cGPA 3.8 sGPA 3.7 MCAT 519- Critique list please

[Javabean]

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[Faha]

You have a good list and should receive several interviews, especially from your target schools.

 

[Javabean]

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[GrapesofRath]

Looks fine

Are you fully committed to USU and all it requires? If not, delete.
RFU is a waste of time with these stats. You can easily remove Georgetown, Loyola, VCU, Tufts and Mayo without reducing your odds of acceptance. I might replace BU Keck and Dartmouth with slightly higher yield options like SLU or Ohio State if youre paranoid your list might be too "top heavy" which it isnt really.

I count at the very least 10-12 schools you can say going in you have a reasonable shot at getting a II at. That's more than enough unless things fall apart in the interviews.

 

[Javabean]

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[GrapesofRath]

Your GPA is fine, 3.8/3.7 isnt going to hold you back at top 20 schools you're obsessing too much over MSAR GPA numbers.

The highest yield schools most likely to interview you are the high end schools ie CWRU, UVA, Pitt type schools not G-town or RFU. I also think some top 20 schools like Pitt and Northwestern are probably going to be higher yield for you than these schools that either get swamped with apps or dont have large OOS classes like Keck, Boston U and Hofstra.

 

[gyngyn]

Your GPA is fine, 3.8/3.7 isnt going to hold you back at top 20 schools you're obsessing too much over MSAR GPA numbers.

The highest yield schools most likely to interview you are the high end schools ie CWRU, UVA, Pitt type schools not G-town or RFU. I also think some top 20 schools like Pitt and Northwestern are probably going to be higher yield for you than these schools that either get swamped with apps or dont have large OOS classes like Keck, Boston U and Hofstra.

I agree with your post except that these schools (USC, BU and Hofstra) are generally lower yield because of the proportion of OOS applicants below the median who apply to them and the number of over-qualified IS applicants they receive. OP is exactly the type of OOS applicant that these schools target.
I actually think these three schools are good choices for OP.

 

[GrapesofRath]

I agree with your post except that these schools (USC, BU and Hofstra) are generally lower yield because of the proportion of OOS applicants below the median who apply to them and the number of over-qualified IS applicants they receive. OP is exactly the type of OOS applicant that these schools target.
I actually think these three schools are good choices for OP.

I agree Boston U is a good choice, I shouldnt have lumped that in with the other two.

We're to a fair extent just splitting hairs, I dont think applying to Keck or Hofstra is a bad idea for the OP per se and that wasnt my general point. Rather, I think the OP and others often tend to associate "non top 20" schools as less competitive/higher yield than top 20's and decide therefore they need to apply "safer" by including more of those schools. For someone like this, I dont think that's the case.

Keck sure does target applicants like this but they also only have about 45 OOS matriculants out of 4000 OOS applicants. Many many people with these stats get shut out completely at that type of school and I think that's often the case with schools in this tier like Hofstra, Emory etc. This isnt true for all schools in this tier(ie CWRU) but if we're talking about 80-90 OOS applicants/matriculant at a school like Hofstra, Keck or Emory vs 40 OOS applicants/matriculant at a Pitt or Northwestern I actually think the latter is probably a little higher yield for an applicant like this.

The fact these schools get so many qualified applicants IS kind of highlights my point. It's not an issue of many of them having "IS bias"(some of these schools in this tier like Ohio State will, others like Keck wont) rather they have to commit so many spots to those applicants because they are so good it's very competitive OOS for fewer spots.

I dont have MSAR up right now but one thing that might change my perspective is if there is a major difference in the median applicant MCAT at a school like Pitt vs Boston U which might suggest the average applicant at Pitt really is just much higher quality.

 

[gyngyn]

I agree Boston U is a good choice, I shouldnt have lumped that in with the other two.

We're to a fair extent just splitting hairs, I dont think applying to Keck or Hofstra is a bad idea for the OP per se and that wasnt my general point. Rather, I think the OP and others often tend to associate "non top 20" schools as less competitive/higher yield than top 20's and decide therefore they need to apply "safer" by including more of those schools. For someone like this, I dont think that's the case.

