3rd time reapplicant help please :)

You might not like to hear this, but I suggest that you wait a year to reapply a 3rd time. You correctly identified your lack of clinical experience as the major hole during your first app. This was not rectified in your 2nd app. While working as a medical scribe does count as clinical experience, there needs to be more than that. I'm thinking about volunteering for hospice, ER, as a NICU cuddler, etc.

I feel that if you reapply again so quickly without significant improvement, you will lose the time, $$, and be a 4th time applicant. There is no rush, medical schools will be there. So take a year to shore up your clinical volunteering, rewrite your PS, activities, work on your interviewing skills, and see if you can get another strong LOR and dump the generic one.

The 124 CARs will not hinder you from getting into a school (MD or DO) because the subsection is given the most leniency. As long as your MCAT is not in danger of expiring, take an extra year and apply when you have the holes plugged.

GL!!!

 

I would call the admissions office of schools that have denied you in the past and ask if they will give you an idea where your application is lacking. Your stats look good on the surface, so I imagine it might be some of your letters not being as positive as you think or not having enough substance in your essays/personal statement. Ensure these aren't generic, and have someone with experience read them over. Also weigh whether a competitive school is more important to you then going to medical school. You can always apply to less competitive schools or apply DO.

When I did my applications a lot of the questions had to do with how I would contribute to the diversity of the school. So that's also something to consider.

 

Unless the schools require a LOR from a doctor (DOs might require one), physician LORs are not given much weight by Adcoms. I suggest getting a strong LOR from another professor or a PI or a volunteering supervisor.

Be sure to get about 250+ of hospice hours or cumulative clinical volunteering hours in before your next app. Your hurdle is being a 3X applicant, so getting standout hours are important.

 

Wow you didn't get in anywhere with your stats? Reading this is making me lose hope lol

 

Which schools did you apply to this cycle?

 

I am surprised that you did not receive any MD interviews from that list. The next time you apply include at least 8 DO schools and you are competitive for all DO schools. For MD schools I suggest these:
Vermont
Quinnipiac
New York Medical College
Hofstra
Drexel
Temple
Jefferson
Penn State
George Washington
West Virginia
Eastern Virginia
Oakland Beaumont
Western Michigan
Medical College Wisconsin
Rosalind Franklin
St. Louis
Creighton
Loma Linda
Seton Hall
NOVA MD
California University
any new schools that may open for 2019 (Kaiser, Roseman)

 

I would agree with the poster above that, if you insist on only doing MD, to take another year before applying your third time. This might be the last time for many of the schools as they often have rules against third time reapplicants. From what I understand, the fact that you are a triple applicant may itself be a redflag and you have to make sure that you have something very, very substantial to explain to ADCOMs why you think you were rejected and how you rectified the weakness in the app.

If you don't have a lot of service/voluteering I would recommend considering a year in an Americorps position. You could even leave California to go somewhere across the country if you find something interesting. It is something that could really round out your application as you have the stats and the clinical experience. Of course, it depends on your financial situation, but most programs pay a stipend, and I think if it is your last try it may be worth trying.

 

Was this last app cycle the current cycle?

I wanted to point out that California University is still accepting primary applications - they just opened for applications in AMCAS in late February. Might be worth a shot to throw an app their way.

 

Here is a more realistic list:
Duke (maybe)
U Cincy (maybe)
U VM
Pitt
Mayo
Miami
St. Louis
Albany
Albert Einstein
Rochester
Rush
Rosy Franklin
BU
MCW
Hofstra
NYMC
VCU
EVMS
Wake Forest
Jefferson
Temple
Drexel
Creighton
George Washington
Georgetown
Emory
Tufts
USC/Keck
Tulane
Dartmouth
Loyola
Netter
Oakland-B
Nova MD
Cali U Med
UCD
UCI
UCR IF you're from the Inland Empire
UCLA
Uniformed Services University/Hebert (just be aware of the military service commitment)
Any DO school. I can't recommend Touro-NY, Nova or LUCOM, for different reasons. MSUCOM is suspect given the details of the Larry Nassar case.

Get into non-volunteer hours in service to others less fortunate than yourself
Rewrite all essays
Work on interview skills
You may have a lethal LOR
Shadow a DO
Get LOR from same
Try to get feedback on your rejections

 

Good luck! I scratched up an II there too somehow.

If not, you have an excellent school list to pursue

 

Take an EMT course and work Part Time as an EMT-Basic. Worked for one of the guys in my EMT course he was a med school re applicant, was accepted following cycle.