Making a Final Decision as to Whether I Should Apply to Allopathic Medical Schools - Need Advice, Please Help!!!

[oldpremed38]

Hello everyone. I am in the process of applying to 31 osteopathic medical schools and am on the fence as to whether I should also apply to allopathic medical schools and which ones if I do decide to apply. The reason I feel that MD schools may not be a wise idea for me to apply to is because I do not wish to overload myself given that I will be applying to 31 osteopathic medical schools. The reason I am choosing to apply to 31 osteopathic schools is that I want to put myself in the best position to get one acceptance and I believe that 31 osteopathic schools is the maximum amount I can apply to given that I have not taken Biochemistry and I believe that 13 of the 44 DO programs require Biochemistry.

My other main reason for questioning whether I should apply to MD schools is that I believe my numbers are not up to par to compete for an entrance into an MD school. I was wondering if anybody would be so kind as to provide me with advice on whether it would be worthwhile for me to apply to MD medical schools given the following information:
Overall GPA: 3.86
Science GPA: 3.84
MCAT: 504
Solid Extracurricular Activities
Have not taken Biochemistry and Calculus (however I did take a Calculus for Business and Economics course)
Will be 38 if I send out my applications in May
Have 2 bad MCAT scores before I got a 504

Does anyone know of any low tier MD schools that do not require Biochemistry and Calculus and would be worth me applying to or should I just stick with applying to 31 osteopathic medical schools given my scores? Any input would be greatly appreciated!!!

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[ThoracicGuy]

Hello everyone. I am in the process of applying to 31 osteopathic medical schools and am on the fence as to whether I should also apply to allopathic medical schools and which ones if I do decide to apply. The reason I feel that MD schools may not be a wise idea for me to apply to is because I do not wish to overload myself given that I will be applying to 31 osteopathic medical schools. The reason I am choosing to apply to 31 osteopathic schools is that I want to put myself in the best position to get one acceptance and I believe that 31 osteopathic schools is the maximum amount I can apply to given that I have not taken Biochemistry and I believe that 13 of the 44 DO programs require Biochemistry.

My other main reason for questioning whether I should apply to MD schools is that I believe my numbers are not up to par to compete for an entrance into an MD school. I was wondering if anybody would be so kind as to provide me with advice on whether it would be worthwhile for me to apply to MD medical schools given the following information:
Overall GPA: 3.86
Science GPA: 3.84
MCAT: 504
Solid Extracurricular Activities
Have not taken Biochemistry and Calculus (however I did take a Calculus for Business and Economics course)
Will be 38 if I send out my applications in May
Have 2 bad MCAT scores before I got a 504

Does anyone know of any low tier MD schools that do not require Biochemistry and Calculus and would be worth me applying to or should I just stick with applying to 31 osteopathic medical schools given my scores? Any input would be greatly appreciated!!!

What state are you in? It might be ok to throw an app out to a state school, depending on your state, but having 2 prior MCATs before a 504 is likely to sink you at most MD schools.

 

[Big Tall Doctor]

What's up with no biochem? are you graduating this spring? Any chance you could take the course within the next year? It is a prereq for schools for a reason.

 

[deleted859689]

Just state schools depending which state your in. Not taking biochemistry though must have restricted you from a few good DO schools. I recommend you take it.

 

[oldpremed38]

What's up with no biochem? are you graduating this spring? Any chance you could take the course within the next year? It is a prereq for schools for a reason.

Thank you for your post. I am a non-science major and therefore did not have to take Biochemistry to graduate. I do have all the other prerequisite classes. I definitely will take Biochemistry in the Fall 2020 semester if I do not get in this cycle. I hope that my lack of taking Biochemistry is not a huge deal breaker for DO schools. I specifically looked at the websites of all 44 DO programs and 13 of them required Biochemistry. I plan on applying to the 31 schools that do not require Biochemistry. Any input from anybody on whether my numbers and lack of Biochemistry still allow me to have a chance at any allopathic medical schools will be greatly appreciated!

 

[A_Knowbody]

Thank you for your post. I am a non-science major and therefore did not have to take Biochemistry to graduate. I do have all the other prerequisite classes. I definitely will take Biochemistry in the Fall 2020 semester if I do not get in this cycle. I hope that my lack of taking Biochemistry is not a huge deal breaker for DO schools. I specifically looked at the websites of all 44 DO programs and 13 of them required Biochemistry. I plan on applying to the 31 schools that do not require Biochemistry. Any input from anybody on whether my numbers and lack of Biochemistry still allow me to have a chance at any allopathic medical schools will be greatly appreciated!

If you plan to take it in the Fall of 2020, then you can apply to schools that require biochemistry. Those are requirements for matriculation, not application.

EDIT: I just want to make sure you understand that you are applying for the 2020-2021 cycle, matriculating in Summer 2021. Medical schools have a very long application cycle - applications open in May and you start school in July - September of the next year (15-17 months after the initial application opening).

 

[oldpremed38]

If you plan to take it in the Fall of 2020, then you can apply to schools that require biochemistry. Those are requirements for matriculation, not application.

EDIT: I just want to make sure you understand that you are applying for the 2020-2021 cycle, matriculating in Summer 2021. Medical schools have a very long application cycle - applications open in May and you start school in July - September of the next year (15-17 months after the initial application opening).

