Need good advice! High stats/low EC

[BicycleGuy]

Hi, I'm applying this June, but I'm wondering how I should build up my application in these 2-3 months before I submit, as well as which schools I should put on my list. My profile is kinda long, so thank you in advance for checking it out!

About me: I am a graduating senior taking a gap year. I am still figuring out what I will be doing, but I hope to secure an internship/job related to public health. I will be applying for AmeriCorps too. Although I have high stats, I feel like the clinical portion of my application is lacking (especially in depth), and I am worried that it will drag down my application. I am also unsure how to frame my application, considering how different my interests/activities have been. Please help!

GPA: 4.0 science, 4.0 overall
MCAT: 521
Florida Resident, Asian Male, Top 40-50 undergrad institution

Disclaimer: I can and will provide more information/reflection about many of these activities on my actual AMCAS, but feel free to let me know if it seems like any of them seem shallow/unnecessary to my application!

Clinical Experience:

• Needle Exchange (120 hours, paid). I exchanged used needles, referred participants to resources, and participated in outreach efforts to reach underserved populations. I am continuing to participate via volunteering during the semester and hoping to bring this total experience time up to 200-300 hours by AMCAS submission. I'm not sure if I can exactly consider this clinical experience as these people were not "treated." However, the harm reduction program I helped out with certainly helped them make healthier choices! If my gap-year plans do not get solidified, I will heavily consider just spending my gap year as a volunteer with this org and really getting in tune with this population and this issue.
• Patient transporter (50 hours, volunteer). I volunteered at a local hospital as a patient transporter, mostly well patients who were tired but happy to go home to a family member who was picking them up. I waited with them and learned quite a bit about their various procedures and experiences at the hospital.
• Nursing Home (80 hours, volunteer). I volunteered at a nursing home primarily for Spanish monolingual speakers. I contributed to activities such as playing dominos, arts and craft projects, musical experiences, and puzzling, which were planned for residents to provide them a means to stay active physically and mentally.
• Physician shadowing (4x40 hours total). Anesthesiology (40 hours), Intensive care (40 hours), Endocrine surgery (40 hours), Infectious diseases (will be 40 hours by June).

Research experience and productivity:

• Neurology basic science lab, on and off for six years (probably >1000 hours), including one summer of school sponsored research fellowship. 2 publications in med-low impact journals (2nd and 3rd author), one manuscript on the way (first co-author, but probably won't count toward AMCAS), one poster presented at undergraduate research poster session and neuroscience conference poster session.

Non-clinical volunteering:

• Bicycle shop (200 hours). I fell in love with cycling and its culture through a unique opportunity to volunteer in a bicycle shop. I not only learned how to fix bikes (up from knowing nothing), but I also had the chance to be a sometimes chaperone for the youth program run through the bicycle shop.
• Various community experiences through Public Health Club (50 hours). Over the course of three years with the Public Health Club, I accumulated over 50 hours in community service in educational and benefit (e.g. fundraiser, partnership w/ other orgs/NGOs) events.

Leadership:

• Founder of University Cycling Club. I seem to have built my reputation around campus as the bicycle guy, being in contact with different departments at the university with the goal of improving cycling culture and creating a platform in which cyclists can ride together, fix bikes together, and even bring our love for cycling off campus and into the community. This is my baby lol.
• Vice-President of Public Health Club. As vice-president, I was closely involved with all of our projects this year and managing the organization. We had and emphasis on educational events on and off campus to bring greater awareness to different public health topics and how they related to the general population. Membership retention was a big challenge for us.
• Chair of Science Honors Program Improvement Committee. Under the vision created by the Program Director and myself, we composed a list of recommendations for higher-ups of the university to improve the program as well as contributed to recruitment/outreach efforts

Honors/awards:

• General Honors Program
• Science Honors Program
• Full tuition scholarship
• Summer research fellowship at my university

Other ECs:

• Multiple teaching assistantships (200 hours). This was really fun, being on the other side of the desk. I spent over 200 hours in total being a teaching assistant for the biology and computer science depts.
• Student IT Assistant (150 hours). Worked as an IT assistant doing routine tasks mostly to ensure that classrooms were in working order, worked on computer update initiatives, manned special events when needed. I worked only for a semester and did not continue after that because I broke my ulna. Never went back after it healed.
• DJ on university radio station (40 hours). Played music once a week for two semesters.
• Table Tennis Club (300 hours). I played mostly in my first two years, but after my ulna injury I stopped. I have played in a couple tournaments in addition to participating in practices and club events.

Letters of Rec:

• Not finalized, but they should be fairly strong. I'm getting a committee letter that will include the letters/summarize the letters.

School list:

• I need help with this one, but def all Florida schools!
• I have heard a lot of great things about some of the top 30 schools, but considering my low clinical experience I am hesitant to put too many of these top programs on my application list.

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[Faha]

As long as you apply to all of your Florida schools you can also apply to any OOS schools that appeal to you including any top 30.

 

[freedoctor17]

Why did you think you have "weak EC's" ... You have everything you need and then some. Maybe the clinical volunteering in a hospital is a little low but the nursing home should make up for that and everything else looks excellent. As long as you can speak/write about these experiences you should be great!

 

[SuaveCardigans]

You’re fine, apply confidently. Add top 20s +FL schools