At a loss

[ShupacTakur]

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Hello,

I'm a 29 ORM from California and I just applied to medical school for the 2nd time this past cycle. I feel at a loss because I only received two IIs. The schools were pretty good I think, one was at a top 20 school and the other was in the top 40.

I did the best I could in the PostBac and I think I really improved my MCAT. However, I think the multiple MCAT hurts me and I think my ECs are lacking. I don't know what to do to increase my chances of getting more interviews. I am going to revamp my personal statement and apply even earlier but I don't know how much that even matters. I was "complete" with my primary on August 12th and finished secondaries from that point until mid-September as I was getting them.

Anyway, I just don't know what to do at this point. I thought I applied well but maybe I need to change up my school list? I will be applying to DO schools as well. Any help will be appreciated, thank you for taking the time to read through all this.

PostBac GPA: 4.0
Total GPA: 3.6
Sci GPA: 3.65

MCAT scores:
Old Scores: 30, 33
2016: 519

ECs:
lots of hours - multiple research positions
lots of hours - Tutoring
~ 100 hours - Shadowing
~ 300 hours - high school volunteering/mentoring
~ 350 hours - Clinical volunteering
some publications: abstracts, posters, low-level author pubs

Here is my school list:
Albany Medical College
Boston University School of Medicine
CA Northstate Univ COM
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Creighton University School of Medicine
David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA
Drexel University College of Medicine
Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
Hofstra Northwell School of Medicine at Hofstra University
Indiana University School of Medicine
Keck Sch. of Med.University of Southern California
Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University
Medical College of Wisconsin
New York Medical College
Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine
Quinnipiac University SOM
Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine
Saint Louis University School of Medicine
Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University
State University of New York Downstate Medical Cen
Stony Brook University School of Medicine
Tufts University School of Medicine
Tulane University School of Medicine
University of Arizona College of Medicine-Phoenix
University of Arizona College of Medicine-Tucson
University of California San Diego
University of California, Davis School of Medicine
University of California, Irvine- College/Medicine
University of California-Riverside School of Medicine
University of Colorado School of Medicine
University of Illinois at Chicago-College of Medic
University of Iowa, Carver College of Medicine
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Den
University of Wisconsin
Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicin
Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine

 

[Gurby]

Is that your school list from this year (you applied to 36)?

 

[ShupacTakur]

Yes, that is correct.

 

[amuseddoughnut]

Your stats look good to me and should get you in somewhere. Maybe you can get some feedback from someone you trust to give you an honest review on your PS.

What does ORM mean?

You should complete your primary by ~June 15th and secondaries as soon as they are available starting in July. You've done so much hard work, you need to give yourself the best chance by submitting as soon as possible.

Don't give up! You're almost there!

 

[Gibbward]

Your stats look good to me and should get you in somewhere. Maybe you can get some feedback from someone you trust to give you an honest review on your PS.

What does ORM mean?

You should complete your primary by ~June 15th and secondaries as soon as they are available starting in July. You've done so much hard work, you need to give yourself the best chance by submitting as soon as possible.

Don't give up! You're almost there!

ORM means overrepresented in medicine.

OP your stats look great to me too, and even with the multiple retakes, that 519 really stands out I think. Your school list from last cycles is also solid and I don't think that would've been the issue. The fact that you got 2 interviews most likely means that there are no deadly letters of recs or glaring red flags in your app as a whole. At this point, the only thing I can think of is that you submit your app in August (which is pretty late in the cycle) and your secondaries and personal statement were not that good.

So I guess moving forward, take a good look at your PS and revise the crap out of it, definitely submit your primary as early as possible (like first week of June), apply to DO schools, and make sure you have well-written secondaries too. Also, how did you feel about your interviews?

 

[wagonwheel23]

You may have stretched yourself too thin. You completed 36 secondaries in one month. That is over 1 per day. Do you think you had time to make them stellar?

Apply earlier, choose fewer schools, and make sure all essays are stellar.

 

[gyngyn]

That is quite an inclusive list. You could easily delete a few without harming your chances.
Were you a re-applicant at all of them?
How did your interviews go? Are you waitlisted?

 

[Goro]

Of your list, I would have expected the following to give you some love. Being a 3x MCAT taker adds a confounder, but a 519 is nothing to sneeze at.
Your relative lack of luck might have been due to poor essays, or a bad LOR

Albany Medical College
Boston University School of Medicine
CA Northstate Univ COM
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
Creighton University School of Medicine
Drexel University College of Medicine
Geisel School of Medicine at Dartmouth
Lewis Katz School of Medicine at Temple University
Medical College of Wisconsin
New York Medical College
Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine
Quinnipiac University SOM
Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine
Saint Louis University School of Medicine
Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University
Tufts University School of Medicine
Tulane University School of Medicine
University of California, Davis School of Medicine
University of California, Irvine- College/Medicine
Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicin
Western Michigan University Homer Stryker M.D. School of Medicine[/QUOTE]

 

[SupermommyMD]

Some schools allow you to get a review of your application to see why maybe you didn't get as much response. So maybe you can call some of the schools to see if they have this option. Much better prespective then those on this forum who are only guessing based on the little information you provide.

Best of Luck,
Cristina
Supermommd.org

 

[coppernickel]

What sticks out to me is that your primary was complete Aug 12th. Granted, I am applying this June, I'm no expert, but this is my second go ahead. My first time I had applied, my primary was complete by Aug 1st, and I had two IIs. My postbac advisors now tell me that they are really shocked I even had two IIs (my mcat wasn't as stellar as yours, 507, for that round). I really think you need to have your app complete earlier. I think you have a strategy problem here.

