Finishing Secondaries

[Peakbagger]

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I am a FT employed non-trad re-app candidate that made the mistake of sending primaries to all schools at once and am thus still working to finish turning in some secondaries. I know my turnaround times are not ideal but between my job, volunteering, personal obligations, financial limitations, and applying to 12 other programs already I have been doing the best I can with my limited time/money. Can anyone shed light on whether it is too late to finish my secondaries at the following schools?

CU (IS applicant)
MU (Home state with strong ties-only II last year when I applied to 9 schools)
Rush
Duke
WF

Most of these were received in July/August with the exception being MU in September. Should I go ahead and complete these or use the time/money to apply to more DO programs instead?

A few bits of info that may be helpful:

Early 30’s
523 MCAT
3.45 cgpa (due to poor start freshman year that resulted in IA for probation/dismissal. After taking time off I retuned to school to complete 120 credits @3.98)
3.98 sgpa
~750 hrs research
~135 hrs clinical volunteering, ~40 non-clinical
~30 hrs shadowing
Various honors, awards, scholarships, clubs, etc
Strong lor’s

Any advice would be greatly appreciated so I’m not wasting my limited time/$. Thanks in advance!

 

[Dr. Faust]

Read on the school's website or instructions in the secondary email. It will not be worth it to submit a sub-par secondary that isn't well thought out or done with haste. Some school take secondaries all the way until December.

 

[imbesrs]

given your age/mcat/sgpa I would def finish them ASAP

 

[Peakbagger]

Read on the school's website or instructions in the secondary email. It will not be worth it to submit a sub-par secondary that isn't well thought out or done with haste. Some school take secondaries all the way until December.

Hi Dr Faust,

Thank you very much for the reply. I know from the website/emails that the schools official secondary deadlines have not passed. I just know that some programs move quicker than others in filling interview spots. Therefore I was looking for any additional insight from adcoms or individuals that might be more familiar with these specific programs as to whether it was worth it to apply at this point in the cycle. I definitely don’t want to turn in poor secondaries so whatever I submit will not be done hastily. I’m just trying to be strategic and allocate my time/$ in a way to best improve my odds for an acceptance this year.

 

[Peakbagger]

given your age/mcat/sgpa I would def finish them ASAP

Thanks imbesrs! I am definitely going to submit to CU and MU. Still trying to decide if it’s too late for Rush, Duke, & WF. If it’s too late to have much of a shot at those programs I might be better off using the $ for additional DO schools. This process is so unpredictable and expensive and I’m just trying to maximize my chances for acceptance with the time and $ constraints I’m working with.

 

[imbesrs]

Thanks imbesrs! I am definitely going to submit to CU and MU. Still trying to decide if it’s too late for Rush, Duke, & WF. If it’s too late to have much of a shot at those programs I might be better off using the $ for additional DO schools. This process is so unpredictable and expensive and I’m just trying to maximize my chances for acceptance with the time and $ constraints I’m working with.

To expedite the process, im sure some of the questions overlap with some of the previous secondaries youve filled out. Copy/paste/adjust-per-school is definitely an effective technique.

Duke is a grind and you will really have to set aside time to crank those out, id prioritize the shorter ones if the goal is just to become a doc

 

[notsobabydoc]

Thanks imbesrs! I am definitely going to submit to CU and MU. Still trying to decide if it’s too late for Rush, Duke, & WF. If it’s too late to have much of a shot at those programs I might be better off using the $ for additional DO schools. This process is so unpredictable and expensive and I’m just trying to maximize my chances for acceptance with the time and $ constraints I’m working with.

Why not applying to lower tier md with your 523? DO with that score is a total waste.

 

[Peakbagger]

Why not applying to lower tier md with your 523? DO with that score is a total waste.

Well my end goal is to be a physician, regardless of which degree gets me there. I’m not putting as much stock into the high MCAT score this year since last year I received a total of 1 interview and was not accepted. So far I’m complete at 12 programs and have 1 R, 1 hold, & radio silence from the rest. I’m just getting nervous that I’m going to have the same results as last year so I’m trying to increase my odds of acceptance whether it be at an MD or DO program. I appreciate the advice and encouragement though. 🙂

 

[diasterdream]

@Peakbagger dude I am in the same boat trying to finish up Vandy, Duke, and Wake. If you really want to go these schools, then apply. Just have lowered expectations about how the cycle will go with those schools.

 

[Peakbagger]

@Peakbagger dude I am in the same boat trying to finish up Vandy, Duke, and Wake. If you really want to go these schools, then apply. Just have lowered expectations about how the cycle will go with those schools.

Glad to hear I’m not the only one. Thanks for the reply and encouragement!

 

[Dr. Faust]

Hi Dr Faust,

Thank you very much for the reply. I know from the website/emails that the schools official secondary deadlines have not passed. I just know that some programs move quicker than others in filling interview spots. Therefore I was looking for any additional insight from adcoms or individuals that might be more familiar with these specific programs as to whether it was worth it to apply at this point in the cycle. I definitely don’t want to turn in poor secondaries so whatever I submit will not be done hastily. I’m just trying to be strategic and allocate my time/$ in a way to best improve my odds for an acceptance this year.

Being that your primary has already been submitted, applying again would cost a boat load of money as a re-applicant. One of my friends did not submit the primary until Sept, but she had 33MCAT and 4.0 GPA and still got in her desired school with scholarships. You should be fine with submitting secondary now but every school is different.

 

[Peakbagger]

Being that your primary has already been submitted, applying again would cost a boat load of money as a re-applicant. One of my friends did not submit the primary until Sept, but she had 33MCAT and 4.0 GPA and still got in her desired school with scholarships. You should be fine with submitting secondary now but every school is different.

Thank you very much for the advice and the reassurance. After all the feedback I have decided to go ahead and submit them all’s I appreciate everyone’s input! Best of luck to all!