Coming from a CSU...what are my chances

[Doctor Poetry]

will coming from a csu school hurt my chances into getting into a competitive md program...

I hear from a lot of professors that csu students are at a disadvantage in getting into a good md program...csu system does not carry weight in the eyes of adcom...After really thinking about what professors have told me, I'm starting to realize that they are speaking the truth.

What are your thoughts on this? Do I have a chance...3.9+ gpa, 30 mcat, scribing, 2yr biochem research, 1 yr computational chem research, poster presentation, teaching chem adjunct, etc etc

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[Doctor Poetry]

i forgot to mention that i did shadow a plastic surgeon but for only 30 hours...as far as clinical experience, scribing is the most closest thing to clinical experience...

 

[Catalystik]

Some med schools do weight one's GPA depending on the undergrad institution where it was earned. I think your MCAT score is more likely to keep you from getting consideration at the more selective med schools than your GPA, though.

 

[Doctor Poetry]

Some med schools do weight one's GPA depending on the undergrad institution where it was earned. I think your MCAT score is more likely to keep you from getting consideration at the more selective med schools than your GPA, though.

how would you rank the top ten csu's?

 

[Catalystik]

Let's hope that TriagePreMed will weigh in on that qustion.

 

[Musclemass]

The ones in major cities are thought to follow (SFSU, SDSU, SJSU, and SAC) mostly because the location should allow for better internships and research opportunities cooperatively with nearby UC Campuses.

Sorry, but this comment shows you don't begin to know what you're talking about. Did you decide to just make something up?

 

[Musclemass]

will coming from a csu school hurt my chances into getting into a competitive md program...

I hear from a lot of professors that csu students are at a disadvantage in getting into a good md program...csu system does not carry weight in the eyes of adcom...After really thinking about what professors have told me, I'm starting to realize that they are speaking the truth.

What are your thoughts on this? Do I have a chance...3.9+ gpa, 30 mcat, scribing, 2yr biochem research, 1 yr computational chem research, poster presentation, teaching chem adjunct, etc etc

The short answer is Yes, you are at a disadvantage. Rightly or wrongly, the broad expectation is that better students go through the UC system. There are exceptions, of course. But the reality is that it's a two tier system with a huge gap between the tiers so that there is much less cachet to a CSU degree in an academic sense.

There are terrific students in the CSU system that any med school would be happy to have and you may very well be one of them. The problem is that the density is low compared to other schools, so that candidates really need to stand out to show they are the equal of students from more selective (and competitive) schools.

The easiest way for you to stand out is to add a few points to your MCAT score. Do that and you should be fine.

 

[Musclemass]

No, I didn't make this up. I have friends that have worked in labs at UCSF, UCSD, UC Davis, and within San Jose (it's silicon Valley for god's sake). There are other labs and volunteer opportunities in these areas too. I personally know others working at genentech that go/went to SJSU or SFSU.

Have you seen the joint programs between UCSF and SFSU? You probably haven't.

How about instead of just claiming that I am randomly making stuff up you input your knowledge on the subject?

Following your logic, it's a good move to work at McDonalds in downtown Baltimore because it puts you close to research opportunities at Johns Hopkins.

The CSU system is fine if you want to become a teacher, a nurse, an accountant, or one of the other academic/occupational programs they offer. That's their mission. Aside from SLO, their academic reputations are mediocre or worse. Going to one is a poor choice for a springboard to a professional school. That was the OP's question. There's a resident or attending from UCSD on SDN who was on the adcom there, and s/he has confirmed that CSU students were at a big disadvantage for admission decisions.

I'd be interested to hear about the numerous academic opportunities offered by UCs to CSU students that you suggest. I wasn't even aware that CSU students could take classes at a UC, so I'm open to learning more.

 

[Musclemass]

Are you suggesting that these things you've linked, like the 3 year PT program at UCSF, are examples of UC academic opportunities offered to CSU undergrad students? Really?

...I don't know....

I agree.

 

[Musclemass]

CSU students in bigger cities have more opportunities for students. They also attract the "better" CSU professors.

So by your imaginary analysis, Cal State LA (a big CSU in the biggest city) is a better choice and has better professors than Cal Poly San Luis Obispo (arguably the best of the system but in a small rural town)? Complete nonsense.

As I said before, a CSU grad has an uphill battle compared to a UC grad. Anyone who thinks they may want to go to med school, other professional schools or grad school needs to think seriously about whether attending a CSU is going to get them to where they want to go. It's hard to escape the CSU broad reputation in academia for mediocrity.

The purpose of these forums is to have discussions and help others by sharing knowledge. You've shown you know how to use Google, next on your list should be learning how to understand the (mostly) useless and random facts you find. And please stop making up stuff, it's not helpful.

 

[Telomeres]

Have you ever even bothered to apply for a research opportunity? I know kids even at community college doing research at Berkeley and Stanford. CSU students in bigger cities have more opportunities for students. They also attract the "better" CSU professors.

Either way, you've managed to mutate the conversation from what are regarded as the better CSU's to UC having research opportunities for CSU students.

"San Francisco State University ranks 1st nationwide in the number of biological sciences undergrads who go on to earn biology Ph.D.s according to the most recent National Science Foundation report."

"SJSU ties for 19th place for the best overall undergraduate engineering school in the nation,[48] ties for 5th for the best computer engineering program,[49] and places 3rd for the best industrial/manufacturing engineering program out of over 550 master's-level colleges and universities nationwide, according to U.S. News and World Report (2010)."

"For four years in a row, SDSU has been ranked the No. 1 most productive research university, among schools with 14 or fewer Ph.D. programs based on the Faculty Scholarly Productivity Index."


Probably happens because SFSU and similar campuses don't have good research or are equal to CSU Chico or Dominguez Hills, right?

Chico: "2nd party school in U.S., Playboy, (2002)[10] (Chico State did not rank on Playboy's subsequent list[11])"

I tried to find stuff for Dominguez Hills, San Bernardino, Humboldt, etc. and couldn't find anything worthwhile.

I'm not going to respond to your troll posts anymore. I just did it for the outside viewers that may be curious.

Thanks I am currently attending an Arizona University and I was looking into some good research programs not too far from home

 

[Trees]

will coming from a csu school hurt my chances into getting into a competitive md program...

I asked my advisor at CSU Fullerton about this while applying to medical school. He was on faculty at Harvard and University of Texas before moving to California. He said many people outside California don't discriminate between the California campuses except Cal Berkeley and UCLA. For people who live on the east coast, Chico State and UC San Diego are both state-owned universities in California, and for the medical schools that discriminate among schools, neither of them makes the cut. I think there's some truth to his opinion.

They look at your GPA, test scores, what you've done, and how you represent yourself in interviews. I think for many medical schools, where you went to college is a part of the criteria, but not a major criteria. You're much better off coming from Cal State with a 3.9 GPA than from a UC with a 3.4.

Good luck!