Has anyone sent letters to medical schools to find out why they didn't get in?

[sfgiants23]

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Has anyone sent letters to medical schools to find out why they didn't get in?

Has anyone had success and at what schools?

I applied with a 3.64 GPA and 30 MCAT to a large range of MD schools (26).

I've heard that you can send a letter to schools asking why you didn't get in, but was hoping to hear a success story and to get advice on how to write the letter. I haven't got any interviews, so I don't have any connections with admissions beyond the basic AMCAS application and a follow up letter I sent in.

Thanks for help,

SFgiants.

 

[aprimenumber]

Has anyone sent letters to medical schools to find out why they didn't get in?

Has anyone had success and at what schools?

I applied with a 3.64 GPA and 30 MCAT to a large range of MD schools (26).

I've heard that you can send a letter to schools asking why you didn't get in, but was hoping to hear a success story and to get advice on how to write the letter. I haven't got any interviews, so I don't have any connections with admissions beyond the basic AMCAS application and a follow up letter I sent in.

Thanks for help,

SFgiants.

The answer to your first question is yes, but it depends heavily on the circumstances and the situation.

Most schools that reject you pre-interview will not have the time and resources, nor will they care enough, to let you know where your application is weak, so generally it's not worth it to contact those schools.

Some schools that reject you post-interview may be more open towards such contact. When rejected, certain schools will outright mention that they are willing to consult with you about your application, though those spots are limited. In my personal experience, these schools tend to be public universities that gravitate heavily (if not exclusively) towards their in-state applicant pool. Other schools may be open towards helping you examine your application IF it's clear that you will not be matriculating in the fall (so no other acceptances or waitlists).

Unfortunately, since you fall into the former category, you can try and email those schools that rejected you, but chances are, your communication will not be warmly (if at all) received. I would definitely look at all of your rejection letters to see if they're open towards communication regarding why you were rejected. Chances are, a lot of them will simply tell you to chat with a pre-med adviser of some sort, which we all know to be amazingly helpful advice (sarcasm).

Your GPA's solid, and your MCAT's not bad, but we don't know anything about your extracurriculars, research experiences, volunteer experiences, clinical experiences, LoR's, actual range of schools applied, or when you submitted all of your secondaries. With more info, you might be able to receive better advice on here, to be honest.

 

[Catalystik]

I've seen folks get a better response to a phone call asking to make an appointment to review their file. UIowa, which has a high OOS matriculation rate, has offered this, for example.

I agree with the above suggestion to post more thorough information about your application, as there are many SDNers in a position to assist you in pointing out weak areas of your application that can be improved.

 

[justwhy]

I did. Sort of. I was rejected pre-interview last year at Buffalo. I honestly felt that my application was competitive enough to at least merit an interview, and I figured that I had nothing to lose, so I sent a letter to the Dean of Admissions reiterating my strengths and my desire to go to the medical school and asking him to, respectfully, take a second look at my application. I was desperate (and a little delusional).

I didn't expect anything back, but a few days later I had an email from the Dean. No interview invite, unsurprisingly, but he said that he had taken another look at my application. My grades and MCAT were fine, but I needed more recent shadowing experience. And that if I got some for next year, my chances of getting an interview would be good.

So I took 4 precious days off of work, got 32 more hours, and reapplied this year. And I did get an interview. I was waitlisted, unfortunately, but I'm hoping that with the number of students they take from their waitlist it'll be a success story soon.

 

[M.MD]

UC Irvine offered a phone appointment to review my application after I was rejected pre-interview. They gave me some pretty good, personalized advice on where my application could have been improved. Most schools will not do this.