MD 3.65 cGPA, 3.4 sGPA, 521 MCAT, VA Resident

[El Kabong]

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Well here it goes...

- 3.65 cGPA and 3.4 sGPA: showed an upward trend, but have a C+ in first year, second semester bio
- 521 MCAT (130,130,131,130)
- VA Resident (but would rather not go to school in VA)
- White male, 23yo
- Second time applicant (last time had 509 MCAT)
- McGill University 2017 grad, BS in Pharmacology
- 60 hours of clinical shadowing (anesthesiologist, neuropsychologists, psychiatrist, internal/pulmonologist, and an oral cancer surgeon. There will be more shadowing to come as I work for the oral cancer surgeon)
- ~100 hours spent interning for Children's National Concussion Clinic in Rockville, MD; poster presentation at international conference
- Nearly 2000 hrs in research in undergrad; poster presentation at international conference, pending publication (under review),
- Non-clinical Volunteering somewhat limited, roughly 100hours in all lacrosse related activities in my hometown in VA
- Played lacrosse in university, helped win school's 1st national championship in Freshman year, quit sophomore year after a bad concussion that forced me to drop out of school for a year
-------Because of that concussion, I have a whole semester of Ws on my transcript. I took a year off of class and came back while still on medication for headaches. Was finally cleared of my concussion after my first semester back.

Right now I work full time as a research assistant/lab manager in NYC, working with mice models on cancer pain. I'm in the waiting phase of applications for volunteer positions at NYU Langone, my local ambulance corp, and local Boys and Girls club. At my job I will have the opportunity to rack up significant shadowing hours in an oral cancer ward.

I will be applying in the 2018-2019 cycle and really hope to have better results than last time (zero invites with damn near same ECs and GPA, 509 MCAT). My GPA is what it is now (not bad, not great) but I brought my MCAT up a lot, and am really trying to get my ECs up with these volunteering opportunities. I really had a hard time volunteering at school because all the hospitals require you to be fluent in French (McGill is in Montreal, Quebec, if you were unsure).

I feel like I'm taking all the right steps to improving my app and my chances, but I honestly don't have a good gauge of what schools I should be applying to. I've been using MSAR, and from the persistence of my friends to shoot for the stars and apply top tier, I've come up with the following list. Any and all suggestions are more than welcome (@Goro I literally made an account and this post to hear your opinion so hit me with some sage and succinct advice).

Here's the list in no particular order:
- Einstein
- Case Western
- Duke
- Emory
- Dartmouth
- Hofstra
- Mount Sinai
- Mayo
- Medical University of South Carolina
- Vermont
- Stanford
- SUNY up
- SUNY down
- Stony Brook
- Brown
- Pritzker
- Cincinnati
- UMass
- Miami Miller
- U Michigan
- U Minnesota
- UNC
- UVA
- Pitt
- Rochester
- VCU
- Cornell
- Boston U
- Washington U, St. Louis (they sent me a letter congratulation me on my MCAT lol, idk how much weight, if any, I should put behind that)
- Rush
- Sidney Kimmel
- Tufts
- V Tech
- Wake Forrest
- Temple
- McGill (alma matter, just for ****s)

Others that started on the list but have been removed are:
- Baylor
- Penn
- Harvard
- Yale
- Drexel
- George Washington

Lots top tiers here, I know...guy can dream right? Looking for some experienced people to ground me in the right direction.

Thanks everyone.

 

[Goro]

Aim for those schools on your list that accept more than a handful of internationals, if you're a Canadian citizen.

If you';re a US citizen, then I suggest:

Vanderbilt
Columbia
Sinai
Cornell
Case
Harvard OR Yale
Stanford OR JHU
U VA
U VM
U Cincy
Ohio State
UCSF
UCLA,
Miami
Tulane
Albert Einstein
BU
USC/Keck
Mayo
Rochester
Dartmouth
Duke
Pitt
Hofstra
VCU
EVMS
Va Tech

 

[El Kabong]

Aim for those schools on your list that accept more than a handful of internationals, if you're a Canadian citizen.

