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...that my school hasn't sent a student to medical school in over a decade! I myself am only a freshman so i won't be applying for a few more years. Is this a death sentence? Will adcoms care?
I just found out...
- Thread starter milliya
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no wonder you're a freshman. just hang in there, keep studying your premedical stuff, find out whether you really wanna be a doctor....a year later when you realize that this school just doesn't have the resources that will allow you to get into a medical school, then transfer to a different undergrad. get your priorities straight.
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Honestly, it doesn't matter. If you're grades are up to par and your app has all the right stuff an adcom isn't going to care if your school has ever had a med school matriculant. Though I might worry somewhat about the quality of education at the school. Try to find out why your school hasn't had any successful cases if you can.
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i mean, is it a conservatory or something? is it possible that the undergrad population there just isn't interested?
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1956Goldtop
Your undergrad won't play a huge role in what schools you will or will not get into. I also go to an undergrad that sends very few students to medical schools each year. Get good grades, do interesting things, nail the mcat, get some clinical experience and you'll be golden.
HumidBeing
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They will base their decisions on YOU, not how many students have come there from your school.
Shejeboshease touched an important point. You DO need the background knowledge to do well on your MCAT. You can acquire that both through coursework and self-study. So, no matter which school you attend, you can cover that base if you have the initiative. Does your school have opportunities for research involvement, or do you have to outside campus to find your own? All schools have opportunities for community involvement and leadership.
One thing that your school probably does lack is an effective advisement system for pre-med students. Perhaps there is not enough student interest to merit one. The lack of med school acceptances could very well be due to having a student body with few students motivated in that direction.
You have SDN, though. It's probably the best advisor out there, if you use it effectively.
The SCHOOL will not prevent you from attending med school. Every school community provides the opportunities necessary to get there; however, your school probably does not emphasize and encourage this path. So, students interested in medicine would have less of a support network.
If you get to the point where you think that the educational opportunities at your current institution are insufficient for you to succeed in what you wish to accomplish, it is a good idea to transfer to a more rigorous institution, if you believe that you can perform well there.
If you are the first in over 10 years, you will be one of their shining stars. Nice thought, eh?
Shejeboshease touched an important point. You DO need the background knowledge to do well on your MCAT. You can acquire that both through coursework and self-study. So, no matter which school you attend, you can cover that base if you have the initiative. Does your school have opportunities for research involvement, or do you have to outside campus to find your own? All schools have opportunities for community involvement and leadership.
One thing that your school probably does lack is an effective advisement system for pre-med students. Perhaps there is not enough student interest to merit one. The lack of med school acceptances could very well be due to having a student body with few students motivated in that direction.
You have SDN, though. It's probably the best advisor out there, if you use it effectively.
The SCHOOL will not prevent you from attending med school. Every school community provides the opportunities necessary to get there; however, your school probably does not emphasize and encourage this path. So, students interested in medicine would have less of a support network.
If you get to the point where you think that the educational opportunities at your current institution are insufficient for you to succeed in what you wish to accomplish, it is a good idea to transfer to a more rigorous institution, if you believe that you can perform well there.
If you are the first in over 10 years, you will be one of their shining stars. Nice thought, eh?
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I will say the school matters in this respect only: Does the premed advisory committee [or person] really know how to help you out? After not sending someone to med school for 10 yrs, they might be out of the loop...
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Thank you all so much for your advice and opinions.
I do believe that part of the reason why my school has failed to produce med school acceptances is because not many students persue that as a career goal. Those who do are often discouraged by the coursework. Already several of my classmates have switched their major from biology.
Also, my school is a strong advocate for graduate schooling rather than professional because there are so many programs out there that will pay for graduate education for minorities while providing a stipend--thats the argument they use to reel students in.
I'm not sure how things have been done in the past, but I have met with our pre-med advisor and his predecessor who is retiring in May, and they both expressed utmost enthusiasm in doing whatever it takes to get the four of us who are planning to attend med school in the next 4 or 5 years to achieve our goals. Although our school is very small and there are few options for research on campus, the advisors are making sure that we get started on that ASAP. They seem very dedicated and there seem to be a lot of programs to help science, technology, engineering, and math majors.
I do not doubt my school's ability to prepare me for the MCAT and at any rate, I plan on doing a LOT of self-study.
I do look forward to being my school's shining star.
I do believe that part of the reason why my school has failed to produce med school acceptances is because not many students persue that as a career goal. Those who do are often discouraged by the coursework. Already several of my classmates have switched their major from biology.
Also, my school is a strong advocate for graduate schooling rather than professional because there are so many programs out there that will pay for graduate education for minorities while providing a stipend--thats the argument they use to reel students in.
I'm not sure how things have been done in the past, but I have met with our pre-med advisor and his predecessor who is retiring in May, and they both expressed utmost enthusiasm in doing whatever it takes to get the four of us who are planning to attend med school in the next 4 or 5 years to achieve our goals. Although our school is very small and there are few options for research on campus, the advisors are making sure that we get started on that ASAP. They seem very dedicated and there seem to be a lot of programs to help science, technology, engineering, and math majors.
I do not doubt my school's ability to prepare me for the MCAT and at any rate, I plan on doing a LOT of self-study.
I do look forward to being my school's shining star.
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you may also think of doing summer program doing research. This is a great way to get the opportunity to get that exposure if you go to an institution that doesn't have alot of undergraduate research. If you do start applying now.
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i'm having the same problem, so i'm transferring. if you have the grades for med school, you should have good enough grades to transfer to a pretty good school. just stay focused, you'll get in somewhere.
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Check a few things: are there research opportunities near by? if not, you can search for opportunities at other schools during the summer. Are there clinical volunteering opportunities near by? Free clinics? Community service projects?
I think if you're able to cover all your bases you'll be fine. To be completely frank, your chances of getting into a top10 ubermedschool is lower, because they take mostly from uber-undergrads. But your chances of getting into a medical school? Just as good as everyone else (if you're able to do the standard volunteer work).
I think if you're able to cover all your bases you'll be fine. To be completely frank, your chances of getting into a top10 ubermedschool is lower, because they take mostly from uber-undergrads. But your chances of getting into a medical school? Just as good as everyone else (if you're able to do the standard volunteer work).
