Junior - Columbia Biomedical Engineering Major, 3.5 GPA

[Inoc]

Hey all, these are "my" stats (really asking for someone else):

Junior @ Columbia University, Biomedical Engineering Major, 3.5 GPA
Plenty of research experience, zilch clinical experience

With that GPA, is it still possible to aim for top med schools? What MCAT score would I have to get to be competitive? 40+ (i.e., delusional)? What about the slightly less competitive med schools - what MCAT range there to have a reasonable chance? Also, what sort of clinical experience should I try to aim for this summer, for maximum benefit?

A med school adviser strongly suggested taking a gap year, benefit being that I could get the GPA up with senior year grades and I could take med school-related courses to prepare for actual med school. Thoughts?

Thanks in advance!

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[TriagePreMed]

A top med school might not be in your cards anymore unless you do score over a 36 on the MCAT. Seeing the grade distribution, I've seen some 3.5 at UCLA and Stanford, but who knows what else was under their belt? Don't think about the MCAT in terms of what you must get. Aim for the highest possible.

Good luck. I think you'll have a successful application season.

 

[Catalystik]

Hey all, these are "my" stats (really asking for someone else):

Junior @ Columbia University, Biomedical Engineering Major, 3.5 GPA
Plenty of research experience, zilch clinical experience

With that GPA, is it still possible to aim for top med schools? What MCAT score would I have to get to be competitive? 40+ (i.e., delusional)? What about the slightly less competitive med schools - what MCAT range there to have a reasonable chance? Also, what sort of clinical experience should I try to aim for this summer, for maximum benefit?

A med school adviser strongly suggested taking a gap year, benefit being that I could get the GPA up with senior year grades and I could take med school-related courses to prepare for actual med school. Thoughts?

Thanks in advance!

I agree with the advisor. The applicant would need the extra time to beef up the ECs to a desirable point anyway.

Stats just get adcomm attention. Once one has it, the application particulars are more important.

Top schools aim to train future leaders in medicine. Chances of an acceptance by one of them lies with whether one's application supports this potential, backed up by the LOR writers. Ways in which one can show this capability for making a difference might be with substantive research (possibly with publications), with strong community service, and with above-and-beyond leadership.