taken most of the higher level courses required for chemistry degree and am about two courses away from finishing the physics degree. Since transferring, I've gotten straight A+'s (with the exception of one course that only offered an A). That is, I still have an overall GPA of 4.0 and I am expecting rather high quality letters of recommendation.
I haven't read if M.D./Ph.D. programs put a lot of weight to awards, but I won the Chemistry Student of the Year award two years in a row (once for Organic Chemistry and again for Physical Chemistry). I also recieved a few fairly prestigious scholarships from Phi Theta Kappa while at my community college and was Volunteer of the Month at the hospital I volunteered at.
In addition to volunteering in the Emergency room, I was also on the executive board of directors at that particular hospital's volunteer auxiliary as recording secretary for two terms. I have a lot of other extracurricular activities (vice president of three science organizations, quiz bowl, chess club, ballroom dancing, etc) but I read that med schools don't give a crap, so I won't go into any more detail with that unless requested.
I did volunteer and paid work at a neurological research clinic for over a year while I was at my community college and have over 1300 hours volunteering in an Emergency Room. I also have around 40 hours shadowing a neurosurgeon; neurosurgery and neuroscience being my greatest interests for the M.D. portion.
As for research, besides the aforementioned clinical work, I've been in a physics research lab for a year and a half doing biophysical optics. For that I have built (from scratch) and programmed the software to run a dynamic light scattering device that is capable of measuring the size, molecular weight, and diffusion coefficients of small molecules. The molecule it was built to measure is amyloid proteins that are associated with neurodegenerative disease. So far I have had mostly my own independent project, and I feel I'm very close to putting a paper of some kind out there as first author (not sure if it will be published, but hopeful). I've been told by some that my current research, while great for a physics grad school application is not going to impress M.D./Ph.D. committees as it isn't "translational medicine". That is, that my research doesn't somehow translate into some type of medical use. I don't fully understand that comment since the whole goal of the project is to learn more about the mechanism of Alzheimer's. Do you have any thoughts on this?
Assuming that my biophysics research isn't enough, I'm looking to get into some lab focused more on clinical research at the medical school here since I need to do two theses for my research major anyways. If I do get into one it will most likely be some sort of neuroscience or perhaps cancer research. There is also the possibility that I will get into a summer REU at a far higher ranked college (UC, Harvard, etc), so I might end up doing that instead. What are your suggestions in this instance?
I've recently started getting serious about studying for the MCAT but I have no idea how I'm going to score yet. I'd like to say I'm shooting for the 40s but I really just want to do the best that I can.
Also I was hoping you could confirm or refute what I have come to think are my greatest weaknesses so far:
- Sure I have a 4.0 GPA and plan on keeping it and yes my school is a BIG (as in a lot of people go there) public university, but it isn't even ranked on most lists and the one list that it is ranked on, it gets a 356 or something like that. In addition to that, over half of my courses (mostly lower level) are from a community college. Do the top schools put a lot of weight on this?
- Also, there is some foreseeable grade issues. That is, I have straight A's in all of my classes from community college and then they jump to straight A+'s on the university level. Will medical school committees most likely say "wow that kid worked really hard to get those grades" or will they assume "If he has straight A+'s on the university level, they must be really easy classes". The latter along with my schools ranking certainly can't be good. I can't really control this aspect of things, but it would be nice to know how they are going to think.
- What do you guys think about my current research not translating into therapeutic medicine enough. I hope to do my Ph.D. in physics though...so I don't know what to believe.
- Its taking me five years to do all of this instead of the traditional four despite taking more that full time course loads (sometimes even having to request overload permission) every semester and every summer. Will that hurt my competitiveness?
Anyways, sorry for the long post, but I figured I would put myself out there for feedback since I still have time to do more of what I'm doing or some of something different before applying to medical school. Becoming an M.D./Ph.D., especially from a top-notch school is my dream, so I would REALLY appreciate your help!!
Let me know what you guys think! Even if no one responds, I still greatly appreciate all of the guidelines and threads that have been put up on these forums that I have used. Thanks!!!!!!!
P.S. Pay no attention to my M.D. Apps profile, Its over 2 years old and I never really got around to filling it out.
