GPA 3.70 MCAT 38 limited Clinical Exp, gap year?

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jstubbs

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I'm a chemistry and mathematics double major and currently a junior at a top Liberal Arts College. I'm planning on applying only MSTP and I was wondering if I should take a gap year.

I have limited volunteering, tutored high school students for a summer and a semester, shadowed two doctors for a total of 2 months. I'm the president of some clubs, but nothing that notable (chem club, chess, etc.)

I've done chemistry research every semester since I was a freshman, and I've had two articles in a peer reviewed journal of moderate impact factor (2nd author for both). I've also done independent research on helping undeserved population overseas through a fellowship I applied for (I actually got to visit less developed areas in China and Indonesia), and I was able to present my findings at a conference. I've worked at a translational biology research laboratory for two summers, no publications.

My LORs are pretty strong, but are only really from my research experience. My concerns are my lack of clinical volunteering, GPA, and my MCAT score. I took the MCAT twice, I was having an off day the first time I took it and got a 29S (11PS/10BS/8VR) and then got a 38R (14PS/13BS/11VR) after retaking it at the next available time. I realize my GPA (3.70, 3.65s) is about average for an MSTP applicant but I hope my somewhat extensive research experience will make for it. I also have two W's one from organic, which I retook and got an A, and the is other from a 400 level math class that was just went over my head. I've had an upward trend from a 3.3->3.7 (every semester after the first was a 3.8+, except for one 3.6)

Should I take a gap year to improve my clinical volunteering and my GPA? I'll be working in the translational bio lab if I chose to take a gap year. Any advice is appreciated, thanks in advance.

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1. Don't worry about your GPA. With your trend and double major it is quite good.

2. Your MCAT is fine.

3. Definitely improve your clinical exposure for the next year. I would also add in more community service. Your research is pretty good; have you had first author abstracts? If not get some.

You can apply this year for a lot of MSTP programs but for the absolute top programs improving the breadth of your ECs is important because you don't want to be monochromatic.
 
Could you be more specific about the "limited volunteering" you already have? Also, how much more could you add in the next five months before the ideal submission time?

And was the tutoring paid or volunteer?

Also, is getting into a highly-selective MSTP essential to your happiness?
 
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No, it was volunteer, about 3-5 hours a week. In total I have around 6 months worth, I could probably add in 50-75 more hours. All my volunteering is tutoring based, through a college-local community volunteering group. The hospital near my school isn't very open to student volunteering, so the only clinical exposure I've gotten is through my two shadowing opportunities. Would it be beneficial to try to get in some volunteering now and during spring break and also during the summer?

I would prefer getting into a highly selective MSTP program for selfish reasons (I do realize that less selective programs still have great research opportunities); enough to do a gap year to improve my app. Though if I had a decent chance now I wouldn't think it would be worth it.

I'm currently doing research that will potentially result in a first author publication but I doubt it'll be done by this summer, a rapid correspondence would probably be pushing it too.
 
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With essentially no clinical experience you will need to wait until the 2011 season to apply. You might have gotten by with nine months worth since you plan to go MSTP, but with nothing under your belt so far, you're essentially starting from scratch.

It would be most beneficial if you could start a regular (weekly) volunteer gig as soon as school starts up again. It need not be at a hospital (ours are hard to get into also), so consider a nursing home, free clinic, low-income clinic, family-planning clinic, or even a private doctor's clinic, or a nursing home, hospice, rehab center, etc. The average applicant seems to have about 1.5 years of clinical experience and you can get very close to that if you start soon. I'd consider a year the minimum. Adcomms prefer regular involvement as opposed to spurts of intense activity for short periods with the same number of hours in total. If you are at home (and have the time), it would be fine to have something different off campus you could go back to repeatedly over breaks, in addition to what you do on campus. Some non-medical volunteerism would be nice to see too.

Waiting until your paper is accepted for publication will allow you to list it on your application, so an extra year will serve that purpose, too, besides having the opportunity to max out your GPA.
 
From all I have heard, clinical experience matters less for MSTP programs. Your research experience sounds fantastic, although admittedly I am less familiar with the normal amount of research for MSTP. I do think it would be worth it for you to take a gap year if getting into a highly selective program is important to you. People who apply to those programs have just as much research as you do and probably more clinical exposure. Getting more clinical volunteering will strengthen your app for those top programs.
 
I would prefer getting into a highly selective MSTP program for selfish reasons (I do realize that less selective programs still have great research opportunities); enough to do a gap year to improve my app. Though if I had a decent chance now I wouldn't think it would be worth it.

If you want your backup to be a highly selective MD program then beef up those ECs.

But usually you can apply twice without them looking down so I'd say give it a shot, depending on how good your research is you have a puncher's chance.
 
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