Med School Quota

[maxterthai]

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Is it true that, medical schools have a certain number of undergraduates that they must enroll from certain undergraduate colleges (assuming they are all in-state)?

I am planning to transfer and to Chicago where I reside and I got offers from UIC (and hopefully Northwestern as well) which are typically rather large universities. Then again, I also got accepted to Benedictine, which is comparatively a small college. I was told that the acceptance rate to medical school for a pre-med graduate from Benedictine was ~90%, though I'm not sure exactly to which medical schools the students got into.

Personally, I prefer graduating from a college that is bigger and have a more recognized name (no offense BU), but I also want to get into a medical school and would take BU over NU/UIC if that would increase my chances of getting into a medical school.

Help?

 

[RelicLTD]

Those kind of stats can be misleading (i.e. you aren't declared a "pre-med" graduate unless you have a specific GPA/MCAT). I know there are schools that have arrangements with other states (those without medical programs) to secure a number of seats for residents, but that's not the same thing as what you're talking about.

Go to college where you want to go to college. You will be happier, and perform better. A solid GPA from a solid university will make you a stronger applicant at every school, not just one.

 

[IDreamtIChased]

Forget about med school admission, and go to the undergrad college you want. If you want to become a doctor that badly, I can promise you you will 🙂

 

[random cell]

I was told that the acceptance rate to medical school for a pre-med graduate from Benedictine was ~90%

This statistic is classic bulls**t recruiters and admissions people at colleges give you to get you to come. IT MEANS NOTHING. The only "quota" I kind of know is med schools taking too many of their own undergrads...like they don't want half their class to be from their undergrad institution...not sure if you can call it a quota though.

Just go to the bigger school you obviously prefer.

 

[random cell]

Most important thing is to check if each of the colleges does something called a "PRE-MED COMMITTEE LETTER." This invention is the biggest piece of **** ever created and you should avoid whatever crap schools do a committee letter.

I would be wary of places that have like 90%+ acceptance to med school and their name is not Harvard or the like. SOME places artificially boost this by not even letting you apply if they (the committee) don't think you will make the cut!! And you may be thinking..."well how do they stop me from applying?" By requiring that BS committee letter of course! It will look shady if you are the only one from your school that doesn't have it. Avoid schools that do that...not sure if the schools you're looking at do that, but that's your job to find out.

 

[LizzyM]

Ask how many in the numerator and denominator and ask who is counted in the denominator. There are numerous ways to lie with statistics; don't be gullible.

 

[NewEngland21]

Most important thing is to check if each of the colleges does something called a "PRE-MED COMMITTEE LETTER." This invention is the biggest piece of **** ever created and you should avoid whatever crap schools do a committee letter.

I would be wary of places that have like 90%+ acceptance to med school and their name is not Harvard or the like. SOME places artificially boost this by not even letting you apply if they (the committee) don't think you will make the cut!! And you may be thinking..."well how do they stop me from applying?" By requiring that BS committee letter of course! It will look shady if you are the only one from your school that doesn't have it. Avoid schools that do that...not sure if the schools you're looking at do that, but that's your job to find out.

Obviously this is a biased opinion. OP, a pre-med committee should not have anything to do with your choice of school. In fact some medical schools require a committee LOR, as it is an objective view of your college performance that adcoms can look at beside your personal LORs.

I don't have an answer for your quota question, but you should go to the school that you feel you will enjoy the most. If you haven't seen or taken a tour the campuses, do that. Being in a school that you don't enjoy will be terribly miserable for you and your academic performance will most likely reflect that.

Just my 2 cents... Good luck

 

[Totally Rad]

Is it true that, medical schools have a certain number of undergraduates that they must enroll from certain undergraduate colleges (assuming they are all in-state)?

I am planning to transfer and to Chicago where I reside and I got offers from UIC (and hopefully Northwestern as well) which are typically rather large universities. Then again, I also got accepted to Benedictine, which is comparatively a small college. I was told that the acceptance rate to medical school for a pre-med graduate from Benedictine was ~90%, though I'm not sure exactly to which medical schools the students got into.

Personally, I prefer graduating from a college that is bigger and have a more recognized name (no offense BU), but I also want to get into a medical school and would take BU over NU/UIC if that would increase my chances of getting into a medical school.

Help?

That statistic is actually quite true; however, upon research you find that the medschool that most BU preMed graduates get accepted into is the nearby Midwestern University, which is DO. If you're fine with DO, then yeah go for it. Otherwise, stick with the school that is more well known and you're more comfortable with. Good luck

 

[SLC]

That statistic is actually quite true; however, upon research you find that the medschool that most BU preMed graduates get accepted into is the nearby Midwestern University, which is DO. If you're fine with DO, then yeah go for it. Otherwise, stick with the school that is more well known and you're more comfortable with. Good luck

As an aside to this, you should know that Midwestern in Chicago is a top flight Osteopathic program. Definitely one of the best!

 

[random cell]

Obviously this is a biased opinion. OP, a pre-med committee should not have anything to do with your choice of school. In fact some medical schools require a committee LOR, as it is an objective view of your college performance that adcoms can look at beside your personal LORs.

