how hard to get into a Cali. med school?

[FitnessModelMD]

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I read some really encouraging things on this board the past month, and as junior bio major (taking the mcat apr.04), i am really happy and excited.

but then i read that cali schools are EXTREMELY competitve and truly only the creamiest of the cream of the crop make it in??

can someone who has a similiar GPA to mine (will end up being a 3.5 or so), and an average matriculation MCAT score chime in and let me know their experience in applying to cali med schools????

THANKS SO MUCH!

 

[doc2bee]

getting into med school depends on so many factors other than these numbers (experience etc.), but yes, cali schools are really hard to get into. i had a 3.7 and a 30P on my MCAT, and no interviews at cali schools. but i also applied fairly late, so i highly recommend applying early!! good luck!

 

[zer0el]

fitnessmodel,

welcome to SDN. assuming youre a CA resident, getting into a CA school is still tough (im aslo assuming youre applying for allo schools since youre posting in the pre-allo forum).

youve got 5 UCs and 3 privates. all of the UCs are extremely competitive to get into, esp. UCSF and UCLA. what makes it even harder is that schools like UCD and UCI have small class sizes. the competition is keen since just about every CA resident applies to all of the UC med schools (or at least most of them). and we both know how many CA premeds there are. so there really isnt a backup state school for CA residents.

stanford is a tough school to get into because of its rep. USC is also on the rise and gaining in popularity. that leaves loma linda, a great school that gets a lot of attention since its in cali (and also SDA). with the first two, they get a lot of apps from out of staters since those schools are private and have no state preference. LL does not get as many apps cuz of its religious emphasis.

a lot of CA applicants get frustrated with the UCs cuz theyre slow and the decisions they make seem to be random at times. i personally applied with a 3.6, 34S. my results include rejections at stanford, UCSF, UC Davis, UCSD, and interviews at UCLA, UCI, and USC. so far ive gotten into USC. going into the process, i expected interviews from USC, UCSD, UC Davis, and UCI, but not UCLA.

the moral of the story, unfortunately, is that theres no guarantee with cali schools unless you have phenomenal numbers. many of my cali friends are gonna have to go to school out of state as theyve already been rejected at all of the cali schools. good luck.

 

[Louweezel]

Sadly, my Cali endeavors were met with much misfortune. Even though I knew it was a longshot, I applied only to probably the 3 hardest schools in Cali - UCSF, UCLA and Stanford (silly me). I thought that I had decent numbers, and I even applied as a Cali resident which I currently am (although I was a resident of a different state a few years ago). However I go to school out of state, and unfortunately not at an Ivy although a pretty well-respected school anyway. I have a fair smattering of ECs - volunteering, research, teaching, some piano performance and activity in a good number of student organizations, although by no means in hugely outstanding amounts.

My 3.91 gpa and 37P MCAT got me three rejections without any interviews. 🙁

I guess there are a lot of CA residents out there all applying with hella good scores and ECs too, that were all more outstanding than I.

But here's wishing you the very best of luck and hopefully you will meet with more success than I.

 

[FitnessModelMD]

omg! with those AWESOME numbers and still 3 rejects? without a single interview? hmm..that is ridiculous! if it is really that hard to get in, then I dont have a chance 🙁

your numbers are much more impressive than mine


is Loma Linda also as hard?

they seem to be right in line with my own model of why and how I intend to practice medicine

 

[Retro]

I am done with Cali schools and I decide to abandon my California residency since I will matriculate in a top 15 school out of CA, and I refuse to pay CA taxes to support the UC med schools that rejected me. Being a product of the UC, all the UC schools nonetheless showed me no love at all. Stanford is the cruelest of them all. I was rejected by Stanford for undergrad, grad, and now med school. Three strikes and I am out... I guess I am just not Stanford material. Cali schools care about diversity the most, and if you don't have any special experiences to stand out, high stats alone usually wouldn't cut it.

 

[FitnessModelMD]

thanks retro..duly noted

what kind of diverse experience are u referring to?

 

[Louweezel]

Originally posted by Retro
I am done with Cali schools and I decide to abandon my California residency since I will matriculate in a top 15 school out of CA, and I refuse to pay CA taxes to support the UC med schools that rejected me. Being a product of the UC, all the UC schools nonetheless showed me no love at all. Stanford is the cruelest of them all. I was rejected by Stanford for undergrad, grad, and now med school. Three strikes and I am out... I guess I am just not Stanford material. Cali schools care about diversity the most, and if you don't have any special experiences to stand out, high stats alone usually wouldn't cut it.

Retro, I am sorry to hear that. I too was rejected from Stanford for undergrad. Oh well, I am over it! 😀

But congratulations on your top 15 NON-CALI acceptance! I am sure you will be awesome wherever it is you are going. I wish you the very best of luck!

