Crunch time? Advice welcome

[HrryUpNwait]

Here is the case-
I am a college senior who applied to 18 schools in September (NY resident). I have been rejected from 9 schools, interviewed and rejected at 1 recently (very bummed- thought it went great), haven't heard from 7, and have an interview in early Feb at my #1 choice school- funny how that worked out. Anyways, should I be starting to panic and looking to the next app cycle? What are the odds I get another interview? I am a 3.6 GPA with a 27 MCAT. Division I student athlete, research esperience with pub pending, array of other clubs and volunteering with excellent shadowing, LORs and PS. The school I am interviewing it is very highly touted. I still haven't heard from:

Loyola-Chicago
SUNY Buffalo
SUNY Upstate
NYMC
George Washington
Tufts
U Virginia
Drexel

Should I begin studying for the May MCAT and apply again in June? If so, any recommendations for a year off- like a good school that is hiring people for research positions? Should I be optimistic for this year? Any advice is appreciated...

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[LizzyM]

Retake the MCAT if you expect that you can do at least 3 points better. Take practice tests and be sure before you take the leap (better to cancel at the last minute and lose your $ than retake and do poorly). It looks as if the MCAT is the major problem.

Apply earlier than mid-September.

Medical schools (not hospitals) in NYC, San Francisco and Boston seem to hire a good number of recent college grads as research assistants who go on to apply to med school. Find some volunteer work to do on the side (a couple of hours of week in medical or non-medical) to show your continued dedication to improving life in your community.

 

[HrryUpNwait]

Thanks so much- do you think I still have a chance this cycle?

 

[LizzyM]

Thanks so much- do you think I still have a chance this cycle?

I am not familiar enough with those schools' calendars nor their admission requirements/average stats to know if you have a chance.

 

[Med Addict]

That MCAT score is still too low, you are going to get cut no matter how great the other portions of your application are. GPA and MCAT are the first two hurdles you have to jump through; right now there are a slew of applicants with a much stronger MCAT than you, that you will have to deal with.

 

[majahops]

If you have an interview, you have a chance.

If you don't get accepted, it's not the end of the world.

However, I'd recommend that you take very seriously Lizzy's recommendation about ensuring you are ready to score higher on the MCAT before you take it again.

In general (not always, of course), people score somewhere near the average of their AAMC practice MCATs on their actual MCAT. If you're scoring 25-29 on practice exams, cancel the test date, study more, and schedule it again once you're averaging 30+.

Thanks so much- do you think I still have a chance this cycle?

 

[njbmd]

Here is the case-
I am a college senior who applied to 18 schools in September (NY resident). I have been rejected from 9 schools, interviewed and rejected at 1 recently (very bummed- thought it went great), haven't heard from 7, and have an interview in early Feb at my #1 choice school- funny how that worked out. Anyways, should I be starting to panic and looking to the next app cycle? What are the odds I get another interview? I am a 3.6 GPA with a 27 MCAT. Division I student athlete, research esperience with pub pending, array of other clubs and volunteering with excellent shadowing, LORs and PS. The school I am interviewing it is very highly touted. I still haven't heard from:

Loyola-Chicago
SUNY Buffalo
SUNY Upstate
NYMC
George Washington
Tufts
U Virginia
Drexel

Should I begin studying for the May MCAT and apply again in June? If so, any recommendations for a year off- like a good school that is hiring people for research positions? Should I be optimistic for this year? Any advice is appreciated...

Why not maximize your options by first getting all of your information together for the worst case scenario which would be no acceptance and reapplication. Since you know that your 27 is low, start working on a retake and make sure that you are doing plenty of practice tests. You should be working on the retired MCAT exams (nothing like practicing with questions written by the people who write questions for the actual exam).

If you find that you are not scoring well on your practice exams, don't do a retake and look to the next available test taking opportunity. Two mediocre scores are far worse than one mediocre score. At any rate, you should be very objective about why you didn't score well. Once you have figured out your weaknesses, make them strengths and do your retake.

You can start right now, searching for research positions. With the poor economy, you might face an upward climb but start looking now. Early is better than late in the job seeking process. It's better to turn down a position because you were accepted into medical school than scramble around at the last minute.

Your one interview may work out for you but it's getting late and you don't want rush your prep for a retake should that become absolutely necessary. "Expect the best but prepare for the worst." Good luck.

 

[virusgirl]

I agree with previous posts that you need to retake the MCAT. People with awesome grades can sometimes get away with a sub-30, but for most of us mere mortals, a 30+ is crucial (at least for allo).

It's probably too late for this cycle, but seriously consider applying to DO schools -- you'd be pretty competitive there without retaking the MCAT.

Did you apply to all of your in-state schools? That's usually a smart move.

 

[HrryUpNwait]

I did apply to all my state schools. I am hoping since I have one interview left that I will get accepted there, but I am likely going to start MCAT review again in the next week. I really do not want to go to a DO school. My interview is at a school you already interviewed at Virusgirl...