Got some questions

[Min:))]

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So I just recently decided to apply to med school after shadowing physicians and deciding that it was the right career for me. I have some questions since I'm really far behind in pre-med knowledge

1. I am going into my 3rd year of undergrad. Is it ok to take 13 hours (light course load) in order to study for the MCAT? Or is it better to take 16 hrs and risk it to show med schools that i can handle the course load?

2. How many hours of shadowing, medical volunteering, etc do I need for TX schools?

3. Who should write my letters of rec (just science profs?) and how many letters do schools accept?

4. If I take 4 online classes (through my undergrad - they still count as in residence hours) my senior year after I submit my app, will there be consequences (do med schools not like online courses?)

Feel free to drop any tips or talk about things I didn't mention

THANK YOU

 

[Dagrimsta1]

So I just recently decided to apply to med school after shadowing physicians and deciding that it was the right career for me. I have some questions since I'm really far behind in pre-med knowledge

1. I am going into my 3rd year of undergrad. Is it ok to take 13 hours (light course load) in order to study for the MCAT? Or is it better to take 16 hrs and risk it to show med schools that i can handle the course load?

I would take a month or 2 of pure dedicated studying in order to fully prepare. Don’t risk the GPA. Dont worry about how many credits, more about finishing on time with good scores.

2. How many hours of shadowing, medical volunteering, etc do I need for TX schools?

The more the better but min 100 hrs volunteering, 15-20 hrs of shadowing per doctor/specialty. 1-2 should suffice. Everyone has a different opinion on this so take with a grain of salt.

3. Who should write my letters of rec (just science profs?) and how many letters do schools accept?

3-4 science and 1-2 non science covers all the bases. Don’t need to submit all but it’s good to have some in the bank in case one professor flakes out or you want to “update” your application later.

4. If I take 4 online classes (through my undergrad - they still count as in residence hours) my senior year after I submit my app, will there be consequences (do med schools not like online courses?

@gonnif



Feel free to drop any tips or talk about things I didn't mention

THANK YOU

Read bolded above

Plus it’s hard to do this all at once. Start collecting letters early, plan a study schedule for the MCAT and stick to it.

Getting 100 volunteer hours over the span of 2 months is less impressive than over 2 years.

Mentally prepare yourself for the fact that you’ll be in school for another 5 years minimum.

N=1

 

[Min:))]

Read bolded above

Plus it’s hard to do this all at once. Start collecting letters early, plan a study schedule for the MCAT and stick to it.

Getting 100 volunteer hours over the span of 2 months is less impressive than over 2 years.

Mentally prepare yourself for the fact that you’ll be in school for another 5 years minimum.

N=1

How would I collect letters early? I thought I had to wait until the application when professors get their emails and submit the letters.

As far as volunteering, my plan is to volunteer from now till when I apply (around 10 months). Do you think that's ok?

 

[Dagrimsta1]

How would I collect letters early? I thought I had to wait until the application when professors get their emails and submit the letters.

As far as volunteering, my plan is to volunteer from now till when I apply (around 10 months). Do you think that's ok?

Prepare your professors by asking early and telling them to have it ready by a specific date (month before sending in apps). Once you set everything up, all they do is email it in instead of typing it up first. Saves time.

Yeah just volunteer is the point and try to get something out of it.

 

[workaholic181]

So I just recently decided to apply to med school after shadowing physicians and deciding that it was the right career for me. I have some questions since I'm really far behind in pre-med knowledge

1. I am going into my 3rd year of undergrad. Is it ok to take 13 hours (light course load) in order to study for the MCAT? Or is it better to take 16 hrs and risk it to show med schools that i can handle the course load?

2. How many hours of shadowing, medical volunteering, etc do I need for TX schools?

3. Who should write my letters of rec (just science profs?) and how many letters do schools accept?

4. If I take 4 online classes (through my undergrad - they still count as in residence hours) my senior year after I submit my app, will there be consequences (do med schools not like online courses?)

Feel free to drop any tips or talk about things I didn't mention

THANK YOU

1) Your priority should just be prepping for the MCAT. Having a heavy course load would marginally benefit you. The most advantageous thing you can do is to score as high as possible the first time around.

2) I agree with the above, at least 100 hours. Make sure you get some primary care hours in too.

3) It is generally best to have science professors who graded you in a challenging science course in which you did well to write you letters. To get letters early, you can sign up to use Interfolio. I think it's like $40 now but it was so unbelievably helpful for me. Basically, it's a service that stores LORs for you until you need them. Then the service sends them to AMCAS for you. Highly, highly recommend.

4) Most MD schools do not accept online courses for pre reqs. If you have the pre reqs done already and these last few classes are just for your degree completion I guess you'd be okay. But I'm pretty sure schools would prefer to see that you'll be enrolled in in class courses during your app cycle. May not be a big deal though. Hopefully an adcom will weigh in.

Good luck OP!

 

[Min:))]

Thank you guys so much! Super helpful

 

[Apothecary Aquinas]

I won’t restate what everyone has already said, as I agree with it, but I also want to state that it is okay and common to take a gap year after you graduate if you need to. If your application is not where it needs to be when you aim to apply do not waste time and money applying. Take the extra time to get your app where it needs to be to be competitive. I know you’ll want to get into medschool ASAP but rushing into an application cycle (like I did years ago) will only lead to multiple application cycles, wasted money and stress.

This is especially true In regards to the MCAT. Taking the MCAT multiple times should be avoided if possible. If after multiple practice tests your test date arrives and you’re not scoring well, push the test back! Take the financial loss and keep studying.

Set yourself up to apply only once! Ask lots of questions and do your homework on the app process. Good luck!