Keck sure does target applicants like this but they also only have about 45 OOS matriculants out of 4000 OOS applicants. Many many people with these stats get shut out completely at that type of school and I think that's often the case with schools in this tier like Hofstra, Emory etc. This isnt true for all schools in this tier(ie CWRU) but if we're talking about 80-90 OOS applicants/matriculant at a school like Hofstra, Keck or Emory vs 40 OOS applicants/matriculant at a Pitt or Northwestern I actually think the latter is probably a little higher yield for an applicant like this.

The fact these schools get so many qualified applicants IS kind of highlights my point. It's not an issue of many of them having "IS bias"(some of these schools in this tier like Ohio State will, others like Keck wont) rather they have to commit so many spots to those applicants because they are so good it's very competitive OOS for fewer spots.

I dont have MSAR up right now but one thing that might change my perspective is if there is a major difference in the median applicant MCAT at a school like Pitt vs Boston U which might suggest the average applicant at Pitt really is just much higher quality.

What we lack to settle this is the differential between the stats of IS vs OOS applicants to these schools.

 

[GrapesofRath]

What we lack to settle this is the differential between the stats of IS vs OOS applicants to these schools.

This is true, and like I said above I dont think this is a major issue I more just made a point of it because the OP was concerned about having too many "reaches" and I dont think the alternative of substituting top 20 reaches for the Hofstra's of the world will help.

Another way of looking at it is Hofstra, Boston U or Emory is more likely to take a chance on a 3.75/33 type applicant than a Northwestern or NYU. A 519 might not be looked at as a unofficial "borderline necessity" for most to the same extent at a Hofstra than a top 20. That means more competition for the top stat applicants like this on top of having to deal with more applications for fewer slots.

 

[Javabean]

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[GrapesofRath]

which begs another question: Do I seem to fit their profile?

https://www.brown.edu/academics/medical/admissions/class-profile

You can get some idea of what Brown looks for and values from that link. Me personally, I wouldnt say you particularly fit their profile that strongly and it's a very low yield school on top of that. But it's one school. If it really intrigues you go ahead and apply: you cant get in anywhere you dont apply.

Dartmouth has been known to show an interest in non-trads(average matriculant age I believe is around 26-27) and while they take their share of more traditional applicants, it's still a fairly low yield school, especially with only 90 spots. Similar logic applies as above: not the highest yield of options but if you like it go ahead and apply, it's just one school.

Applying to these two places wont have any negative effect if your overall list consists of a good number of schools you have a reasonable shot at.

 

[occams_razor]

Biochemistry major 3.8/3.7
ORM, graduated in 2015
State of residence: MD
MCAT 2016: 519 (130, 130, 130, 129)
120 hours volunteering in ER that started 2015, will be ongoing
40 hours shadowing in pediatric orthopedics in 2016
70 hours shadowing radiation oncology in 2012
1200 hours of undergrad research in biochemistry lab
3 major service non-clinical projects in college (ASB participant, leader x 2)- ~500 hours
IM soccer captain for 3 years in college
Religious group participant/leader (peer mentor, mini sermons on weekly basis)- 2.5 years
ACS officer for college chapter- Junior/Senior year
TA for 2 undergrad biochem courses (sophomore, junior year)
Currently teaching in inner city school as high school science teacher
Coaching soccer at varsity level
Member of adult soccer team

LoR from one science prof, research PI, service trip coordinator, current manager (which should all be very solid letters)

Reaches: Columbia, Harvard, UPenn, UChicago, Yale, Michigan, Pittsburgh, Case Western, Mt Sinai, Mayo, Vandy, NYU, Northwestern

Target(?): UVA, Keck, Dartmouth, Miami, BU, Tufts, Jefferson, Georgetown, USU, UMD, Rosalind Franklin, Loyola, VCU, MCW, Einstein, Emory

Your list looks good! I would take out Rosalind Franklin (low yield with your 3.8/519) and replace it with Hofstra.

 

[Javabean]

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[GrapesofRath]

I think this is a better way to look at it than getting into nitty gritty specifics of (is X school low yield)

a) Look at schools MCAT range of 10th-90th percentile
b) Look at schools median MCAT
c) Look at the number of apps they get and class size

I dont have MSAR in front of me but when you go through MSAR this is how Id organize it and Ill give you a couple ex of how to look at this. Use actual MSAR to correct/verify the numbers Im posting without looking at it.

