And when you dream... Dream BIG! (Johns Hopkins)

[Twiigg]

Okay... so I have this dream! I know that you're supposed to apply broadly and just go to where you are accepted, but hey, I can dream! I really want to go to Johns Hopkins. Now, don't worry... I know my chances are one in a million, but I just don't want to have any regrets!

Anyway, I just wanted to know from all you experienced persons... If you could give, in your mind, a perfect equation for getting into Hopkins, what would it be? I am a freshman about to begin my second semester, if that helps. Any information you have on the school and what it's looking for would help tremendously. I have already consulted the MSAR and looked over their website, so any "secrets of the trade" or personal experiences with the application process and the school would be perfect!

I know this is early and I am being a bit naive, but really, any ideas or suggestions would be great!

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[Begaster]

Be in a great undergrad institution, get a great GPA, destroy the MCAT, and volunteer to build bridges in Africa.

 

[Shejeboshease]

Okay... so I have this dream! I know that you're supposed to apply broadly and just go to where you are accepted, but hey, I can dream! I really want to go to Johns Hopkins. Now, don't worry... I know my chances are one in a million, but I just don't want to have any regrets!

Anyway, I just wanted to know from all you experienced persons... If you could give, in your mind, a perfect equation for getting into Hopkins, what would it be? I am a freshman about to begin my second semester, if that helps. Any information you have on the school and what it's looking for would help tremendously. I have already consulted the MSAR and looked over their website, so any "secrets of the trade" or personal experiences with the application process and the school would be perfect!

I know this is early and I am being a bit naive, but really, any ideas or suggestions would be great!

1. try to do really well in your premed requirement classes
2. take a lot of easy classes to balance your gpa
3. gpa is huge, so try not to get it below 3.8
4. start looking mcat practice exams
5. read economist or wall street journal from now
6. take the mcat during your sophomore summer, and get around 32-33
7. find a research position at your undergrad instititution
8. volunteer 3-4 hour every week until you graduate at a nearby hospital/free clinic
9. may be join a couple of student organizations
10. keep real good relationship with your adviser and few other professors

if you do all these, and keep your ears and eyes open, i'm sure you will get into if not hopkins, at least some other really good medical school. but the bottomline is, it really really doesn't matter which med school you go to, especially if they all top 50, unless of course, your significant other is going to that school.

 

[Bartelby]

Right now focus on getting good grades (over a 3.8). Find extracurriculars that you really enjoy and become active in them, eventually going to a leadership position in one or more of them. Look around at labs that interest you and then get involved in their research, preferably doing some independent research in your senior year or before. Ace the MCAT. Just take it one step at a time. If you don't screw up your grades this year, you will be ahead of most of the pack.

 

[alesdu1]

i thought this was a very good list so i just added a few things.

1. try to do really well in your premed requirement classes
2. take a lot of easy classes to balance your gpa
3. gpa is huge, so try not to get it below 3.8
4. start looking mcat practice exams
5. read economist or wall street journal from now
6. take the mcat during your sophomore summer, and get around 32-33( a LOT of people at Hopkins didnt come from Ivies. State schools/small privates are well represented. Just know that your mcat will need to be higher though. you dont have a name to fall back on.)
7. find a research position at your undergrad instititution
8. volunteer 3-4 hour every week until you graduate at a nearby hospital/free clinic
9. may be join a couple of student organizations (join a few and become outstanding in them. really have something to show for what you did....dont just put down on amcas that you were a member)
10. keep real good relationship with your adviser and few other professors
11. try to be wierd in some way. if you have some odd hobby, or anything that most people dont do....pursue it! everyone i met at hopkins had somethin g that just stook out about them, ie former army medic, student who had traveled for 12 months around the world before they showed up, former professional magician, etc. there are hardly many "typical" pre-meds at hopkins. everyone stands out and was outstanding academically

if you do all these, and keep your ears and eyes open, i'm sure you will get into if not hopkins, at least some other really good medical school. but the bottomline is, it really really doesn't matter which med school you go to, especially if they all top 50, unless of course, your significant other is going to that school.

