Most important factor

[superme123]

Advertisement - Members don't see this ad

Hi.

I was just wondering what you think the most important factor in being admitted to medical school is. i know it might be different for every applicant and for every medical school, but in general is it GPA, MCAT scores, volunteering, clinical stuff, good interviews, etc.?

 

[Muggle731]

all else being equal, GPA. Higher GPAs always look better, whereas MCAT scores stop making much of a difference after a certain point.

 

[ADeadLois]

MCAT and GPA are 1a and 1b. Their relative importance likely varies from school to school.

 

[medguy83]

Personally, I think it's the whole package. Granted, if you're a 3.9 and 43 mcat applicant, you'd probably beat out a lot of people (a heck of a lot). But if you never shadowed one doc, never volunteered, no EC's, crappy letters, etc. you might face some trouble. Face it, so many people want to distance themselves from the pack via their scores. Odds are, you'll end up like most other strong applicants: 3.7ish gpa, 30something mcat. At that point everyone's on the same page; thus, the volunteer activities, research, travel, letters, etc. all of a sudden become the deciding factors. From a recent interview I had, the interviewer pushed my scores aside and just wanted to talk about my experiences while volunteering at an ER, how this or that patient made an impact on me, etc.
Suffice it to say, yes grades and mcat scores are crucial, but if you don't have any volunteer hours, no shadowing, etc. your decision to practice medicine may look like an ill-informed decision coming from no practical experience.

 

[ChubbyChaser]

imma vote For MCAT, just because GPA fluctuates so much from school to school.

 

[FurmanJon]

I'd ask an adcom.​

 

[etf]

basically whatever you're lacking, that's what the adcoms are focusing on. because chances are, there are 5 other applicants just like you that aren't lacking that factor.

 

[pakbabydoll]

GPA and MCAT

 

[luv2sd]

GPA and MCAT

and research and volunteering

 

[paranoid_eyes]

#1 thing of ALL is GPA/MCAT. Everything else is secondary. make gpa/mcat your first priority (med school apps wise) and your chances will increase dramatically. GPA is also the one thing that is nearly impossible to make a comeback in. You can take the MCAT a few times and EC's can always be padded on, but GPA is not fixable.

 

[ocwaveoc]

Let me put it this way, someone with an excellent GPA/MCAT with substandard EC etc will get in somewhere. Whereas someone with an excellent EC but substandard GPA/MCAT likely will not.

In other words, GPA and MCAT are the most important factors in med school admission.

 

[armybound]

your well-roundedness.

 

[2008orbust]

Let me put it this way, someone with an excellent GPA/MCAT with substandard EC etc will get in somewhere. Whereas someone with an excellent EC but substandard GPA/MCAT likely will not.

In other words, GPA and MCAT are the most important factors in med school admission.

This is true, but seems to get less true as the age of the applicant increases. Non-trads get more grade forgiveness and increased weight on super interesting ECs (THANK GOD or I wouldn't be matriculating next year)