Jan 28th taker- 504 HELP

[zen-yatta5]

Hey everyone,
I got 504 (125/125/129/125) on 1/28 test and I am pretty bummed about it.

AAMC F1 505 (I bombed CARS here) (3 weeks prior)
F2 516 (1 week prior)

I studied for about 3 months while in school and working part time and took ~14 practice exams. I felt prepared and finished fast on most sections.

I am Hispanic male nontrad community college transfer to UCalifornia school
Cum GPA at community college: 3.0
Cum GPA at UC: 3.75
Research exp: 1 year
Clinical exp: 1 year
Volunteer: +500
Would have MD/DO LORs

Would y'all recommend a retake or to apply with a 504 this round?
FYI I would need to retake Jan 2018 since my schedule won't allow any more time to study!

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[honey0102]

Hey everyone,
I got 504 (125/125/129/125) on 1/28 test and I am pretty bummed about it.

AAMC F1 505 (I bombed CARS here) (3 weeks prior)
F2 516 (1 week prior)

I studied for about 3 months while in school and working part time and took ~14 practice exams. I felt prepared and finished fast on most sections.

I am Hispanic male nontrad community college transfer to UCalifornia school
Cum GPA at community college: 3.0
Cum GPA at UC: 3.75
Research exp: 1 year
Clinical exp: 1 year
Volunteer: +500
Would have MD/DO LORs

Would y'all recommend a retake or to apply with a 504 this round?
FYI I would need to retake Jan 2018 since my schedule won't allow any more time to study!

It seems like you have a stellar application in terms of GPA at UC, volunteering, etc. I think retaking the MCAT and getting a higher score can make it shine even more. Furthermore, taking that extra time could let you delve even deeper into research and clinical exp which would be good as well.

 

[JPSmyth]

Hey everyone,
I got 504 (125/125/129/125) on 1/28 test and I am pretty bummed about it.

AAMC F1 505 (I bombed CARS here) (3 weeks prior)
F2 516 (1 week prior)

I studied for about 3 months while in school and working part time and took ~14 practice exams. I felt prepared and finished fast on most sections.

I am Hispanic male nontrad community college transfer to UCalifornia school
Cum GPA at community college: 3.0
Cum GPA at UC: 3.75
Research exp: 1 year
Clinical exp: 1 year
Volunteer: +500
Would have MD/DO LORs

Would y'all recommend a retake or to apply with a 504 this round?
FYI I would need to retake Jan 2018 since my schedule won't allow any more time to study!

You're Hispanic, so URM. You will get an MD acceptance don't worry man. What's your overall gpa? Upward trend?

 

[zen-yatta5]

It seems like you have a stellar application in terms of GPA at UC, volunteering, etc. I think retaking the MCAT and getting a higher score can make it shine even more. Furthermore, taking that extra time could let you delve even deeper into research and clinical exp which would be good as well.

Thanks for the advice! I definitely want to retake

 

[zen-yatta5]

You're Hispanic, so URM. You will get an MD acceptance don't worry man. What's your overall gpa? Upward trend?

What's URM??
And it's definitely an upward trend I retook courses I did bad in at my cc
But found out MD takes into acct all grades

 

[Welshman]

What's URM??
And it's definitely an upward trend I retook courses I did bad in at my cc
But found out MD takes into acct all grades

URM stands for Under-Represented in Medicine, they make up a smaller percentage of medical students than they should based on the US's demographics. Essentially, URMs get preferential admission into medical schools because they are more likely to then go back and serve their community, which in turn is most likely underserved.

 

[OchemOficionado]

What's your science GPA though? I think you'll get in somewhere with a well researched school list.

 

[all things possible]

Overall cGPA and sGPA are needed to further evaluate.

 

[Fancy_Feast]

What's URM??
And it's definitely an upward trend I retook courses I did bad in at my cc
But found out MD takes into acct all grades

Just FYI DO no longer does grade replacement either.

 

[freak7]

You're Hispanic, so URM. You will get an MD acceptance don't worry man. What's your overall gpa? Upward trend?

Not all Hispanic applicants are URM. Only Mexican and Puerto Rican iirc

 

[Ismet]

Not all Hispanic applicants are URM. Only Mexican and Puerto Rican iirc

AAMC has moved away from singling out those 4 groups as URM. Their current stance: "Underrepresented in medicine means those racial and ethnic populations that are underrepresented in the medical profession relative to their numbers in the general population." However they still are "committed to ensuring access to medical education and medicine-related careers for individuals from these four historically underrepresented racial/ethnic groups." (https://www.aamc.org/initiatives/urm/)

Schools often have their own criteria for what they consider "URM" based on the population in the school's area.

 

[JohnWill30]

I had no luck applying with a 504 last year, but with some notable differences from you. I was not URM, I had 0 research experience, and I had a 123 CARS. So take this for what its worth.

 

[freak7]

AAMC has moved away from singling out those 4 groups as URM. Their current stance: "Underrepresented in medicine means those racial and ethnic populations that are underrepresented in the medical profession relative to their numbers in the general population." However they still are "committed to ensuring access to medical education and medicine-related careers for individuals from these four historically underrepresented racial/ethnic groups." (https://www.aamc.org/initiatives/urm/)

Schools often have their own criteria for what they consider "URM" based on the population in the school's area.

Oooo very interesting

 

[efle]

Hispanic 28/3.7 had a 72% admit rate. Normally I'd say apply. Except:

F2 516 (1 week prior)

Is that a typo or did you get a 95th percentile score on an official AAMC test one week before dropping all the way to 67th? If so, I'd say retake because the opportunities for a 3.7/35 URM are amazing!

 

[gamieg]

it depends on where you're aiming to go. if any MD or DO will do, focus on presenting your ps and secondaries well and you'll probably be pretty successful. if you're aiming for UCs or higher tiered schools, scoring higher will open more doors.

 

[YoungDoc25]

I'm a white male and was accepted to an MD school with a 3.3 sGPA and cGPA and a 504. You will be fine. But if that 516 wasn't a typo, retake ASAP and you'll possibly get to pick which school you want to attend!

 

[efle]

I'm a white male and was accepted to an MD school with a 3.3 sGPA and cGPA and a 504.

Well if you did it I'm sure everyone like you will be fine!

Except like the 80% that didn't get in

You're a very successful outlier don't use yourself as a benchmark!

 

[YoungDoc25]

Well if you did it I'm sure everyone like you will be fine!

Except like the 80% that didn't get in

You're a very successful outlier don't use yourself as a benchmark!

Agree I'm not the norm. I interview well and have above average ECs. A URM with those stats would be just fine though, and that was my point. I would love to see the school list of that 80% though. So many bad advisors out there.

 

[efle]

Agree I'm not the norm. I interview well and have above average ECs. A URM with those stats would be just fine though, and that was my point. I would love to see the school list of that 80% though. So many bad advisors out there.

Was your admit to a state program? If you are from somewhere in the South that would be key, most of that 80% probably just didn't have an instate program with a median admitted MCAT of ~27-29

 

[YoungDoc25]

Was your admit to a state program? If you are from somewhere in the South that would be key, most of that 80% probably just didn't have an instate program with a median admitted MCAT of ~27-29

Yes and yes to the South. Very good point. I think mine had an average of ~30, but I was able to tailor my app to their vision. Couldn't imagine being on either the West or Northeast coasts. Probably would have had a better foundation for the MCAT due to a better undergrad experience, but the competition there is incredibly fierce.