 

[Sanatore]

I got in on my third app cycle so I've made pretty much every mistake in the book. Here's my two cents.

First, the other guys are right about the submission date. Submit it the week it opens, if not the day. That was the single biggest change in my app between round 2 and round 3. Sept 15 --> June 15th ish (whenever it opened).

Second, do you take adderall? If so, get rid of it to write your personal statement, secondaries, and definitely cycle off of it a month before your interview. This may not be relevant in your case, but if it is, do not gloss over this suggestion. That could easily be problem #1 for your interview outcomes, but doesn't explain the low II %.

Third. I had problems writing my PS. It took me three years to figure out that was because the crap I wanted to be on it couldn't be truthfully put on it, because I hadn't done it. Simple enough solution that evaded me not once, but twice. Ended up quitting my career to take a $9/hr CNA job in a small town halfway across the country. If you aren't working in healthcare currently, fix it. I hate to be so blunt, but you're wasting your time if you're not demonstrating a sustained interest in the field of medicine.

Lastly, you need to give your app some sex appeal, man. I dont know the details of your research experiences, but I'm guessing your problem isn't academic or experience-oriented in nature. On paper, you're a good applicant, but the app looks like a Toyota Camry. It's too prototypical. Adcom's will say things like "Show an interest in medicine, show you can do the work, and show you're willing to help others," but that falls a little short of what they really mean. When I talked to other members of my incoming class, I noticed something strange. We all had this one weird accomplishment that set us apart. Seems obvious, and it is, except as applicants, we are overly idealistic about what qualifies as unique. Get creative. One girl was running her own business making lip balm and selling it on amazon. She probably sold like 5 tubes in her life, but they didn't see that. They saw entrepreneurial spirit. Another guy was an accomplished musician, another an engineer who'd won some innovation contest, and in my case, I found a volunteering opportunity to write a grant proposal on behalf of a small 501(c)3. Well, it got approved, and they just couldn't get enough of the fact that the company awarding the grant was Google, and that the amount was $10,000 monthly to this NPO. That effort took considerably less of my time than all my other efforts put together, but it stood out more than the rest of them combined as well. Like the other guys said, you need a strategy. Get creative, start a quasi-business, or whatever. ADCOM's are like card collectors. Seriously. They don't want two of anything. Heed that knowledge well, and this phase of your life will soon be a distant memory.

 

[lajessmess]

Get creative. One girl was running her own business making lip balm and selling it on amazon. She probably sold like 5 tubes in her life, but they didn't see that. They saw entrepreneurial spirit.

repost

cause what

 

[ShupacTakur]

Thank you to everyone who took the time to comment, sorry for responding so late! And don't worry, not giving up, just feeling kind of down and trying to figure this all out.

Just to clarify some questions, I was a reapplicant to almost all the schools (yes, I applied to a ton my first time as well). I applied in 2013-2014 cycle and then this cycle. I was rejected by one of the schools post-interview due to having a horrible interview. I was a nervous wreck and just wasn't myself. I bounced back though and definitely felt better about my second interview. However, it was to the top 20 school near the end of the interview cycle, and I was put on the waitlist. This school does not give a lot of acceptances off of the waitlist so I'm not counting on anything there. That being said, it is my dream school and I'm hoping and praying everyday! I was able to speak with the two admissions directors to where I received interviews and they said there were no red flags so I don't think there was a bad LOR.

Totally agree with everyone that I need to send in my application and then secondaries right away. That's the one objective thing that I know can be changed. In regards to my PS, I know it could have been better. One major comment that stood out to me was it should sound more upbeat (I had a sad story in it) and, personally, I feel I could have written more from the heart.

I agree, a TON of secondaries. I definitely felt burned out near the end, which prevented me from applying to any D.O. schools. I couldn't imagine filling out anymore applications. I do feel like I need to cast a really wide net though so I think maybe 30 schools is a good amount. I could be wrong though, what do you guys think? I'm saying this since there really doesn't seem to be any "safety" type school for my state.

Also, I know I need to make these secondaries stellar. But honestly, I don't know what the means. When I asked both of the admissions directors (from the two II schools) about my application, they felt whatever I wrote was fine. I know fine isn't stellar, but nothing I wrote was ever bad. I read through the stickies before writing my secondaries and tried to incorporate everything I could. Anyway, I will be taking more time to write my secondaries this time around (as in I've already started).

I have been starting to ask around to medical schools to ask if I can get an idea as to why they didn't give me a shot. So far there haven't been too many that are receptive but I will keep trying, got a long list to go through!

I do not take any adderrall, but I will make sure to NOT take any for my interviews. In terms of sustained medical interest, I have been clinical volunteering and trying to get a job scribing. My friend told me there may be an opening soon where she works and I am definitely jumping on that. In terms of sex appeal, I don't know. You're totally right that on paper I probably look like a Camry (great analogy). Honestly, I don't know how to change this right away. It's definitely cool that a lot of people do crazy awesome things and are very accomplished before entering medical school. I don't know what I could start doing right now that would help me anytime soon though. You did get me to start thinking about that though. I like the card collector analogy as well, haha.

BTW, thank you Goro for sifting through my list and picking out those medical schools. If you have suggestions for any others that aren't listed, please let me know!

*PHEW* that was doozy. Thank you again for anyone who got the end of this. I hope I didn't repeat myself too much =X.