If you';re a US citizen, then I suggest:

Vanderbilt
Columbia
Sinai
Cornell
Case
Harvard OR Yale
Stanford OR JHU
U VA
U VM
U Cincy
Ohio State
UCSF
UCLA,
Miami
Tulane
Albert Einstein
BU
USC/Keck
Mayo
Rochester
Dartmouth
Duke
Pitt
Hofstra
VCU
EVMS
Va Tech

Bless. I am indeed a US citizen, born and raised. Just did the Canadian thing for undergrad.

 

[Goro]

Strongly suggest getting in more service to other less fortunate than yourself.

 

[Walter Raleigh]

@Goro, I don't mean to criticize you, but why do you say that our OP is at all competitive for schools like Harvard, Stanford, and Hopkins with his GPAs at or below the 10th percentile? The publication is impressive, but isn't that low GPA a fairly large black mark against him, even with a good upward trend? He's also got a retake, and that can't be good for him.

Perhaps our OP could volunteer in a hospice? There should be plenty in NYC.

 

[candbgirl]

Your ECs are weak. Save yourself some money and don’t bother with Rush. You don’t come close to meeting their service requirements. Did you use the MSAR to develop your list? You have two MCAT scores that might be averaged. And IMO your GPAs are below average. A 3.4 sGPA can be problematic at many of the schools on your list. It’s never wise to be a reapplicant when you haven’t corrected your deficiencies from the first cycle. And as you said “ damn near same ECs and GPA”.

 

[El Kabong]

@Goro, I don't mean to criticize you, but why do you say that our OP is at all competitive for schools like Harvard, Stanford, and Hopkins with his GPAs at or below the 10th percentile? The publication is impressive, but isn't that low GPA a fairly large black mark against him, even with a good upward trend? He's also got a retake, and that can't be good for him.

Perhaps our OP could volunteer in a hospice? There should be plenty in NYC.

Thanks for the input. I'm kinda curious about that as well, as I wasn't sure how much MCAT outweighs/balances out the GPA. Based on AAMC Table A-16, I'm basically 2 Standard deviations below the average matriculant GPA wise, but almost 2 standard deviations above average matriculant MCAT wise. And what is the harm exactly in retaking once? I agree it's much better to take it once and kill it, but I took the first one in summer 2015 so it won't even be valid at most schools for application, and I jumped from 80th to 99th percentile. Just curious of your thoughts.

 

[El Kabong]

Your ECs are weak. Save yourself some money and don’t bother with Rush. You don’t come close to meeting their service requirements. Did you use the MSAR to develop your list? You have two MCAT scores that might be averaged. And IMO your GPAs are below average. A 3.4 sGPA can be problematic at many of the schools on your list. It’s never wise to be a reapplicant when you haven’t corrected your deficiencies from the first cycle. And as you said “ damn near same ECs and GPA”.

Thanks for the input. When you say two MCAT scores that might be averaged, you mean that adcoms would put me as a 515 for MCAT? My 509 was from summer 2015 and won't be valid for most schools in the next cycle, or does that not matter? I agree my GPAs are below average, but can my MCAT not help with that to a significant extent? I also agree my EC's are weak, which is why I am trying to volunteer at the Boys and Girls club, ambulance corp, and/or hospital. Per @Goro recommendation, I am also looking up more local opportunities to serve undeserved near me. Can I have your input on weather you think such extra additions would significantly strengthen my app, in addition to the additional shadowing I mentioned in my original post. Cheers.

 

[Goro]

When you say two MCAT scores that might be averaged, you mean that adcoms would put me as a 515 for MCAT? My 509 was from summer 2015 and won't be valid for most schools in the next cycle, or does that not matter?

It doesn't matter, we see all scores, and averaging is more accurate than taking the latest score, or the best composite score. That said, a 521 is nothing to sneeze at, and there are MD schools that are stats ******.


