Et moi?

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abundance

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So I haven't really posted much on here but I would really appreciate any feedback. I am a Canadian applicant but I am a US citizen, gpa: 3.91, sgpa: 3.82, mcat: 33S and I have average ECs with no research experience but i'll be doing a thesis project next year. These are the schools I have selected so far:

Michigan State
U of Vermont
Penn State
Boston

SUNY Upstate

U of Rochester

Einstein

U of Pennsylvania

NYU

U of Michigan

I am applying to Canadian schools as well so i'm not sure if this is enough or should I add more or take some off? I'm not sure if you noticed the trend but I picked schools based on proximity to Toronto/Ontario because it would cost less to go home and for interviews (if ever!)
THANKS!
 
Penn and UMich might be a bit of a reach....you have good stats but being a Canadian might have its drawbacks but go for it. I would add some low tier schools as well.
 
Keep in mind that being Canadian will be a strike against you in this process: international applicants just have a harder time with things, especially if they haven't gone to undergrad in the US - I'm assuming you did though, and that will help you. Agreed with adding "lower tiered" schools: NYMC is the first to come to mind. Vermont and Upstate are good considerations. Your numbers are good, its just going to be harder for you unfortunately.
 
Am i still considered an international applicant despite the fact that i am an american citizen just not a resident?
 
Am i still considered an international applicant despite the fact that i am an american citizen just not a resident?

No. In that case you'd count as American, but you'll still be an OOS student at all the state schools where you apply (assuming you live in Canada right now). This will be a disadvantage, because most med schools are public and state residency is a very important criterion for them. But its still much better than being international.

At private schools, on the other hand, you're golden. They don't really care what state you live in, as long as you're from the US.
 
sweet! so considering that should i take off some of the state schools on my list and add some private ones?
 
seriously ANY feedback would be appreciated, since i live in Canada its hard to gauge the universities in the US and where i should apply other than looking at the stats in the MSAR...
 
sweet! so considering that should i take off some of the state schools on my list and add some private ones?

Go ahead and add private schools, but you don't necessarily have to take off the state schools on your list. As it happens, the ones you named (like Vermont, Upstate and Michigan State are known for being relatively OOS-friendly. (In fact, I just got into Vermont this year, and I'm from NY.)

On top of that, you have high stats, which will make you much more attractive as an OOS applicant at many schools.

Financially, though, it won't really make a lot of difference whether you attend pub lic or private med school, because OOS public tuition is typically about the same as private tuition, and in a couple of egregious cases, its actually more. (Michigan State: $60K!) So you should pick schools primarily based on "fit," and your chances of getting in.

Making a list is hard, but I'd suggest 3 things:

1. Download the School Selection Spreadsheet (sticky in this forum). This is a great quick-and-dirty tool to see how competitive you might be at various schools.

2. Buy the MSAR, if you haven't already, and really READ IT. This is going to be your main source of info on schools until you interview.

3. Pony up $14.95 for online access to the USNews med school rankings. Ignore the actual rankings, but the detailed info on each school contains very valuable info: the number of students actually OFFERED ADMISSION, as opposed to just the number of seats in the
class. And this info is broken down by IS/OOS, so you can estimate your TRUE probability of admission if you apply to the school.

Using this info, I found that the NJ med schools accept 27% of IS apps, but only 2% of OOS -->clearly not worth applying as OOS. You can get similar insights about schools you're interested in.

Using these 3 tools and your common sense, you should be apply to pull together a pretty intelligent school list. Good luck.