low stats success stories??

[907914]

Cant believe it. Great congrats. You have something very special in your application.

Just looked at the MCAT/GPA grid - looks like applicants with these types of stats get 10% acceptance rate. About 95 a year. It is weird to think when everything on SDN is so doom and gloom. 10% is not the best, but it is honestly higher than I thought it would be.

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[JowellHollyBuddy33]

I'll be real with you, my fellow internet scholars! It's hard coming here with less than spectacular numbers. I did it for years. First and only application cycle:

2.77 cGPA, 2.53 sGPA, 3.4 gGPA SMP, 509 (126/125/127/131)

** over 200 credits, significant upward trend. **

~5000 patient care hours (paramedic, ECG tech), 50 hours shadowing (internal medicine, ortho), 200 hours clinical volunteering (nurse assistant in free clinic)

31 primaries, 25 secondaries, 3 II (2 MD, 1 DO), 1 A (US MD)


Keep working hard and don't give up! There's a place for you somewhere if you want it badly enough. Go get that coat.

 

[Deecee2DO]

I'll be real with you, my fellow internet scholars! It's hard coming here with less than spectacular numbers. I did it for years. First and only application cycle:

2.77 cGPA, 2.53 sGPA, 3.4 gGPA SMP, 509 (126/125/127/131)

** over 200 credits, significant upward trend. **

~5000 patient care hours (paramedic, ECG tech), 50 hours shadowing (internal medicine, ortho), 200 hours clinical volunteering (nurse assistant in free clinic)

31 primaries, 25 secondaries, 3 II (2 MD, 1 DO), 1 A (US MD)


Keep working hard and don't give up! There's a place for you somewhere if you want it badly enough. Go get that coat.

holy smokes. I am truly impressed

 

[Deecee2DO]

497 MCAT, 2.5 undergrad cGPA (I was an idiot in undergrad haha) aka my pre-med counselor laughed when I told her I wanted to go to med school and so did everyone else. 3.7 science graduate/post-bacc GPA. Mostly As in M1/top quartile aka MCAT means squat. For all you underdogs out there like I was as a pre-med you don't need a high MCAT to succeed in medical school. Had 6 IIs and 1 acceptance ( all it takes is 1). There is hope

 

[Hass_Love_Fitness]

I’m non traditional, so take my stats with a grain of salt; I have very unique experiences.

GPA: 3.3, SGPA: 3.1, MCAT:510
I attended 8 MD interviews, I didn’t apply DO.

Starting at a Top 10 school in July.

 

[freak7]

497 MCAT, 2.5 undergrad cGPA (I was an idiot in undergrad haha) aka my pre-med counselor laughed when I told her I wanted to go to med school and so did everyone else. 3.7 science graduate/post-bacc GPA. Mostly As in M1/top quartile aka MCAT means squat. For all you underdogs out there like I was as a pre-med you don't need a high MCAT to succeed in medical school. Had 6 IIs and 1 acceptance ( all it takes is 1). There is hope

Lol my UG advisor straight up told me “these are not medical school numbers”. Takes a ton of self restraint every day to not email him and say that I’m almost done with M1.

 

[chemdoctor]

I’m non traditional, so take my stats with a grain of salt; I have very unique experiences.

GPA: 3.3, SGPA: 3.1, MCAT:510
I attended 8 MD interviews, I didn’t apply DO.

Starting at a Top 10 school in July.

Congratulations man. That is really impressive. Advice?

 

[chemdoctor]

This thread gives people hope. It’s not easy to be premed and on SDN where the average GPA is a 3.9

I may get a bit of hate but I genuinely believe if being a physician is what you want to do, then go for it. (I consider physician as MD and DO). Some people need to have DO schools on the list. If this is what you want, then go for it.

Anecdotal but I know someone currently in residency that got rejected multiple times, took the MCAT again Bc their score expired and is now in med school. Congratulations to ALL of you. You’ve earned it. You all will be fine doctors.

 

[Hass_Love_Fitness]

Congratulations man. That is really impressive. Advice?

Casting a wide net was helpful; I applied to 30+ schools. Also, make sure you have an upward trend with your grades and that you have stellar ec’s. Prove that you can handle a difficult load.

When making your school list make sure you look at GPA and MCAT cutoff for schools so you don’t waste money and time on secondaries.

