Am I ready to apply in 2023-2024?

[Nontrad_FL_LGBT]

I originally wanted to give myself the extra year to chill and wrap up loose ends, but now considering applying this year due to some new life circumstances. My main criteria for schools (MD/DO) is trans-friendly states only which will put me at a disadvantage as I am trying to leave my current state and will not be applying to any in-state schools. One thing to note, I'd have to finish a semester of Orgo and Biochem each during the application year. I have an outline of my personal statement and have recently started my MCAT journey. Obviously everything hinges on how I do for the MCAT, but do y'all think everything else is good to go?




cGPA ~3.5, sGPA ~3.7. Graduated with ~3.25 cGPA/sGPA with very few science credits like 10 years ago, ~3.75 DIY pbGPA of mostly science courses. Also 3.95+ cGPA unrelated non-science grad degree from 6-7 years ago.

Haven't taken MCAT yet, was planning on taking it in August for 24-25 cycle but could reasonably take it in Jun-July. Just did diagnostic recently, scored 502, aiming for 515+ but obviously this is very up in the air. Studying with uW and AAMC materials. Don't plan on taking it until I'm averaging at least 515ish, so is what would cause me to skip the cycle unless there's some other glaring issue I'm not seeing.

22k non-clinical work hours as a game designer, software engineer, engineering instructor and running my own small business. Most recent professional job focuses on teaching underrepresented people in tech including female and nonbinary identities.

100 shadowing hours
- 50 FM/obesity
- 10-20 gen/child psych
- 8 bariatric surg
- 25 random specialties via virtual.

~600 volunteer clinical hours
- 350 hours as a volunteer MA at two private practices including leading some LGBT+ psych group sessions as a certified Peer Specialist
- 250 hours as a guest comfort volunteer rotating through med/surg, cardiac, l&d, and NICU

100 paid volunteer hours as a home health aide for a family friend with MS, helped with ADLs etc

~400 non-clinical volunteer hours
- 250 hours as a LGBT Text Crisis Line counselor
- 50 hours at a camp for kids with epilepsy
- 25 hours Red Cross volunteer to keep in touch with a veteran at a VA nursing home via phone calls and ensure their needs are met
- 25 hours at a few food banks
- also signed up to do another 50-70 hour camp experience this summer with LGBT kids

1200 research hours from industry work, some friends who happen to be ADCOMs said they'd count it 🤷‍♂️
- 900 hours eye tracking/biological psychology grad project
- 300 hours VR training simulation human factors done with ERAU PhDs and candidates

ECs:
- 10k hours doing video gaming stuff in my former career as a game dev including running/managing tournaments at the collegiate level involving scholarship money, being invited to major company HQ to help develop the collegiate gameplay rules and how the company could support the scene, coach/manager/analyst for several successful teams in collegiate and semi-pro level, several top X World titles personally in solo and team-based activities. Not sure if I should include this since ADCOMs don't really game much, but I think these are pretty impressive accomplishments 🤷‍♂️
- lifelong musician singing across 5+ genres in a variety of settings, currently active in 2 groups which do benefit concerts raising hundreds to thousands of dollars for various charities per year and singing in hospices, nursing homes, etc.
- Foraging / mycology / hiking, recent new interest but has been very fruitful (literally)

Other honors/awards:
- multiple promotions/employee performance awards at every professional role I've held including leadership with 5+ reports and curriculum control over a large section of material
- innovation first place and visual design second place awards for my eye tracker project at an industry conference in the student category

LORs from 2 chem professors who I got As and had great rapport with, 1 from private music/voice instructor for non-science, 1 from former mentor/supervisor in my first instructor job which should be glowing, 2 from the FM and Psych docs I've shadowed/been MAing for which should be glowing as they are single provider practices and I worked closely with them. Could get some from EC stuff or volunteering if it would make any difference.

Fit: LGBT+ health as a trans man, also interested in rural care. Have owned a home and lived in a rural zone for several years, parents own a small hobby farm. Ideal post-grad ideas right now are to be a small town FM or Psych doc and offer telehealth to serve the wider trans community as well. Planning to apply HPSP/VA HPSP/NHSC/whatever programs I can find along these lines.

