bummer! i might have to reapply

[katiesb]

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Hi everyone, it seems likely that I'll have to reapply this year, any advice would be greatly appreciated as sdn is pretty much my only source!

I recently graduated from a UC majoring in biochem with a 3.3 and 32n MCAT. I had 240 volunteer clinical hours, 90 leadership, 200 paid clinical hours, and I was a member of a premed sorority as well as choir. I also shadowed a DO for two days over summer. LORs were medicocre probably, but I think all of my essays were well written. I think what got me was how late I applied, I had my primary in by july, but my secondaries were'nt in untill dec for MD and feb/mar for DO. I interviewed andwas waitlisted at western and AZCOM, have in interview scheduled at touro-ca. Everyon e else rejected me! Ha

This year I have beenvliving in expensive santa barbara and working in an ENTs office, but I def don't want to do that for another year.any advice on how to improve my application? Or what to do for another year off? I know the two ENTs I work for will write me great LORs, and I will def apply ASAP this time. But other than that i 'm kinda dreading this year and doing it all over again! Please help!

 

[katiesb]

Also, sorry for the typos I'm on my droid! Lol

 

[jslo85]

I'd probably make a phone call to one of the schools that rejected you to have a comprehensive open file review. If they don't agree to this, then ask them a rather pointed question whether they feel that your LOR can be stronger and try to get a feel for what they are trying to imply in their response.

Your MCAT is defnitely not a problem for either of those schools and your GPA technically should not have been the problem either. Western I believe does have a higher GPA average for their OMS-1 matriculants than other osteopathic schools but your MCAT should have offset that slightly.

You also applied in July which is not late by any means for the osteopathic cycle. How do you think you did on your interview? Maybe buying a medical school interview prep book might help next time.

I'd also take more time in "shadowing" a DO and have one of them write you a strong LOR. Realize that many osteopathic schools place heavy emphasis on the review that is given to them of an applicant by what they see as a "credible" source. I personally think you can vastly improve on your physician shadowing as this in itself is subjective when you put it on your E.Cs. Certain questions that might be raised would be ok, so and so didn't spend too much time in the office and did he/she stand in the corner silently with a thumb up their @#$? Or did he/she participate in differential diagnosis, cooperate with the office staff, learn to take vitals, scribe, recognize common symptoms, etc. A physician's LOR can go a long long way.

 

[Total180]

I would continue doing some sort of volunteer work but really make sure your LOR's are good. If you think your letters were "meh" then the the adcoms probably thought you were "meh" too. "meh" doesn't get you into med school, awesome does!!! So I would look into your LOR situation. Also, while your cGPA is a bit low, I think you would have a chance if you APPLY EARLY. Getting your primary in in July means nothing if you don't get your secondaries in. They didn't even look at your app until the cycle was basically over. That is probably the biggest thing that killed you. Especially having so much time sitting on those secondaries, it shows schools that you aren't motivated enough to get the secondaries in in a timely manner. Don't make the same mistake again, and I think you have a good shot if you apply broadly and to DO which you are obviousy not adverse to. Good luck!

 

[tremulousNeedle]

1. Call schools that rejected you, see if they have any input.
2. APPLY EARLY (June 1st for AMCAS) - december is too late for complete secondaries, interviews have already been going on for 2 months by that time (3 months for DO schools).
3. Additional courses, if you get A's, could raise your GPA, but probably not by much. MCAT is good.
4. Not sure if your non-shadowing clinical hours include physician contact time; if they don't, you need more physician contact time.

-admissions committee interviewer / senior medical student

 

[katiesb]

Thanks for all of your input! So the consensus seems to be I need to get better LORs and to apply EARLY, both of which I can do! I was also thinking about trying to find a job at a lab so I can show my interest in science more (cuz now all of my extracurriculars are clinical/patient care). Anyone in the same boat as my socially? After college (and after ending a long term relationship) my social life is kinda dead. I was counting on medschool to jumpstart it. Any advice on how to deal with yet another year of waiting?

 

[jslo85]

Thanks for all of your input! So the consensus seems to be I need to get better LORs and to apply EARLY, both of which I can do! I was also thinking about trying to find a job at a lab so I can show my interest in science more (cuz now all of my extracurriculars are clinical/patient care). Anyone in the same boat as my socially? After college (and after ending a long term relationship) my social life is kinda dead. I was counting on medschool to jumpstart it. Any advice on how to deal with yet another year of waiting?

E-harmony? 😕

On a more serious note, my best advice to you is to get used to things as they are now. Social life doesn't "improve" from what others tell me in medical school but sort of degrades into a drama filled high school atmosphere with much older individuals. But you will meet others that you connect with and hopefully form friendships with.

