Is it disadvantageous to apply to the same medical school twice?

[James Corcoran]

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For reasons that probably don't need to be delved into, I am only planning to apply to medical schools very close to where I live (UMass, Tufts, BU, Harvard). I am probably an average-level candidate in terms of competitiveness.

With this in mind, its probably unlikely that I will get in only applying to 4 schools. Assuming I did not get into these schools, would it hurt my application chances for these schools the following cycle? At that point I would apply to schools across the country, as well as the Boston schools again.

Or is it just foolish to apply to only 4 schools (even if I don't mind being rejected)? I will still put forth a strong application, and 4 schools would not provide that much supplemental work.

 

[TheWeeIceMan]

It's foolish.

 

[gyngyn]

For reasons that probably don't need to be delved into, I am only planning to apply to medical schools very close to where I live (UMass, Tufts, BU, Harvard). I am probably an average-level candidate in terms of competitiveness.

I'm interested in how you are an average candidate for all 4 of these schools!

 

[NorthernMav]

For reasons that probably don't need to be delved into, I am only planning to apply to medical schools very close to where I live (UMass, Tufts, BU, Harvard). I am probably an average-level candidate in terms of competitiveness.

With this in mind, its probably unlikely that I will get in only applying to 4 schools. Assuming I did not get into these schools, would it hurt my application chances for these schools the following cycle? At that point I would apply to schools across the country, as well as the Boston schools again.

Or is it just foolish to apply to only 4 schools (even if I don't mind being rejected)? I will still put forth a strong application, and 4 schools would not provide that much supplemental work.

Very foolish. BU and Tufts get a ridiculous amount of applications. Umass is incredibly competitive to get into now. And Harvard, well, is Harvard.

 

[listener23]

For reasons that probably don't need to be delved into, I am only planning to apply to medical schools very close to where I live (UMass, Tufts, BU, Harvard). I am probably an average-level candidate in terms of competitiveness.

With this in mind, its probably unlikely that I will get in only applying to 4 schools. Assuming I did not get into these schools, would it hurt my application chances for these schools the following cycle? At that point I would apply to schools across the country, as well as the Boston schools again.

Or is it just foolish to apply to only 4 schools (even if I don't mind being rejected)? I will still put forth a strong application, and 4 schools would not provide that much supplemental work.

Being an average level candidate for Tufts means you have no shot at Harvard....

 

[WingedOx]

Very foolish. Add NYC, Maine, Philly, DC, NY State schools to your list. That can bring your list up to 10-20 schools and you won't have to suffer the horrors of living in the Midwest or South.

Unless there's a very specific reason for needing to stay home (ailing family member, etc), however, if that's the case you should probably reconsider going to med school at this stage in your life.

 

[Mornhavon]

.

 

[familyaerospace]

I'm not going to discuss the issue of how many schools you are applying to but I will answer your question, no it is not disadvantageous to apply to the same school twice unless the school has an upper limit of how many times you can apply to it.

Of my four interviews this year, one school I applied to three times (they gave me an interview last year as well) and the three others I applied to twice.

 

[boomshaketheroom]

Not foolish, I got into a school I re-applied to the second time around. It can actually help because you can talk to the admissions committee about weaknesses to improve.

 

[WingedOx]

I guess the OP should clarify though, WHY only Boston schools?

 

[James Corcoran]

Very foolish. BU and Tufts get a ridiculous amount of applications. Umass is incredibly competitive to get into now. And Harvard, well, is Harvard.

Thanks for all the replies guys!

For those of you who say it is foolish, I am wondering why? Is it foolish just because the chances of getting accepted to a Boston school is very low? Because yes I am aware of that fact (especially for Harvard, but might as well try, I do have some pretty good extracurriculars and volunteer experience abroad). Or is there more to it than that, as in, would it hurt my chances at reapplying to those schools next year?

