My chances this time around? :) Any tips on how to improve my app?

[Chanieish]

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I am a CA resident and a graduate of UC Berkeley. I finished with honors, a two-year research thesis and a 3.75 cGPA/sGPA. My junior and senior GPA's were 3.94 and 3.93 respectively. My mCAT score was 35P P12/V10/B13

Activities I put in my primary for this cycle:
1. 2 years research with thesis
2. Participation in a science convention and presentation of poster
3. Honors
4. Member of a Chinese club for 2 semesters followed by a officer position
5. Organized volunteer missions for my club
6. 2 months clinical experience in the Philippines ~200 hours
7. Founded a charity that supports orthopedic surgeries and neurosurgeries as well as emergency cases at the largest public hospital in the Philippines
8. Golf

My essay was about my "fight" to become a doctor, to break barriers etc. Nothing arrogant in my essay. Was read my colleagues, professors and an expensive online service.

Submitted primary in August, secondaries to schools in October/November

I'm from the Philippines, but am a CA resident after my 4 years of college at Cal.

Rejected from 17 schools. 1 interview at UCLA. My first interview ever was an MMI XD I was super nervous and I rate my performance a 7.5/10

4 recommendation letters from 2 professors I knew really well, a super sweet music instructor and the physician I shadowed.

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Things I did/will do to improve my chances next cycle...(But OMG UCLA please give me a chance)

1. APPLY EARLIER! I will have my shiz ready to go by June 1 like all the other crazy premeds
2. Additional clinical experience in the Philippines:
a.) Shadowing a neurosurgeon everyday. 10 hours a day for 6 months. I have been to everything he has attended. Literally I am his tail.
b.) ER volunteer work at the public hospital
3. New amazing recommendation letter from the physician I have been shadowing
4. 4 more months of research (clinical)
5. ?????????


Any other suggestions? :]

I also talked to a dean of admissions at a UC and he said that my lack of local clinical experience is made up by my international clinical experience. Phew! 🙂

 

[FrkyBgStok]

what schools did you apply to? you have a solid app and I can only think you applied way too top heavy. august isn't late. october is late with secondaries i suppose but still. either that or your personal statement was actually bad when you thought it was good. or a LOR sunk you. seriously, I would call the schools and ask why because you should have gotten in (unless, like I said that the 17 schools you applied to were ranks 1-17). applying earlier would definitely help.

 

[Chanieish]

I was able to talk to the dean of the UC. We went over my app (except for LORs) and he said I was a great applicant.

It must have just been the luck of the draw. I was like TT_TT

 

[aSagacious]

I agree with Frky, could you provide us with your school list? I suspect it may have been a bit top-heavy.

As far as your credentials, I noticed that all of your clinical experiences were abroad. It would certainly help if you began to involve yourself in some American hospital settings (volunteering, shadowing, etc). Everything else looks good though.

 

[canjosh]

Would also be interested in which schools you applied to. Most CA residents should probably apply to about 25 schools.

 

[Pons Asinorum]

a.) Shadowing a neurosurgeon everyday. 10 hours a day for 6 months. I have been to everything he has attended. Literally I am his tail.

The above quote is a waste of your time. Shadow less, volunteer more. If you feel like you must shadow, shadow a primary care doc and a different specialty. Divide it up.

I feel pretty sure you applied too top-heavy.

 

[Chanieish]

Haha no way pons. This 6 month experience has been absolutely heaven for me 2-3 surgeries per day at one of the poorest but best hospital in the Philippines, charity work in other public institutions, followed by consultation hours, rounds, research meetings. I have matured and really deepened my love for medicine and I think that's what counts. 🙂 thanks for your opinion though! 🙂

I'll post my school list later, just taking a break in between surgeries now. I applied to all CA schools except loma Linda and tons of OOS.

 

[airca12]

I'm from the Philippines, but am a CA resident after my 4 years of college at Cal.

You're an American citizen now?? You gained citizenship off of your student visa? I didn't know that happened.

Anyways, start volunteering, ASAP. Then apply more broadly from top to bottom. Include lots of safeties. Improve your interview skills so you don't appear too nervous. Otherwise you've got a solid app.

 

[Chanieish]

Whoops I forgot to add that I have been volunteering in the ER and with clinical missions as well. 🙂

I was always a US citizen 😉 Just lived in the Philippines


I also talked to a Dean of Admissions and he said that international clinical experience is as good as if not better than local experience, but that was just from one school.