I agree my GPAs are below average, but can my MCAT not help with that to a significant extent? I also agree my EC's are weak, which is why I am trying to volunteer at the Boys and Girls club, ambulance corp, and/or hospital. Per @Goro recommendation, I am also looking up more local opportunities to serve undeserved near me. Can I have your input on weather you think such extra additions would significantly strengthen my app, in addition to the additional shadowing I mentioned in my original post.

Here's the thing, the higher up the pole you want to climb, the more you need to stand out from a sea of hyperacheiving lab rats. Service to others is one way to do that. Get > 200 hours.

 

[Walter Raleigh]

When you say two MCAT scores that might be averaged, you mean that adcoms would put me as a 515 for MCAT? My 509 was from summer 2015 and won't be valid for most schools in the next cycle, or does that not matter?

It doesn't matter, we see all scores, and averaging is more accurate than taking the latest score, or the best composite score. That said, a 521 is nothing to sneeze at, and there are MD schools that are stats ******.


I agree my GPAs are below average, but can my MCAT not help with that to a significant extent? I also agree my EC's are weak, which is why I am trying to volunteer at the Boys and Girls club, ambulance corp, and/or hospital. Per @Goro recommendation, I am also looking up more local opportunities to serve undeserved near me. Can I have your input on weather you think such extra additions would significantly strengthen my app, in addition to the additional shadowing I mentioned in my original post.

Here's the thing, the higher up the pole you want to climb, the more you need to stand out from a sea of hyperachieving lab rats. Service to others is one way to do that. Get > 200 hours.

Well, if he really wants to show his altruism, and has got more perseverance than sense - and an unhealthy desire to attend a top-20 school - he could spend a couple years serving in the Peace Corps. His MCAT would've expired by then, and if he can notch up another stellar score in a second retake he can boost his MCAT average like this. Not a smart idea, a huge gamble, but could pay off if he explains it the right way and earns a 521 or better on his third MCAT.

 

[Goro]

Well, if he really wants to show his altruism, and has got more perseverance than sense - and an unhealthy desire to attend a top-20 school - he could spend a couple years serving in the Peace Corps. His MCAT would've expired by then, and if he can notch up another stellar score in a second retake he can boost his MCAT average like this. Not a smart idea, a huge gamble, but could pay off if he explains it the right way and earns a 521 or better on his third MCAT.

300 hours working in a hospice or tutoring poor kids will suffice.

I don't what it is with you Walt, you have to always go for the extremes of ECs or numbers.

 

[Shotapp]

Well, if he really wants to show his altruism, and has got more perseverance than sense - and an unhealthy desire to attend a top-20 school - he could spend a couple years serving in the Peace Corps. His MCAT would've expired by then, and if he can notch up another stellar score in a second retake he can boost his MCAT average like this. Not a smart idea, a huge gamble, but could pay off if he explains it the right way and earns a 521 or better on his third MCAT.

What?!

OP listen to @Goro. Volunteer at habitat for humanity, nursing home, your local church of worship, etc.

 

[Walter Raleigh]

300 hours working in a hospice or tutoring poor kids will suffice.

I don't what it is with you Walt, you have to always go for the extremes of ECs or numbers.

You always said that the pole got slipperier the higher you wanted to climb; he is very good for most schools outside the top 20 and those top 20s that are a little more keen on reinvention than the rest. However, he's retaken the MCAT and is going to be seen like a guy with a 3.65/515. This is well south of the median for schools like Harvard and Stanford.

 

[Walter Raleigh]

300 hours working in a hospice or tutoring poor kids will suffice.

I don't what it is with you Walt, you have to always go for the extremes of ECs or numbers.

Hey, it's (by my own admission) fairly crazy, and he'd have to have an unhealthily strong desire for top 20s. Your suggestion of 300 hours in a hospice or tutoring underprivileged kids would get him most of the way there. Diminishing marginal returns!