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- Dec 10, 2009
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I recently met an emeritus professor of medicine from the UC school system who offered to become my "mentor" to help me get into medical school. At our first meeting he informed me that he charges for this service, and that total costs for his help would be in excess of $15,000. This would include one on one meetings weekly, interview coaching, help obtaining letters from UCD instructors, and a personal LOR from him. I was shocked, and wondered if anyone here had ever heard of such a thing before. I did some research on him, and he is who he claims to be. I just had no idea that he wanted payment for his mentoring.
Some background: I am a CA resident who graduated from UC Davis in 2008. I have applied twice to medical school since graduation,two interviews total, but not accepted. My stats are as follows:
3.70 GPA cum
3.65 GPA sciences
32M MCAT (13/9/10) [Expiring, will retake this fall]
Hospital volunteer since August 2011 (~150 hrs ongoing)
Plant growth regulator research, unpublished (~500 hrs over 14 months)
Flu shot clinic volunteer (~160 hrs over 3 years)
Shadowed 3 physicians (~ 24 hrs total)
Misc. 1 day health fairs (~16 hrs total)
Martial arts training (~6 hrs/week for 18 years) [extracurricular]
I had several people review my personal statement before I applied, and I feel that it was solid if not spectacular. What I believe hurt me the most were the following aspects of my application: I attended a local community college for my freshman and sophomore years before I transferred to UCD to complete my degree in Biochemistry, and I took several prerequisites at the CC. Also, my Letters of Recommendation were from those teachers and I did not seek out LOR aggressively enough at UCD. Lastly, I had few activities when I initially applied, and almost no volunteering, which I have worked on for the past year.
In the end, would it be worth it to utilize his aid in getting in? Or should I go it alone again, continuing to volunteer while I retake the MCAT and try to apply on my own? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.
scifiguy13
Some background: I am a CA resident who graduated from UC Davis in 2008. I have applied twice to medical school since graduation,two interviews total, but not accepted. My stats are as follows:
3.70 GPA cum
3.65 GPA sciences
32M MCAT (13/9/10) [Expiring, will retake this fall]
Hospital volunteer since August 2011 (~150 hrs ongoing)
Plant growth regulator research, unpublished (~500 hrs over 14 months)
Flu shot clinic volunteer (~160 hrs over 3 years)
Shadowed 3 physicians (~ 24 hrs total)
Misc. 1 day health fairs (~16 hrs total)
Martial arts training (~6 hrs/week for 18 years) [extracurricular]
I had several people review my personal statement before I applied, and I feel that it was solid if not spectacular. What I believe hurt me the most were the following aspects of my application: I attended a local community college for my freshman and sophomore years before I transferred to UCD to complete my degree in Biochemistry, and I took several prerequisites at the CC. Also, my Letters of Recommendation were from those teachers and I did not seek out LOR aggressively enough at UCD. Lastly, I had few activities when I initially applied, and almost no volunteering, which I have worked on for the past year.
In the end, would it be worth it to utilize his aid in getting in? Or should I go it alone again, continuing to volunteer while I retake the MCAT and try to apply on my own? Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks.
scifiguy13
