Harvard grad 3.44 cGPA school list help?

[scooter91]

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Hey all! I'm applying in the upcoming cycle with the following stats.

Female; new england resident; from a low-income family
Graduated from Harvard with a degree in biology
cGPA about 3.4, sGPA about 3.3 (some C+'s freshman year, A's and B's in the last three years).
Mcat: 33
ECs: 2 semesters plus one summer of research (no publications); lots of work with low income youth tutoring and teaching during the terms and summers, homeless shelter volunteer; volunteered at nursing homes and worked with alzheimer's patients, worked at the library and tutored peers to pay for college, shadowed 50-70 hours.

After graduating in May, I joined TFA, went through their bootcamp summer training, was placed in a horrible charter school whose practices I felt were mentally and emotionally abusive to the children, which I didn't feel comfortable promoting. The admin refused to change these policies and there was a culture of fear and silence that prevented open dialogue, so I resigned back in November. After resigning, I took the MCAT and am now volunteering at a hospital in the cancer in patient dept. and shadowing doctors. Got a job as a research assistant--will begin in April. (edit: also started tutoring low-income youth in Jan. of app cycle and added a pediatric 3 hr. volunteer shift at hospital in December).

Here's my school list--I know Columbia and Yale and a few others are super reaches with my GPA but I would regret not applying. I would like to stay in the New England area. Please let me know if I should add or sub any schools--would like to apply to 20 max. Thanks for any and all feedback.

Howard
Albany
Brown
NY Medical College
Dartmouth
Tufts
Georgetown
Drexel
Temple
Duke
Rochester
Uconn
Columbia
Icahn Mt. Sinai
Albert Einstein Yeshiva
Yale
NYU

 

[WedgeDawg]

Honestly, with your stats, you need to be applying to more than 20 schools, and if you insist upon a hard cap, don't waste slots with schools like Duke, Yale, and Columbia (and a few others on there too) that you have effectively no chance at. You have fewer than 5 schools where, if someone is in a really good mood, /might/ decided to think about giving you an interview. If you want to be successful this cycle, you need to come up with a more realistic list and think about adding DO schools (where you are certainly competitive) into the mix.

 

[scooter91]

I would really like to keep it at 20 max, and please let me know which schools in the New England area to sub in if I take out the more competitive schools. And by the 5 you think should stay on the list--which do you mean? Also, which DO schools in the East have the best rep in terms of producing great doctors in your opinion?

I was mostly looking at the 10% gpa when picking schools since I feel like the median is kind of inflated at non-top 10 schools. For about half of these schools, I fall in the 10th percentile range, and my MCAT is competitive.

 

[WedgeDawg]

I would really like to keep it at 20 max, and please let me know which schools in the New England area to sub in if I take out the more competitive schools. And by the 5 you think should stay on the list--which do you mean? Also, which DO schools in the East have the best rep in terms of producing great doctors in your opinion?

If you're adamant about a cap at 20, you should take out Yale, Duke, Columbia, NYU, Sinai, Einstein, Brown, Dartmouth, Rochester, and Howard (Bengali does not fit it's profile I believe). That leaves you with 7 schools that statistically fit your profile (marginally). Of those, at least Georgetown, Drexel, and Temple get about 8 billion applications per cycle, so the chance of landing an interview there for most applicants is low.

I'm not too familiar with DO schools myself, but perhaps @Goro can share his insight and suggest other schools for you to apply to.

 

[gyngyn]

If you're adamant about a cap at 20, you should take out Yale, Duke, Columbia, NYU, Sinai, Einstein, Brown, Dartmouth, Rochester, and Howard (Bengali does not fit it's profile I believe). That leaves you with 7 schools that statistically fit your profile (marginally). Of those, at least Georgetown, Drexel, and Temple get about 8 billion applications per cycle, so the chance of landing an interview there for most applicants is low.

I'm not too familiar with DO schools myself, but perhaps @Goro can share his insight and suggest other schools for you to apply to.

Jeff only(!) gets about 10K but Drexel and GT do get more than 13K.
I think she can keep Einstein as a reach. Agree about the rest.

 

[Stagg737]

Honestly, with your stats, you need to be applying to more than 20 schools, and if you insist upon a hard cap, don't waste slots with schools like Duke, Yale, and Columbia (and a few others on there too) that you have effectively no chance at. You have fewer than 5 schools where, if someone is in a really good mood, /might/ decided to think about giving you an interview. If you want to be successful this cycle, you need to come up with a more realistic list and think about adding DO schools (where you are certainly competitive) into the mix.

