How do Med Schools Feel About Younger Applicants?

[Cheezin]

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Hi all, I just completed my 3rd semester of undergrad planning to graduate in Spring 2021. I am about to take my MCAT in January and plan to apply next cycle (this summer). I was wondering if anyone has any insight about general requirements because I will be 19-20 years old when I apply and 20 when I graduate undergrad. I hear people say that med schools already don't like to take normal applicants straight out of undergrad without a gap year, and that I need a 518+ to have a decent chance of applying out.
I have been studying for about a week and half and got a 509 on FL2, and I haven't taken college Psych, Physics II, Microbio or any Anat/Phys courses -- would this be viewed positively or negatively like being unprepared/rushing it. I have a couple more weeks but don't know how high I will get.

 

[deleted1001426]

It’s more about your level of experience and maturity than numerical age. I think the problem that a lot of young applicants run into is that oftentimes they’re yet to ever live outside of their parents protective bubble, thus their grasp of reality is drastically lacking and that spills over into their essays/interviews. Speaking for myself I wouldn’t have been ready for med school when I was 19 but you need to judge that for yourself.

 

[Cheezin]

It’s more about your level of experience and maturity than numerical age. I think the problem that a lot of young applicants run into is that oftentimes they’re yet to ever live outside of their parents protective bubble, thus their grasp of reality is drastically lacking and that spills over into their essays/interviews. Speaking for myself I wouldn’t have been ready for med school when I was 19 but you need to judge that for yourself.

That makes sense, not sure if I should have mentioned it but I am part of a 3+4 BS/MD program so I did a good number of abbreviated med school interviews in high school. I am just trying to have some more options.

 

[KnightDoc]

That makes sense, not sure if I should have mentioned it but I am part of a 3+4 BS/MD program so I did a good number of abbreviated med school interviews in high school. I am just trying to have some more options.

Question -- how does being part of a 3+4 program work when you're applying out? Don't you need the first year of med school to count as your last year of college (i.e., will you have a bachelors degree after year 3?)? If not, then you won't be able to apply anywhere else, because, while they don't care about your age (as @Ak09 said, it's all about maturity and having enough time to check all the EC boxes to be competitive), they DO care about your having a bachelors degree! I've heard of people applying out from 8 year combined programs, but didn't realize it was an option from an accelerated program. Also, does your school allow you to do this without giving up your seat in med school? A lot of schools don't.

 

[Blueprint Med School]

It’s more about your level of experience and maturity than numerical age. I think the problem that a lot of young applicants run into is that oftentimes they’re yet to ever live outside of their parents protective bubble, thus their grasp of reality is drastically lacking and that spills over into their essays/interviews. Speaking for myself I wouldn’t have been ready for med school when I was 19 but you need to judge that for yourself.

This is it, pretty much. Younger students, all other things held equal, are riskier because they tend to still be figuring out life. They make mistakes, they are irrational, change their mind often, etc. All these things make medical schools, which squirm with even normal levels of risk, super squeamish.

That being said, you are your own best advocate. Come in and show them you have a life plan, and more importantly, illustrate to them with large amounts of detail how you came to that conclusion. I was an average age applicant, but I received high marks for my interview answer to "Why do you want to be a doctor?", which detailed my initial interest in science and helping others, how I narrowed my interests down to medicine, chemistry, and law, how I chose medicine and not the other two, and how my experiences in EMS and shadowing screened and reinforced that conclusion.

Depth, humility, and concrete examples will allow you to overcome any initial bias. Once you show that to them, you will actually get points for being so advanced at an early age.

David D, MD - USMLE and MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

 

[Cheezin]

Question -- how does being part of a 3+4 program work when you're applying out? Don't you need the first year of med school to count as your last year of college (i.e., will you have a bachelors degree after year 3?)? If not, then you won't be able to apply anywhere else, because, while they don't care about your age (as @Ak09 said, it's all about maturity and having enough time to check all the EC boxes to be competitive), they DO care about your having a bachelors degree! I've heard of people applying out from 8 year combined programs, but didn't realize it was an option from an accelerated program. Also, does your school allow you to do this without giving up your seat in med school? A lot of schools don't.

So I'm sure it changes across schools/programs but mine is kind enough to reserve our seats for us even if we apply to other schools. We have a contract that we signed out of high school with requirements that we have to meet or else we lose our seat. I am in a pretty new program so it can be 3 or 4 +4 but they strongly encourage 3 years undergrad. We are pushed pretty hard to finish our bachelors in the 3 years -- I have been taking the max 18 credits for each Fall and Spring semester and then I took 12 credits over the summer including orgo 1 and 2. With all that I am still taking the MCAT without some pretty important classes like psych, physics, anatomy etc. although I'm really excited to say I just scored 515 on FL 3 after 2 weeks of studying haha. Hopefully that answers all your questions and I'm happy to answer any others if you're curious.

 

[Cheezin]

This is it, pretty much. Younger students, all other things held equal, are riskier because they tend to still be figuring out life. They make mistakes, they are irrational, change their mind often, etc. All these things make medical schools, which squirm with even normal levels of risk, super squeamish.

That being said, you are your own best advocate. Come in and show them you have a life plan, and more importantly, illustrate to them with large amounts of detail how you came to that conclusion. I was an average age applicant, but I received high marks for my interview answer to "Why do you want to be a doctor?", which detailed my initial interest in science and helping others, how I narrowed my interests down to medicine, chemistry, and law, how I chose medicine and not the other two, and how my experiences in EMS and shadowing screened and reinforced that conclusion.

Depth, humility, and concrete examples will allow you to overcome any initial bias. Once you show that to them, you will actually get points for being so advanced at an early age.

David D, MD - USMLE and MCAT Tutor
Med School Tutors

I appreciate the thorough answer, thank you!

 

[KnightDoc]

So I'm sure it changes across schools/programs but mine is kind enough to reserve our seats for us even if we apply to other schools. We have a contract that we signed out of high school with requirements that we have to meet or else we lose our seat. I am in a pretty new program so it can be 3 or 4 +4 but they strongly encourage 3 years undergrad. We are pushed pretty hard to finish our bachelors in the 3 years -- I have been taking the max 18 credits for each Fall and Spring semester and then I took 12 credits over the summer including orgo 1 and 2. With all that I am still taking the MCAT without some pretty important classes like psych, physics, anatomy etc. although I'm really excited to say I just scored 515 on FL 3 after 2 weeks of studying haha. Hopefully that answers all your questions and I'm happy to answer any others if you're curious.

It sounds like you know what you are doing. Good luck!! 🙂