harvard/stanford-mcat 30/31 stories?

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lala2626

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for the people who get into harvard/stanford, etc. with mcat scores of 30 and 31's.. is the rest of the app just really strongor are they mostly due to affirmative action / does disadvantaged status have any play? anyone themselves or know of friends with a strong application other than a 30/31 mcat score that got into these schools (non-minority)?
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They are generally:

1. Filthy liars

2. Amazing applicants (we're talking 3 years in africa performing whipple procedures amazing)

3. URM's

4. People who know someone ultraimportant.
 
lala2626 said:
for the people who get into harvard/stanford, etc. with mcat scores of 30 and 31's.. is the rest of the app just really strongor are they mostly due to affirmative action / does disadvantaged status have any play? anyone themselves or know of friends with a strong application other than a 30/31 mcat score that got into these schools (non-minority)?
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They are almost always URMs, people with some amazing other story or research accomplishment, or someone whose grandfather donated 50 million to the school. I have not come across someone not from those categories get in with a low MCAT.
 
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lala2626 said:
for the people who get into harvard/stanford, etc. with mcat scores of 30 and 31's.. is the rest of the app just really strongor are they mostly due to affirmative action / does disadvantaged status have any play? anyone themselves or know of friends with a strong application other than a 30/31 mcat score that got into these schools (non-minority)?
Click to expand...

Stanford-30/31. I know a few people, non-URM. They usually have 3.9 or 4.0 GPA + awesome research. Stanford seems like it's looking for people with an ultra-strong research background.
 
I know two people at Stanford. One has a 30 the other a 31. Both non-urms, both had 4.0s and are very HIGHLY decorated researchers (multiple publications, conferences and awards.) I think Stanford places heavy emphasis on research and academics.

The two urms I know that got into Harvard both scored 38+ on the MCAT. Go figure.
 
flaahless said:
I know two people at Stanford. One has a 30 the other a 31. Both non-urms, both had 4.0s and are very HIGHLY decorated researchers (multiple publications, conferences and awards.) I think Stanford places heavy emphasis on research and academics.

The two urms I know that got into Harvard both scored 38+ on the MCAT. Go figure.
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Harvard - even our URMs have better scores than your asians/whites! :D :scared: :scared:
 
Honestly, Im curious about ppl that do research and the value placed on it. At college level what does research entail? Based on my limited exposure, it just seems to be following some prof directions and doing his busy work? If so, then why is it so highly value?
 
batman1983 said:
Honestly, Im curious about ppl that do research and the value placed on it. At college level what does research entail? Based on my limited exposure, it just seems to be following some prof directions and doing his busy work? If so, then why is it so highly value?
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My opinion: Because you have to start somewhere. I'm sure everybody had to do this - you have to learn somehow. By accepting students who are already familiar with research, you don't really have to teach them in medical school, and they can just go right into the juicy stuff.
 
batman1983 said:
Honestly, Im curious about ppl that do research and the value placed on it. At college level what does research entail? Based on my limited exposure, it just seems to be following some prof directions and doing his busy work? If so, then why is it so highly value?
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That's what you do if you don't want to get published.

I work on type II diabetes and frequently get to design experiments and carry them out, so the work that I do is extremely helpful. Sometimes I don't design a good one and the guy I work under tells me so.

It's a learning process, and it teaches you things you wouldn't really expect, such as why some hypothetically good research isn't really practical, how to think on your own etc... I think Adcoms are looking for people who get published for those reasons.
 
batman1983 said:
Honestly, Im curious about ppl that do research and the value placed on it. At college level what does research entail? Based on my limited exposure, it just seems to be following some prof directions and doing his busy work? If so, then why is it so highly value?
Click to expand...

I think med schools value applicants with research experience because it shows initiative, and maybe more importantly, gives credibility to the applicant who says "I am interested in medical research and here is my UG research experience to back that up."

Frankly, it is fashionable these days to express an interest in research (similarly academic med, and global health, etc) even if you have no real experience in it (and maybe no real burning interest, either) - at least those applicants who have actually done some research have some idea of what they are getting into, and that may be the extent of the value of undergrad research...