Thank you for the reply. This is very exciting news and changes things for me. Given that I will be taking Biochemistry during the Fall 2020 semester, does it look bad to the schools that require Biochemistry since I assume that the vast majority of individuals who are applying to these schools have Biochemistry? How much of a disadvantage am I at for these schools considering that I will not be taking Biochemistry until Fall 2020?

 

[FatherTime-PhD]

Thank you for the reply. This is very exciting news and changes things for me. Given that I will be taking Biochemistry during the Fall 2020 semester, does it look bad to the schools that require Biochemistry since I assume that the vast majority of individuals who are applying to these schools have Biochemistry? How much of a disadvantage am I at for these schools considering that I will not be taking Biochemistry until Fall 2020?

Just take it before you matriculate and you'll be fine, unless the schools specifically mentions something (check their websites). Otherwise, I doubt you'll be at any disadvantage.

 

[oldpremed38]

Just state schools depending which state your in. Not taking biochemistry though must have restricted you from a few good DO schools. I recommend you take it.

Thank you for your advice. I only have 3 medical schools in my state. They are as follows:
School 1 GPA 3.6 MCAT 512
School 2 GPA 3.71 MCAT 513
School 3 way out of my range since the MCAT is over 520

With my overall gpa of 3.86, science gpa 3.84, and MCAT of 504, are schools 1 and 2 worth applying to in your opinion? Any input from anyone will be greatly appreciated!

 

[Zen Arcade]

31 DO applications with your stats seems like overkill imo. Pick 20 at most that you would want to go to and maybe apply to your state MD school. You’ll probably get a lot of attention from DO schools with your gpa.

 

[oldpremed38]

What state are you in? It might be ok to throw an app out to a state school, depending on your state, but having 2 prior MCATs before a 504 is likely to sink you at most MD schools.

Thank you for your advice. I only have 3 medical schools in my state. They are as follows:
School 1 GPA 3.6 MCAT 512
School 2 GPA 3.71 MCAT 513
School 3 way out of my range since the MCAT is over 520

With my overall gpa of 3.86, science gpa 3.84, and MCAT of 504, are schools 1 and 2 worth applying to in your opinion?

 

[FatherTime-PhD]

Thank you for your advice. I only have 3 medical schools in my state. They are as follows:
School 1 GPA 3.6 MCAT 512
School 2 GPA 3.71 MCAT 513
School 3 way out of my range since the MCAT is over 520

With my overall gpa of 3.86, science gpa 3.84, and MCAT of 504, are schools 1 and 2 worth applying to in your opinion?

If you got the money shoot your shot.

You don’t need to apply to that many DOs. Do your state schools and some low tier MDs. Plenty of people have gotten into MD with those stats.

 

[candbgirl]

What were your other two MCAT scores? Anywhere near the 504 you just got? You do know that schools see all of your scores.

 

[oldpremed38]

If you got the money shoot your shot.

You don’t need to apply to that many DOs. Do your state schools and some low tier MDs. Plenty of people have gotten into MD with those stats.

Thank you for the encouragement. I would be extremely happy just to get into 1 school (it does not matter if it is DO or MD). Unfortunately, I do not have a DO school in my state. I want to apply to as many schools as possible without feeling overwhelmed by secondary essays to write. Is 20 the max number people apply to or do some people do 30 or more? I have over $13000 in the bank, so I can afford to apply to 30 or more schools.

 

[FatherTime-PhD]

Thank you for the encouragement. I would be extremely happy just to get into 1 school (it does not matter if it is DO or MD). Unfortunately, I do not have a DO school in my state. I want to apply to as many schools as possible without feeling overwhelmed by secondary essays to write. Is 20 the max number people apply to or do some people do 30 or more? I have over $13000 in the bank, so I can afford to apply to 30 or more schools.

You have people who apply to 1 school and you have people who apply to 83 schools.

I’m not all that familiar with DO schools but like someone said above, your stats are more than good enough for DO schools. I’d personally pick like 15-20 DOs and like 10 low tier MDs. Assuming everything else in your app is great and you interview well, you should come out of it with that one A you’re looking for.

Edit: missed the part about the our previously MCAT scores. Seems like that would hinder your chances at some MDs if they average the scores. Careful school selection will be key.

 

[oldpremed38]

What were your other two MCAT scores? Anywhere near the 504 you just got? You do know that schools see all of your scores.

Candbgirl, this is a great point and maybe my two other scores (which were very low) will prevent me from getting any looks at MD schools. I was told in the DO forum that DO schools were much more forgiving of previous low scores. My other two MCAT tests were taken under the old rubric and were very bad. The second time I took the test resulted in a score of 20 (which I believe is the equivalent of a 491). Do you believe that eliminates me from getting a look at any MD schools (even the very low tier ones)?

 

[candbgirl]

I think DO schools are more forgiving. At least that’s the impression I get. As to MD schools, who knows. AMCAS rec to schools that they should average multiple MCAT scores. But two of yours are so old they are totally different numerically. If you ask the schools they might tell you they take the highest, most recent, average etc. . But there is no guarantee that any of that happens. But always remember, people review your file and you never know what kind of preconceived notions about multiple scores, they bring to the review. Good luck.