Finally have a support system. This whole process was like a roller coaster of emotions for me. Honestly, my husband and my kids were my biggest motivators and supporters.

 

[ES671]

undergrad GPA 3.2
MCAT 505

Masters GPA 4.0 --> the only reason I was accepted

 

[chemdoctor]

undergrad GPA 3.2
MCAT 505

Masters GPA 4.0 --> the only reason I was accepted

SMP!?

 

[Calizboosted76]

497 MCAT, 2.5 undergrad cGPA (I was an idiot in undergrad haha) aka my pre-med counselor laughed when I told her I wanted to go to med school and so did everyone else. 3.7 science graduate/post-bacc GPA. Mostly As in M1/top quartile aka MCAT means squat. For all you underdogs out there like I was as a pre-med you don't need a high MCAT to succeed in medical school. Had 6 IIs and 1 acceptance ( all it takes is 1). There is hope

How many credits did you take for your graduate/post back?

 

[Deecee2DO]

How many credits did you take for your graduate/post back?

200 semester credits 3.5 years of graduate studies and earned a DC degree (doctor of chiropractic). Very non trad applicant thought I wanted to do DC because didnt think I could handle med school. Got half way thru and realized I had what it takes so i finished the degree and went on to med school. When I look back on it I should have had more confidence in my abilities but thought a DC was the closest Id ever get to being a clinician. It was sort of a waste of money but im where I want to be now. I would never in a million years recommend chiro school to anyone-horrible investment with diminishing returns

 

[Calizboosted76]

200 semester credits 3.5 years of graduate studies and earned a DC degree (doctor of chiropractic). Very non trad applicant thought I wanted to do DC because didnt think I could handle med school. Got half way thru and realized I had what it takes so i finished the degree and went on to med school. When I look back on it I should have had more confidence in my abilities but thought a DC was the closest Id ever get to being a clinician. It was sort of a waste of money but im where I want to be now. I would never in a million years recommend chiro school to anyone-horrible investment with diminishing returns

Do you feel you would have had as much success if you would have just done an informal post bacc? Or do you feel your success came more from having the DC degree?

 

[Deecee2DO]

Do you feel you would have had as much success if you would have just done an informal post bacc? Or do you feel your success came more from having the DC degree?

Its a tough call. I think having the experience and my degree actually made me a unique applicant which I think helped. As far as time and money an informal post bacc would have been better overall I just dont think I would have gotten in with such a low MCAT i probably would have had to retake which I think financially would have been the better route

 

[medgal98]

cGPA barely above 3.00 due to a 2.8 gpa first time at college. 8II 6 attended 4 acceptances all MD

Can I pm you?

 

[EasyEveryoneWouldDoIt]

Can I pm you?

sure

 

[FutureSurgical]

I don't mean to be a debbie downer or the bearer of bad news, but I REALLY want to express that applying with low stats or EC is a HUGE gamble. I don't recommend it because an application takes up an entire year and A LOT of money. It's doable as many people on here will tell you, but its not a guarantee by any means. Again, don't take this negatively! I'm celebrating in your achievements, I just don't want people who are about to apply thinking they can get the same end results because of a person getting in with similar stats.

I know this is an old post from around 14 months ago; however, if you spend 15 minutes on this site, I guarantee you people will understand that

 

[TheGreatAli]

I had a 125 in CARS (514 total) which many people told me to rewrite - matriculating to mayo clinic this summer, had 17 interviews overall

 

[Dr.Gains]

I had a 125 in CARS (514 total) which many people told me to rewrite - matriculating to mayo clinic this summer, had 17 interviews overall

17 interviews? Wow, that's got to be the most I've ever heard of anyone receiving. You must've had a really solid app overall. Congratulations!

 

[Pdazzle11]

I had a 125 in CARS (514 total) which many people told me to rewrite - matriculating to mayo clinic this summer, had 17 interviews overall

Who retakes a 90th percentile score... cmon now this is hardly a “low stat, success story” more like a humble brag.

 

[medgal98]

cGPA barely above 3.00 due to a 2.8 gpa first time at college. 8II 6 attended 4 acceptances all MD

It won’t let me pm you, can you pm me?

