MD & DO Advice on EC's that I'm thinking of including in my list of 15, and also LoR's?

[skrolls]

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Stats:

GPA: 3.63

MCAT: 509 (127/127/127/128)

*Side note about the LoRs: My school does not offer a committee letter, so 3 of my LoR's are coming from individual science professors.

Here's a list of past experiences I'm thinking of including:

These are probably going to be my "top 3" experiences:

• 3 semesters as a TA for my university's Human Anatomy Lab, which included both teaching students and dissecting cadavers for classes. 2 of my LoRs will come from this from the professors I taught for.
  
  
• 1 year ongoing paid experience in biochemistry research totalling probably somewhere around 1,000 hours. I attended 1 conference and have had 3 poster publications (1st author on one) from it so far (Could these publications be a separant experience?). I got hired on by being chosen to work for a school summer research program and the professor I work for serves as a research mentor, and he will probably be my strongest LoR.
  
  
• Hospital volunteering in an emergency center, have around 150 hours right now but plan on getting it to between at least 300 to 400 by application time. Lots of direct patient contact experience. Small leadership role as "shift leader" for my shift.

Other experiences:

• Worked for 2 years as a home health aide, mostly with elderly and mentally disabled clients but some kids also. Regularly performed some minor clinical work similar to what a CNA would do. Will probably ask my old supervisor for a 4th LoR. Good "altruistic" experience?
  
  
• Currently work at a doctor's office. I started working there very recently so right now I'm just learning their systems and doing mostly clerical work, but in time the doctor plans on having me scribe for him, do clinical procedures on patients, and do more managerial work for his practice. By application time I'll have lots of clinical experience and around the beginning of May I'll ask the doctor I work for to serve as a 5th LoR, since by then I think I'll have worked with him long enough (6 months) for him to know me well (Could this be a better "top 3" experience?).
  
  
• Hobbies that might be of interest to med schools: training for triathlons, language learning (Currently learning Spanish. Hope to be proficient if not fluent by application time. My girlfriend is also trying to teach me Ukrainian but that's not going so well 😛).
  
  
• Leadership roles as Treasurer and Scholarship Chairman for my fraternity.
  
  
• 1 1/2 years playing rugby for my school's rugby club.
  
  
• I don't enjoy community service and don't really have any non-clinical volunteering, so I am creating my own: I'm in the process of co-creating a philanthropic group with 2 other people whose purpose will be to provide certain kinds of services to a certain demographic of people that are likely to be underserved and in need (don't want anyone reading this copying our ideas so I'm leaving its description vague 😛).
  
  
• Around 70 hours experience as a clinical research assistant in an ER enrolling patients in studies. Listing it as a research experience rather than a clinical one because although I talked to patients and shadowed ER doctors, the main purpose was gathering data. I saw some really cool things there but I'm kind of iffy on using this one because it was for a class, so I'm concerned that it might be seen as "fluff".
  
  
• Many hours tutoring students in biology, chemistry, and physics. Concerned about using this because I did it independently and for many students, so I wouldn't really have a strong backer to support it when they ask for a reference.
  
  
• Lots of hours (probably around 120 total, this was several years ago so I don't remember the exact amount.) shadowing various technicians and specialists through a school program. This was when I was in high school so I probably won't use it, but I thought I'd ask anyways.

 

[sacholiver]

From my experience this cycle, schools don't seem to care about EC's too much because most competitive applicants have all these fantastic things, so it's hard to differentiate them. I'm sure there's a few things they look for (more or less to check boxes) like leadership, community service and medically-related things, but they will care mostly about GPA and MCAT.

Your MCAT is solid, GPA is decent but a little low for MD. Perhaps if there's an upwards trend then that will be okay (they like the trends apparently - I think so that they can more easily quantify your worth to them...)

EDIT: I was never asked about ANY of my applications EC's in any of my interviews 😛

 

[skrolls]

From my experience this cycle, schools don't seem to care about EC's too much because most competitive applicants have all these fantastic things, so it's hard to differentiate them. I'm sure there's a few things they look for (more or less to check boxes) like leadership, community service and medically-related things, but they will care mostly about GPA and MCAT.

Your MCAT is solid, GPA is decent but a little low for MD. Perhaps if there's an upwards trend then that will be okay (they like the trends apparently - I think so that they can more easily quantify your worth to them...)

EDIT: I was never asked about ANY of my applications EC's in any of my interviews 😛

Hmm. I've heard the opposite from others. I know that a lot of med schools including the one at my university are paying more attention to EC's now, especially clinical experience, but it probably varies by school and interviewer... I've got a very strong (3.7+) upward trend for the last 1.5 years (53 credits) of school. Failed Precalculus 4 years ago (1.6) my freshman year so that's still on my transcript, but I'm going to redeem myself by taking Calculus in the spring and studying my ass off to destroy it.

 

[piii]

Hmm. I've heard the opposite from others. I know that a lot of med schools including the one at my university are paying more attention to EC's now, especially clinical experience, but it probably varies by school and interviewer... I've got a very strong (3.7+) upward trend for the last 1.5 years (53 credits) of school. Failed Precalculus 4 years ago (1.6) my freshman year so that's still on my transcript, but I'm going to redeem myself by taking Calculus in the spring and studying my ass off to destroy it.

It's not one or the other. It's both. They put a lot of emphasis on stats AND ECs. Stats get your foot in the door. ECs solidify you as a well rounded person. Interview and essays give you personality. Both your GPA and MCAT are less than the accepted average. But they won't hold you back. Choose broad list of schools.