I think that's a little harsh since OP has a pretty unique situation and sounds like she could write some pretty powerful essays, but I agree with the rest. There are a lot of reaches on that list and it needs to be revised significantly.

I would really like to keep it at 20 max, and please let me know which schools in the New England area to sub in if I take out the more competitive schools. And by the 5 you think should stay on the list--which do you mean? Also, which DO schools in the East have the best rep in terms of producing great doctors in your opinion?

I was mostly looking at the 10% gpa when picking schools since I feel like the median is kind of inflated at non-top 10 schools. For about half of these schools, I fall in the 10th percentile range, and my MCAT is competitive.

Why on earth would you think this? I did something similar during one of my cycles and can tell you I went 0/30 in terms of interviews. Granted, there were other reasons I didn't get iis (medical withdrawal), but this is a poor way of choosing what schools you want to apply to. Wedge's list of schools to throw out is pretty spot on from my experience. Only thing I'd say is keep Einstein if you like it a lot. I know more than one person that is ORM with worse stats than yours who got in. I'd also say avoid George Washington if you were looking to add it. With 300 acceptances out of ~15,000, the odds are not in your favor.

In terms of DO schools, there are a few up there that people think are solid. PCOM (philadelphia) has always had a very positive reputation and I believe NYIT-COM is also considered a good school. However, from what I've heard NYC is not the most DO friendly place, so it may not be where you would want to end up applying for a residency as a DO. I haven't heard much about UNECOM, but the few things I have heard were not bad. As stated, someone with more experience like @Goro or @cabinbuilder would be better suited to help you with DO schools out east.

 

[scooter91]

Thanks for the advice everyone--working on revising the list now and will update soon. Just out of curiosity, does the Harvard name not carry any weight at all in this? I ask because had I gone to UConn, my gpa would have been significantly higher (Harvard pre-med classes do not benefit from the grade inflation the humanities benefit from sadly) based on the coursework I've seen my sister complete (she goes to UConn and is majoring in bio). And a disclaimer: No offense meant whatsoever to anyone going to UConn. It's a great school, and I myself would have loved to go there for undergrad had they given me more financial aid. And UConn med is my no. 1 choice currently. I would feel golden if I get in!

 

[WedgeDawg]

Thanks for the advice everyone--working on revising the list now and will update soon. Just out of curiosity, does the Harvard name not carry any weight at all in this? I ask because had I gone to UConn, my gpa would have been significantly higher (Harvard pre-med classes do not benefit from the grade inflation the humanities benefit from sadly) based on the coursework I've seen my sister complete (she goes to UConn and is majoring in bio).

The name carries weight, but just keep in mind you're competing with hundreds of other Ivy League applicants with similar names and better stats. There are a few schools that really really like to take Ivy League applicants (Hofstra and USC-keck come to mind) regardless of their stats (within reason), so you could consider applying there, and a 3.7/36 applicant from Harvard might fare better than a 3.95/39 from random other school, but especially with top tier schools, they just have so many amazing applicants they can choose from that a 3.4/33 from Harvard just won't cut it.

 

[scooter91]

If Einstein's a good reach, should I also keep dartmouth and brown (which seem to have a greater GPA range with the same median)?

 

[scooter91]

The name carries weight, but just keep in mind you're competing with hundreds of other Ivy League applicants with similar names and better stats. There are a few schools that really really like to take Ivy League applicants (Hofstra and USC-keck come to mind) regardless of their stats (within reason), so you could consider applying there, and a 3.7/36 applicant from Harvard might fare better than a 3.95/39 from random other school, but especially with top tier schools, they just have so many amazing applicants they can choose from that a 3.4/33 from Harvard just won't cut it.

Is it true that BU is a school that doesn't like ivy league applicants? Is it worth adding?

 

[WedgeDawg]

If Einstein's a good reach, should I also keep dartmouth and brown (which seem to have a greater GPA range with the same median)?

It's up to you, but keep in mind that the more reaches you add, the lower your chance of an acceptance. Dartmouth and Brown are schools that really like nontraditional applicants (Dartmouth's median entering age is 26/27) and both, particularly Brown, have a preference for their own undergrads.

Is it true that BU is a school that doesn't like ivy league applicants? Is it worth adding?