 

[FutureSurgical]

I'm sorry I hate to be dramatic but NEVER NEVER NEVER explain grades, MCAT, performances on your PS.....you're answering WHY MEDICAL SCHOOL. How in the heck does talking about your grades whether good or bad answer that question? Like how would ppl even bring up that in their PS.

"I wanna be a doc to help ppl, also as a side note I have low grades but I'm actually smarter"


U need to talk about what factors contributed to you wanting to go into medicine. The committee for one has already seen your gpa by the time they read your PS. They will make that judgment call. WHY WASTE space telling them something they 1. already know and 2. don't care about

 

[TheGreatAli]

Who retakes a 90th percentile score... cmon now this is hardly a “low stat, success story” more like a humble brag.

As a Canadian university student, I will tell you that a 125 in CARS for almost all Canadian schools will end your cycle, regardless of your GPA+overall mcat.

 

[sadgeboi]

Reapplicant with 3.5cGPA/3.3sGPA.Took the MCAT four times with an average of 496, and a range of 490-500. Applied last year to 60 MD/DO schools. Rejected to all 60, with just one interview. This year, applied to 37 medical schools (MD only). Recieved 6 interviews, attended 5, and accepted to 2! It can be done

This is so inspirational. Could I ask what you changed between the first cycle vs second cycle?

 

[chlorocruorin]

Do at your own risk lol this is what adcoms have told me

 

[MedicineN'Jazz]

Honestly, the biggest difference was my writing style. The first time I applied, I had absolutely no help (which my pre-med office purposefully made sure of). As a result, my language came off as immature among many other things. So the second time around, I went on google and searched up articles on how to write meaningful personal experiences. My personal statement, I kept about 98% the same, as it was previously edited by a fellow PhD.

The next part of it was completely unintentional. I continued my volunteering with the homeless, went to my motherland for some midwifery, continued my EMT volunteering, got my MPH degree and then started doing some work with organizations aimed towards prison health reform and opioid addiction. So by the time I applied, I literally had thousands of volunteer hours. All in all, my application became very, very mission heavy. The only thing missing was a good MCAT score.

Some interviews I went on, I was literally told that my application was trash and that they didn’t how I got an interview (cough: Indiana). Other schools were surprised I was rejected from medical schools my first cycle (lol: they should have read my previous experiences). So it was like a 50/50 tbh. But in the end, I was ultimately accepted by two very mission heavy schools both in underserved areas. So my advice to you: if you have a low stat application, still go for it if you can show that you have the passion to become an amazing physician.

 

[Dr.Gains]

Honestly, the biggest difference was my writing style. The first time I applied, I had absolutely no help (which my pre-med office purposefully made sure of). As a result, my language came off as immature among many other things. So the second time around, I went on google and searched up articles on how to write meaningful personal experiences. My personal statement, I kept about 98% the same, as it was previously edited by a fellow PhD.

The next part of it was completely unintentional. I continued my volunteering with the homeless, went to my motherland for some midwifery, continued my EMT volunteering, got my MPH degree and then started doing some work with organizations aimed towards prison health reform and opioid addiction. So by the time I applied, I literally had thousands of volunteer hours. All in all, my application became very, very mission heavy. The only thing missing was a good MCAT score.

Some interviews I went on, I was literally told that my application was trash and that they didn’t how I got an interview (cough: Indiana). Other schools were surprised I was rejected from medical schools my first cycle (lol: they should have read my previous experiences). So it was like a 50/50 tbh. But in the end, I was ultimately accepted by two very mission heavy schools both in underserved areas. So my advice to you: if you have a low stat application, still go for it if you can show that you have the passion to become an amazing physician.

Did schools actually tell you that in your face? That must've been brutal.

 

[MedicineN'Jazz]

Did schools actually tell you that in your face? That must've been brutal.

Yup, it was a student interviewer (he was paired with a faculty who was much nicer). The consensus was, since he struggled in medical school with a PhD and 40 MCAT, there wasn’t a way in hell that i could hope to succeed.

Honestly, he was old as hell though so I’m not really offended. I’m over 20 years younger than him...and this interview was last year lol

 

[FutureSurgical]

Do at your own risk lol this is what adcoms have told me

Which adcoms? And why did they say that?