Plans for app year: continue working full time as a software eng Instructor; continue as a vol MA with the psych practice, continue soup kitchen/VA/LGBT crisis line; add some H4H and equine therapy for kids with serious illnesses because I want to learn how to build stuff and I love horses and hanging out with kids; complete the two classes I have left.

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[chilly_md]

Taking the MCAT in June or July puts you behind since putting together the AMCAS application itself takes a lot of time that you should be dedicating to studying for the MCAT in April and May. If you will not have an in-state school and are limited with regards to geography, that disadvantage could be worse for you. You would not have time to pre-write secondaries since you will not know what schools would be appropriate.

 

[Nontrad_FL_LGBT]

Taking the MCAT in June or July puts you behind since putting together the AMCAS application itself takes a lot of time that you should be dedicating to studying for the MCAT in April and May. If you will not have an in-state school and are limited with regards to geography, that disadvantage could be worse for you. You would not have time to pre-write secondaries since you will not know what schools would be appropriate.

I've already prewritten templates for the common secondary qs, have all my completed and long term in-progress activity entries written, and have most of my LOR requests out on Interfolio. I'm planning one more external review of these but imo they're pretty solid already.

I'd basically be complete once the MCAT score drops and be able to finish pre-writing with specific schools in mind since I assume it'll take a few days or weeks for secondaries to start coming. Does this change the equation at all?

 

[chilly_md]

I've already prewritten templates for the common secondary qs, have all my completed and long term in-progress activity entries written, and have most of my LOR requests out on Interfolio. I'm planning one more external review of these but imo they're pretty solid already.

I'd basically be complete once the MCAT score drops and be able to finish pre-writing with specific schools in mind since I assume it'll take a few days or weeks for secondaries to start coming. Does this change the equation at all?

Do you have a tentative list of all the schools you'd be comfortable with? If you are open to DO as well, it is certainly fine since their cycle runs longer. You've gotten most of the ancillary items out of the way and just have the personal statement then.

 

[stay.hydrated]

I originally wanted to give myself the extra year to chill and wrap up loose ends, but now considering applying this year due to some new life circumstances. My main criteria for schools (MD/DO) is trans-friendly states only which will put me at a disadvantage as I am trying to leave my current state and will not be applying to any in-state schools. One thing to note, I'd have to finish a semester of Orgo and Biochem each during the application year. I have an outline of my personal statement and have recently started my MCAT journey. Obviously everything hinges on how I do for the MCAT, but do y'all think everything else is good to go?




cGPA ~3.5, sGPA ~3.7. Graduated with ~3.25 cGPA/sGPA with very few science credits like 10 years ago, ~3.75 DIY pbGPA of mostly science courses. Also 3.95+ cGPA unrelated non-science grad degree from 6-7 years ago.

Haven't taken MCAT yet, was planning on taking it in August for 24-25 cycle but could reasonably take it in Jun-July. Just did diagnostic recently, scored 502, aiming for 515+ but obviously this is very up in the air. Studying with uW and AAMC materials. Don't plan on taking it until I'm averaging at least 515ish, so is what would cause me to skip the cycle unless there's some other glaring issue I'm not seeing.

22k non-clinical work hours as a game designer, software engineer, engineering instructor and running my own small business. Most recent professional job focuses on teaching underrepresented people in tech including female and nonbinary identities.

100 shadowing hours
- 50 FM/obesity
- 10-20 gen/child psych
- 8 bariatric surg
- 25 random specialties via virtual.

