3.7, 515 MCAT, no acceptances, what is wrong with my application?!!?

[thatcmuguy]

in

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[DrHart]

edit: there is still time yet. at a glance, nothing seems wrong with your app. keep in mind, you are your worst judge of your own interviewing skills. you never know how your PS might have been perceived, or your work/activities section as well.

 

[DrHart]

what were your mcat section scores?

 

[Thienyl15]

Your list is good, have you called schools where you were rejected about your app? It could be a red flag in your PS or letters, also you could have interviewed poorly. Most of us do a poor job at judging our own interview performance.

EDIT: 2 post-II rejections isn't that bad.

 

[efle]

How many total interviews, and where were said interviews?

 

[DrHart]

IIs
Albany Medical College
Case
Drexel
Hofstra
Temple
Loyola
NYMC
Rutgers
Robert Wood Johnson
SUNY Upstate
Thomas Jefferson
UMiami
Weill Cornell


forgot to mention waitlisted at SUNY Upstate

so to be clear, you had 13 IIs. 3 waitlists, and 10 rejections? This seems almost unapologetically like a problem with your interviewing.

 

[efle]

sociable extroverted interviewer, you name it

IIs
Albany Medical College
Case
Drexel
Hofstra
Temple
Loyola
NYMC
Rutgers
Robert Wood Johnson
SUNY Upstate
Thomas Jefferson
UMiami
Weill Cornell


forgot to mention waitlisted at SUNY Upstate

...honestly man if you went to 13 interviews and came away with 10 rejects and 3 WL, I think your interviewing might not be as strong as you think

 

[DrHart]

Interviews:
Drexel
Hofstra
Rutgers
Robert Wood Johnson
UMiami

you didn't attend the others?

 

[efle]

Interviewers are supposed to make you feel comfortable and be very friendly and easy to talk to themselves. You can feel like it went great when really it didn't. If you went to 13 interviews and 75% outright rejected you, they were going poorly for sure.

 

[efle]

Oh I see the problem. On SDN, II = Interview Invitation, not Secondary!

So really you had 5 interviews, with 2 rejects and 3 waitlists.

5 interviews is a good number, I don't think anything was wrong with your app on paper. And with 3 waitlists and being only the first week of May right now, hope is not lost.

 

[Lawpy]

IIs
Albany Medical College
Case
Drexel
Hofstra
Temple
Loyola
NYMC
Rutgers
Robert Wood Johnson
SUNY Upstate
Thomas Jefferson
UMiami
Weill Cornell


forgot to mention waitlisted at SUNY Upstate

Interviews:
Drexel
Hofstra
Rutgers
Robert Wood Johnson
UMiami

I received 13 secondaries, was invited to 5 interviews, 8 post-II rejects

Ok dude II = interview invite. Not secondary.

 

[Thienyl15]

II stands for "interview invite", but that's beside the point. Unless you come off as "weird" or were being a bit **too** friendly to the extent of it feeling forced, you may have just rambled on or, like you said, rubbed interviewers the wrong way.

 

[efle]

Actually...something is a little weird. You applied to 32 schools and only got secondaries from 13 of them?

 

[Thienyl15]

What's wrong here... I thought these were common.

Edited my post to reflect your outcome, miscommunication there.

 

[knicksfan3131]

How'd you only get 13 secondaries if your list was what you said at the top (has like 30 schools on it)

 

[bluedevil5126]

I received 13 secondaries, was invited to 5 interviews, 8 post-II rejects

II= interview invite. Not invitation to complete the secondary. Therefore, post II rejection would mean you interviewed there and subsequently got rejected.

was it 5 IIs or 13 IIs? It also seems strange that you'd only be invited for 13 secondaries unless you got invited for more and decided to only complete the ones for schools in which you were most interested.

 

[Lawpy]

ahh sorry, apologies for the mix up. Yes, I had 13 secondaries and 5 IIs...

How do you have 13 secondaries from 30 schools

 

[Thienyl15]

The 13 secondaries is weird...something definitely tripped a flag during initial screening. Off the top of my head, Vandy and some of the UCs don't hand out secondaries to everyone, but you should have gone 32/32 for this list.

 

[efle]

Getting 5 interviews out of 13 completed apps is great. Your app was solid.

Being complete at only 13 schools is what did you in.

 

[libertyyne]

Here is a simple rule of thumb. If you are getting rejected from multiple schools post Interview. You are doing something wrong in the interview.
2. That fullbright / mcat should be opening up some doors for you.
3. Agree with ^efle as to the cause of the downfall. At its heart it is still a probability game, 20 is the number where the odds start looking good for non rockstar candidates.

 

[libertyyne]

really...I even decided not to shoot for top tiers because im not that strong of an applicant. i don't have enough money to apply to so many schools

Save up some money, or apply for the application aid. Applying to medical school is prohibitively expensive.

 

[Goro]

List is good, but differentials include poor essays, weak or bad LORs, IAs, late apps.

Dear SDN,

long time lurker and Freaking out I applied this cycle EARLY, submitted first day really and am still on 2 waitlists and no acceptances!!

