MD & DO Help build my school list?

[wonkyapplicant]

Stats: 3.73 cgpa, 3.85 sgpa, 522 MCAT, top 10 private university, Public Policy major, ORM, Resident of Wyoming

Experiences:
700 non clinical volunteering hours: half as a tutor, half in an underserved community center
900 hours public health research since first year with 2 journal publications and a poster presentation
100 hours physician shadowing in primary care and various specialties
A few TAships
Several club leadership positions
Letters: didn't get the committee letter because I just decided to apply this year a few months ago so I missed the deadline to get one 🙁

My biggest concerns are my lack of clinical volunteering and lack of committee letter. Are these deal breakers?

Thanks in advance 🙂

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[candbgirl]

The Clinical volunteering just might be. I wouldn’t apply without about 200 hours. How do you even know you want to spend the next 30+ years dealing with the sick, injured and dying? Saying you just know won’t be impressive. Does your school have a committee letter? If so, why aren’t you using it? ADCOMS prefer a committee letter when a school offers one. If your school doesn’t have one there isn’t anything you can do about it. If your school does have one be ready to explain why you decided not to use it. Good luck.

 

[Faha]

Your lack of clinical volunteering and/or employment will limit your chances for interviews. Accumulate 200+ hours of clinical volunteering or employment with patient contact in the next year in case you need to reapply. I suggest these schools:
U Washington
California University
Kaiser
Mayo (both schools)
Boston University
Tufts
Vermont
Quinnipiac
Dartmouth
Hofstra
Einstein
Rochester
Seton Hall
Pittsburgh
Jefferson
George Washington
UVA
Virginia Commonwealth
Miami
USF Morsani
Tulane
TCU-UNT
Washington University
Western Michigan
Case Western
Ohio State
Cincinnati

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Why didn't you go through your institutional committee letter process? You say you are concerned so I infer that one exists for you? What informal advice did you get because you know you're lacking in clinical volunteering and probably your advisors know this too?

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[OfMiceAndWomen]

What made you decide to apply this cycle?

It seems like you might benefit greatly in taking a gap year and applying next cycle. This would resolve both your concerns -- getting more clinical experience and getting a committee letter. With the GPA + MCAT, you would have a good shot a lot of top-tier schools, except you don't currently because of lack of clinical experience.

 

[PigsHaveWings]

I would definitely apply this year with your credentials, you have a good chance of getting in. Especially with the COVID situation, there will be significantly lower number of seniors who will be applying.... my guess. I like the college list made by @Faha (how does he have the time for this for every applicant) 🙂

List activites that you are planning to do this year in clinical volunteering for this year and add those hours, and that should suffice.

You will get preferential treatment in U of washington (seatle) and U. Of north dakota college due to your residence in wyoming. Apply to all the colleges in Washington. Maybe even check U. of South Dakota, they may have similar preference.

 

[Goro]

Stats: 3.73 cgpa, 3.85 sgpa, 522 MCAT, top 10 private university, Public Policy major, ORM, Resident of Wyoming

Experiences:
700 non clinical volunteering hours: half as a tutor, half in an underserved community center
900 hours public health research since first year with 2 journal publications and a poster presentation
100 hours physician shadowing in primary care and various specialties
A few TAships
Several club leadership positions
Letters: didn't get the committee letter because I just decided to apply this year a few months ago so I missed the deadline to get one 🙁

My biggest concerns are my lack of clinical volunteering and lack of committee letter. Are these deal breakers?

Thanks in advance 🙂

Lack of clinical exposure is lethal.

Committee letter? Not lethal

 

[wonkyapplicant]

Why didn't you go through your institutional committee letter process? You say you are concerned so I infer that one exists for you? What informal advice did you get because you know you're lacking in clinical volunteering and probably your advisors know this too?

Sent from my SM-N960U using SDN mobile

I just decided to apply this cycle this April so I missed the deadline to request a committee letter, which was back in November.

 

[wonkyapplicant]

What made you decide to apply this cycle?

It seems like you might benefit greatly in taking a gap year and applying next cycle. This would resolve both your concerns -- getting more clinical experience and getting a committee letter. With the GPA + MCAT, you would have a good shot a lot of top-tier schools, except you don't currently because of lack of clinical experience.

Originally I was going to take a gap year to gain more clinical exposure (I'm unsure if physician shadowing is enough) but I decided to apply this cycle because I had a cancelled internship (with a medical consulting firm) this summer so I have time this summer to apply. And I felt like with the COVID situation likely reducing the number of applicants this cycle, I should apply now.

 

[candbgirl]

I would definitely apply this year with your credentials, you have a good chance of getting in. Especially with the COVID situation, there will be significantly lower number of seniors who will be applying.... my guess. I like the college list made by @Faha (how does he have the time for this for every applicant) 🙂

List activites that you are planning to do this year in clinical volunteering for this year and add those hours, and that should suffice.

You will get preferential treatment in U of washington (seatle) and U. Of north dakota college due to your residence in wyoming. Apply to all the colleges in Washington. Maybe even check U. of South Dakota, they may have similar preference.

OP take much of what’s in this post with a grain of salt. At least three members who are WELL versed in the admission process have said in this thread that applying without clinical hours is a big mistake. You can list projected hours but those hours are looked at as projected and don’t hold much weight. Everyone knows about good intentions but life frequently intervenes- like Covid- and those hours don’t get done. There are countless threads about volunteering/work/etc. being cut short because of Covid and applicants are frantic because they don’t have sufficient hours. And I’d be surprised if anyone outside of admission staff and people closely involved know if application numbers will be up or down or remain the same.
Good luck. Let us know how this cycle goes for you and remember the general rule around here, until you have an acceptance in hand consider yourself rejected. So keep improving your application in case you have to reapply.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

@gonnif has posted many warnings (as have others) indicating that conjecture on the applicant pool being either smaller or less competitive for AMCAS is dangerous to take as gospel. Anecdotally there is a sharp increase in the number of early applications being started and likely submitted, and anyone who thinks not having recommended hours/activities will be acceptable is not acting on scientific insight of the pool.

 

[PigsHaveWings]

That is interesting. Thanks for the information on the applicants data.

My suggestion was mainly based on the scores mcat 522, gpa 3.73, places him/her at a 82% chance of matriculation based on your own LizzyM calulator on studentdoctor.net . In addition, being from Wyoming which places in a good bracket at both Univ of Washington and Univ of North Dakota because of the WWAMI program.

There were too many people dissuading him/her from applying this cycle, which would be a wrong decision. I agree with everybody, it will be better if there is an improvement in the number of hours of clinical exposure.