~600 volunteer clinical hours
- 350 hours as a volunteer MA at two private practices including leading some LGBT+ psych group sessions as a certified Peer Specialist
- 250 hours as a guest comfort volunteer rotating through med/surg, cardiac, l&d, and NICU

100 paid volunteer hours as a home health aide for a family friend with MS, helped with ADLs etc

~400 non-clinical volunteer hours
- 250 hours as a LGBT Text Crisis Line counselor
- 50 hours at a camp for kids with epilepsy
- 25 hours Red Cross volunteer to keep in touch with a veteran at a VA nursing home via phone calls and ensure their needs are met
- 25 hours at a few food banks
- also signed up to do another 50-70 hour camp experience this summer with LGBT kids

1200 research hours from industry work, some friends who happen to be ADCOMs said they'd count it
- 900 hours eye tracking/biological psychology grad project
- 300 hours VR training simulation human factors done with ERAU PhDs and candidates

ECs:
- 10k hours doing video gaming stuff in my former career as a game dev including running/managing tournaments at the collegiate level involving scholarship money, being invited to major company HQ to help develop the collegiate gameplay rules and how the company could support the scene, coach/manager/analyst for several successful teams in collegiate and semi-pro level, several top X World titles personally in solo and team-based activities. Not sure if I should include this since ADCOMs don't really game much, but I think these are pretty impressive accomplishments
- lifelong musician singing across 5+ genres in a variety of settings, currently active in 2 groups which do benefit concerts raising hundreds to thousands of dollars for various charities per year and singing in hospices, nursing homes, etc.
- Foraging / mycology / hiking, recent new interest but has been very fruitful (literally)

Other honors/awards:
- multiple promotions/employee performance awards at every professional role I've held including leadership with 5+ reports and curriculum control over a large section of material
- innovation first place and visual design second place awards for my eye tracker project at an industry conference in the student category

LORs from 2 chem professors who I got As and had great rapport with, 1 from private music/voice instructor for non-science, 1 from former mentor/supervisor in my first instructor job which should be glowing, 2 from the FM and Psych docs I've shadowed/been MAing for which should be glowing as they are single provider practices and I worked closely with them. Could get some from EC stuff or volunteering if it would make any difference.

Fit: LGBT+ health as a trans man, also interested in rural care. Have owned a home and lived in a rural zone for several years, parents own a small hobby farm. Ideal post-grad ideas right now are to be a small town FM or Psych doc and offer telehealth to serve the wider trans community as well. Planning to apply HPSP/VA HPSP/NHSC/whatever programs I can find along these lines.

Plans for app year: continue working full time as a software eng Instructor; continue as a vol MA with the psych practice, continue soup kitchen/VA/LGBT crisis line; add some H4H and equine therapy for kids with serious illnesses because I want to learn how to build stuff and I love horses and hanging out with kids; complete the two classes I have left.

Sounds like you have a pretty unique and Interesting journey!! I think you definitely have a shot at T15 schools but I would recommend pre writing your primary app and secondaries if possible! Make sure to emphasize the activities that uniquely make you you.

My primary app and secondaries took a lot longer that I expected:
- I got secondary invites first week of august (pretty much the same day my primary got verified)
- didn’t submit most of my secondaries until end of October through November (except for the school with strict deadlines)

I was pretty worried about how late I submitted my application as well as my MCAT score with a 125 in CARS.

Don’t let your MCAT score hold you back, do your best to make your primary and secondaries the best essays you’ve ever written, do lots of mock interviews, and have confidence!! This is a long and challenging process but only you can make it happen for yourself!!!!

For reference: I was fortunate enough to get the A at Yale, UCLA, UCSD, and UVA as an OOS applicant with a 125 in CARS & 518 overall

 

[Nontrad_FL_LGBT]

Do you have a tentative list of all the schools you'd be comfortable with? If you are open to DO as well, it is certainly fine since their cycle runs longer. You've gotten most of the ancillary items out of the way and just have the personal statement then.

My favorites list on MSAR right now is:
- Pitt
- UCSF
- OHSU (no ties but they request apps from LGBT+)
- UVM
- Geisel
- Tufts (Boston and Maine)
- USUHS
- UI
- Hackensack
- RFU
- Rush
- Loyola
- TJU
- Temple
- Albert Einstein
- Hofstra
- Quinni
- UWisconsin
- MCW
- CMU
- Wayne
- NYU LI
- Rowan
- UChi
- Northwestern
- Mayo
- BU
- Stanford
- Brown

Obviously some of these will be cut either from the top or bottom depending on MCAT.