3.7 GPA, 3.6sGPA, 515 MCAT
Asian, NJ
first generation US citizen

-Fulbright scholarship to south korea
-200 clinical hours
-200 non-clinical volunteering
-3 years TA experience
-2.5 years in lab

good letters, sociable extroverted interviewer, you name it. I spent the last year working to pay loans expecting to get in somewhere. I feel like I had a good list. Can someone help me? Is there something wrong with my application?? im crying alone on a saturday night lol..

List: -deleted schools I didn't submit secondaries to-
Albany Medical College
Boston University SOM
Drexel
Emory
Geisel
Hofstra
SUNY Buffalo
USC
Temple
Loyola
NYMC
Penn State
Rutgers
Robert Wood Johnson
Thomas Jefferson
SUNY Downstate
SUNY Upstate
Stony Brook University
Tufts
UMiami
URochester
Virginia Tech
Western Michigan University

 

[pillowsnice]

Understanding what was trying to be said in this thread used way too much energy than I expected.

 

[chinesedude]

bruh please get in somewhere or this will be hella depressing

 

[CharlieBillings]

Only being complete at 13 schools looks like the issue. For reference I was complete at about 30 MD and DO schools and walked away with 2 WL and 1 accept.

 

[chinesedude]

Only being complete at 13 schools looks like the issue. For reference I was complete at about 30 MD and DO schools and walked away with 2 WL and 1 accept.

with a 3.8/35??? please tell me you had mediocre ECs or something... that makes 0 sense

 

[CharlieBillings]

with a 3.8/35??? please tell me you had mediocre ECs or something... that makes 0 sense

3 IIs and 1 acceptance is actually right on target for average for MD schools. I also had 0 research experience lol

 

[chinesedude]

your problem is you want it too bad
look at how much miscommunication there was in this thread, where we can literally type our answers out in any amount of time we want.
don't forget SDN is a small sample of people going to med school. seeing others get in with similar scores by no means will translate to your success. be prepared to take the L this cycle and reapply

savage

 

[kb1900]

Don't stress. The obvious issue here is that you basically only applied to 13 schools. Getting 5 interviews from 13 schools is already impressive.

This is a numbers game and you should have done enough research prior to aplying to realize that 13 is not just an extremely low number but AN UNLUCKY NUMBER (jk).

The valedictorian of my school last year had his pickings of Stanford, Harvard med and UCSF and he still applied to 25 schools.


But seriously you have a good shot to come off your waitlists, and if not, save enough money to apply very broadly next cycle and you'll be okay

 

[Spr1ngrolls]

While I can see how not pulling through with all your schools secondaries hurt you, I'm still genuinely surprised you didn't get an acceptance anywhere... Fulbright too...?

 

[Spr1ngrolls]

This is a numbers game and you should have done enough research prior to alllying to realizing that 13 is not just an extremely low number but AN UNLUCKY NUMBER (jk).

case closed!!! gj everyone

 

[Dr_Grabow]

case closed!!! gj everyone

I would disagree. Applying purposefully and strategically is what matters. Use tools such as MSAR and find which schools within your stats range accept the highest percentage of out of state students or of those closest to your level. I think it is grossly irresponsible to spend the money required for 30 schools when you can have 10 that are well within reach and a few reach schools.

 

[Labrat07]

I would disagree. Applying purposefully and strategically is what matters. Use tools such as MSAR and find which schools within your stats range accept the highest percentage of out of state students or of those closest to your level. I think it is grossly irresponsible to spend the money required for 30 schools when you can have 10 that are well within reach and a few reach schools.

I would disagree with you. In order to maximize the chance to get in, you need to apply broadly and many especially with borderline stat. As you can see from OP, his stats are phenomenon and got luck out. This process is a crap shoot sometime. One year salary lost and the stress of reapplying will demoralize you. Why risk it? Couple thousands mean nothing in this process. I rather spent that. i rather know I put in the maximum efforts than risk even a chance of reapplying

 

[libertyyne]

I would disagree. Applying purposefully and strategically is what matters. Use tools such as MSAR and find which schools within your stats range accept the highest percentage of out of state students or of those closest to your level. I think it is grossly irresponsible to spend the money required for 30 schools when you can have 10 that are well within reach and a few reach schools.

You are completely discounting the fact that actual capricious humans review the app prior to interview. Someone may assign points differently because one of your essays gave them a bad impression or because they forgot their morning coffee. Once you make it past the screen there is still room for being rejected without reason.

 

[pbsdrinkingwhale]

.

 

[Nucleophile1]

The biggest thing I see is that you do not have any physician shadowing. Is that included in your clinical hours?

 

[bannie22]

There is something wrong with your application if you applied to 30+ and got invited to complete a secondary at less than half of them. Most schools are excited to give out secondaries to make more dough. Not even offering you one is a serious problem.

 

[nonamesleft]

You essentially only applied to 13 schools. You were able to obtain 5 interviews. This means that on paper, your application was solid. However, you were unable to convert any interviews to an outright acceptance. This means 1) You interviewed too late in the cycle (basically interviewing for a spot on the waitlist), and/or 2) You have poor interview skills.