I'm basically trying to figure out if you guys are saying its a bad idea just because it would likely be a waste of my time and I would get rejected? Or if its a bad idea because it could hurt my chances overall. I want to go to a Boston school because my girlfriend is going through some very rough personal/family times (I should not go into more detail for her sake) and has helped me through some very hard times as well, so I owe it to her to remain close to her to give her the support she needs. I am perfectly content with not getting into medical school this cycle if the Boston schools don't accept me.

But would it be foolish for more than just the strong possibility of not getting in and having to reapply?

Apply to ~20 schools to be safe.

Don't waste a year of your life.

No one has a good chance of getting into any massachusetts school. The average pre-med get's a 33 on the MCAT in massachusetts.

BU/Tufts/Harvard/UMass are all really high gpa/mcat school (like 3.8/34 *average*). Dont base your hopes on getting into them.

Would you still give me the same advice if I told you that I do not have a personal feeling of urgency to go to medical school this year specifically and would be perfectly happy with working in a biotech job or similar next year if I did not get in? Or is there more to your saying of a "waste of a year of life" that I am not fully understanding? Thanks!

I'm interested in how you are an average candidate for all 4 of these schools!

I just made an extremely rough estimate to give some kind of background as to my application strengths. I did not mean to imply anything more than that! Sorry for confusion.

 

[James Corcoran]

Apply to ~20 schools to be safe.

Don't waste a year of your life.

No one has a good chance of getting into any massachusetts school. The average pre-med get's a 33 on the MCAT in massachusetts.

BU/Tufts/Harvard/UMass are all really high gpa/mcat school (like 3.8/34 *average*). Dont base your hopes on getting into them.

Would you still give me the same advice if I told you that I do not have a personal feeling of urgency to go to medical school this year specifically and would be perfectly happy with working in a biotech job or similar next year if I did not get in? Or is there more to your saying of a "waste of a year of life" that I am not fully understanding? Thanks!

 

[WingedOx]

I guess you need to ask yourself if you are able to put the time commitment in that school requires and still be there for your GF. Relationships with medical students aren't easy (as I'm sure many of my ex's can attest)

 

[mrusiku]

FWIW I was a reapplicant to all those schools this past cycle and I got accepted to BU. In general being a reapplicant is never a good thing. I think top 20's are especially biased against reapps.

 

[James Corcoran]

I guess you need to ask yourself if you are able to put the time commitment in that school requires and still be there for your GF. Relationships with medical students aren't easy (as I'm sure many of my ex's can attest)

Yes, definitely will be able to put in the time commitment, I am not concerned about that. I just feel the need to be physically present in the Boston area for her (she is at Tufts med) to support her as I know she would have done the same for me had the roles been switched.

 

[NorthernMav]

For those of you who say it is foolish, I am wondering why?

It isn't a smart move for both reasons you stated. If you are a reapplicant and you have not significantly enhanced your app the second time around, it works against you.

 

[Microglia]

Yes, definitely will be able to put in the time commitment, I am not concerned about that. I just feel the need to be physically present in the Boston area for her (she is at Tufts med) to support her as I know she would have done the same for me had the roles been switched.

Something about this statement gives me the gut feeling that this is a bad call. Long distance isn't that hard if you love each other. Also, 4 years is incredibly short in med school time. I just finished year 1 (of med school and long distance) and it flew by. Finally, if you can handle long distance for a few years you can be confident that your relationship can handle almost anything.

 

[EngineerPreMD]

For reasons that probably don't need to be delved into, I am only planning to apply to medical schools very close to where I live (UMass, Tufts, BU, Harvard). I am probably an average-level candidate in terms of competitiveness.

With this in mind, its probably unlikely that I will get in only applying to 4 schools. Assuming I did not get into these schools, would it hurt my application chances for these schools the following cycle? At that point I would apply to schools across the country, as well as the Boston schools again.

Or is it just foolish to apply to only 4 schools (even if I don't mind being rejected)? I will still put forth a strong application, and 4 schools would not provide that much supplemental work.