I'm fine with DO schools within my geography restriction. I think there were about 10 I could reasonably see myself happy attending.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Making sure... I thought I shared this with you, but their next virtual conference is next month. Sign up and network in addition.

Medical Student Pride Alliance

The Medical Student Pride Alliance (MSPA) is a non-profit organization committed to empowering sexual and gender minority medical students and allies, increasing the number of physicians trained in LGBTQIA+ inclusive healthcare, and addressing the unique needs of queer communities through research,

www.medpride.org

I'm a little scared of you taking organic and biochem after the MCAT and during your application year. You might be the exception, but that's a bit scary to not have the bases covered before taking the MCAT.

Are you in a position to move first before applying so you can gain residency in a more desirable state?

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I also point you to the LGBTQ+ subforum if you haven't done so. We have this resource, though I hope others can help update if necessary:

Comprehensive Guide to Transgender Student Health Insurance for Medical School Applicants

**** List is a Work in Progress (WILL UPDATE 5 SCHOOLS A DAY- SORRY I'M BUSY BUT I WILL TRY TO BE QUICK ON THIS LIST) Albany Medical College Therapy? YES Hormones? YES Surgery? YES Albert Einstein Not Mentioned in Exclusions Baylor School of Medicine Therapy? YES Hormones? YES Surgery? NO...

forums.studentdoctor.net

 

[Nontrad_FL_LGBT]

Making sure... I thought I shared this with you, but their next virtual conference is next month. Sign up and network in addition.

Medical Student Pride Alliance

The Medical Student Pride Alliance (MSPA) is a non-profit organization committed to empowering sexual and gender minority medical students and allies, increasing the number of physicians trained in LGBTQIA+ inclusive healthcare, and addressing the unique needs of queer communities through research,

www.medpride.org

I'm a little scared of you taking organic and biochem after the MCAT and during your application year. You might be the exception, but that's a bit scary to not have the bases covered before taking the MCAT.

Are you in a position to move first before applying so you can gain residency in a more desirable state?

I did not know of this event/org, I'll check it out. I did sign up for the AAMC event at the end of this month as well.

I'm doing content review / learning for the MCAT right now; I'll see how it goes, but I'm feeling alright with self-teaching Orgo and Biochem so far using the Kaplan books and online resources. As an engineer I'm really good with learning by myself to be honest so this was not as big of a concern for me personally, but I agree that it's a little spooky and I won't be testing until it's up to snuff. If that puts me back a year so be it, I don't want to sabotage myself.

I am unfortunately not in a financial position to move before I apply. That could change but I doubt I'll be able to get out fast enough to acquire the year of residency most schools seem to require.

 

[LunaOri]

Everything looks great so far! Your school list will depend on your MCAT acore. Be prepared to answer the question “why medicine?” In your PS and interviews.

 

[Nontrad_FL_LGBT]

Everything looks great so far! Your school list will depend on your MCAT acore. Be prepared to answer the question “why medicine?” In your PS and interviews.

Great, thanks for your input. My reasons for pursuing medicine are many tbh; being able to lead and support people through some of the most stressful times of their life, forming strong and potentially lifelong bonds with my patients, and being able to advocate for LGBT+ voices on a greater scale are a few of the big ones.

I am literally fleeing the state I've spent most of my life in part due to quack doctors creating an anti-science climate purely for their own obvious greed or self-aggrandizement. I'd like to help fix that and move trans equality forward on the medical side.

One of the first things that made me really think about medicine was having to loan my childhood friend $500 for a letter of support to start HRT which is a template that took my therapist 2 minutes to fill out in front of me in the room almost a decade ago. There was only one psychiatrist even willing to talk to trans people in the area and he was a complex case with comorbid psych conditions so he needed an MD signoff; such obvious, shameless extortion of an already very marginalized group didn't sit right with me.

My experiences in clinic and the hospital have tempered a lot of the initial impetus of righteous anger to hope and determination to leave things better than I found them; being able to save one person's life or mental health is saving the entire world for them and I want to save as many as I can.