do you ever feel...

[anxietypeaker]

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hey everyone. Junior at Berkeley over here. GPA = 3.7, MCAT = ???. I think i made the decision that I'll apply to MSTP programs. But it seems like all the people i know applying are those "gunners" who take the hardest courses in the major, still do well, and have higher gpa's than me. I know im not smart. I also dont have the mentality of the gunners cuz i know id get KILLED in those courses. so...i feel kinda out of place even considering applying to md-phd programs. I dont think im md-phd material (my numbers are ok, not great...but i know I'm not like the people at Cal who are applying). Am i right to think this way? Also are my numbers not too good to apply?

Second question. If i decide on applying ONLY Md-phd programs, and i dont get in the first time. How much will my resume get boosted if i do research as a tech under a professor (paid/volunteer). Hopefully get a project i can carry out and maybe my name on a publication. WOuld that really really help? or not enough to risk only applying mstp with my numbers?

 

[solitude]

Your GPA is very competitive and you are coming from a top university. At most of the very best MSTP's, the average GPA is a 3.8, so there are plenty of students with 3.9's and plenty with 3.7's. I think your GPA will be fine, particularly if you can get a 30+ MCAT.

I think taking a rigorous courseload is important, because it demonstrates that you can do well at the graduate level. With that said, I think there are plenty of applicants that have taken few or no grad-level courses before applying, while there are others with 10. I think if you have done well in the pre-reqs and are majoring in science, you should be OK in that regard.

I think you need to give yourself a little more credit. You are receiving very good grades at a school with tough competition. Lighten up, and give the MSTP applications a shot next year. There will always be gunners, the key is to ignore them and just do what you love.

The rule of thumb is, the more quality research experience, the higher your chances of getting in (ceteris paribus). I wouldn't worry about publications, etc. Just get into the lab and see what happens.

It's my opinion that you can be a competitive applicant for MSTP's if you:
-receive a 30 or better MCAT score
-have conducted at least 1yr of research before applying, and preferably more (you didn't mention whether you had done research yet)
If you apply to a wide range of schools, you should get into at least one or two.

I'm sure other people will offer their opinion too. Let us know if you have more questions--these forums are awesome.

hey everyone. Junior at Berkeley over here. GPA = 3.7, MCAT = ???. I think i made the decision that I'll apply to MSTP programs. But it seems like all the people i know applying are those "gunners" who take the hardest courses in the major, still do well, and have higher gpa's than me. I know im not smart. I also dont have the mentality of the gunners cuz i know id get KILLED in those courses. so...i feel kinda out of place even considering applying to md-phd programs. I dont think im md-phd material (my numbers are ok, not great...but i know I'm like the people at Cal who are applying). Am i right to think this way? Also are my numbers not too good to apply?

Second question. If i decide on applying ONLY Md-phd programs, and i dont get in the first time. How much will my resume get boosted if i do research as a tech under a professor (paid/volunteer). Hopefully get a project i can carry out and maybe my name on a publication. WOuld that really really help? or not enough to risk only applying mstp with my numbers?

 

[dr.z]

I don't think your numbers are low. If you get MCAT scores above 30, I'm sure you can make it to MSTP programs.

 

[anxietypeaker]

sorry for failing to be thorough...here it is:

i will have ~2.5 years of research under one professor and a summer stint with another. However, NO publications (i know, u said dont worry bout it), NO presentations, NO sympsoniums, etc etc. I am majoring in Molecular/cell bio (berkeley has 2 bio major options...molecular scale vs. organismal scale/ecology/morphology etc). I DO realize this looks decent...but theres no achievement...like progress. Kinda like i joined a club (lab) and i just participated rather than led (did tech stuff).

 

[mdphdhopeful]

mcats matter a ton. see how you do. thats a decent gpa.

 

[solitude]

sorry for failing to be thorough...here it is:

i will have ~2.5 years of research under one professor and a summer stint with another. However, NO publications (i know, u said dont worry bout it), NO presentations, NO sympsoniums, etc etc. I am majoring in Molecular/cell bio (berkeley has 2 bio major options...molecular scale vs. organismal scale/ecology/morphology etc). I DO realize this looks decent...but theres no achievement...like progress. Kinda like i joined a club (lab) and i just participated rather than led (did tech stuff).

Are you applying right now or waiting until next year? If you're not applying for another year, there's still a ton of time to do presentations, symposiums, etc. See if there are undergrad research symposiums in the area, or ask your prof if he would be OK letting you do a poster/abstract at the next pertinent meeting for your area of research.

 

[anxietypeaker]

ill be applying this coming summer, so i have a year to go.

How competitive would i be with a 30 MCAT and 3.7 gpa...not very. But should i apply? And if i do apply, how good are nonMSTP programs? Theres so many more of them (i'll immediately throw out ones requiring gres and that dont finance decently). Are they good at placing their people in great residencies and most importantly, how about ability for them to get a faculty position?

 

[OddNath]

How competitive would i be with a 30 MCAT and 3.7 gpa...not very. But should i apply? And if i do apply, how good are nonMSTP programs? Theres so many more of them (i'll immediately throw out ones requiring gres and that dont finance decently). Are they good at placing their people in great residencies and most importantly, how about ability for them to get a faculty position?

If a non-MSTP is fully funded and has research that you're personally interested in, that's basically all you need. If you can find the latest Match List thread, you'll see that there are many MD/PhD grads from non-MSTP schools who go to awesome places for residency. Having the PhD will help set you apart. And, alot of that has to do with how hard you push yourself-- your board scores, AOA, publication record..basically things that you have control over no matter what school you go to.

As for a faculty position...that's pretty far down the road. I feel like that probably has more to do with the work and connections you make during residency, where there happens to be an opening, etc.

 

[QofQuimica]

hey everyone. Junior at Berkeley over here. GPA = 3.7, MCAT = ???. I think i made the decision that I'll apply to MSTP programs. But it seems like all the people i know applying are those "gunners" who take the hardest courses in the major, still do well, and have higher gpa's than me. I know im not smart. I also dont have the mentality of the gunners cuz i know id get KILLED in those courses. so...i feel kinda out of place even considering applying to md-phd programs. I dont think im md-phd material (my numbers are ok, not great...but i know I'm not like the people at Cal who are applying). Am i right to think this way? Also are my numbers not too good to apply?

Second question. If i decide on applying ONLY Md-phd programs, and i dont get in the first time. How much will my resume get boosted if i do research as a tech under a professor (paid/volunteer). Hopefully get a project i can carry out and maybe my name on a publication. WOuld that really really help? or not enough to risk only applying mstp with my numbers?

I know in one sense that this is not a helpful answer, but it's the truth, so I'm going to say it anyway: you won't know for sure whether you can get into an MSTP until you try to get into one. Don't make the mistake of thinking that grades and MCAT scores are the only things that matter. Yes, you do need to have sufficiently high stats to convince the programs that you can handle the workload, but if that's all you have going for you, you're going to have a tough time. You've gotten a lot of good advice from the previous posters, particularly that you should stop worrying about other people and what they're doing. You have your own strengths to offer, and you need to redirect that time and energy toward focusing on making yourself the best possible applicant that you can be. You know what you need to do for the next year, so now you need to come up with a plan to do it. Basically, you want to 1) keep your grades up; 2) study for the MCAT and do well on it; and 3) work on increasing your research experience. Best of luck to you. 🙂