According to my own premed advisors, students at my school (another Ivy) historically don't do very well when applying to BU, but I didn't apply and didn't really research the school, so I'm not really sure. Their website says that Harvard (as well as Cornell, Brown, Dartmouth, Duke, Stanford, and MIT) are among their "most represented undergrad institutions" for their incoming class, but they don't really say how many come from each school. Keep in mind that BU gets 12k apps per year and has average stats of 3.7/34 according to their website (idk what MSAR says, but MSAR usually reports even higher stats than schools themselves do).

 

[gyngyn]

If Einstein's a good reach, should I also keep dartmouth and brown (which seem to have a greater GPA range with the same median)?

Dartmouth only has 85 spots and loves non-trads.
When you subtract the PLME seats, Brown becomes low yield for similar reasons.

 

[cabinbuilder]

I'm no expert on East coast schools. I'm a LECOM grad and your stats are fine for them, especially with an IVY league undergrad degree. Not sure why you didn't look into Harvard Med school when you have already gone there for undergrad? I would think (hope) you would have connections there.

 

[WedgeDawg]

I'm no expert on East coast schools. I'm a LECOM grad and your stats are fine for them, especially with an IVY league undergrad degree. Not sure why you didn't look into Harvard Med school when you have already gone there for undergrad? I would think (hope) you would have connections there.

It doesn't really work like that...

 

[cabinbuilder]

It doesn't really work like that...

Well, life is all about connection so I thought I would put that out there......... I'm not in the IVY league world so am not sure. I'm just a simple country doc who takes care of those no one else will.

 

[Goro]

I'm not a fan of reaches. I suggest:

Albany
NY Medical College
Tufts
Georgetown
Drexel
Jefferson
Temple
Uconn
TCMC
VCU
Hofstra
Netter
Rosy Franklin
NYITCOM
TouroNY
UNECOM
LECOM
PCOM
WVSOM
VCOM
KYCOM
CUSOM
VCOM-SC

 

[chemguy79]

OP, you have too many reach schools on your list.

What's your MCAT score breakdown?

 

[candbgirl]

I think that's a little harsh since OP has a pretty unique situation and sounds like she could write some pretty powerful essays, but I agree with the rest. There are a lot of reaches on that list and it needs to be .

What's her unique situation? From what she shared it seems like she is the same as every other premed with low GPAs. The only difference is she went to Harvard and she thinks that will allow an exemption for her low stats! (As seen in her list of schools.)

 

[scooter91]

OP, you have too many reach schools on your list.

What's your MCAT score breakdown?

 

[scooter91]

What's her unique situation? From what she shared it seems like she is the same as every other premed with low GPAs. The only difference is she went to Harvard and she thinks that will allow an exemption for her low stats! (As seen in her list of schools.)

I'd rather not get into what makes me an unique applicant since that's what the actual application will be for. Let's also not make assumptions--I do not think the Harvard name will make up for my low GPA although I hope it will put it in context since their premed program, esp. the intro classes, are known for being unnecessarily difficult weeder classes that don't give out many A's.

 

[WedgeDawg]

I'd rather not get into what makes me an unique applicant since that's what the actual application will be for. Let's also not make assumptions--I do not think the Harvard name will make up for my low GPA although I hope it will put it in context since their premed program, esp. the intro classes, are know for being unnecessarily difficult weeder classes that don't give out many A's.

Unfortunately, this is true of most schools.

 

[scooter91]

Unfortunately, this is true of most schools.

sadly true 🙁

 

[scooter91]

Jeff only(!) gets about 10K but Drexel and GT do get more than 13K.
I think she can keep Einstein as a reach. Agree about the rest.

Good point about the number of total applications! How in the world do these schools go from 10,000 apps to ~800 interviews (beyond high and low gpa screens which I'm assuming will get rid of a 1 or 2 thousand apps)? Does someone who might have insight into the admissions process know? The volume of applicants is making me reconsider having them on my list...

 

[gyngyn]

Good point about the number of total applications! How in the world do these schools go from 10,000 apps to ~800 interviews (beyond high and low gpa screens which I'm assuming will get rid of a 1 or 2 thousand apps)? Does someone who might have insight into the admissions process know? The volume of applicants is making me reconsider having them on my list...

We have screeners who read them.

