How many is too many?

[green thicket]

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I'm trying to choose school designations with the stats that I have. I currently have a list of 28 schools. According to my scores and gpa is this overboard or just the right amount?

science gpa 3.5
non-science gpa 3.8
cumulative/overall gpa 3.62
MCAT- took it three times, 2nd one got a 28R and currently waiting for April scores

i do not have an increasing trend in gpa that med schools look favorably upon. i had 3.8 1st year, 3.37 2nd year, and 3.7 my 3rd year. I also recieved one C in Orgo Chem II- which is the weeding out class. I want to play it safe but not waste money that could be put to use elsewhere in this application process. Thanks for any suggestion/help/comments.

 

[DrBowtie]

Apply to as many as you can afford.

 

[Wookey]

Secondaries take some time to do. It took me about a day for each school. I got really tired of doing them when I got up to 20 schools. I didn't spend nearly enough time on them at that point and didn't feel like doing any more. In hindsight, it was a waste of money for me to apply to 30 schools. But I still think it's prudent to do 25-30 because you don't know how many secondaries you'll be given.

 

[kevster2001]

Not so sure about your 3time MCAT taking and 28R but the GPA isn't that bad(especially if you went to a tough school). I would say the biggest problem with applying to a lot of schools is the amount of time you can put into secondaries and whether you can afford to travel a lot assuming you get interviews. I understand that sense you're shotgunning it you want a lot but I say just get representative samples from each tier, and end with something around 15-20. Anymore and you might rush your secondaries or delay them which will hurt your chances.

 

[SemperJeff]

But I still think it's prudent to do 25-30 because you don't know how many secondaries you'll be given.

Well he'll get secondaries from all the private schools....

 

[Law2Doc]

I'm trying to choose school designations with the stats that I have. I currently have a list of 28 schools. According to my scores and gpa is this overboard or just the right amount?

science gpa 3.5
non-science gpa 3.8
cumulative/overall gpa 3.62
MCAT- took it three times, 2nd one got a 28R and currently waiting for April scores

i do not have an increasing trend in gpa that med schools look favorably upon. i had 3.8 1st year, 3.37 2nd year, and 3.7 my 3rd year. I also recieved one C in Orgo Chem II- which is the weeding out class. I want to play it safe but not waste money that could be put to use elsewhere in this application process. Thanks for any suggestion/help/comments.

You have enough blemishes in your credentials that it pays to apply to more schools than the average applicant, particularly the 3rd time MCAT. Apply to as many as you can afford and realistically think you can get done. It's not uncommon for folks to pay for more schools on AMCAS than they actually get around to submitting secondaries for. In my opinion you for sure want to apply to over 20, given the MCAT thing. (And we are assuming your ECs, LORs, are okay, that you are not a reapplicant, etc., things that might suggest even more). Good luck.

 

[silas2642]

I'm trying to choose school designations with the stats that I have. I currently have a list of 28 schools. According to my scores and gpa is this overboard or just the right amount?

science gpa 3.5
non-science gpa 3.8
cumulative/overall gpa 3.62
MCAT- took it three times, 2nd one got a 28R and currently waiting for April scores

i do not have an increasing trend in gpa that med schools look favorably upon. i had 3.8 1st year, 3.37 2nd year, and 3.7 my 3rd year. I also recieved one C in Orgo Chem II- which is the weeding out class. I want to play it safe but not waste money that could be put to use elsewhere in this application process. Thanks for any suggestion/help/comments.

I would keep reach schools down to a minimum unless you're a URM or something. I'm assuming that you have plenty of clinical experience and good lors. Personally, I think that you should stay with the lower tiered schools (Drexel, Temple, NYMC, Albany, Wayne, etc), hitting those hard and maybe a few mid tiered schools. Apply as early as you possibly can, write good secondaries, a good ps, and prepare to interview well. That's all you can do. Hopefully your mcat score was about a 30 this time around. What was your first score? 28 isn't great but it isn't dismal either. I'm rambling and will shut up now.

 

[-Goose-]

I'm trying to choose school designations with the stats that I have. I currently have a list of 28 schools. According to my scores and gpa is this overboard or just the right amount?

science gpa 3.5
non-science gpa 3.8
cumulative/overall gpa 3.62
MCAT- took it three times, 2nd one got a 28R and currently waiting for April scores

i do not have an increasing trend in gpa that med schools look favorably upon. i had 3.8 1st year, 3.37 2nd year, and 3.7 my 3rd year. I also recieved one C in Orgo Chem II- which is the weeding out class. I want to play it safe but not waste money that could be put to use elsewhere in this application process. Thanks for any suggestion/help/comments.

What about your state schools? If you have one or two schools in your home state that you would like to attend, then you could probably cut down on some of the apps.

 

[star22]

What about your state schools? If you have one or two schools in your home state that you would like to attend, then you could probably cut down on some of the apps.

Not necessarily... a lot state schools are just as competetive as the private schools, especially if you live out west.

 

[green thicket]

I live in Florida and the schools such as UF and UM have a high MCAT requirement. But I am also applying to a few DO schools as a back-up.

 

[floridakppr]

I live in Florida and the schools such as UF and UM have a high MCAT requirement. But I am also applying to a few DO schools as a back-up.

Fellow Florida resident here. This is my list so far. PM me if you'd like to know my stats. As you can tell by my list, I have a tourist's love for Chicago and D.C.

Boston University School of Medicine
Drexel University College of Medicine
Eastern Virginia Medical School
Emory University School of Medicine
Florida State University
George Washington University Sch of Med & Hlth Sci
Georgetown University School of Medicine
Jefferson Medical Coll. of Thomas Jefferson Univ.
Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medici
New York Medical College
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicin
Rosalind Franklin University of Medicine and Scien
The University of Miami School of Medicine
Tulane University School of Medicine
University of Florida
University of Illinois at Chicago-College of Medic
University of Michigan Medical School
University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
University of South Florida College of Medicine
Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
Wright State University Boonshoft School of Medicine