CA resident: How many schools should I apply to?

[Medikit]

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UPDATE: Here is my list of schools, tell me if it looks good, if I should add some, or if I should take some away, my description is at the bottom, the original title of this post was "how many schools should I apply to".

California Schools
David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA (Regular M.D.)
Keck Sch. Of Med.University of Southern California (Regular M.D.)
Loma Linda University School of Medicine (Regular M.D.)
Stanford University School of Medicine (Regular M.D.)
The University of Vermont College of Medicine (Regular M.D.)
University of California San Diego (Regular M.D.)
University of California San Francisco (Regular M.D.)
University of California, Davis School of Medicine (Regular M.D.)
University of California, Irvine- College/Medicine (Regular M.D.)

"Reach Schools"
Columbia University College of P & S (Regular M.D.)
Mayo Medical School
Weill Medical College of Cornell University
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Harvard Medical School (Regular M.D.)

Out of state schools
Albany Medical College (Regular M.D.)
Boston University School of Medicine (Regular M.D.)
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine (Regular M.D.)
Creighton University School of Medicine (Regular M.D.)
Dartmouth Medical School (Regular M.D.)
Drexel University College of Medicine (Regular M.D.)
George Washington University Sch of Med & Hlth Sci (Regular M.D.)
Georgetown University School of Medicine (Regular M.D.)
Jefferson Medical Coll. of Thomas Jefferson Univ. (Regular M.D.)
University of Michigan Medical School (Regular M.D.)
Medical College of Wisconsin (Regular M.D.)
Mount Sinai School of Medicine (Regular M.D.)
Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine (Regular M.D.)
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Den (Regular M.D.)
Wake Forest University School of Medicine (Regular M.D.)

This is going to cost $1000 for this part alone 🙁

I'm an interesting case, two years ago I had a 2.9 GPA and had just finished my sophomore year. I had dropped out of college twice already, and was just beginning to get over a severe depression.


I'm a double major in Biology and Chemistry(Emphasis: Biochemistry)
Here is my GPA breakdown:

Total: 31 hours, 2.62
BCPM: 15 hours, 3.09
Others: 16 hours, 2.18

Sophomore:
Total: 30 hours, 3.23
BCPM: 15 hours, 2.78
Other: 15 hours, 3.68

Junior:
Total: 34 hours, 3.86
BCPM: 25 hours, 3.88
Other: 9 hours, 3.8

Senior:
Total: 32 hours, 4.0
BCPM: 25 hours, 4.0
Other: 7 hours, 4.0

I now have a 3.44 and a 3.56 BCPM (or around there)

I got a D in Anatomy my first semester after I dropped out the first time and a C that same semester in Psychology. I also have two C+'s one in introductory honors and another in Calc the semester after the D. I ended up taking the next two calc classes two and a half years after the C+ and got A's in both.

My MCAT is a 36N, 10V, 12B, 14PS. Before I got these scores I was looking at 25-30 schools. Now I'm beginning to think of bringing it down to 12-15 (all the CA schools, plus a few eastern schools that I'm interested in, one of them being Mayo.)

What do you guys think? As for EC's I have about 40 hours in a hospital, 10 hours of shadowing, and a semester of research that I'm finishing up during the summer. I'm also the treasurer of the Chem club and I've done about 2.5 years of tutoring for cash, plus a year of tutoring as a volunteer. This summer I'm going to work tutoring underprivileged High Schoolers and I'm trying to find a better volunteer job at a clinic.

 

[Brickhouse]

I struggled with my mood too, and I dropped out of college once too. Your stats are great now and I think you should apply to the CA schools and then a few safety schools elsewhere, but your MCAT score will definitely get you attention! Good luck and PM me if you wanna talk more.

 

[Spitting Camel]

I'm an interesting case, two years ago I had a 2.9 GPA and had just finished my sophomore year. I had dropped out of college twice already, and was just beginning to get over a severe depression.

Here is my GPA breakdown:

Total: 31 hours, 2.62
BCPM: 15 hours, 3.09
Others: 16 hours, 2.18

Sophomore:
Total: 30 hours, 3.23
BCPM: 15 hours, 2.78
Other: 15 hours, 3.68

Junior:
Total: 34 hours, 3.86
BCPM: 25 hours, 3.88
Other: 9 hours, 3.8

Senior:
Total: 32 hours, 4.0
BCPM: 25 hours, 4.0
Other: 7 hours, 4.0

I now have a 3.44 and a 3.56 BCPM (or around there)

I got a D in Anatomy my first semester after I dropped out the first time and a C that same semester in Psychology. I also have two C+'s one in introductory honors and another in Calc the semester after the D. I ended up taking the next two calc classes two and a half years after the C+ and got A's in both.