 

[senzen]

I mean I don't really know of course but I get that BU, Georgetown, GW, Drexel, etc. gets almost 10k apps, but someone has to get selected right? I would assume if one applies early and their stats matches the respective school's median stats and application matches the school's mission they would have a good shot at an interview.

 

[gyngyn]

I mean I don't really know of course but I get that BU, Georgetown, GW, Drexel, etc. gets almost 10k apps, but someone has to get selected right? I would assume if one applies early and their stats matches the respective school's median stats and application matches the school's mission they would have a good shot at an interview.

The relative return on the application is just lower at these schools compared to those that receive fewer applications.
It doesn't mean that she shouldn't apply, rather that a person who restricts the number of total applications may get a bigger bang at other schools.

 

[Stagg737]

What's her unique situation? From what she shared it seems like she is the same as every other premed with low GPAs. The only difference is she went to Harvard and she thinks that will allow an exemption for her low stats! (As seen in her list of schools.)

I'm not talking about the stats or school. Her ECs sound solid, maybe strong depending on hours and OP was involved with TFA, which is competitive to get into on its own. Furthermore she quit for ethical reasons, depending on how she incorporates all that it could pique my interest enough to give her an interview if I thought she was even a decent applicant (which she is imo).

 

[Doug Underhill]

You're picking champagne schools with a beer GPA, and that GPA wouldn't even be good beer, honestly. Beer 30 Light, perhaps. There are lots of kids with GPAs two tenths of a point higher than yours and 33 MCATs who don't get a single interview from any of their state schools, and here you are throwing around Columbia and Yale. Yes, Harvard is better than UConn. What this means is that a kid with a 3.70/33 from Harvard is more likely to get an interview at Jefferson than a kid with a 3.70/33 from UConn.

If I were you, I'd be happy I got to experience an Ivy League environment once in my life and start looking at DO schools. Goro's list might actually be a little top-heavy: the elite DO schools have median GPAs around 3.6.

 

[QuentinT88]

Lol pple on sdn seem to hate on pple who graduate from Ives / other top 20 schools who have lower gpas. Not saying that a brand name school makes up for a low gpa but it does carry weight.

Op you should expand your list of schools, but keep the reaches ( Duke, Yale, Columbia, Sinai). My brother graduated from Harvard a few years ago with your gpa. He got into Columbia, UMichigan, Emory, Mt. Sinai, and Dartmouth to name a few top schools.

Take what you see on sdn with a grain of salt. Pple here tend to lean more pessimistic on students chances a lot of times without remembering that the app cycle isn't 100% about just the numbers. If you have a strong overall app you should be fine

 

[WedgeDawg]

Lol pple on sdn seem to hate on pple who graduate from Ives / other top 20 schools who have lower gpas. Not saying that a brand name school makes up for a low gpa but it does carry weight.

Low GPA from an Ivy can be acceptable if accompanied by a stellar MCAT. A 33 is a strong MCAT, but not a stellar one. This is coming from an Ivy League student.

As an example, a very close friend of mine at my school applied to 38+ schools with very solid ECs a 3.4/36. He got into one of them (a top 40 research school) and got interviews at two others. Your MCAT is a solid 3 points below his.

If you want another example, look at my MDApps profile. 3.9/36/Ivy, very solid ECs, only three acceptances out of 24 schools. Even with a LizzyM score of 75, it's a very rough process. You have a LizzyM of 67. This is not a favorable situation.

Op you should expand your list of schools, but keep the reaches ( Duke, Yale, Columbia, Sinai). My brother graduated from Harvard a few years ago with your gpa. He got into Columbia, UMichigan, Emory, Mt. Sinai, and Dartmouth to name a few top schools.

Was his MCAT comparable? His ECs?

This applicant has decent volunteering and shadowing and average research. Not exactly standout. OP says they are a "unique" candidate, but I'm not seeing anything here that indicates that.

Keep in mind that for every low numbers Ivy applicant, there are hundreds of high stat ones.

Your advice here (expanding + keep the reaches) is good, but OP seems set against applying to more than 20 schools. If OP is not going to go above 20, they should keep 1-2 reaches max (one of them should be Harvard) and apply to realistic schools with the rest.

