Exit Interview?

[squrlgrl007]

So, after shedding my tears over the rejection from my only interview this weekend, I am ready to look ahead to next year. 🙁 I have read something about "exit interviews" on here somewhere and I was wondering what they are, if they are helpful, and how I go about getting one?

As I only interviewed at one school, is this where I should ask for one? Could it be over the phone, or does it have to be in person?

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[ChairmanMao]

I think you're talking about a meeting with an admissions representative from the medical school at which you were rejected from to see what aspect of your application needs improvement. I've heard that some, not all schools, offers this option (the only one that I know is the University of Chicago). You may want to call their admissions office and ask it they offer it - if they don't, then don't bother them - they're usually too busy to pay attention to the students whom they've rejected.

My understanding is that they go over your application and point out what aspects needs improvement. Usually, what they tell you should be common sense (a low GPA/low MCAT scores/ bad interview, etc)... Given the fact that you only received one interview, there's probably a major flaw with your application.

How is you're application? Did you get at least a 3.4-3.5 overall GPA and 30 on your MCAT? Did you have a upward or downward grade trend? Did you do any volunteering, shadowing, or work at a part-time job? How many schools did you apply to? Give us an idea of what you think might be wrong with your application

 

[squrlgrl007]

Both my BCPM and Cum GPA were 3.47 (low, yes) but trended very well (2.5 freshman year, 3.8, 3.9 Jr and Sr year, all upper lever sci classes). My MCAT was average to low (P8V10B11 Q), I think I had pretty outstanding EC's

10 week summer internships at both a veterinary hospital and a law firm (I wanted to explore some other options, didn't like them)

Shadowing (anesthesiologist and ER)

two years full time research assistant

bio, chem and physics honors societies (with officer positions in all, charter class for physics)

TA 3 years for cell bio 1 year orgo, general bio TA 4 years

deans/honors list every semester except freshman year

varsity athletics 3 years (not freshman)

orientation committee + clubs: fencing, equestrian, circle K and college dems (only not an officer in circle K)

I had a rough time freshman year due to family problems, but I learned to manage (the problems are still ongoing, and my grades improved dramatically and remained on an upward trend). I have taken the MCAT twice (and improved 26 to 29, but not enough I think).

 

[235750]

BE CAREFUL WITH EXIT INTERVIEWS!!!

Sorry I have some strong feelings on the subject

I was/am a non-traditional reapplicant, and years ago I took the advice from the University of Colorado and it's left me more than a little bitter

I thought, well, they must now the truth about how to improve my application since they make up the upper echelon of the entire process. At the end of the day, it is just one person's opinion

Please don't take just one school's advice. Talk to many people. look at all of your options, and always have backup plans

Good luck!

 

[dragonfly99]

Would strengthen up the number of hospital/clinic volunteer hours, keep taking some upper level science courses one at a time (drag up GPA some more), consider MCAT retake (study physics hard).

 

[ChairmanMao]

Right, I think you already know what your greatest weakness is: your numbers (MCAT/GPA) buts you in the lower category of medial school matriculants. If you look through the MSAR, you'll see that the average GPA and MCAT score of accepted applicants is 3.7 and 32 MCAT. With a 3.47 and 29 on 2nd retake, you're probably in the bottom 10% of the student body at most medical school in the US. Plus, it doesn't look like you have a lot of clinical experience (shadowing/volunteering/hospital work that sort of thing).

As the fellow above suggests, do what you can to improve your numbers. If you're going to retake the MCAT, don't do it unless you are absolutely certain that you can significantly improve - a 28 or a 29 MCAT score on a 3rd retake can significantly hurt your chances. I would also look into taking an additional year off and applying for the 2010-2011 year by working/volunteering at a hospital to enhance your clinical skills. Taking post-bac classes to raise your GPA and getting a recommendation letter from an MD might also enhance your application. Don't rush into reapplying unless you can significantly improve your application.

 

[ChairmanMao]

BE CAREFUL WITH EXIT INTERVIEWS!!!

Sorry I have some strong feelings on the subject

I was/am a non-traditional reapplicant, and years ago I took the advice from the University of Colorado and it's left me more than a little bitter

I thought, well, they must now the truth about how to improve my application since they make up the upper echelon of the entire process. At the end of the day, it is just one person's opinion

Please don't take just one school's advice. Talk to many people. look at all of your options, and always have backup plans

Good luck!

Every school and every admissions representative have their own understanding of how these applications are handled. I would imagine that you could have asked every medical school why you were rejected and they would have had different reason. I don't know how competitive Colorado is, but a lot of medical schools will tell you their reasons for rejecting you - not exactly the reason in general of why you were rejected.

So for example, if you're an average GPA 3.6, 32 MCAT applicant and you were rejected from Harvard or Johns Hopkins, and you asked what you can do to improve your chances, they might have told you to retake the MCAT and score a 38 or take more classes and get your overall GPA up to a 3.9 - in reality you don't have to do any of those things. You were rejected because you're an average applicant applying to super-competitive schools. You could have gotten in if you had simply applied to lower-ranked schools, or gotten more clinical experience, or applied to your state school.

In your case, with Colorado, I heard that it's extremely difficult for out-of-state applicants to get in. Unless you moved to Colorado, spent years retaking class, and retook the MCAT, it probably wouldn't have mattered to them how you improved your application. You could have probably gotten in elsewhere either by applying to other schools in your home state, or by applying to less selective medical schools.