Need Advice on 2010 Application

[Canuck14]

Hi I am currently finishing off my application for this year and I am just wanting some last minute advice.

My Stats:

Undergrad
cGPA: 3.58
- had a long illness over the first couple years and personal loss, big upward trend, 3.0 to 3.96 over the last three years
BCPM: 3.56
AO: 3.66
MCAT: 34R (12 PS, 11 VR, 11 BS, R WS)

Masters in Neuroscience
GPA: 4.0

I have a long list of volunteering, clinical, and research experiences. I think they are very strong and my asset and I have been told by a pre-med advisor at OU that they look good on paper. Some of these include:

- Volunteering at a large cancer clinic for 2 years
- 5 years in undergraduate med research with a paper
- Headed projects for the federal government in Canada on health
- Designed an undergraduate course
- Worked with international aid for Darfur
- Write music and short stories
- Designed an exercise program for COPD patients
- Started a national student organization that deals with teamwork in healthcare and patient safety

Other things that I have tried to put in my activities and personal statement.

I previously interviewed at Case Western and NYU in a previous year but was shut out. I am definitely wanting to get in this year.

Any and all comments are welcome as I would like to know what my weaknesses are or what I have a good chance for. I would like to be in the LA, NYC, or at Case Western. Am I really hurting myself by applying now? I just got my MCAT scores. Thanks.

The schools I am thinking of applying to are (got most of these from the school selector):

Albany Medical College
Albert Einstein College of Medicine Boston University School of Medicine Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine Columbia University College of P & S Creighton University School of Medicine Dartmouth Medical School David Geffen School of Medicine at UCLA Emory University School of Medicine George Washington University Sch of Med & Hlth Sci Georgetown University School of Medicine Jefferson Medical Coll. of Thomas Jefferson Univ. Keck Sch. of Med.University of Southern California Medical College of Wisconsin Michigan State University Mount Sinai School of Medicine New York University Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine Saint Louis University School of Medicine Stanford University School of Medicine SUNY at Buffalo Medical School SUNY Upstate Medical University University of Connecticut School of Medicine University of Maryland School of Medicine University of North Carolina School of Medicine University of Pennsylvania School of Medicine University of Virginia School of Medicine Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicin Wake Forest University School of Medicine Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University

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[calimed214]

Your GPA isn't terrible. Great MCAT. Great EC's.

A few questions....

Are you applying as an international student though?

And you said you applied last year & were shut down -- did you apply to many of the same schools you're thinking of applying to now? Did you get feedback on what went wrong with your application that cycle? What did you change from your last year's application to now?

Have you submitted your primary yet? If you're already verified and were just waiting on MCAT scores, it's not THAT late yet.

 

[Canuck14]

I am a Canadian, so some schools take that as more out of state than others it seems (?). I have heard the closer you get to the border to the more private a school the better.

I am apply to many of the same school but also some new ones like University of South Cali and Standford to name a couple. Case Western and NYU were the only top schools I applied to and the rest were Rosalind Franklin level as I had an 8 on verbal. Was told by Case and NYU that it was the 8 on verbal that would make it near impossible for them to admit me.

I retook my MCAT (31Q to 34R (above)), got my Master's, and did some more ECs.

submitting primary today -- so a little in trouble?