 

[scooter91]

Thank you everyone for the feedback, both the constructive and the positive. I partly posted on SDN because I wanted brutal honesty--that's exactly what I got and most of it was very useful. I know I would regret not applying to some of the top schools on my list--I know from Undergrad apps how random acceptances can be and I also know being too safe often holds you back in life. I wouldn't have gotten into Harvard if I had listened to all the naysayers and not taken a risk. With that said, I have taken out some reaches and expanded my list to include 25 schools, a significant amount of which are "realistic" schools. @Goro, thank you especially for the concrete recommendations. I added a lot of your suggestions to my list. If people have more ideas for schools, please feel free to continue adding to the thread.

 

[Goro]

Good luck!

Thank you everyone for the feedback, both the constructive and the positive. I partly posted on SDN because I wanted brutal honesty--that's exactly what I got and most of it was very useful. I know I would regret not applying to some of the top schools on my list--I know from Undergrad apps how random acceptances can be and I also know being too safe often holds you back in life. I wouldn't have gotten into Harvard if I had listened to all the naysayers and not taken a risk. With that said, I have taken out some reaches and expanded my list to include 25 schools, a significant amount which are "realistic" schools. @Goro, thank you especially for the concrete recommendations. I added a lot of your suggestions to my list. If people have more ideas for schools, please feel free to continue adding to the thread.

 

[deleted314957]

Hey all! I'm applying in the upcoming cycle with the following stats.

Female; CT resident; from a low-income family
Graduated from Harvard with a degree in biology
cGPA=3.44 sGPA=3.27 (some C+'s freshman year, A's and B's in the last three years).
Mcat: 33
ECs: 2 semesters plus one summer of research (no publications); lots of work with low income youth tutoring and teaching during the terms and summers, homeless shelter volunteer (all 4 years of school); volunteered at a senior life center for Alzheimer's patient 4 semesters, Volunteered at a rehabilitation center for 2 semesters, worked at the library and tutored peers to pay for college, shadowed endocrine surgeon in clinic and OR, a pediatric surgeon in the clinic and my primary care provider (50-70 hours by the time I finish--doing this currently).

After graduating in May, I joined TFA, went through their bootcamp summer training, was placed in a horrible charter school whose practices I felt were mentally and emotionally abusive to the children, which I didn't feel comfortable promoting. I also didn't feel adequately prepared by TFA to teach well, so I resigned back in November. Was probably the most selfish decision I have ever made. After resigning, I took the MCAT and am now volunteering at a hospital and shadowing doctors. Got a job as a research assistant--will begin in April.

Here's my school list--I know Columbia and Yale and a few others are super reaches with my GPA but I would regret not applying. I would like to stay in the New England area. Please let me know if I should add or sub any schools--would like to apply to 20 max. Thanks for any and all feedback.

Howard
Albany
Brown
NY Medical College
Dartmouth
Tufts
Georgetown
Drexel
Temple
Duke
Rochester
Uconn
Columbia
Icahn Mt. Sinai
Albert Einstein Yeshiva
Yale
NYU

It might help if you dropped your parochial geographic restrictions.

 

[scooter91]

It might help if you dropped your parochial geographic restrictions.

If I were to expand my list to include schools outside of the New England area, which schools would you recommend?

 

[DaMedDude]

I agree with everyone else.....you need to remove some of those reaches and add more reasonable schools. You want to maximize your chances of getting an acceptances and then add a few dream schools if you so desire. Good luck!

 

[scooter91]

Hi all, I just wanted to revisit this old thread and thank everyone who offered insight and advice. The SDN community is amazing, and I really appreciate the honest, constructive, and direct feedback I received from you all. I remember how new everything felt around the time I posted this thread , and I just wanted to update it to help out future applicants who have similar stats/experiences to mine.

Final school list (in bold are ones to which I received interviews):

UWisconsin SMPH (interview offered in January, scheduled in mid-February, accepted a month later!)
Wake Forest (Got secondary, interview offered in December, scheduled early in January, waitlisted late January)

Georgetown (rejected mid September)
Upitt (rejected late September)
BU (rejected mid October)
Rochester (rejected late October)
Brown (rejected early November)
Hopkins (rejected early December)
NYU (rejected mid December)
UChicago (rejected late December)
UCSF (got secondary in december, returned it super late in early December after deliberating if I should even complete it, then got rejected early January)
UNC (Rejected mid January)
Einstein (Rejected late January)
Mt. Sinai (rejected late in cycle--mid February--not sure what that meant. Really liked this school though!)
NYMC (rejected late February)
Tufts (rejected late February)
Dartmouth (rejected mid March)
Temple (rejected mid March)
Yale (rejected in March)
George Washington in DC (on hold, pretty sure their class is full though)
Uconn (silence)
Albany (silence)
Drexel (on hold, written off as rejection)
Jeff (see below)