If you don't get off a waitlist this cycle, my advice is to practice your interview skills. Obviously, applying to more schools should get you more interviews. However, if your interview skills don't improve, more interviews won't mean an acceptance.

 

[DrfluffyMD]

Perhaps go back to Asia to pursue medical school if that is an option

What's up with that? In no part of the OP did he indicate that he grew up anywhere besides the US did he?

 

[NonTrad16]

There is something wrong with your application if you applied to 30+ and got invited to complete a secondary at less than half of them. Most schools are excited to give out secondaries to make more dough. Not even offering you one is a serious problem. Perhaps go back to Asia to pursue medical school if that is an option

Read the thread. Then comment.

it's not my grades is it.. my parents think it's my grades and I told them my GPA was fine but from this cycle, maybe not

It was not your grades. Or your MCAT. As said above, 13 secondaries with 5 IIs is a really good ratio (expected or a bit low for someone with such high stats/bases covered for ECs), but it's an unpredictable game. Realistically, it seems you should have been able to get an acceptance, so your interview skills may not be the greatest. That said, it's early for waitlist movement, so hopefully things work out.

If you don't get in (still time!), you need to re-write everything, submit early, and apply broadly. A few hundred more for additional secondaries can save you thousands for a reapp, etc. Additionally, you need to work on your interview skills (follow up with your schools career services or premed group). Also, I really hope you kept up your volunteering/ECs, since stopping after you apply/interview would look.. less great. If you took a break, consider restarting...

If you do have to reapply, it's not the end of the world. Just don't skimp on the number of schools. You can turn down interviews once/if you get too many/get accepted early... so it can still turn out to be only a few hundred.

 

[DrHart]

Perhaps go back to Asia to pursue medical school if that is an option

I read that in Sean Spicer's voice

 

[kb1900]

There is something wrong with your application if you applied to 30+ and got invited to complete a secondary at less than half of them. Most schools are excited to give out secondaries to make more dough. Not even offering you one is a serious problem. Perhaps go back to Asia to pursue medical school if that is an option

did you even bother to read the thread? why post in a thread you didnt even skim to offer useless uninformed advice...

and what kind of comment is the bolded?

 

[Dr.Kat]

and what kind of comment is the bolded?

a stupid one.

 

[pillowsnice]

a stupid one.

Looking at his MDapps, he is in fact Asian himself and went to undergraduate in Toronto....so he of all people should not make a comment as ignorant as he did.

 

[nonamesleft]

Dear SDN,

Asian, NJ
first generation US citizen

What's up with that? In no part of the OP did he indicate that he grew up anywhere besides the US did he?

did you even bother to read the thread? why post in a thread you didnt even skim to offer useless uninformed advice...

and what kind of comment is the bolded?

a stupid one.

Looking at his MDapps, he is in fact Asian himself and went to undergraduate in Toronto....so he of all people should not make a comment as ignorant as he did.

@bannie22 was likely speaking/trolling from an overworked resident's perspective, and attempting at a joke in reference to the OP's statement about first gen US citizen. Unfortunately, the pre-med forum doesn't seem to be a good place for an ill-timed joke.

 

[Aerus]

Your interview skills are probably not as strong as you think and may need work. With 5 interview invites and 3 of them being outright rejections instead of WL's, you might have been an "easy" reject". I know many schools are converting to using the waitlist a lot more after an interview and only rejecting applicants they are sure they would not accept.

 

[efle]

I briefly considered an SMP before reapplying because I felt my GPA was holding me back. Thoughts? Or just start my new AMCAS

You absolutely, 100% do not need an SMP. All that you need is to hit complete at a full list of ~20 places instead of a dozen.

And with three waitlists, you have a very good chance of getting an admit in the next month or two anyways!

 

[Gurby]

I would disagree. Applying purposefully and strategically is what matters. Use tools such as MSAR and find which schools within your stats range accept the highest percentage of out of state students or of those closest to your level. I think it is grossly irresponsible to spend the money required for 30 schools when you can have 10 that are well within reach and a few reach schools.

I think it's grossly irresponsible to apply to less than 20 schools except under special circumstances (IE restricted to a region due to spouse career, ailing family member, etc).

 

[begoood95]

I think it's grossly irresponsible to apply to less than 20 schools except under special circumstances (IE restricted to a region due to spouse career, ailing family member, etc).

You know, this is something, at least at my undergrad, that is surprisingly rare.

I'm not exaggerating when I say this, that literally all of my pre-med friends and people I've interacted with plan to apply to at most five schools -- and the norm is usually 1-3. This is probably because our pre-med "advisors" are terrible. You should see their faces when I argue that you should apply to at least 20 well-reasoned schools...

It's crazy how uninformed most pre-meds are. A big thank you to this community for all the information it gives.

 

[Nucleophile1]

I have 30 trauma bay shadowing, 30 in geriatrics, and 30 in pediatrics. I don't think I'm deficient here.
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Yeah, you are not deficient in shadowing hours. If you do not get pulled from the waitlist (and you very well might get pulled), the first I would do would be to set up a mock interview. Your university's career center should have those available. Since you were offered 5 interviews, it is unlikely that your application is the problem.