Medical How should I build a school list with lots of IA?

[Goro]

Hello! I want to start by saying thank you for a great forum and resource!

I'm a senior at a not very well known state school, applying to med school in June 2021. I went to a T-20 school out of high school, but for various personal reasons "flunked out" due to repeated academic probation and withdrawals. I didn't ever take any classes above the 100/200 level, and only took about 20 credits there over the few years I was there. I left in 2014. I decide I'm not ready for college and start working in restaurants for a few years while I grow up.
In 2016,, I take a year and half of community college (earning a 4.0), and transfer to the school I'm at now. Since I've been here, I've taken all the med school prereqs and a lot of other upper level science courses and upper level foreign language courses. I have a 3.95 GPA in the three years I've been here.

I live in Michigan, I'm a URM, and I've been a Scribe for about 9 months now. I have also been volunteering consistently the past four years, and I have a few ECs to which I have been very dedicated. I started working with a research professor for the 2020-2021 academic year and that's been a lot of fun. I took a practice MCAT and got a 515, but I'm not taking the actual one until May 2021.

My question is, how do I build my school list with the horrible start and huge red flags that will be right up front (I think 3 academic probations before dismissal), but followed with a lot of good stuff and high stats since I returned to school? I like to think I can still be competitive, but have also accepted that many may screen me out because of my history. I'd like to apply to a lot of MD and 3 or 4 DO.

Apply and do NOT worry about the IAs! The you of now is not the you of then.

No advice on lists until you have an MCAT score

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[TheBoneDoctah]

ADCOM will see your improvement and with a good explanation from you (if asked), you should be fine. 515 is a good score...make sure to be scoring above your goal on practices as anything can happen on test day. I think you have a good shot.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Have you asked admissions officers? What have they said? You're not an applicant yet, so you are still fair game for a good conversation about your pending application.

 

[AlteredScale]

Agree with above. List is hard to give without and MCAT. IF you do well, with the GPA you have I would say you could def be in the running for some stronger MD schools. I would say stick with having the majority of your list that you research being your normal state or private MD schools (if applying cross country). Stick to applying to the stronger DO schools only including OSUCOM, UNECOM, PCOM, TCOM if from Texas or ties to Texas.

The IA's are from the past, you've turned things around so just keep doing what you are doing.