I'm applying this cycle so I want to avoid those schools since I made two C+'s early on in my academic career, which dragged my GPA down a bit. My state schools and others I've contacted over the past year have all said to "at least offer an explanation but don't dwell on it. Point it out and move on." Nowhere else in the app can you really explain if you didn't do so hot (unless a LOR will specifically talk about this for whatever reason.)

 

[MedicineN'Jazz]

Which adcoms? And why did they say that?

I'm applying this cycle so I want to avoid those schools since I made two C+'s early on in my academic career, which dragged my GPA down a bit. My state schools and others I've contacted over the past year have all said to "at least offer an explanation but don't dwell on it. Point it out and move on." Nowhere else in the app can you really explain if you didn't do so hot (unless a LOR will specifically talk about this for whatever reason.)

I had 1 C and 2 C+. Trust me, no one really gives a crap. You may get grilled a little, but it’ll just be out of curiosity. There’s absolutely no need to put it anywhere in your primary app. You can def squeeze it into your secondaries though

 

[OchemOficionado]

Which adcoms? And why did they say that?

I'm applying this cycle so I want to avoid those schools since I made two C+'s early on in my academic career, which dragged my GPA down a bit. My state schools and others I've contacted over the past year have all said to "at least offer an explanation but don't dwell on it. Point it out and move on." Nowhere else in the app can you really explain if you didn't do so hot (unless a LOR will specifically talk about this for whatever reason.)

Every single adcom I've asked, on and off of this site, have recommended NOT addressing poor grades or MCAT in the PS. If schools are interested in knowing why you got certain grades/scores they will ask on the secondary or during the interview. I say the PS is to sell yourself, not apologize for or attempt to excuse anything. Why use this precious space to point out something negative? As if they won't see it later? Believe me, like 70% of secondaries have space to explain. In your PS, answer WHY medicine, tell your life story and be convincing.

 

[Deecee2DO]

I’m non traditional, so take my stats with a grain of salt; I have very unique experiences.

GPA: 3.3, SGPA: 3.1, MCAT:510
I attended 8 MD interviews, I didn’t apply DO.

Starting at a Top 10 school in July.

Holy crap lol whats your secret

 

[Hass_Love_Fitness]

Holy crap lol whats your secret

I think what set me apart was that I completely reinvented myself all while raising 2 kids, one of which has special needs. I’m also older (33) so have a lot of life experience.

 

[chemdoctor]

I think what set me apart was that I completely reinvented myself all while raising 2 kids, one of which has special needs. I’m also older (33) so have a lot of life experience.

Whatever it is, they saw something special. Congratulations man. You’ll make a fine physician

 

[Deecee2DO]

I think what set me apart was that I completely reinvented myself all while raising 2 kids, one of which has special needs. I’m also older (33) so have a lot of life experience.

Awesome to hear congrats! I started med school at 29 so definitely non-trad I think age does come with its advantages in med school. I could never have done this at 23 with how immature I was. There are a good number of mature 23 year olds entering med school but I sure as heck wasn't one of them . Average age of my class is like 26 or something so we aren't alone!

 

[chemdoctor]

Awesome to hear congrats! I started med school at 29 so definitely non-trad I think age does come with its advantages in med school. I could never have done this at 23 with how immature I was. There are a good number of mature 23 year olds entering med school but I sure as heck wasn't one of them

lol I’m 20 and think im immature lmfao

 

[Calizboosted76]

I think what set me apart was that I completely reinvented myself all while raising 2 kids, one of which has special needs. I’m also older (33) so have a lot of life experience.

How did you work in that you reinvented yourself while raising children? Was it in your PS? I currently am reinventing my self and had a daughter while doing so.

 

[Hass_Love_Fitness]

How did you work in that you reinvented yourself while raising children? Was it in your PS? I currently am reinventing my self and had a daughter while doing so.

I’ll pm you.

 

[chlorocruorin]

Which adcoms? And why did they say that?

I'm applying this cycle so I want to avoid those schools since I made two C+'s early on in my academic career, which dragged my GPA down a bit. My state schools and others I've contacted over the past year have all said to "at least offer an explanation but don't dwell on it. Point it out and move on." Nowhere else in the app can you really explain if you didn't do so hot (unless a LOR will specifically talk about this for whatever reason.)

