- Joined
- Nov 1, 2019
- Messages
- 18
- Reaction score
- 33
Hey there, hoping for a little bit of help from you guys as this is my 3rd cycle and I think I really need some advice. Here's some info about myself:
I applied this past 2021-2022 cycle (had help forming my school roster from a SDN post I made) and got secondaries submitted to 11 MD schools and 4 DO schools in the midwest/east coast (IU, RFU, WMU, Oakland U, U of Toledo, Georgetown, George Washington U, Drexel, Sidney Kimmel, NYMC, Creighton, DMU, Marian, UNE, PCOM). I received 2 II (1 MD and 1 DO) and all the others were pre-II rejections. I had my interview with my top choice again in Aug that went pretty well, and just recently got placed on their waitlist (2 LOIs have been sent so far). I bombed my interview with the DO school a few months ago, but ended up getting waitlisted anyways (sending a LOI in a couple of days).
I'm planning on submitting my application by 6/7 this cycle. I've been procrastinating on starting this cycle's application since I'm on 2 waitlists, but that's honestly not the best way to think about it, so I'm starting now. Regarding what's changed since last cycle, I have a year of clinical research technician work under my belt now, but that's pretty much it (not counting personal growth and better mindsets). I am pretty sure I have a great personal statement, and I'm very reluctant to change much about it for my application this cycle as I have nothing more to add to what I consider is a great and very unique PS. I'm honestly not sure what med schools are wanting from me anymore, as I think my application is pretty solid for the average matriculant (and I say this as a person who can be pretty critical of herself most of the time), and I'm kinda chalking my lack of II/acceptances up to bad luck. My state DO school didn't even show any interest in me, and from what I've read, that's not super common for most people. 🙁 So please, any advice is welcome.
Regarding a school roster for this year, last year, I was trying to stay around the midwest/east coast to be close-ish to family. At this point, I'm totally fine with anywhere, as long as it's a great school with a good curriculum and student satisfaction. Based on my list from last year and the results, is there anything that I should do regarding choosing schools this year?
Sorry, that was a lot, but thanks in advance!
- 3.74 cGPA with 3.6 sGPA (upward trend on the sGPA)
- MCAT = 507 (126/126/127/128)
- IN resident
- White Female
- Small private college, double-majored in biology and dance
- Clinical work: After graduating in spring 2019, I started medical scribing full-time in the summer of 2019 (family practice at first, then was switched to ED; 4400+ hrs overall). Dropped to part time for 1 year but started up full-time again this April.
- Research: Worked 1100+ hrs as a part-time clinical research technician with my state medical school from May 2021 to April 2022 (involved data entry/interpretation as well as significant patient interaction with participants trying to enroll them in the study). Also did an independent research project during senior year of college researching/using CRISPR.
- Shadowing: ~17 or so shadowing hours (infectious disease specialist, family dentist, and veterinarian) prior to starting scribing.
- Non-clinical volunteering: Teacher's assistant at local elementary school (d/t family connections); assisting college students with teaching science classes to elementary students weekly during undergrad; choreographing and teaching said choreography to high-school students in a few local musical theatre productions during my final years of undergrad. Honestly, I haven't done much since graduating d/t Covid and work, but I still do some teaching assistant stuff from time to time. Been reeeeally thinking about going back to volunteering at my local animal shelter lately as I used to do it in high school and it's something that I really enjoy.
- Other extracurricular activities: I was a double major in biology as well as dance during undergrad, resulting in me being a large part of the dance dept. and the performances they put on. Our dept. was recently well-known in the dance world, therefore I had a lot of chances to meet with amazingly talented artists and become a part of their work. Also, I was a teacher's assistant for multiple upperclassman classes during the final 3 yrs of undergrad; I also tutored for a freshman-level biology class during my 2nd year. After my freshman year, I went on a medical mission trip with multiple healthcare providers to Nicaragua to provide medical care to some underserved/rural villages.
- Relevant honors or awards: Member (and president during my senior year) of my university's chapter of Sigma Zeta National Science and Mathematics Honor Society; multiple merit and financial-based scholarships during undergrad.
- Other info: LizzyM score of 67.5, ARS score of 75.
I applied this past 2021-2022 cycle (had help forming my school roster from a SDN post I made) and got secondaries submitted to 11 MD schools and 4 DO schools in the midwest/east coast (IU, RFU, WMU, Oakland U, U of Toledo, Georgetown, George Washington U, Drexel, Sidney Kimmel, NYMC, Creighton, DMU, Marian, UNE, PCOM). I received 2 II (1 MD and 1 DO) and all the others were pre-II rejections. I had my interview with my top choice again in Aug that went pretty well, and just recently got placed on their waitlist (2 LOIs have been sent so far). I bombed my interview with the DO school a few months ago, but ended up getting waitlisted anyways (sending a LOI in a couple of days).
I'm planning on submitting my application by 6/7 this cycle. I've been procrastinating on starting this cycle's application since I'm on 2 waitlists, but that's honestly not the best way to think about it, so I'm starting now. Regarding what's changed since last cycle, I have a year of clinical research technician work under my belt now, but that's pretty much it (not counting personal growth and better mindsets). I am pretty sure I have a great personal statement, and I'm very reluctant to change much about it for my application this cycle as I have nothing more to add to what I consider is a great and very unique PS. I'm honestly not sure what med schools are wanting from me anymore, as I think my application is pretty solid for the average matriculant (and I say this as a person who can be pretty critical of herself most of the time), and I'm kinda chalking my lack of II/acceptances up to bad luck. My state DO school didn't even show any interest in me, and from what I've read, that's not super common for most people. 🙁 So please, any advice is welcome.
Regarding a school roster for this year, last year, I was trying to stay around the midwest/east coast to be close-ish to family. At this point, I'm totally fine with anywhere, as long as it's a great school with a good curriculum and student satisfaction. Based on my list from last year and the results, is there anything that I should do regarding choosing schools this year?
Sorry, that was a lot, but thanks in advance!
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