most->least important factors in matching?

[chef]

For those who applied and matched, please list these in order of importance, starting with the most important. Also please try to give each one a number out of 100 to indicate its significance over others, so that at the end the total will end up to 100.

step1
preclinical grades
clinical grades
LOR
extracurricular/volunteering experience
interview
research experience

thank you

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[Andrew_Doan]

Originally posted by chef
For those who applied and matched, please list these in order of importance, starting with the most important. Also please try to give each one a number out of 100 to indicate its significance over others, so that at the end the total will end up to 100.

step1
preclinical grades
clinical grades
LOR
extracurricular/volunteering experience
interview
research experience

thank you

step1 (25 at first, then less so after the interview)
interview (25)
LOR (20)
clinical grades (10)
research experience (10)
extracurricular/volunteering experience (5)
preclinical grades (5)

[edited: I didn't realize you wanted the numbers to add to 100]

 

[jonnyboy]

i agree with dr. D

 

[Marcus Gunn]

Order of Importance:

1. Where you go to med school
2. LORS, especially big shots
3. Step 1 score....to a point, above 240 who cares!
4. Clinical grades...big 3 only
5. Interview
6. Research
7. Outside activities
8. Preclinical grades
9. Post interview thanks
10. Quality of posts on Scutwork

8-10 might as well be 800-802. I always say, marked strength in any of the higher priorities can catapult you to stardom and compensate for "deficits" in other areas...ie. a low step 1 score can be erased by strong letters from big names.

Marcus Gunn aka RAPD

 

[chef]

Originally posted by Marcus Gunn
Order of Importance:

1. Where you go to med school

i had no idea the "name" mattered this much! i guess this is out of my control now.. LOL

 

[Gottschalk]

Here is my 2 cents.


1. Who you know, including LOR and aways-32.5
2. Step 1-22.5
3. MD/PhD-20 (if you have it)
4. Research-15
5. Clinical Grades-10
6. Med School Rep-5
7. Extracurricular/hobbies-2.5
8. Appearance-2.5
?. Interview-10 (Could be #3-#6)

total-100 (120 with MD/PhD)

 

[Andrew_Doan]

Originally posted by Gottschalk
Here is my 2 cents.


1. Who you know, including LOR and aways-32.5
2. Step 1-22.5
3. MD/PhD-20 (if you have it)
4. Research-15
5. Clinical Grades-10
6. Med School Rep-5
7. Extracurricular/hobbies-2.5
8. Appearance-2.5
?. Interview-10 (Could be #3-#6)

total-100 (120 with MD/PhD)

This is a good point. MD-PhD can add a little more to the score at some programs. So if you have the degree, this could bring you to a 120 out of a 100 scale. However, remember that most places want you to be clinician first, research scientist second.

 

[ruptured globe]

Originally posted by chef
i had no idea the "name" mattered this much! i guess this is out of my control now.. LOL

I did not find this to be that big of a factor at most institutions. Certainly at USC you find that Harvard and Hopkins grads seem to predominate but other big programs don't have this type of bias with Iowa being an example of this. Also note that some med schools with no reputation can have very strong optho departments, such as Miami and Thomas Jefferson (no insult intended), and this will help those students because of the easy access they have to very well known faculty. The point is take care of your business and where you go to school shouldn't have much influence at all, i.e. score well on boards, grades, get LORs from big names--do an away or two if you need to obtain these, do research and if you can do it with someone well known or be the primary author. With LORs keep in mind regional biases, meaning some people are well known in certain regions of the country because they trained there or they were faculty there previously. Look into this for LORs if you want to go somewhere specific, this may be a nice help.