Choosing Where to Apply

[Robinsong]

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Hi all,

I am a third year undergrad planning to start my apps this summer, the only problem is, I have no Idea where I want to go.

I've been trying to sort through them the same way I did when I looked for undergrad schools (make a giant list of all the schools, narrow them down geographically, then by how well they match my stats, then by how well their programs fit my goals, then by how cool they are).... only problem is, based on what their websites say they all sound very very very very much the same. I'm having a hard time cutting through the PR BS and getting to what actually makes the schools unique.


I'm finding it challenging to limit the schools geographically.... I grew up in a relatively rural area (my dad is actually an apple farmer), and I'm pretty sure that is where I want to eventually practice medicine. A school with a good rural medicine focus would be nice; however, I also feel like I could use this as an opportunity to live in a city environment and experience something new (not to mention the benefits of a larger patient pool that a city offers). I would love to try a school outside the pacific northwest where i live, but I would be happy here too....


Program wise it's a challenge too. I'm pretty sure I'm more interested in primary care, but I want to keep my options open because in high school I did some sports med (which I loved) and I could totally see myself in orthopedics. I am very interested in global/international medicine (I lived in Argentina for a year after I finished high school), so schools with good programs for that would be great, especially schools with tropical disease programs. I've just had a hard time sorting out which schools actually focus on international medicine, and which just offer a clinical elective somewhere like Guatemala. Research isn't a huge priority of mine, but I wouldn't object to some quality public health research.

Sorting out my stats doesn't help, because I've got about a 3.6 and I haven't taken the MCAT yet. I have average to good extra curriculars.

I think I might like a problem based curriculum, but I don't really know....

I'm a Washington State Resident, so I will be applying to UW and the Oregon Health Sciences school... I'm also looking at U of AZ, and George Washington.

I guess the heart of the question is, for those of you who have already gone through the process of selecting where you will be applying, in retrospect how would you have generated your list if you could do it again? I'm seeking general advice because I cannot be the only one in this sitch, but any specific advice based on my situation would be awesome too.... or use the above as an example that I and others can use 🙂

 

[Legacy87]

Here is how you generate a list:

1. Take your mcat and see what you get.
2. Get an Msar and compare your stats with their accepted average stats
3. At the same time, only add schools that accept 50% or more oos students in the class.
4. Devide your list into 3 tiers of schools relative to your stats to make a broad list of schools
5. Apply
6. Get interview invites, research the school, learn more about the school during the interview
7. Determine which school "fits" you best

At this point, you really can't cherry pick schools because you don't have your mcat score. Also, you have to be open minded of where you apply. Hope this helps!

 

[Isoprop]

An easy place to start is by going through MDapps and looking for applicants with stats similar to yours and see where they applied. Make a list from there.

I think the first cut most students make is geography. What areas of the country do you NOT want to go to medical school.

Then look for schools where you have no chance (eg OOS public schools that heavily favor in-state residents).

The best resource is the MSAR. You may want to peruse the book to see if there are any medical schools that stick out that not a lot of others considered. There are other books with descriptions and stats (US News seems popular), but the MSAR. If you are considering DO schools, use the CIB available for free to download. Go to the pre-DO forum for more info.

Also, look up the school-specific discussion threads here on the allo. A good source of the latest news/gossip about the school.

Apply to a broad spectrum of schools based on geography, stats, mission goals. Apply to a mix of research-heavy schools and non-research-heavy schools. Apply to both "brand name" and "no name." Basically, apply broadly.

 

[TexasPhysician]

Apply to schools that are the cheapest and still take OOS applicants + your state schools.

 

[Catalystik]

Cheapest schools were highest on my list too.

 

[jla314]

this isn't what you were asking really, but when i was reading your post about how you'd like to live in a city but practice rurally i immediately thought of the tufts maine track program. maybe check them out.

as for global opportunities, a lot of big name schools pride themselves on their international involvement. big namers are the schools that generally have the funding, power, and networking capacity to establish strong programs at satellite locations worldwide like the ones you are envisioning. i'm not too sure as to which specific schools have especially good global health opportunities, but a lot of the schools i interviewed at seemed to have well established routes for getting students involved in an international setting, or at least were flexible enough to permit students to make their own way (harvard, upenn). perhaps try to find a school that is flexible and supportive and will allow you to find and create your own international opportunities - that may better allow you to do exactly what you want with tropical diseases.

when it comes down to narrowing down application choices, you probably need to prioritize and figure out what is most important to you. are the opportunities (i.e. for practicing rural medicine, going abroad, etc) more important than the cost? is location more important than curriculum? etc.

 

[Robinsong]

Awesome.... I will definitely check out the tufts maine track program, and I appreciate your advice 🙂

I guess what I was trying to say above (in an overly verbose way), is that I plan on applying to my instate school (UofWA) but I'm worried that it's ranking, and the fact that it's the only med school for WA, AK, WY, ID, and MT will make it a lot more competitive than other peoples' in-state options....

