Does the size of your school impact your chances of getting in?

[lolgirooo]

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I'm a female URM currently at a small private school in the midwest with a prestigious scholarship. We have about 9,000 students and are ranked in the top 90 in the country. I'm unhappy at this school and considering transferring to the larger state university (over 30,000) ranked in the top 40 in the country. This state school also has a medical school attached, where as my current school does not.

Will going to a larger state school impact my chances of getting in because there are so many more students gunning for medical school spots, or will I be more attractive as an applicant for attending a school with a better ranking and known for its academic rigor and competitive admissions?

 

[La Presse]

No.

 

[thepoopologist]

Why does no one ever get the underlying issue. The same posts come up year after year.

Your grades and your MCAT matter. It doesn't matter where you get them, go to the school where they can be the highest. Everything else, where you went to school, volunteer work, research, leadership positions, are secondary.

A 3.9 and 35 from any school will get you into a medical school. Those stats coming from a top school will put you in contention for a spot at a top medical school.

 

[PreMedOrDead]

A 3.9 and 35 from any school will get you into a medical school. Those stats coming from a top school will put you in contention for a spot at a top medical school.

Similar numbers from a smaller school will also do you just fine. But those numbers are rarer there, simply because the type of students that often choose those places don't usually kill the MCAT.

Size only matters below the belt. Get your shoes the right size!

 

[neilpryde21]

Similar numbers from a smaller school will also do you just fine. But those numbers are rarer there, simply because the type of students that often choose those places don't usually kill the MCAT.

Size only matters below the belt. Get your shoes the right size!

I go to a small liberal arts school in the northeast (smaller than 2500 in the whole college) and all the seniors I know who are applying this cycle (about 10) all have a minimum of a 35 on their mcats with several 38+ lol. Not denying its rarer in general for smaller schools to have those kind of high mcat stats, I just thought it was funny you said that considering what I've seen from my really small school.

 

[mosy28]

I go to a small liberal arts school in the northeast (smaller than 2500 in the whole college) and all the seniors I know who are applying this cycle (about 10) all have a minimum of a 35 on their mcats with several 38+ lol. Not denying its rarer in general for smaller schools to have those kind of high mcat stats, I just thought it was funny you said that considering what I've seen from my really small school.

Is your school a part of the NESCAC? If so, then it isn't really a fair comparison... It's an athletic league, but it also has several of the nation's top LACs as members.

 

[neilpryde21]

Is your school a part of the NESCAC? If so, then it isn't really a fair comparison... It's an athletic league, but it also has several of the nation's top LACs as members.

haha yeah I'm at a NESCAC school. I realize that it's not representative of other small schools, I just found the previous post funny when I thought about my school being a small school and how many great MCAT scores are coming out from here.

 

[carnelian]

I'm a female URM currently at a small private school in the midwest with a prestigious scholarship. We have about 9,000 students and are ranked in the top 90 in the country. I'm unhappy at this school and considering transferring to the larger state university (over 30,000) ranked in the top 40 in the country. This state school also has a medical school attached, where as my current school does not.

Will going to a larger state school impact my chances of getting in because there are so many more students gunning for medical school spots, or will I be more attractive as an applicant for attending a school with a better ranking and known for its academic rigor and competitive admissions?

Having a medical school attached will definitely help with shadowing, volunteering and research opportunities. If your small private school is close to a hospital/med school, it's fine too; doesn't have to be directly linked.

GPA/MCAT > reputation of school (NOT ranking...) when comparing applicants with very similar scores > size (irrelevant on its own... it'll just be harder to stand out if you go to a large school)

Keep in mind, if you don't have a solid GPA, it really doesn't matter how prestigious your undergrad is...

 

[red doctober]

"Top 90" to me reads USNWR 80-90. Very easy to figure out what schools you were referring to. UW-Madison is a great school... You probably wouldn't regret transferring to UW from Marquette if you don't like it there.

 

[earf]

One difference in support of larger institutions is that letters of recommendations can be stronger from a professor who had 300 students in his class and says you're one in the top 1% as opposed to a professor who had 30 students in the class and says a similar thing.

Other than that, high GPA and MCAT are the most surefire ways of getting into medical school. That and lots of shadowing experience.

 

[eggs13]

One difference in support of larger institutions is that letters of recommendations can be stronger from a professor who had 300 students in his class and says you're one in the top 1% as opposed to a professor who had 30 students in the class and says a similar thing.

Other than that, high GPA and MCAT are the most surefire ways of getting into medical school. That and lots of shadowing experience.

Yes, but how likely is a professor with 300 students to get to know you well enough to be able to speak to your character and other important qualities outside your academics. I went to a school of about 2000, with class sizes no bigger than 25-30 and I got to know my science profs quite well each semester. It allowed for them to write really solid LORs that could speak about me as a person, not just as a student.

 

[NickNaylor]

I think the final point of this question is that going to a large university might help you, but if you do well and work hard it won't matter. In other words, your path at a smaller school might be more difficult than at a large university with many well-established programs, but nothing intrinsic to a small school is going to limit your opportunities.

(sent from my phone)