Originally posted by FitnessModelMD
omg! with those AWESOME numbers and still 3 rejects? without a single interview? hmm..that is ridiculous! if it is really that hard to get in, then I dont have a chance

your numbers are much more impressive than mine


is Loma Linda also as hard?

they seem to be right in line with my own model of why and how I intend to practice medicine

FitnessModelMD, sometimes it's not all about the numbers. I mean, of course they help, but there are plenty of people I am sure who get in with lower scores, and have something great that the adcoms happen to like. Don't doubt your own abilities just yet. If Cali is where you want to be, go ahead and give it your best shot! I did, and even though it didn't end in success there, I found my own successes elsewhere. I'm extremely honored to have my acceptances. Just don't count yourself out as having no chance yet, since you never know till you try!

I'm sorry I don't know anything about Loma Linda. Did you try doing a search for it perhaps?

 

[FitnessModelMD]

thanks lou!

i really do appreciate the words of encouragement...its just so easy to get disillusioned and caught up with raw numbers---but i know you are right, that i really need to try my best and present who i am before i assume anything!

I read the entire website of Loma Linda regarding theyre school of medicine and from what it sounds like, i would be a PERFECT candidate...just wanted to see if anyone from this forum has direct experience with them...

thanks again for ur posts...I love to read what everyone has to say..both the good and not so good! 🙂

 

[Louweezel]

Fitness,

Wait for the search feature to get back up on SDN and do a search here. Maybe you found this already, but it's in the top right corner. It should bring up any threads and posts with references to Loma Linda if you type that right in the box, then you'll have other SDNers' inputs on the school.

You could try it now, but the search seems to be down, at least where I am. You might have to wait a bit.

Btw, I don't know if you are like me, but almost every school's website that I read I was like, "oh! me! that's me! that sounds like a place where i'd love to be!" 🙂 perhaps I'm just weird. While it's wonderful that you have this early enthusiasm for the school, don't write off everywhere else just yet either (though I'm sure you won't). It's just that you learn a lot more along the process, and especially after interviewing and visiting the place. Good luck.

 

[Retro]

Thanks Louweezel!

Oh FitnessMDModel, I knew a friend who had your stats (your GPA and a MCAT around 34) and he got off the waiting list at UCSD. But that was almost 5 years ago, and he actually did PeaceCorp in Africa or somewhere near that region. He was one of the two guys I knew who got into UC school, and the other guy who got into UC Davis MSTP was Greek (not a fraternity brother but a real Greek, and that is diversity for you) but he also did some awesome research. For the UCs, high GPA and MCAT is only a prerequiste, you have shown them other stuffs.

 

[FitnessModelMD]

lol..that is very true i admit.....every school of medicine sounds almost perfect..but that to me is a sign that we truly are doctors at heart....because ultimately the goal is medicine, to protect and increase the quality of life, not the school which u learn it at.

 

[Gleevec]

Wow, if Louweezel is getting rejected I too have absolutely no chance of getting into one of the big 3 in Cali either (though I am going to throw away money trying). But congrats on your other acceptances, Im sure yall do great at the schools ya get into!

 

[FitnessModelMD]

are they catholic or christian?

 

[Louweezel]

Originally posted by Gleevec
Wow, if Louweezel is getting rejected I too have absolutely no chance of getting into one of the big 3 in Cali either (though I am going to throw away money trying). But congrats on your other acceptances, Im sure yall do great at the schools ya get into!

Throw your best shot, is what I say. I hope you will be pleasantly surprised!

Btw, there is some interesting info at www.mdapplicants.com. While this is still a small sampling of premeds and may not yet be representative as a while, there are some lower scores and people who have gotten in there, so don't give up hope!

 

[UCSBMed1]

Or don't apply, and leave the few spots available to California residents...

But Gleevec and I have gone into this ad nauseum...

 

[Yogi Bear]

its been rough for me cali-wise. 😡 i have gpa/mcat that fall under averages for uci, usc, ucdavis, and loma linda. however, post secondary rejections from sf, stanford, la, sd, and davis. haven't heard from the others. got a bunch of interviews on east coast including great schools like case, vandy, pitt, yale, and columbia. (waitlisted at those except for yale which i'll hear from w/in a week or so). i've already gotten two acceptances from top 50 schools on the east coast. however, it still stings that i can't get a cali interview even though i've a resident.

 

[jtheater]

Everyone is right on in saying that Ca. schools expect more than just numbers. My GPA is below avg. (3.55 cum, 3.60 BCMP) with a good MCAT 35Q (heavily weighted towards bio though). I got into UCSF, waitlisted at Stanford and withdrew at other CA schools. I'm a white male, so no URM here, but did go to Stanford. As contentious as it is, I don't think my GPA would have been competitive to SF had I been from most other schools in CA. I also had an "angle" on my application that I think made me a good fit at SF (infectious diseases/HIV background). I think this last part was key. You are trying to sell yourself to schools, so design your application to highlight aspects of yourself that make you stand out and an attractive addition to a class. Showing (not telling) them your passion for something, weather medically related or not, is key. Good luck to all. Go for it... it may be expensive, but if you never try, you will always wonder.