It's only foolish if your primary goal is medical school. Life is asking you to make a decision. Do you care more about getting into medical school or being there for your girlfriend? Your chances of having both are pretty small, but as long as you understand that you'll make the right decision. I would ask yourself if she will do the same for you in residency before you make any decisions.

 

[LizzyM]

Please keep in mind that you are applying to attend medical school in Fall 2015. Much can change between now & then such that you will not feel the same urgency to be in Boston from Fall 2015-Spring 2019 that you feel now.
If your GPA and MCAT are very good, and you end up being a reappliant, every school will see that you are a year out of college and took the MCAT early enough to have applied the previous year. Even if you aren't a reapplicant to their school, they will make the assumption that you are in a second application cycle. When I see someone who appears to have good numbers and good ECs but who in a 2nd cycle, I start to wonder what was wrong with them the first time around. You become tainted, in a way, for having failed in the first cycle. Applying to just 4 schools could be interpreted as hubris which can be the kiss of death. Please rethink this strategy.

 

[Catalystik]

Yes, definitely will be able to put in the time commitment, I am not concerned about that. I just feel the need to be physically present in the Boston area for her (she is at Tufts med) to support her as I know she would have done the same for me had the roles been switched.

You told us your girl friend dumped you just two weeks ago when you were on the verge of taking the MCAT, and now you're going to imperile your future application cycle for her sake?: http://forums.studentdoctor.net/thr...weeks-before-my-mcat-exam-any-advice.1065775/

 

[Mornhavon]

.

 

[gyngyn]

We can tell from your AMCAS ID# that you are probably a re-applicant even if you have not previously applied to our school specifically.

 

[hippocampus503]

I think being a reapplicant is not a bad thing. It shows the schools that you're determined and dedicated enough to become a doctor to actually push through a rejection and keep trying. Perseverance is not a bad thing. However, if you do reapply, the only way it can be seen as favorable is if you have improved upon whatever aspect of your application that held you back the first time around. Good luck to you!

 

[gyngyn]

I think being a reapplicant is not a bad thing. It shows the schools that you're determined and dedicated enough to become a doctor to actually push through a rejection and keep trying. Perseverance is not a bad thing. However, if you do reapply, the only way it can be seen as favorable is if you have improved upon whatever aspect of your application that held you back the first time around. Good luck to you!

It's really a lot more like what @LizzyM posted earlier.
A numerically strong applicant who has a failed cycle is an entirely different animal than someone who addresses deficits and re-applies.

 

[GoPelicans]

We can tell from your AMCAS ID# that you are probably a re-applicant even if you have not previously applied to our school specifically.

How? I thought the AMCAS ID was just a randomly generated number.

edit: I also think it's sorta unfair to judge reapplicants so harshly. A lot of people in the panic thread without acceptances seem to have good applications but they just applied too late (IE, September and beyond). Many of them only have like 1-2 interviews.

 

[wiloghby]

How? I thought the AMCAS ID was just a randomly generated number.

edit: I also think it's sorta unfair to judge reapplicants so harshly. A lot of people in the panic thread without acceptances seem to have good applications but they just applied too late (IE, September and beyond). Many of them only have like 1-2 interviews.

I think the first 3 digits increment slowly over time in some way such that they can be loosely correlated to when you created your AAMC ID.

 

[gyngyn]

How? I thought the AMCAS ID was just a randomly generated number.

edit: I also think it's sorta unfair to judge reapplicants so harshly. A lot of people in the panic thread without acceptances seem to have good applications but they just applied too late (IE, September and beyond). Many of them only have like 1-2 interviews.

They are issued sequentially.

Judging is what we are asked to do.
We observe which characteristics distinguish re-applicants with good stats from those without.
We are letting you know this so that you can plan accordingly.
It also helps the OP understand the true risks associated with his initial query.
Harsh would be not to let you know.

 

[correctlywrong]

Wait... so I started an AMCAS app last year, but didn't submit it to anyone. Decided to take a year to get a few things in order. Does that mean my ID makes me look like a reapplicant?