Adcoms at top schools whom I am cool with. They want to hear a story bottom line. They don't want to read ab grades. Unless you have a significant story that relates to grades then it's futile. I second with the notion of selling yourself. The PS is where your application reviewer paints a picture of you because as of now you're just a GPA and MCAT. I mean unless a life event out of the ordinary happened to you there's really no reason in my eyes to put it anywhere. They will see it regardless and no matter what they think your explanation will likely not matter.

TBH, i don't even see how it's possible to even bring it up in your PS, unless youre a non-trad that figured out you wanted to be a doc years down the road.

 

[ES671]

SMP!?

no Masters of Biomedical Science from Midwestern, you take classes with PA and PT students

 

[SM25]

Let's all be honest here. We all like hearing about low stats successes but that's not the correct way to look at medical school admissions; at least for the MD route. I've seen plenty of low stat success stories going down the DO route because I believe DO schools are really more holistic in their approach to the applicant. MD admissions is all numbers unless you are going to some no-name school that gets less than 3000 applications.

I've met some admissions deans at MD programs and they are some serious a-holes. So don't kid yourself with low-stats.

 

[MedicineN'Jazz]

Let's all be honest here. We all like hearing about low stats successes but that's not the correct way to look at medical school admissions; at least for the MD route. I've seen plenty of low stat success stories going down the DO route because I believe DO schools are really more holistic in their approach to the applicant. MD admissions is all numbers unless you are going to some no-name school that gets less than 3000 applications.

I've met some admissions deans at MD programs and they are some serious a-holes. So don't kid yourself with low-stats.

Ummmmmmm. You’re generalizing all MD schools bud. I go to one of the largest school in the nation, that gets ~10,000 apps and interviews a little over a 1000 applicants. You’d be very very surprised of what a lot of MD schools are looking for these days. Also DO is a great option except it is exorbitantly more expensive.

 

[SM25]

Ummmmmmm. You’re generalizing all MD schools bud. I go to one of the largest school in the nation, that gets ~10,000 apps and interviews a little over a 1000 applicants. You’d be very very surprised of what a lot of MD schools are looking for these days. Also DO is a great option except it is exorbitantly more expensive.

No, I think I'm correct in my assessment. I think most others would agree. Are you URM?

 

[OchemOficionado]

Let's all be honest here. We all like hearing about low stats successes but that's not the correct way to look at medical school admissions; at least for the MD route. I've seen plenty of low stat success stories going down the DO route because I believe DO schools are really more holistic in their approach to the applicant. MD admissions is all numbers unless you are going to some no-name school that gets less than 3000 applications.

I've met some admissions deans at MD programs and they are some serious a-holes. So don't kid yourself with low-stats.

There can be more than one correct way to look at medical school admissions Everything isn't always black and white. A look at MSAR will quickly show that your assertion about no name/<3k apps bit is incorrect.

 

[SM25]

There can be more than one correct way to look at medical school admissions Everything isn't always black and white. A look at MSAR will quickly show that your assertion about no name/<3k apps bit is incorrect.

A safe generalization is to say MD schools are heavily GPA and/or MCAT dependent. It's not fair to tell a prospective applicant with low stats and high hopes that they stand a chance at allopathic programs when admission trends say otherwise.

Yes, a lot of things are not always black and white but sometimes we can't always look at things that way.

 

[OchemOficionado]

A safe generalization is to say MD schools are heavily GPA and/or MCAT dependent. It's not fair to tell a prospective applicant with low stats and high hopes that they stand a chance at allopathic programs when admission trends say otherwise.

Yes, a lot of things are not always black and white but sometimes we can't always look at things that way.

It's fair when they can look at MSAR and see what's possible.

 

[SM25]

It's fair when they can look at MSAR and see what's possible.

That's fine but I would not advise someone to apply MD with a 3.0 and a 500 if that is what you are suggesting. I mean I don't know what some of these people mean by low stats.

 

[OchemOficionado]

That's fine but I would not advise someone to apply MD with a 3.0 and a 500 if that is what you are suggesting. I mean I don't know what some of these people mean by low stats.

Peruse the thread to see some examples of what people mean by low stats

 

[Calizboosted76]

If I remember correctly per MSAR someone got into FIU or FAU with like a 2.7, not sure of their MCAT though.