Just let things come and don't force the issue. If you meet a new person in your life, cool, if it doesn't (shrug) life goes on as usual. Start working out or volunteering in things that socially related and less clinical. Happy hours are nice too.

 

[lawyerdoc2b]

The numbers show it. APPLY EARLY! Get your application started May 1st when AACOMAS opens up and get it complete withing 60 days. 1/3 of the applicants are complete by August and they get 2/3 of the sets. The folks complete December 1st and later comprse 2/3 of the applicant pool and are scrambling for the 1/3 of the seats left. The competition gets pretty stiff.

Why you might be asking? The truth is a lot of misguided folks apply to M.D. only early on in the process. They then apply for D.O. when they get no love from the M.D. schools. D.O. schools know it and prefer students who embrace the D.O. philosophy - in other words, students who want to be a D.O. You would be amazed at the number of so-called premed advisors at colleges who don't know about D.O. schools - a real tragedy for their misguided students hungry for help.

Other pieces of advice:

With your GPA and stiff competition in California, forget M.D. It got you nowhere and likely won't next year.

Apply only to D.O. and say so in your application - convince the Adcoms that you want to be a D.O.

As for your LORs, suggest to your professors that you could help them out by "ghost writing" the body of the letter as a draft for the professor to use as a guide. No one knows you better than you know yourself and your accomplishments. The professors sign the final copy after reading and approving it. That way you know what is in each one. This avoids a worthless LOR.

Your D.O. shadowing is weak. Fix it and get a stellar letter from a D.O.

You need to improve your application beyond just applying early. Convince the ADCOMs that you are deserving.

Good luck.

 

[tremulousNeedle]

With your GPA and stiff competition in California, forget M.D. It got you nowhere and likely won't next year.

Apply only to D.O. and say so in your application - convince the Adcoms that you want to be a D.O.

I'm not sure about this, otherwise decent advice.

As you did in the past, applying to both MD and DO programs will increase your chances of becoming a physician one day. Granted your GPA is below average, but if you continue with suggested application building activities, your GPA should be the only below average part of your application (possibly lack of research experience too, hard to tell from the original post). However, as low as your GPA is, it is not nearly low enough to earn you an instant (computerized screening) rejection; human eyes will probably be reviewing your application if they receive it in a timely manner.

In my experience, I would say that your biggest modifiable downfall was your timing. The submission dates you provided would sink an applicant with a 3.8 GPA, 35 MCAT, and hundreds of hours in both the clinical and research exposure, so it is no wonder that your cycle was unsuccessful. An application that late has added injury if you applied to programs with rolling admissions (most schools); by that time either the class is mostly full or there are already a decent number of applicants on the waitlist.

With regards to applying to both MD and DO programs. Many people have done it successfully (as evidence, I was accepted to multiple MD and DO programs early in the season - September for DO and October for MD). The key is to be prepared for the interviews and interview well, i.e. combine the truth with what they want to hear, but make sure it is genuine. It is true that MD schools usually ask why you want to be a doctor, while DO schools ask why you want to be a DO. As long as you are prepared for these topics they are easily answerable. For many schools, once an applicant gets to the interview, that is the most influential factor in whether they are rejected, accepted, or waitlisted, so you really have to stick it.

As I would recommend to anyone with the numbers and activities you described, if you want to be a physician, apply broadly (well outside of the west coast). Obviously, there is additional cost associated with this; I guess it all depends on how much it is worth to you.

Good luck.

-admissions committee interviewer / senior medical student

 

[katiesb]

Wow! Great advice everyone, thanks! Another question: is it possible to get research experience if you are no longer attending a university?

 

[sylvanthus]

I wouldn't worry about research. Id suggest taking a couple classes to boost the gpa or get more clinical experience.

 

[katiesb]

I wouldn't worry about research. Id suggest taking a couple classes to boost the gpa or get more clinical experience.

really? I thought I had plenty of clinical experience. I worked once a week in a pediatricians office, interned for 240 hours at a hospital, and I've been working full time in and ENT office for more than 6 months. What else would you suggest becoming involved in?

Do you think a few more classes would make a difference in my GPA?

 

[tremulousNeedle]

Research could possibly make your application more well rounded (and therefore slightly more competitive), but if you're really not interested in research then that should play into your decision making. Just remember to avoid med schools that place a lot of emphasis on research experience.

Even though you are currently not in school, you can always check with any nearby colleges or medical schools to see if there are any paid or unpaid research opportunities.

Do the math to see if extra courses will really make a difference in your GPA; if so, it is not a bad idea.

 

[ODorDO]

How many schools did u apply to? I think that is definitely a factor too!