I want to narrow down my options, but I know I would be happy ANYWHERE in the US. Each place offers unique new experiences and options that other regions can't. The southwest offers great opportunities to work with hispanic immigrant populations (something that I want to do), the northeast has a great amount of history that we don't really have out here in the west, the middle parts of the country offer great opportunities in rural medicine, the south would be a completely new experience for me (something I value highly), and the pacific coast is comfortable, and where my family lives. I was an exchange student right out of high school so I have learned to be flexible and to value new and different geographic areas. Geography isn't really important to me in this search.

So barring that, it sounds like you all suggest looking at schools that match my stats, and that accept high levels of out of state students....

How about programs, how did you all chose between PBLearning and all of the other teaching methods?

 

[MaryLennox]

Here is how you generate a list:

1. Take your mcat and see what you get.
2. Get an Msar and compare your stats with their accepted average stats
3. At the same time, only add schools that accept 50% or more oos students in the class.
4. Devide your list into 3 tiers of schools relative to your stats to make a broad list of schools
5. Apply
6. Get interview invites, research the school, learn more about the school during the interview
7. Determine which school "fits" you best

At this point, you really can't cherry pick schools because you don't have your mcat score. Also, you have to be open minded of where you apply. Hope this helps!

this is good advice. definitely get an MSAR and use process of elimination . . . i took my copy and attacked it with a bunch of markers. first i drew a giant line through all schools i had no shot at, either due to OOS restrictions, prereqs I didn't have, places I wouldn't want to live, schools that were prohibitively expensive. this narrowed it down a lot. then i highlighted the tuition at each school. then i went through and highlighted all the schools i knew for sure i wanted to apply to. then i spent lots of time re-reading the pages for the rest of the schools before deciding.

i agree you really have to wait for your MCAT score . . . the next thing I did was calculated my LizzyM score, then calculated the average LizzyMscore for each school i was still considering, and calculated the difference. A lot of the schools seemed like I had a good chance (with a difference of +3 or so in my favor) and lots of other schools were a -3 and I didn't bother. of course, i believe in having a few reach schools, although mine rejected me so i am glad i didn't go overboard with that 🙂

last, don't be afraid to use sdn as a resource. if there is a particular feature you are looking for in a school, search around or ask. post in the 'what are my chances' forums. read school-specific threads. it helps. it helped me, anyway.

 

[metallica81788]

Here is how you generate a list:

1. Take your mcat and see what you get.
2. Get an Msar and compare your stats with their accepted average stats
3. At the same time, only add schools that accept 50% or more oos students in the class.
4. Devide your list into 3 tiers of schools relative to your stats to make a broad list of schools
5. Apply
6. Get interview invites, research the school, learn more about the school during the interview
7. Determine which school "fits" you best

At this point, you really can't cherry pick schools because you don't have your mcat score. Also, you have to be open minded of where you apply. Hope this helps!

This is a pretty good list.

I disagree with 50% OOS (there aren't that many of these that aren't private), you can be okay if it's 30% OOS or more.

As far as learning about schools, you can only really pick up what the website gives you. In reality, you have to interview there to see what the school is really like and you can't really know until you're there.

 

[MaryLennox]

This is a pretty good list.

I disagree with 50% OOS (there aren't that many of these that aren't private), you can be okay if it's 30% OOS or more.

i was gonna point this out too . . . if you feel like you're a good fit for a school and can explain why, i say OOS can be ok. (for some schools. not all.) just don't apply to every state school OOS just to add to your list, ya know?

 

[bamtuba]

Just wanted to add something to the good advice listed above: DO NOT let the MSAR or any person convince you to NOT apply to a school if you are interested.

Though my circumstances are "special," I personally got interviews and acceptances to schools where the average MCAT was upwards of 6 points above my score.

Some schools will stick to applicants close to their average while others will give you a chance if something "stands out" about you. You have to apply to find out for sure which will give you the chance and which will not. Well, with the exception of WashU. If you don't have numbers close to God you will likely have no chance.

Otherwise, good luck and have fun with the process!

 

[MaryLennox]

Just wanted to add something to the good advice listed above: DO NOT let the MSAR or any person convince you to NOT apply to a school if you are interested.

exactly . . . this is sort of a repeat of something i said before, but it's important to keep in mind. reach schools should be your dream schools, and don't let the fact that its a reach keep you from applying to a school you sincerely want to go to.

the problem with people and reach schools is that some people overestimate their own awesomeness, apply only to top tiers, and get rejected from all of them. now, if their parents are paying for the applications, fine. but to me that seems like a HUGE waste of money. so i mostly applied to schools within my range. but, i did blow a few hundred dollars on my dream schools too 🙂