RFU: 11,000 OOS apps/90 OOS spots= 122(rough estimation after accounting for their special program admits).
Median MCAT: 31. MCAT range: 27-35. This is the exact opposite of a high yield option, not worth bothering with.

Boston U: 10,000 OOS apps/120 OOS spots=83(rough estimate accounting for their special progs).
MCAT range: 32-37. Median MCAT: 35 Decent option. Less competition than at the Jeffersons, RFUs and G-towns of the world as the 35-37 MCAT range constitutes a much greater proportion of the accepted pile and <33 MCAT applicants are far less likely to be competitive.

Northwestern: 6000 OOS apps/105 OOS spots(rough estimation after accounting for special programs)=57.
Median MCAT: 36. MCAT range: 32-39. The best option out of these three. You are right in the sweet spot of what they are looking to target. The 35-39 MCAT range makes up the majority of their acceptances. Less number of apps to compete with than Boston U and <35 MCAT applicants are usually going to have a more difficult time being competitive here than at Boston U. Same story by and large at schools like NYU, Pitt, WashU, CWRU etc.

Do this for other schools you are interested in. The higher the MCAT range they tend to accept, the higher their median MCAT and the lower their OOSapp/OOS matriculant ratio, the better choice it is.

 

[protego]

I think this is a better way to look at it than getting into nitty gritty specifics of (is X school low yield)

a) Look at schools MCAT range of 10th-90th percentile
b) Look at schools median MCAT
c) Look at the number of apps they get and class size

I dont have MSAR in front of me but when you go through MSAR this is how Id organize it and Ill give you a couple ex of how to look at this. Use actual MSAR to correct/verify the numbers Im posting without looking at it.

RFU: 11,000 OOS apps/90 OOS spots= 122(rough estimation after accounting for their special program admits).
Median MCAT: 31. MCAT range: 27-35. This is the exact opposite of a high yield option, not worth bothering with.

Boston U: 10,000 OOS apps/120 OOS spots=83(rough estimate accounting for their special progs).
MCAT range: 32-37. Median MCAT: 35 Decent option. Less competition than at the Jeffersons, RFUs and G-towns of the world as the 35-37 MCAT range constitutes a much greater proportion of the accepted pile and <33 MCAT applicants are far less likely to be competitive.

Northwestern: 6000 OOS apps/105 OOS spots(rough estimation after accounting for special programs)=57.
Median MCAT: 36. MCAT range: 32-39. The best option out of these three. You are right in the sweet spot of what they are looking to target. The 35-39 MCAT range makes up the majority of their acceptances. Less number of apps to compete with than Boston U and <35 MCAT applicants are usually going to have a more difficult time being competitive here than at Boston U. Same story by and large at schools like NYU, Pitt, WashU, CWRU etc.

Do this for other schools you are interested in. The higher the MCAT range they tend to accept, the higher their median MCAT and the lower their OOSapp/OOS matriculant ratio, the better choice it is.

This was so helpful to me trying to consider my own school list, thank you!

 

[Javabean]

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[GrapesofRath]

Downward senior yr sGPA is never ideal but your overall GPA is high enough I think the odds are fair at many places the trend wont get particularly scruitinized or be a major concern.

Perhaps swap in a few more Ohio State, Miami, Cincinnati types for the Pearlman, Harvard and Yale's of the world if you like.

 

[Javabean]

Thank you so much for the continued advice and help. I really appreciate it! I will definitely consider all of the recommendations.

 

[occams_razor]

I just calculated my AMCAS gpa and it seems like my cGPA is 3.79 and my sGPA is 3.69...
And it shows a slight downward trend (never below 3.6 for cGPA, and sGPA trends from 3.93->3.63->3.77->3.39); my senior year consisted of some of the heavier classes (development, genetics, cell bio, pchem, 2 other 300/400 classes) to cap off the requirements for a B.S. rather than a B.A.
So not quite 3.8, and not quite 3.7 with a downward trend. Would this change my list? I'm crossing my fingers and hoping this is neurotic premed thinking on my part...

I wouldn't change your list over this. It's minor. Your GPA, EC's and MCAT are all strong.