Good Numbers, EC's Not Great--Where Should I Apply

[hamhamfan]

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And mdapplicants just scares me...

 

[uniqueseraph]

CA med schools are competitive to get into compared to other states. I'd question whether or not you really want to go into medical school since you are applying to pharmacy school as well. Based on what you said, I'd rack up more ECs. Show them you really want this--shadow a doctor, dab into some research, etc. This will not only help your application but also drive you even more (or less) to become a doc. Mdapplicants do have strong stats, but if it "scares" compared to yours, I honestly wouldn't say I have a strong gpa/MCAT.

P.S. What kind of weather do you like if not hot or cold?

 

[No Egrets]

I don't like hot or cold weather very much. However, can you guys recommmend some schools that would fit my profile?

Might I suggest setting up a nice time-share with someone in the Northeast... You could attend UCLA from october to march, and then trade places with someone at Harvard or Penn for the summer months to avoid shocking your system with either extreme highs or lows.

 

[CaMD]

Might I suggest setting up a nice time-share with someone in the Northeast... You could attend UCLA from october to march, and then trade places with someone at Harvard or Penn for the summer months to avoid shocking your system with either extreme highs or lows.

Ha ha ha ha ha!

 

[mikeyboy]

You'll have a hard time if you try to avoid hot and cold weather; i'm not really sure what actually fits.

Apply to all the CA schools, then some other schools maybe in the midwest and south. I don't know exactly which schools are easy to get into since I haven't gotten in, but search through some threads, they give some good "backup" schools. But then most of these are on the east coast since you can't rely on schools in cali to be a backup, or so it seems to me.

 

[Amy B]

I think you should hold off applying until you can get some great ECs under your belt. But that is just my opinion. Why are you applying to Pharm school and med school? Which one do you really want? Maybe that is why you don't have any good EC's that the med schools would like to see. Maybe your heart isn't in it and you should go to pharm school. Not trying to be harsh, but.............

 

[hamhamfan]

CA med schools are competitive to get into compared to other states. I'd question whether or not you really want to go into medical school since you are applying to pharmacy school as well. Based on what you said, I'd rack up more ECs. Show them you really want this--shadow a doctor, dab into some research, etc. This will not only help your application but also drive you even more (or less) to become a doc. Mdapplicants do have strong stats, but if it "scares" compared to yours, I honestly wouldn't say I have a strong gpa/MCAT.

P.S. What kind of weather do you like if not hot or cold?

I like Vancouver over the summer.

 

[hamhamfan]

Honestly... Pick the most expensive private schools that are outside of the top 25. Some, e.g., Case Western Reserve University or Saint Louis University have to give out 600+ acceptances to fill a class. Also look at the USUHS mililtary school, you could be doing residency in Hawaii or San Diego! Sorry man, you can not be that picky without the grades, ECs and MCATS to back it up. Otherwise you look like a whining loser that doesnt have the goods, and honestly you should have thought about this before and done something about it. The Carribean has your weather and there are a few D.O. schools in California, but if you want allopathic, you are going to have to apply to quite a few schols and hope for the best. There are the masters programs and Post Bac programs offered at some medical schools e.g. Georgetown, Chicago Finch, from which the medical school takes quite a few of their students. One last bit of advice, if you are a very picky person about where you live and how/when/what you do with your free time... medicine might not be the right place for you. After basic sciences and until you graduate residency you have no control over your schedule and are that the mercy of others for everything. It is very nerve racking!
Good luck.

Well, I started this thread primarily because I'm worried about my EC's. I don't want to be flamed, but I don't worry about my grades or mcats, except for those two bad grades. I thought that Case Western has snow and is hot and humid during the summer. Also, a military environment doesn't seem to be the right place for my personality. The caribbean is supposed to be rather hot, humid, and sunny.

Yeah, the loss of control over what I can do is certainly discouraging. Several times a week I leave the house 7am and come back 11pm.. and I understand that's still nothing compared to later on. That's such a frightening thought... running around all the time with not enough sleep.

 

[TheFlash]

The Carribean has beautiful weather. Not too hot or cold.

I mean, seriously, wtf? No one city has perfect weather

 

[hamhamfan]

The Carribean has beautiful weather. Not too hot or cold.

I mean, seriously, wtf? No one city has perfect weather

Well, when I started this thread, the weather I had been experiencing was really bad. It was like in the 90's and like all dry. It feels miserable walking from class to class in the hot sun. On the other hand, it would kind of stink to go to school somewhere it's so cold that a jacket and sweater isn't enough.

 

[Pinkertinkle]

Hypothetical question, how far does a 3.8/38 make it with hamham's EC's?

 

[uclacrewdude]

Hypothetical question, how far does a 3.8/38 make it with hamham's EC's?

what do you think? ugh, biobots.

 

[jlee9531]

Hypothetical question, how far does a 3.8/38 make it with hamham's EC's?

prolly in somewhere...just not at a top place...

 

[hamhamfan]

prolly in somewhere...just not at a top place...

Anywhere in California?

 

[superdevil]

let's say you have a 3.8/38 combo.

that's pretty sweet.

look, SDN TOTALLY distorts what you think are appropriate EC's. most non-SDN applicants haven't breast-fed HIV+ babies in africa, whereas approximately 65% of SDNer's have...

with your numbers (assuming they are on the "high" side of things) and run-of-the-mill EC's, i would still imagine that you'll get in SOMEWHERE. as everyone always says---apply to a broad range of schools. i'm sorry if you have a heavy course load this summer, but you may just have to grin and bear it (apply to 20-30 schools). life's a b.tch, but you should have learned that by now!

good luck.
sd

 

[CrazyCozak]

Well, when I started this thread, the weather I had been experiencing was really bad. It was like in the 90's and like all dry. It feels miserable walking from class to class in the hot sun. On the other hand, it would kind of stink to go to school somewhere it's so cold that a jacket and sweater isn't enough.

Hot sun, eh? 🙂 hehe.. sounds like Arizona State Univ to me... 😉 good thing that beautiful women here compensate all the miseries of the desert! 🙂

 

[hamhamfan]

Hot sun, eh? 🙂 hehe.. sounds like Arizona State Univ to me... 😉 good thing that beautiful women here compensate all the miseries of the desert! 🙂

Heh, luckily I probably won't have to handle the worst of the hot weather you guys have.