MD & DO HELP because I don't know my chances

[tictac3]

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[Faha]

Your strategy has several flaws. If you apply only to DO schools this year and not MD schools what are your plans if you receive a better MCAT score AND several DO acceptances? If you do not take one of the DO acceptances the schools will be aware of that decision which will greatly reduce your chances of any DO acceptance in subsequent years. Even if your MCAT score is a little higher in August there is no guarantee of a MD acceptance if you apply in 2017 with your stats. Your chances for MD schools is near 50% and you are almost certain to receive a DO acceptance of you apply to at least 12 DO schools next month.

 

[tictac3]

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[Faha]

@Faha That's a very good point...what would you do in this scenario? Is it better to just apply for DO and low tier MD now and forget about the MCAT?

Also, would my 123 in B/BC section close a lot of doors to even the low tier MD schools? 123 is about a 7.5 on the old scale

Go ahead and apply to both DO schools and MD schools. You are competitive for all DO schools so apply to at least 10. Schools to consider include:
VCOM (all 3 schools)
WVSOM
CUSOM
UP-KYCOM
LMU-DCOM
PCOM
LECOM
MU-COM
For MD apply to all your VA schools and consider:
Quinnipiac
Albany
New York Medical
Penn State
Drexel
Temple
Jefferson
GW
Georgetown
Oakland Beaumont
Western Michigan
Rosalind Franklin
Loyola
Creighton
Tulane
You could retake the MCAT in August but do so only if you believe you can score at least 508 (practice test scores should help you). It will not have much influence on your DO chances since you are already competitive for DO schools but a significantly higher school may help you at MD schools. However, if you score the same of lower it would hurt your MD chances.

 

[tictac3]

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[Faha]

@Faha Thank you for all the help!! Do you really think I have a chance at MD schools like Western Michigan or Oakland Beaumont where the median MCAT is 32 and 31, respectively according to MSAR and my score is a little under 29, which is about the 10th percentile for Western Michigan?

Yes, they are worth applying to.

 

[tictac3]

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[tictac3]

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[tictac3]

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[Faha]

@Faha Just curious, why do you think Tulane is worth applying to? I see that they have a relatively low average GPA but their median MCAT is around 33, which is well above mine now...is it because of me taking the MCAT again or do you think I actually have a shot with the way things stand now?

Tulane is unlikely. I am trying to include as many schools as possible where you have a chance and at some the chances are more remote.

 

[tictac3]

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[Faha]

@Faha If I retake mcat in July and do better (510+), will that greatly increase my MD chances to these schools even though it would be a tad late in terms of timing?

A MCAT of 510 or greater would help since the schools will see your result by late August. You will need to do a lot of studying since it is difficult to dramatically increase a MCAT score.

 

[tictac3]

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