 

[Twiigg]

Awesome! Thanks for the great advice. Concerning research, how would you advise accomplishing this? Should I just talk to one of my professors? How do you decide what kind of research or is it just any you can find? I have heard that undergrad research usually involves pretty menial and monotonous chores. I'm fine doing this, but will that even look good on my application? Finally, do I need to be published in some type of research to get into Hopkins? Thanks!

 

[HSTeacher2MD]

Awesome! Thanks for the great advice. Concerning research, how would you advise accomplishing this? Should I just talk to one of my professors? How do you decide what kind of research or is it just any you can find? I have heard that undergrad research usually involves pretty menial and monotonous chores. I'm fine doing this, but will that even look good on my application? Finally, do I need to be published in some type of research to get into Hopkins? Thanks!

Easiest thing to do is to start browsing the websites of any number of researchers in a department of your interest. Then email the PI and tell him that you're interested in working in his/her lab. I got a work-study job in a microscopy lab, and then expressed my interest with doing some more independent work--my boss then hooked me up with my eventual research advisor.

Yes -- expect to clean glassware for a few weeks/months. But after that, you'll be suprised with the amount of autonomy you'll eventually get. Just be reliable, willing to make mistakes and learn from them and excited about the research project (you have to be if you're working on something for 3+ years).

And publications NEVER hurt... obviously.

 

[Twiigg]

What about psych majors? I am considering double majoring in psychology, but, at least from what I have heard, psychology isn't a great way to go because many adcoms consider it an easy major? I didn't think so... any thoughts? I find it really interesting.

 

[seraph524]

I'm also going to say study abroad is a must...Hopkins likes to see things like that, cultural exposure and experience... I don't have any, and I think that is what got me rejected post-secondary.

Also, they seem to like people who have taken time off to explore other things in their lives before jumping into medical school.

Other than that, they might just be elitist like every other high ranked medical school in this country.

 

[SigurRos]

What about psych majors? I am considering double majoring in psychology, but, at least from what I have heard, psychology isn't a great way to go because many adcoms consider it an easy major? I didn't think so... any thoughts? I find it really interesting.

just nail the mcat and no adcomms will doubt the rigor of your major coursework

 

[SigurRos]

I'm also going to say study abroad is a must...Hopkins likes to see things like that, cultural exposure and experience... I don't have any, and I think that is what got me rejected post-secondary.

Also, they seem to like people who have taken time off to explore other things in their lives before jumping into medical school.

Other than that, they might just be elitist like every other high ranked medical school in this country.

I don't think they care too much about study abroad seeing as I didn't have any SA experience and I was still invited for an interview.

 

[DescentFan]

Two prerequisites before anything else:

GPA > 3.8
MCAT > 35

Do these and you will go far.

 

[Mbekweni]

Grades and GPA are important. So are extracurriculars while you're an undergrad. Follow your passions and you'll do a lot better than if you pursue some prescribed list.

An odd piece of advice from me: Take a year off after college before applying and use it to do something really unique. Travel, volunteer abroad, work with an NGO etc. The average age for the entering class at most medical schools is around 24, which means they prefer students with more life experience. Your essays will be better, your interviews will be more interesting, and you'll set yourself apart from everybody else who is applying straight out of college. The very good medical schools like Hopkins seem to really emphasize this. Plus, it'd be a ton of fun!

 

[ICanDoThis]

What about psych majors? I am considering double majoring in psychology, but, at least from what I have heard, psychology isn't a great way to go because many adcoms consider it an easy major? I didn't think so... any thoughts? I find it really interesting.

What about Neuroscience instead of Psych? It might be considered a little more "hard-core" by some Adcoms.

Also, as the above posters have suggested, I think community involvement will be very important. Baltimore is a city facing significant poverty related issues, so I think any social work you do would be a huge plus (think free clinics, homeless shelters etc.)

Finally, while I think it's awesome that you have set for yourself such a lofty goal, remember to retain a certain degree of open-mindedness as you approach your application year. As you develope career and personal interests, you might find other schools appealing to you even more than Hopkins. (For example: do you envision yourself doing well in an urban setting like Baltimore? Do you want to go to a school that doesn't have a true pass/fail system?)
Hopkins certainly is a leading institution in medicine, but don't forget that there are many other incredible institutions out there!

 

[Twiigg]

That's true! Thanks for the input. As far as taking a year off after college, doesn't that hurt your MCAT score or do you take it before you take your year off? If so, how long are MCATs "good" for? Do they last over a year?