 

[scifi]

my advice is to NOT go into this thinking about what GPA so and so had or MCAT he/she got, etc. honestly, sometimes it feels like a crap shoot if you look at it that way. my GPA and MCAT is about average for the schools i interviewed at, i'm sure there are people way above and way below who did or did not get the same interviews, etc. you just can't tell sometimes. there are soooo many factors that are taken into consideration, some schools may weigh letters of rec, some schools just like numbers, some schools look for a specific kind of doctor, etc.

the general feeling i got, however, is that UCs like people who might go into primary care (i only think this b/c i heard they get funding for graduating people who will go into primary care). however, most of the UCs are widely known for their research so another person could tell you that they look for people who will go into academia. i heard columbia puts a lot of emphasis on letters of rec, ucla seems to be into community service, ucsd plays the numbers game, ucsf likes non-traditional/experienced applicants,, etc. but these are all rumors. my advice would be to do what you can to make yourself stand out in addition to working on your scores. international work can make you stand out, as can meaningful research. but unless you're an olympic athlete or were in the peace corps, you will still need good GPA and MCAT to get your foot in the door.

 

[dreaminOfMD>.<]

This is an interesting thread. I'm also a cali resident (born and raised in the same city my whole life) and I'm applying to all of the Cali schools. My GPA is below most of their averages (3.5-3.6) and I was wondering if I even have a shot. My top choices are UCI and USC since they are closest to home...I don't want to move my kid around the nation b/c of me, but if I'm forced to (b/c of no acceptances locally), then I guess I'll have to.

Do any of you know how these schools look at non-traditionals...meaning, being a mom??? Does that qualify as diverse? I hope that they don't look down on me for that. I would really love to find family-friendly schools but I don't know if any of the Cali schools are. If you know please share the info!🙂

 

[florence02]

I think that UC Davis and UCSF tend to look more favorably upon non-traditionals. I don't know about UCI and USC, though when I interviewed at UCI, it seemed like most students were young--either straight from college or had taken a year or two off after graduation. Best of luck! I had below average stats too: 3.5ish and even lower science GPA. My MCAT was 36R and I got into UCI, have an interview at Davis, but was rejected by the other CA schools.

 

[Trix]

I definitely agree with scifi and jtheater-there is more to your application than just numbers with all schools including CA schools.

I was accepted to 4 schools in cali--UCSD, UCSF, UCLA and Stanford, and my numbers are below average for all four. I have a moderate amount of clinical experience, two years of research experience, and graduated from Berkeley after transferring from a community college!!

Moral of the story....just apply. The process has a certain amount of ramdomness, but anything that will make your application stand out will help more than an additional point on a GPA or MCAT score. (I am 35 and had a very different career before returning to school)

 

[rajneel1]

i got rejected from all of the SO cal schools including USC. i had good extracurriculars, but average MCAT and GPA (3.7 and 30). not good enough apparently. not sure how they do it at UC schools. eventually, I interviewed at 4 top ten schools and was accepted to two of them, waitlisted at one, and rejected from harvard. i still can't figure it out. i think they like numbers more. sorry to say.

 

[Jet915]

I think the UC's tend to be mostly numbers based. I have been fortunate enough to get 9 interviews but only one has been from California (UC Davis which I just got, woohoo!). Anyways, my gpa is good, my mcat is average and I have alot of ECs and research (master's). Ive been rejected from UCLA, SD and Loma Linda already. My only other hopes are UCI and USC (USC start rejecting yet?) which are slim.

Jetson

 

[ylan11]

Originally posted by Jet915
I think the UC's tend to be mostly numbers based. I have been fortunate enough to get 9 interviews but only one has been from California (UC Davis which I just got, woohoo!). Anyways, my gpa is good, my mcat is average and I have alot of ECs and research (master's). Ive been rejected from UCLA, SD and Loma Linda already. My only other hopes are UCI and USC (USC start rejecting yet?) which are slim.

Jetson

Hey Jetson,

I go to UCSD too, and I think I had you as a TA for a class either one or two years ago. I also got rejected from SD without an interview! What's up with our stupid school not supporting its undergrads. I don't know about you, but they aren't getting any alumni donations from me.
I agree that the UC's are largely numbers based - but I even had pretty good numbers. Oh well, I guess a change of scenery will do me good. Go Keck School of Medicine and go Trojans (not Tritons) 😀

 

[Jet915]

Hey ylan,
Was it for BILD1 or Structural??? That's cool cause when I was at MCW, I met someone who recognized me from Taing structural. Pretty funny...........if you are taking Nutrition next quarter, I'll be taing for that too! Well, atleast it seems you are going to stay in Cali, I'm probably gonna be going to the east coast. Good luck.

Jetson

 

[ylan11]

Jetson,

It must have been structural--But I was a bit of a slacker and I think I only went to section a couple of times. Congrats on your acceptance! My dad was in the air force for 23 years and I seriously considered the HPSP before changing my mind. But I've heard a lot of good things about USUHS and I'm sure you will have a great time there.

 

[dottorone]

are they catholic or christian?

Fact check: That question is a tautology.

 

[spiffysteve]

Dude. This thread is literally older than some SDN members.

 

[WedgeDawg]

There was no reason for this 13 year old thread to be bumped. Locking.