Likely Reapplicant: How to Fix?

[CaptObvious]

Hello everyone,

I'm a current applicant and it seems like I will be having to reapply next cycle, as I have received only 4 Rs and 1 pre-II Waitlist. I am quite disappointed that I will be having to reapply, because I already hated how this cycle went and I really do not want to retake the MCAT. Here are some stats:

sGPA: 3.12 (AACOMAS, AMCAS I am not sure)
cGPA: 3.42 (AACOMAS, again)
MCAT: 50x
Clinical Experience: 1050 hrs
Research: Did research as part of undergrad, not sure how many hours to consider that.
Non-Clinical Experiences: ~230 hrs
Shadowing: Over 700 hours of shadowing with various MD specialties, never got to shadow DOs.
Residence: FL
Schools I applied to: I regrettably got way too excited by a semi-decent MCAT score and went a little top-heavy here. All complete in August.
- Dartmouth (R), FIU, FSU, LECOM, Lincoln-DeBusk, Tulane (R), UF, UCF (R), USF, PCOM, UNECOM, USUHS, Northeast Ohio (R), Wayne State (WL), Emory, Case Western, Miami, Burrell, Marian, William Carey, Rosalind Franklin, Albany, Tufts, Touro, WVOM.

Open to MDs and DOs, and will likely be adding way more DOs for the next cycle. Also not sure on whether to add more clinical experiences, given not much is currently available near me. Any advice?

Thanks!

---

Members don't see this ad.

 

[MateoGM416]

You gotta shadow DO's if you want a chance of getting into DO school I feel like. Even in your interviews you have to be able to articulate why you would want to go to DO school as opposed to MD. I got in to a couple of DO programs on my second cycle this year, but I did get an II from Touro in February last cycle. I think you're still in the running, hang in there

 

[LindaAccepted]

Hello everyone,

I'm a current applicant and it seems like I will be having to reapply next cycle, as I have received only 4 Rs and 1 pre-II Waitlist. I am quite disappointed that I will be having to reapply, because I already hated how this cycle went and I really do not want to retake the MCAT. Here are some stats:

sGPA: 3.12 (AACOMAS, AMCAS I am not sure)
cGPA: 3.42 (AACOMAS, again)
MCAT: 504
Clinical Experience: 1050 hrs
Research: Did research as part of undergrad, not sure how many hours to consider that.
Non-Clinical Experiences: ~230 hrs
Shadowing: Over 700 hours of shadowing with various MD specialties, never got to shadow DOs.
Residence: FL
Schools I applied to: I regrettably got way too excited by a semi-decent MCAT score and went a little top-heavy here. All complete in August.
- Dartmouth (R), FIU, FSU, LECOM, Lincoln-DeBusk, Tulane (R), UF, UCF (R), USF, PCOM, UNECOM, USUHS, Northeast Ohio (R), Wayne State (WL), Emory, Case Western, Miami, Burrell, Marian, William Carey, Rosalind Franklin, Albany, Tufts, Touro, WVOM.

Open to MDs and DOs, and will likely be adding way more DOs for the next cycle. Also not sure on whether to add more clinical experiences, given not much is currently available near me. Any advice?

Thanks!

You had a lot of clinical hours so while you don't want to totally stop, I doubt it that's the problem. You aimed too high given your stats. Stick to DO and do try to find a DO to shadow.

 

[CaptObvious]

You had a lot of clinical hours so while you don't want to totally stop, I doubt it that's the problem. You aimed too high given your stats. Stick to DO and do try to find a DO to shadow.

Thank you for your response. I am happy to say I just got my first interview invite a few hours ago, so I am hoping that more will be coming now. Nevertheless, if I have to reapply I will be going more in depth to what is too high for me and applying to way more DOs.

 

[chzsux]

Think the ECs are great and the shadowing is very impressive - I know people who applied with less than 700 total hours of clinical experience/nonclinical service/shadowing. The main problem is your stats - no offense, but I would not call a 504 semi-decent score and a 3.42/3.12 isn't doing you any favors either. What are the experiences that make up your 230 nonclinical hours? Often times, some lower-stat applicants can gain acceptance to service-heavy schools with a primary care/community-focused mission if they have extensive backgrounds in advocacy, service, nonprofits, etc. If that's the case with you, you might have an angle at some schools that are community focused like Rowan, Loyola, etc.

 

[LindaAccepted]

Thank you for your response. I am happy to say I just got my first interview invite a few hours ago, so I am hoping that more will be coming now. Nevertheless, if I have to reapply I will be going more in depth to what is too high for me and applying to way more DOs.

Congratulations on the II and good luck with the interview itself!

 

[TragicalDrFaust]

Congrats on your interview. Check out the average GPAs and MCATs from DO schools last cycle on this spreadsheet, courtesy of SDN user paradoxic_toxic, to help you optimize your list next cycle if you need to reapply. I don't recommend re-applying MD unless you are able to raise your stats significantly.