International students??

[sweatybrain]

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There was a thread a while back that made me questioned whether I should apply to medical schoolsl at all. My "numbers" and ECs are competitive at every program I'm planning to apply to...but the caveat is that I'm an international student (*not* permanent resident).

Does anyone have a clue about how ad coms view international students? If a school is not going to look at my application at all, I would rather not spend $100. I know that a lot of MD/PhD programs are opened toward int'l applicants....but given that I already have a PhD, the thought of getting a second one isn't too appealing 🙂

Addendum

here's my list:

mount sinai
nyu
columbia
cornell
yale
dartmouth
harvard
stanford
chicago
northwestern

(don't pass out yet.)

case western
BU
Tufts
penn
pitt
duke
johns hopkins
wash u (not sure about this one)
vandy
georgetown

Stats:
I apologize in advance:
undergrad: 3.95, chemical engineering and biochem, U of Wisconsin
grad: 3.83, biomedical engineering, Harvard/MIT
now: postdoc (systems biology) in NYC, 5 publications (2 in press)
August MCAT. been averaging around 36 on the AAMC tests. Hopefully I can do better with a little studying.

standard EC's: UG (tutor chem, research, track, track, and..well...running track 🙂), grad (research, research, and research, with some business consulting stuff thrown in). Now: clinical stuff with in-patients, business development stuff for a biotech start-up aiming to stop spread of TB in developing countries, teach yoga, mentoring kids, etc.

Hmmm....when i was an undergrad, I poked fun at some of the neurotic premeds I met at UW...but here I am, perusing SDN on a sunday morning....karma exists indeed.

 

[shadowy onion]

If you don't have $$$$$ find someone 😍 just make sure she is american.
Med schools are strictly businesses they are not as interested in diversity as undergrad colleges. Having said that, with your rediculous stats, you probably should apply anywhere you want.
Since you are worrying about 100$ I assume you have no money, so why not try a medical school in a different country?
confused?
me too.

 

[nothingman]

sweatybrain,

Your numbers, graduate degree, and everything else you've mentioned (assuming the MCAT goes on target or even higher) sound promising for that list of schools. It is true that foreign applicants are held to a higher standard than US citizens/PRs but with your application, that standard should be met at a vast majority of the places you mentioned.

Given my prior experience of applying as an int'l student, I would email or otherwise contact each of the programs on your list, mention your stats, and ask them how receptive they would be for an application from you. Some of them may turn you down flat (most public schools in the U.S.) since their funding prohibits them from considering international applicants. At least as of last year, one of the schools on your list, UPitt, was not considering any applications from non-PR's/non-citizens. Others will encourage you to apply (e.g. WashU, which appears rather foreigner-friendly, and will look upon your numbers favorably). Use the results of that search to trim down your list and not waste $$$ applying to programs that won't even consider you a priori.

That being said, if you're not doing the MD/PhD route, and if you can't work out some sort of financing arrangement with your home government/ministry of education, it will cost a pretty penny to go. Many schools require that foreigners prepay all four years of their medical education into an escrow account. This may or may not be a problem.

Finally, if you're Canadian, consider McGill. It's hard to get into as a non-American non-Quebecker, but they do train you to the U.S. boards and their graduates do very well both in Canada and in the U.S.

Hope that helps - PM me if you have more questions.

Best of luck!

 

[acl3623]

i'm applying as an int'l too and i know how frustrating it is to not know what standards you're being measured up against. i'm sure you've already found out that most state schools will turn you down as well as some privates. but beware, even the privates that say they'll accept int'l students are not as friendly as they seem. i know BU says they will consider, but really they only look at applicants that are in the process and sure of obtaining a permanent residency. this is a subtlety that most schools dont tell you about but look for in foreing applicants.

your stats are great though, so i think you won't have too much of a problem finding at least one school that is willing to take you on.

 

[romed81]

sweatybrain,
I think I know what post you are mentioning, but don't be discouraged. From the schools on your list I applied to 12 of them, and did not get an interview. However, I got into a state school, which really made a difference (financial wise). The thing is that I believe you have much better stats than I did. Maybe acadamically we are somewhat similiar, but with your degrees, and ECs you are much more competitive than I was. maybe you needed a bit more clinical experience, but you have other things to make up for it. If I were you, I would look to other schools as well, not as top notch. Definitely add emory to your list, maybe U of Vermont. Look at some schools that you are way above their average. If they will accept a international they will do so in order to increase their average. So that is my advice concerning the application process.
Financially though...it will be rather tough. As nothingman said, some schools require that you prepay all 4 yrs. Hopkins I think was one of them, so I did not even apply. So do your homework before spending your money on applications (I spent $2000, and applied to 24). If you manage to get in, and with a school that allows you to pay as you go, then you can get a lot, as long as you have a US citizen, or perm resident to cosign that loan (by the way - they need to have good credit history).
So anyways - if you have questions PM me. Don't sweat it too much though, chances are you'll get in.