39 MCAT, 3.97 GPA, nontrad, 4 rejections, no II's. Could use some advice.

[Stanny13]

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[DocGodfather]

Those are great stats. I think you have two things working against you: 1) Submitting your app in October. 2) Your secondaries if you didn't take the time to write them well. Honestly, if you didn't take time to write your secondaries with clarity and care, that alone might be why you don't have interview invites, even with your greats stats. Other with more experience will chime in, as I haven't been through the process, yet.

 

[Catalystik]

-MCAT is 39N,
-GPA 3.97 (All A+'s except an A- in Theatre
-I'm a former professional ballet dancer (8 years).

My EC's are not stellar but not terrible:
-some Hospital Volunteering,
-a summer of NSERC funded molecular genomics research as well as a year long project,
-working with a dance company for people with disabilities,
-volunteer ballet coach,
-small role in feature film,
-songs going on iTUNES soon, and a few other things.

I have received rejections from Pritzker, Mayo, UNC, and Cornell with no interview invites. The rest of my schools are top tier, with a few mid tier (UC Irvine, U of Miami).

My guesses as to my lack of success thus far are my tardy application (mid Oct.), age (29), only 3 years of undergrad, residency status (Dual U.S./Canadian citizen residing in Canada) and possible lack of genuine specificity in some of my secondaries.

"Top" schools tend to look for applicants that do have "stellar" experiences, after they are drawn to their terrific numbers.

Being late hurt you, but your age, and non-US residency are unlikely to be issues. Early graduation only hurts if one applies with less meaty ECs than those with longer times in college. I'm not clear on what you feel the issue might be with the Secondary essays; perhaps you could elaborate?. Hopefully, your PS passed muster with multiple readers who have an idea of what's called for.

It would hurt if you have no recent academics or if you had no upper-level Bio and Biochem to show you can handle more rigorous science coursework.

It would hurt if you did not submit LORs from science faculty who taught you, and for top research schools, it would hurt if you had no PI letter regarding your research.

What does "some" hospital volunteering mean? Could you specify semesters of involvement and total hours? Perhaps you didn't have sufficient clinical experience in the eyes of some adcomms. Did you have physician shadowing, an oft expected, but not specified EC?

Top schools generally look for evidence of leadership qualities; did you list something in this category? And they want to see substantive research where you had creative input; did this happen? Any publications, posters, presentations to mention?

You have a number of interesting/unique components to your application that would make you memorable, along with good Teaching and Volunteerism. But with less than two years of research (one year being average for all applicants) and no leadership (that was mentioned), I think that a greater emphasis on safer schools might have been wise. Still, the season is only half done, so don't give up hope. Columbia might like you due to your Artistic Endeavors. It would be a good idea though to plug any holes in your application for the sake of update letters and the possible need to reapply (as even high stat folks don't have a 100% chance).

 

[Stanny13]

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[Catalystik]

There are many characteristics valuable in a ballet dancer that translate well into what med school adcomms are looking for: dedication, teamwork, rising above self, persistence, and consistency, among them. But leadership, scientific curiosity, ability to relate to sick people and those from other cultures, problem-solving, an understanding of what the practice of medicine entails from a doc's point of view, health care and medical environment policies, ability to transmit information to others so they can act on it, are all traits that need to be conveyed through other experiences. I invite you to read this forum widely to see how others have done this.

 

[Stanny13]

Thanks again.