Wake Forest: Wake is very, very, very receptive to update letters and letters of interest. I sent them a super long letter filled with updates, my motivations for wanting to be a doctor (i.e. all my life experiences that made me want to be a doc), why I think I would be a great doc and what I hope to contribute to the field, and also why Wake. They sent me an interview the very next day after receiving my update. I don't think it was a coincidence. However, they did end up waitlisting me...The school and, more importantly, the students seemed great at Wake. The admin is really on top of its game--they reply to all emails in a very timely manner, read my letter very quickly, and they give you a decision on the exact day they say they will (two weeks after interview, also very short waiting time, though it didn't feel like it at the time). They're also moving to a whole new building next year, and the plans for it looked really nice. The only concern I had was that they test every three weeks, which creates a stressful environment... Overall though, I think Wake is a great school that very few students seem to know about--a true hidden gem! I highly recommend applying here!

UWisconsin: was recommended to me by my school's pre-med advisor. Also, if your school has a premed advising dept. ask them for school recommendations! They have this super secret book that is available to only premed advisors that lists all the specific things each school is looking for in applicants. So your advisor, who you can send your personal statement and activities list to (or your whole AMCAS if you want), can give you specific recommendations for schools whose mission you match. I would have never thought to apply here since they have such a large in-state bias in their class, but thank god my premed advisor recommended it. Or else, I might not have had a successful cycle this year! UWSMPH is an amazing school, amazing facilities, lovely staff, and the other current students and other applicants as well (they interview 25 at a time :O) all seemed very down to earth and eager to help one another! Highly recommend applying here, even if you are an out-of-stater!

Schools I DON'T recommend applying to with a low GPA: George Washington in DC, Albany, NYMC, Temple, and Drexel--they get way too many applicants. Jefferson I just grew to dislike along the cycle. It seems that they had rejected me without updating the portal or sending an email. Only after I sent an update letter/letter of interest (which I put a lot of effort into and which eventually got me an interview at Wake Forest) did one of the deans reply to say I was rejected. She offered to give advice about my application over the phone, but it was very clear from our conversation that she hadn't read my update letter at all since my letter addressed a lot of the points she was bringing up. It also seems like all she had done was glance at my GPA trend before the feedback conversation. Overall, a very frustrating experience! It all felt a bit unprofessional to me, especially the rejecting in an email response to a update letter part. But again, this is a n=1 anecdote. Make of it what you will. Someone in the Jeff thread mentioned that the two deans go through all the applications themselves (and they do get a ton of applications as well), so maybe they just didn't have enough time to go over my application in depth. Definitely think this school has a gpa cutoff though if the bit about the deans going through all the applications themselves is true). Reach schools like Hopkins and Yale were a waste of money, but I don't really regret it since I would have always wondered what if. Speaks more to the kind of person I am than anything else.

Other advice: Stay strong! The cycle is soooo long and I found my energy and optimism waxing and waning throughout. I had given up hope of an acceptance after my Wake Forest waitlist, and thus was much more myself (since I honestly didn't think I was going to get accepted) during my UWSMPH interview, which helped I think! So be yourself in interviews! Also, note that you become better at interviews with experience, so don't make your no. 1 choice your first interview. Also, make no assumptions! I was so sure I would get an interview and acceptance from my in-state school, that I made my list reach heavy, not applying to schools like Quinnipiac, Hofstra, Rush, Osteopathic schools, etc.. However, so far, I have heard absolutely nothing from UConn and feel like I was silently rejected. So nothing is guaranteed and assumptions are bad! Keep a few reaches but try to keep 50% of your list composed of schools whose average LM scores match or are below yours.

Read the MSAR and ask Qs on SDN to get help with school lists and app questions. Apply for FAP if you qualify--it covers cost of 15 primary apps and all secondaries! Stay with hosts during interviews--saves on cost and they are a great resource for learning more about the school and its culture.