Yeah, I think I'd better apply more broadly. Sucks that I didn't get much CA love though. 🙂

 

[Pons Asinorum]

Haha no way pons. This 6 month experience has been absolutely heaven for me 2-3 surgeries per day at one of the poorest but best hospital in the Philippines, charity work in other public institutions, followed by consultation hours, rounds, research meetings. I have matured and really deepened my love for medicine and I think that's what counts. 🙂 thanks for your opinion though! 🙂

I'll post my school list later, just taking a break in between surgeries now. I applied to all CA schools except loma Linda and tons of OOS.

It might be heaven for you, but right now you have no acceptances and you asked how you can make your application stronger. Continuing to shadow when you have extensive experience with that specialty will not make your application stronger. In fact, as a reapplicant, you'll be expected to present a stronger product with further growth and breadth from your current application. Continue to spend that much time in the neuro OR, regardless of how much you like it, at your own risk.

 

[FrkyBgStok]

another problem with only shadowing the neurosurgeon is it portrays that you are only interested in neurosurgery, which in turn portrays you are only interested in one of the highest paying fields of medicine, showing you want money. the system isn't perfect, but it is part of the game and it doesn't matter that it is in a poor area. if you would like to keep shadowing, you need to shadow some family medicine, pediatrics, internal med, etc. primary care physcians.

 

[FrkyBgStok]

I have matured and really deepened my love for medicine and I think that's what counts. 🙂 thanks for your opinion though! 🙂

unfortunately that statement is wrong. if you want to go to med school, especially in california, it doesn't matter what you think counts, it is what the med schools think counts, and like i said in my previous post, you are portraying that you are money hungry. pons is right. continue shadowing the neurosurgeon at your own risk.

 

[Chanieish]

Money hungry? Can't a person love the neurosciences without being money hungry? After all I do go into the field with him performing charity services. And it isn't at all about the money. I'm getting a full experience on how a surgeon's life is. Sure neurosurgery is a high paying field but I don't even think of that. I hope the adcomm will see the depth of my work coupled with clinical research in neuro. Such a bummer that they would think that way. The guy I am following doesn't even charge most of his patients because he knows they can't afford it. He's a saint



But point taken. I'll try to find other rotations as well, in the more general area.

 

[Chanieish]

Instead of more rotations, would more clinical volunteering work as well?

 

[Pons Asinorum]

Instead of more rotations, would more clinical volunteering work as well?

Yes.

 

[Poliscidoc]

Apply DO?

 

[Pons Asinorum]

Apply DO?

I wouldn't if I were the OP. Stats support MD acceptances, just needs to talk to adcoms after this cycle, figure out what went wrong and correct that. Then apply broadly.

...a graduate of UC Berkeley. I finished with honors, a two-year research thesis and a 3.75 cGPA/sGPA. My junior and senior GPA's were 3.94 and 3.93 respectively. My mCAT score was 35P P12/V10/B13...[/img]

 

[Poliscidoc]

I wouldn't if I were the OP. Stats support MD acceptances, just needs to talk to adcoms after this cycle, figure out what went wrong and correct that. Then apply broadly.

...a graduate of UC Berkeley. I finished with honors, a two-year research thesis and a 3.75 cGPA/sGPA. My junior and senior GPA's were 3.94 and 3.93 respectively. My mCAT score was 35P P12/V10/B13...[/img]

Yea OP is def a smart guy but I didnt catch if he applied broadly or if his list was just very top heavy. I was just throwing DO out there.

 

[Pons Asinorum]

I wouldn't if I were the OP. Stats support MD acceptances, just needs to talk to adcoms after this cycle, figure out what went wrong and correct that. Then apply broadly.



Yea OP is def a smart guy but I didnt catch if he applied broadly or if his list was just very top heavy. I was just throwing DO out there.

Yeah, I think it's just a matter of top-heaviness. There might be some PS issues as well. Again, OP, speak to adcoms after May 15 and ask them where your application went wrong.

 

[Chanieish]

Yeah, waiting for May 15 to come around.

As I said in an earlier post, I went through my app with a UC dean of admissions. He liked everything, especially my international clinical experience. He didn't know why I wasn't chosen either. He blamed the luck of the draw. :| He said that if someone showed him my app and said I was to be interviewed, he'd would think it was normal.

 

[aSagacious]

He said that if someone showed him my app and said I was to be interviewed, he'd would think it was normal.

That's a fair assessment, but one phrase I've heard thrown around which I think is a decent descriptor of some rejected applicants:
"It's not that you're uncompetitive, it's that there are plenty of individuals who are even more competitive."

That is to say, you are a fairly competitive candidate, but at top schools you are just one of the many and fall back into the pile. One or a few rejections might be 'luck of the draw' but 17 rejections is a worrisome trend.