My MCAT is a 36N, 10V, 12B, 14PS. Before I got these scores I was looking at 25-30 schools. Now I'm beginning to think of bringing it down to 12-15 (all the CA schools, plus a few eastern schools that I'm interested in, one of them being Mayo.)

What do you guys think? As for EC's I have about 40 hours in a hospital, 10 hours of shadowing, and a semester of research that I'm finishing up during the summer. I'm also the treasurer of the Chem club and I've done about 2.5 years of tutoring for cash, plus a year of tutoring as a volunteer. This summer I'm going to work tutoring underprivileged High Schoolers and I'm trying to find a better volunteer job at a clinic.

GPA is OK, MCAT is AMAZING, ECs are a tad weak, clinically speaking. I would still go with 15-20 schools (All of CA (8), and 7-10 more) Mayo has a class size of 42 and so it's VERY hard to get in there. Maybe list your schools so we can see. Your grade trend is awesome, and I'm sure that will be taken into consideration. It is much easier to forgive freshman grades than it is to forgive bad junior and senior grades!

 

[Medikit]

GPA is OK, MCAT is AMAZING, ECs are a tad weak, clinically speaking. I would still go with 15-20 schools (All of CA (8), and 7-10 more) Mayo has a class size of 42 and so it's VERY hard to get in there. Maybe list your schools so we can see. Your grade trend is awesome, and I'm sure that will be taken into consideration. It is much easier to forgive freshman grades than it is to forgive bad junior and senior grades!

My MCAT shocked me, I had been planning on a 28-35 and told people I was probably getting a 32. I haven't decided on all the schools yet, I'm making my decision at the end of June when I send in my app. Yes I know Mayo is tough to get into, I don't think I can, it's just my dream school is all 🙂.

the N on mcat might hurt you alot with UC's...

Can anyone confirm this? I've always heard they don't matter. It's so weird, English is my first language, I promise. I've never had anyone tell me that I write bad essays either. Then again I haven't had an English course since that first semester at the JC where I got the D and the C.

 

[Spitting Camel]

Yes I know Mayo is tough to get into, I don't think I can, it's just my dream school is all 🙂.

Oh, by all means apply, but don't take a school off of your list for it, you know? Do some more volunteer work, or a program this summer.

 

[Spitting Camel]

I've never had anyone tell me that I write bad essays either. Then again I haven't had an English course since that first semester at the JC where I got the D and the C.

Maybe the D and C were supposed to be hints?

 

[Medikit]

Maybe the D and C were supposed to be hints?

heh, the C was from forgetting a huge assignment in psych. The D was from sleeping and not attending class in Anatomy 🙁. I don't know if you guys have ever had the feeling of being handed a paper with 100 blank spaces, each needing a particular word and you haven't studied for any of them. It makes me sick just thinking about it. I got a B in english, she said she liked my essays 🙁.

 

[Spitting Camel]

heh, the C was from forgetting a huge assignment in psych. The D was from sleeping and not attending class in Anatomy 🙁. I don't know if you guys have ever had the feeling of being handed a paper with 100 blank spaces, each needing a particular word and you haven't studied for any of them. It makes me sick just thinking about it.

Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you meant you got a C and D in English classes...

 

[Medikit]

Oh, I'm sorry. I thought you meant you got a C and D in English classes...

Yeah, I figured you misread it, I don't blame you I posted a lot to read! Btw, congrats on UCI, interestingly enough my first undergrad inst. was Concordia Irvine, I used to train with my cross country team around UCI. Who knows I could be there again next year. That would be so strange.

 

[Spitting Camel]

Yeah, I figured you misread it, I don't blame you I posted a lot to read! Btw, congrats on UCI, interestingly enough my first undergrad inst. was Concordia Irvine, I used to train with my cross country team around UCI. Who knows I could be there again next year. That would be so strange.

I took all of my practice MCATs (yes, you can use MCATs in that instance) at Concordia. It's a beautiful school, except one lecture hall I was in on the second floor of a building was a nightmare on my poor back.

 

[Medikit]

I took all of my practice MCATs (yes, you can use MCATs in that instance) at Concordia. It's a beautiful school, except one lecture hall I was in on the second floor of a building was a nightmare on my poor back.

It wasn't by chance "Founder's Hall" was it?

 

[Medikit]

Bumping for the morning crew

 

[Spitting Camel]

It wasn't by chance "Founder's Hall" was it?

That was it! By the time Bio came around, I was dead! And don't even try to write an essay in there...

 

[mentoz]

your upward trend is impressive! what a great comeback story 🙂 ... i know of someone at UCSF who started at the same place and ended at the same place, but his ECs were also very unique and involved .. would you consider taking time off to strengthen those if you're looking to get into those reach schools?