I doubt if very many undergrads have really done research on a par with what is done in med school and beyond, but at least those applicants have scratched the surface and shown the interest and initiative and are not just parroting all the other pre-meds who are "interested" in it but really have no experiential basis for such a proclamation...
 
batman1983 said:
Honestly, Im curious about ppl that do research and the value placed on it. At college level what does research entail? Based on my limited exposure, it just seems to be following some prof directions and doing his busy work? If so, then why is it so highly value?
Click to expand...

Wherever you work, the first thing you will do is menial work during undergraduate. However, if you show that you're not just another premed looking to put something on your resume, you'll get more responsibilities. If you invest in enough time & effort, I'm sure your PI will push you to go to conferences and etc. When you're an undergrad, I think the most important thing is to be exposed to different subjects to see which one's the best fit, if you feel that you want to go into research. But if you find research that you like, stick with it, be patient, and you will see the results.

As much as I like research, I do feel that there are other ways to show that you have initiative if research isn't right for you.
 
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redbull928 said:
Wherever you work, the first thing you will do is menial work during undergraduate. However, if you show that you're not just another premed looking to put something on your resume, you'll get more responsibilities. If you invest in enough time & effort, I'm sure your PI will push you to go to conferences and etc. When you're an undergrad, I think the most important thing is to be exposed to different subjects to see which one's the best fit, if you feel that you want to go into research. But if you find research that you like, stick with it, be patient, and you will see the results.

As much as I like research, I do feel that there are other ways to show that you have initiative if research isn't right for you.
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great point. yes, I'd say most undergrads are just in the lab to tag something else on their app. we usually just have them make buffers and fill the pipet tip boxes. they're probably satisfied in calling that research. the students that are actively interested in the research clearly separate themselves out from the pack and get more important responsibilities later (actual experiments!) Best thing you can do when you start is to ask a lot of questions about the project going on, asking why the grad student/PI/researcher etc is doing x and not y, what effect y would have on the experiment, etc.
 
batman1983 said:
Honestly, Im curious about ppl that do research and the value placed on it. At college level what does research entail? Based on my limited exposure, it just seems to be following some prof directions and doing his busy work? If so, then why is it so highly value?
Click to expand...
Naah man. At my school, the PIs treated the undergrads like masters candidates or postdoccs. We had to come up with our own projects and essentially do it all ourselves. It really depends on the school, it's philosophy and your professors.
 
flaahless said:
Naah man. At my school, the PIs treated the undergrads like masters candidates or postdoccs. We had to come up with our own projects and essentially do it all ourselves. It really depends on the school, it's philosophy and your professors.
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Same in my lab! I'm always surprised when pre-meds say they clean dishes in labs!
 
I think most of the PIs will start you off with the grunt work. I started with buffers and cleaning, but I was given an independent project in a few weeks. Ask your PI..."If is there anything else you could do?" If you show some interests, you might get a project!
 
Do adcomms really give any worth to those people who put "research" on their activities but clearly only did a month or two of dishwashing?
 
batman1983 said:
Honestly, Im curious about ppl that do research and the value placed on it. At college level what does research entail? Based on my limited exposure, it just seems to be following some prof directions and doing his busy work? If so, then why is it so highly value?
Click to expand...

I don't think it is 'highly valued' rather it is almost the norm now.
Anyways, if it is highly valued, among the reasons already given, part of that is because a PI can choose anyone they want. The fact that the PI selected or allowed person X to work in their lab over the other 500 people they could have taken implies that person has some appealling qualities.
 
flaahless said:
Naah man. At my school, the PIs treated the undergrads like masters candidates or postdoccs. We had to come up with our own projects and essentially do it all ourselves. It really depends on the school, it's philosophy and your professors.
Click to expand...

Might depend on what school you go to. All the profs at my school are instructors first and researchers second. Go to places like NW, UofC, there are people that just do research. If you get in one of those labs I can see where undergrad = dish boy. I'm the only student in my lab and do 90% of the work, including washing the dishes, which takes a whole 10 minutes. My lab has no use for a dish boy, but a lab with 6 grad students working 60 hrs/wk for a thesis could use a dish boy.
 
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