 

[A Wall]

I was a psych major, and it hasn't hurt me any, I don't think--my faculty interviewer at Hopkins was a psychiatrist, and I ended up with an acceptance. Pre-med was pretty much a major on its own, so there's a difference between a straight psych major and a pre-med psych major. But, as someone else said, doing well on the MCAT and your premed coursework will probably assuage any doubts adcomms might have about your academic credentials.

 

[lemon tree]

That's true! Thanks for the input. As far as taking a year off after college, doesn't that hurt your MCAT score or do you take it before you take your year off? If so, how long are MCATs "good" for? Do they last over a year?

3 years

 

[Twiigg]

Isn't taking the MCAT in the summer of your sophomore year a little early? If you want to apply early, when is early exactly? Is applying in the fall of your junior year early or should you apply even earlier if you want to increase your chances of acceptance? I'm confused about the time-line of MCAT/application process. What would it look like if you wanted to apply early?

 

[Twiigg]

Oh... and how hard is physics on the MCAT? I mean, would I be well prepared if I decided to take physics I & II in the summer? It would really help out with my scheduling, but I don't want to jeopardize my MCAT score on the physics problems!

 

[HumidBeing]

You would be applying the summer AFTER your junior year for the start of school in August of the following year. If you were sending in applications the summer before that, you would be applying for the wrong year.

 

[timurx]

i applaud you for dreaming big...just remember keep[ in mind that the person to right and left of you in most of you in your premed classes are also "dreaming big"

also, just wondering why john's hopkins specifically is your goal? Not that rankings should matter much at all, but harvard is currently at #1 (and not to mention JH is notorious for its horrendous location)

gluck, some good advice here, all i can add is to keep ur head up, move to your own beat, dont follow any preset formula that too many premeds do only to wind up as "cookie cutter" applicants, and ENJOY college by meeting different people and exploring different/new interests as it will build character (something no amount of studying from a textbook will do for you)

 

[Mbekweni]

Oh... and how hard is physics on the MCAT? I mean, would I be well prepared if I decided to take physics I & II in the summer? It would really help out with my scheduling, but I don't want to jeopardize my MCAT score on the physics problems!

I would strongly advise you to take a bit of extra time. Taking the MCAT right after your pre-reqs are finished could be helpful, but try not to rush too much. Your MCAT score is good for 3 years, so you don't have to take it the same year you apply. Also, studying a lot specifically for the exam is VERY advisable. I wasn't sure exactly what to do, and so I took a test prep course that I found very helpful.

You'll have to find the schedule that works best for you. Make sure you have plenty of extracurriculars throughout your undergrad years, and concentrate on ones that are really unique. Everybody seems to be doing physician shadowing, hospital volunteering, and research relating to medical issues (heart disease, cancer etc). Doing this will definitely help you get into a good medical school- but so many people are doing these things that having them on your resume is no longer enough to stand out at schools that have their pick from the top applicants. You will need to have clinical experience, that's a given. But there is no set amount of time that you "need." Just as long as you have had a meaningful experience.

From there, just follow your interests. Be different, daring, and break away from what everyone else is doing. Get to know your professors well (working in a lab with them really helps, as does meeting with your advisor regularly). Good luck!

 

[raininspain]

Find something you are passionate about, and dedicate a lot of time to it. If that lands you in the medical school path, then you will have no problem selling yourself as an awesome candidate.

At the same time, make sure you do really well in your classes. Learning the material in your pre-med classes helps quite a bit when it comes to MCATS..for me at least.

Take it one step at a time, and enjoy college! I played for the first two years, (thank God I managed to maintain a competitive GPA) and got involved in a lot of things I thought I wanted to do (business, social justice, gerontology...don't ask=/), and only realized the beginning of my junior year that medicine allowed me to do all of those things in some aspect or another.

So, I hesitantly took the MCATS, got involved in bench research (hated it and quit after a month) , clinical research (loved it), and some medical outreach (loved it as well) and...the rest was history.

It's definitely more about the journey than the end goal. If you involve yourself in projects you're passionate about, you will end up at a medical school that appreciates your values and mission...a school that will be the best fit for you...and I believe you'll be a happy camper. And hopefully, that's JHU for you. Good luck!