 

[Pinkertinkle]

I'm applying to 26 schools, I hope I dont get rejected pre secondary.

 

[Eraserhead]

the N on mcat might hurt you alot with UC's...they don't like less than O..and prefer R.... def apply all cali, and then some good out of states...they like cali people.i got into several...just dont' tell them that there's no way ur coming if u get into cali 🙂

Isn't an R really high?

I got an S and I thought I was special.

 

[tontondavid]

The only problem I see in your stats is the volunteer experience which is kind of weak. These people really want to know that you have indeed been exposed to clinical medicine and that you know what you're getting into.
I would highly suggest that you get a more significant clinical exposure this summer and somehow incorporate it in your secondaries.

Anyway, good luck!!!

 

[jlee9531]

at least 30.

 

[Medikit]

The only problem I see in your stats is the volunteer experience which is kind of weak. These people really want to know that you have indeed been exposed to clinical medicine and that you know what you're getting into.
I would highly suggest that you get a more significant clinical exposure this summer and somehow incorporate it in your secondaries.

Anyway, good luck!!!

Yeah, I was spending so much time trying to develop good study habits and taking summer courses, I kind of forgot about other important things. For a while all I could focus on was that GPA. I'm looking for volunteer opportunities now, I didn't like what we had at the hospital, and so I'm looking for something different. Unfortunately I'm currently finishing up a project and I might not be done until the end of the month. That's a good idea to incorporate it into my secondaries, I'll have to do that.

For Mentoz, no I'm not willing to take time off, to tell you the truth, although Mayo sounds good to me I would be extremely happy with any UC and I'd be more willing to attend a non-UC than wait another year. I actually added another major (Biochem) and waited to take the MCAT a year, and I missed a year of school through dropouts, so I'm very antsy to get started with medschool.

 

[Pinkertinkle]

I'd like to hear some solid evidence of this.

the N on mcat might hurt you alot with UC's...they don't like less than O..and prefer R.... def apply all cali, and then some good out of states...they like cali people.i got into several...just dont' tell them that there's no way ur coming if u get into cali 🙂

 

[lola]

I'd like to hear some solid evidence of this.

ummm...i doubt there is any.

 

[angstrom55]

I'd say maybe 17-20 altogether, just cuz i'm paranoid. My friend had steller scores and equally good EC's and applied to that many schools. In the end, she was able to pick and choose and dropped later interviews when she got in early on. You never really know with the UC's. you get people receiveing secondaries with lower scores than others who don't receive secondaries at all. UC's in my mind are finicky....hehe.

 

[jlee9531]

once again...apply to a lot. why take a chance on the randomness of this process...especially being a california resident which just adds to the drama.

 

[Medikit]

once again...apply to a lot. why take a chance on the randomness of this process...especially being a california resident which just adds to the drama.

Thanks, after taking a gander at MDapplicants.com I realized that I still need to cast a wide net.

 

[Medikit]

Updated post.

 

[Harvardman2007]

GPA is OK, MCAT is AMAZING, ECs are a tad weak, clinically speaking. I would still go with 15-20 schools (All of CA (8), and 7-10 more) Mayo has a class size of 42 and so it's VERY hard to get in there. Maybe list your schools so we can see. Your grade trend is awesome, and I'm sure that will be taken into consideration. It is much easier to forgive freshman grades than it is to forgive bad junior and senior grades!

Medickit.....you are taking advice from an idiot 😎

 

[CH3CH2OH]

I'd like to hear some solid evidence of this.

when the UCSF dean of admissions spoke at my undergrad he said that they didn't really consider the WS scores. 👍

good luck

 

[Kazema]

heh, the C was from forgetting a huge assignment in psych. The D was from sleeping and not attending class in Anatomy 🙁. I don't know if you guys have ever had the feeling of being handed a paper with 100 blank spaces, each needing a particular word and you haven't studied for any of them. It makes me sick just thinking about it. I got a B in english, she said she liked my essays 🙁.

In one of the last comp sci classes I took, I got a 14 on the midterm. But it's even worse than that: the midterm was out of 200. So I have the questionable honor of having gotten a single digit percent score on an exam that I actually took (yes...I missed an exam as a freshman...). It was the worst hour and a half of my life. I answered the one problem I knew how to do and then stared at the rest of the exam wishing I had ever gone to class. And that I had never passed the prereqs for this class.

 

[Pinkertinkle]

when the UCSF dean of admissions spoke at my undergrad he said that they didn't really consider the WS scores. 👍

good luck

Sweet, Kenshiro needs to stop scaring people with his unsupported claims.