Oh really? Explain to me how some schools can "require" a committee letter if many undergrad institutions don't even have a committee to begin with? What, they don't have enough resources to actually read apps so they pass the buck to your committee? This is a med school I would stay away from.

And "objective view." hahaha good one.

OP, ignore this troll.

 

[NewEngland21]

Oh really? Explain to me how some schools can "require" a committee letter if many undergrad institutions don't even have a committee to begin with? What, they don't have enough resources to actually read apps so they pass the buck to your committee? This is a med school I would stay away from.

And "objective view." hahaha good one.

OP, ignore this troll.

Explain how I was being a troll😕

Also, I should have said that some med schools require a committee letter if your school has a pre-health committee, and some schools highly recommend it.

(example UCSF: http://medschool.ucsf.edu/admissions/apply/secondary.aspx#recommendation)

Besides, that's not even what this thread is about and my post to the OP was to make sure he/she knew that which school they went to shouldn't be based on quotas, pre-health committees, or anything else trivial.

 

[eli20]

The premed stats can vary wildly, you need to know what populations they are calling premeds and applicants etc. At my small libarts school 90% of the people who apply through the premed committee are accepted, however the number that applies is probably about 10% of the people who came into school as "premed." At least at my school the committee letter is not presented as a barrier and anyone who has completed the requisite course work and taken the MCAT can obtain a letter. I'd say that it sounds as though random cell has had a bad experience with a committee letter, I've never met anyone personally who had such an aversion to the com letter.

 

[Seven of Nine]

Oh really? Explain to me how some schools can "require" a committee letter if many undergrad institutions don't even have a committee to begin with? What, they don't have enough resources to actually read apps so they pass the buck to your committee? This is a med school I would stay away from.

And "objective view." hahaha good one.

OP, ignore this troll.

I would not be quick to dismiss the committee letter. It is actually really important and held in VERY high esteem. I know this from talking directly with the director of admissions at my local medical school. It is required IFF your undergrad has a committee. If your school does not have a committee, then it is not required from you. It's not passing the buck; medical schools recognize it as the ultimate LOR in a way. Committees know their students the best and can compare who is the best applicant to recommend from their pool. I actually felt at a disadvantage not having a committee letter after speaking with this person despite my undergrad not having a committee.

 

[MilkmanAl]

Not having a committee letter if you don't have a committee definitely is not a disadvantage. It's just another rec letter and/or a compilation of your other recs. If you have good writers, it should actually be better if their thoughts are conveyed in original form and not cobbled together by your pre-med committee. If there's anything I've learned about pre-med advisors and committees, it's that they often have no idea what's going on. Who knows what happens when they start cutting and pasting.

 

[eli20]

If you have good writers, it should actually be better if their thoughts are conveyed in original form and not cobbled together by your pre-med committee. If there's anything I've learned about pre-med advisors and committees, it's that they often have no idea what's going on. Who knows what happens when they start cutting and pasting.

This all depends on the way the committee writes the letter. My school's committee writes a sort of forward to the letters, including some info about the school since it's small, their recommendation and a few highlights from the letter and they attach the letters after.

 

[Totally Rad]

As an aside to this, you should know that Midwestern in Chicago is a top flight Osteopathic program. Definitely one of the best!

I think Midwestern is actually THE top DO school in the nation. It's main competitor is Kirksville in Missouri I think. Some BU preMed graduates do get accepted into some MD schools tho, mainly UIC or Loyola. But seriously tho, "name" doesn't matter, go to the school you're comfortable with. Are medschool adcoms really gonna accept someone with a low MCAT, low GPA, and low EC's just 'cause they went to a well known college, over someone with high GPA, stellar MCAT, and competitive EC's who went to a small town university?

 

[courtnes]

I think Midwestern is actually THE top DO school in the nation. It's main competitor is Kirksville in Missouri I think. Some BU preMed graduates do get accepted into some MD schools tho, mainly UIC or Loyola. But seriously tho, "name" doesn't matter, go to the school you're comfortable with. Are medschool adcoms really gonna accept someone with a low MCAT, low GPA, and low EC's just 'cause they went to a well known college, over someone with high GPA, stellar MCAT, and competitive EC's who went to a small town university?

From what I know, PCOM is actually regarded as the top program, and Midwestern/Kirksville are up there too.

 

[random cell]

I would not be quick to dismiss the committee letter. It is actually really important and held in VERY high esteem. I know this from talking directly with the director of admissions at my local medical school. It is required IFF your undergrad has a committee. If your school does not have a committee, then it is not required from you. It's not passing the buck; medical schools recognize it as the ultimate LOR in a way. Committees know their students the best and can compare who is the best applicant to recommend from their pool. I actually felt at a disadvantage not having a committee letter after speaking with this person despite my undergrad not having a committee.

LOL at committees know their students the best. This is yet another reason to go to a school that doesn't have this BS committee. They will require you to do stuff like go to mandatory meetings and constantly update them on what you are doing if they really want to "know you the best."

You are a fool for feeling disadvantaged not having a committee letter...when your school doesn't even offer one. Again, if your school has no committee you are not at a disadvantage. I however believe non-adcom people have no right to decide whether I can apply and/or where I can apply for med school, and should not be a barrier to my success in applying. OP, this guy is another troll posting bad advice. Ignore him.