At the end of the day, I have no idea why UWSMPH offered me an interview--I didn't even send them an update letter since they don't accept them. I feel very thankful for my acceptance, and I wish anyone reading this and applying with experiences and stats similar to mine good luck in this process. Also, it's such a random process, and if you don't get in the first cycle, thinking about having to go through the cycle a second time can feel very disheartening--before getting accepted, I spent a whole month mentally preparing myself for a second cycle. However, not getting in during you first try is not a measure of your worth; it's more a measure of how ridiculously competitive and unpredictable this whole process is! So don't give up if medicine is your dream! Feel free to PM me with any questions!

 

[yellow-mango]

Thanks for sharing your experince. Congrats!

 

[aztlannation]

Congrats! Perhaps I'll be seeing you at UWSMPH 🙂

(still haven't made a final decision)

 

[salemstein]

I'd rather not get into what makes me an unique applicant since that's what the actual application will be for. Let's also not make assumptions--I do not think the Harvard name will make up for my low GPA although I hope it will put it in context since their premed program, esp. the intro classes, are known for being unnecessarily difficult weeder classes that don't give out many A's.

Congrats on your acceptance! I am actually in a similar boat as you, except I am going to apply this coming cycle (I'm 2 years out of UG now). Totally agree- going to a top school actually screwed my GPA a bit more than I had hoped... and now I'm actually taking classes at a local state school to show an "upward trend" and to bump up my numbers a bit. All those rumors about HYPS having grade inflation- They're simply not true (for premed classes at least). Unfortunately most people don't realize this. Additionally, we're competing against people in our classes who are crazy smart, done crazy things, and won crazy awards during high school, which makes the battle even tougher.

 

[7331poas]

Congrats on your acceptance! I am actually in a similar boat as you, except I am going to apply this coming cycle (I'm 2 years out of UG now). Totally agree- going to a top school actually screwed my GPA a bit more than I had hoped... and now I'm actually taking classes at a local state school to show an "upward trend" and to bump up my numbers a bit. All those rumors about HYPS having grade inflation- They're simply not true (for premed classes at least). Unfortunately most people don't realize this. Additionally, we're competing against people in our classes who are crazy smart, done crazy things, and won crazy awards during high school, which makes the battle even tougher.

The perception is about Harvard and Yale in particular. No one says these things about princeton stanford and MIT.

 

[scooter91]

Congrats on your acceptance! I am actually in a similar boat as you, except I am going to apply this coming cycle (I'm 2 years out of UG now). Totally agree- going to a top school actually screwed my GPA a bit more than I had hoped... and now I'm actually taking classes at a local state school to show an "upward trend" and to bump up my numbers a bit. All those rumors about HYPS having grade inflation- They're simply not true (for premed classes at least). Unfortunately most people don't realize this. Additionally, we're competing against people in our classes who are crazy smart, done crazy things, and won crazy awards during high school, which makes the battle even tougher.

I know what you mean. One thing I'll add is that it is especially hard to do well in top tier, rigorous schools (like HYPS) when you come from a low-income, public inner-city school background and are suddenly surrounded by really bright students in college who come from better-off families. The lack of preparation I had going into the premed science courses was really tough as was the culture shock since college was my first experience in an elite environment. It was incredible to me that some of my classmates didn't know how to do laundry or how some just never had to think about spending money, whether it be on resources for school, extracurricular activities, or just fun social things. Meanwhile, I was counting every penny I was spending, because that was a necessity. Not to mention I was working two jobs every semester in addition to volunteering and classes in order to pay my way through college (financial aid didn't cover the student contribution portion). Unfortunately, most people don't realize these things either. People from different backgrounds come into college on an uneven playing field, and some have to work harder than others to succeed at the same level. Fortunately, growing up poor, a strong work ethic was the first skill I learned, which has gotten me far in life.

Still, I wish all colleges were pass/fail the first year to allow all students to adjust and that there were better resources for low-income/first gen students during their first few years in college. However, I do think awareness of these challenges (and the privileges/lack of privileges experienced by different groups in this country) is on the rise, which makes me hopeful.

 

[scooter91]

Just got off the waitlist at Wake Forest, and feel incredibly blessed to have two acceptances in a cycle where I was beginning to think I would have zero. For those still following this thread, any advice/insight for which school you would choose in my position?

 

[tantacles]

Just got off the waitlist at Wake Forest, and feel incredibly blessed to have two acceptances in a cycle where I was beginning to think I would have zero. For those still following this thread, any advice/insight for which school you would choose in my position?

It's intensely personal. Depends on what you want to do with your life, where you feel the best fit, where you want to live, what kind of weather you like, and what the cost of the schools will be.