Need Help Evaluating my Application for Next Cycle

[Allstarx15]

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Hello Everyone,

I am an applicant in the 2018-2019 cycle that is currently on 3 waitlists at mid-tier schools. As I prepare myself for a potential gap year, I would love to hear people's advice on what specific portions of my application are weakest and therefore where I should try to improve during this possible gap year. I have posted the highlights of my application from this cycle. Thank you in advance!

Year in school (top 20 state school): Graduating May 2019
Cumulative GPA: 3.72
Science GPA: 3.54
MCAT Scores: 513 (128/128/126/131) MCAT (January 2018)
Research: ~200 hours on one project. 300+ hours on Honors Thesis project.
Volunteering (clinical): 60 hours in a healthcare clinic on a medical service trip to Ecuador. 40 hours as a general volunteer in a local hospital.
Physician shadowing: 8 cardiology, 8 orthopedic, 16 pediatric
Non-clinical volunteering: 180 hours for Big Brother Big Sisters. 135 hours for a health education program.
Extracurricular activities: Club track and field team, Social fraternity
Employment history: 420 hours desk job in medical communications company in the pharma industry, 400 hours of summer camp counselor and 280 hours as a TA/RA for a pre-college enrichment program for high schoolers
Immediate family members in medicine: No

 

[ciestar]

Your clinical experience is weak at best.

 

[Allstarx15]

Your clinical experience is weak at best.

I agree. So would you recommend I seek out a job during my gap year as an EMT, ER-Tech, CNA, etc or something of the sort?

 

[Walter Raleigh]

Yes. You may also get in off one of your waitlists.

 

[Bubblepop]

I hope you get off one of your WL! But for next time, aim for more clinical experiences. Both shadowing (>50hrs) and volunteer/employment (>200hrs sans volunteer tourism).

 

[DrFortiusNatando]

You are perfect WL material - there is nothing in your application that suggests that you would not succeed at any medical school, so you are a no-risk potential student. Especially as the season winds down, you will be a great person to approach, if you can drop everything to attend last minute. A lot of people with your stats will have an acceptance and once they find roommates, sign a lease, prepare to move, and even start medical school, they will be unwilling or unable to accept WL offers from other schools.

However, as you are doing, you are wise to make plans for another application cycle. Since you will not have time to improve your application significantly prior to application season, I think it makes sense to consider doing 2 gap years and reapplying the following year, 2020-2021. It is incredibly expensive to keep applying to medical school, and had I seen your stats prior to this application season, I would have warned you that you might need to boost up some of your activities. Everything is a little weak, in terms of quantity, though of course, I can not comment on the quality. Typically, successful applicants are at least really strong in at least one of the areas (EC's, research, clinical, non-clinical) even if they are just at the average in the others. In your case, it seems a bit like you checked all of the boxes, but did not have time yet to develop a strength to which you are passionate/brings you joy. During a gap year or two, you could get your EMT which would allow you to work as EMT or ER-Tech. Or you could get a job as a scribe. You could also volunteer at a soup kitchen, hospice, Veterans group, etc. And if research interests you, you might also get a chance to do some clinical research - especially if you are near a hospital with an academic EM program, and work as an ED-tech or EMT, you might be able to assist on a project or two, as ED-techs and EMT's have non-traditional hours and you can certainly assist with data collection etc.

 

[dr_kateb]

60 of your 100 hours of clinical volunteering was on a service trip?

 

[candbgirl]

You applied with 40 clinical hours in the US? Hope for a waitlist call up. And if you have to reapply increase your clinical hours by couple hundred hours. Don’t reapply without those hours. And I wouldn’t mention your 60 hours in Ecuador. What have you been doing this cycle to “significantly improve” your application to reapply?

 

[Allstarx15]

You are perfect WL material - there is nothing in your application that suggests that you would not succeed at any medical school, so you are a no-risk potential student. Especially as the season winds down, you will be a great person to approach, if you can drop everything to attend last minute. A lot of people with your stats will have an acceptance and once they find roommates, sign a lease, prepare to move, and even start medical school, they will be unwilling or unable to accept WL offers from other schools.

However, as you are doing, you are wise to make plans for another application cycle. Since you will not have time to improve your application significantly prior to application season, I think it makes sense to consider doing 2 gap years and reapplying the following year, 2020-2021. It is incredibly expensive to keep applying to medical school, and had I seen your stats prior to this application season, I would have warned you that you might need to boost up some of your activities. Everything is a little weak, in terms of quantity, though of course, I can not comment on the quality. Typically, successful applicants are at least really strong in at least one of the areas (EC's, research, clinical, non-clinical) even if they are just at the average in the others. In your case, it seems a bit like you checked all of the boxes, but did not have time yet to develop a strength to which you are passionate/brings you joy. During a gap year or two, you could get your EMT which would allow you to work as EMT or ER-Tech. Or you could get a job as a scribe. You could also volunteer at a soup kitchen, hospice, Veterans group, etc. And if research interests you, you might also get a chance to do some clinical research - especially if you are near a hospital with an academic EM program, and work as an ED-tech or EMT, you might be able to assist on a project or two, as ED-techs and EMT's have non-traditional hours and you can certainly assist with data collection etc.

Thank you for this elaborate and helpful response. It sounds like everyone that has offered their advice agrees that my clinical hours are the weakest part of my application. I have not significantly improved my application in the past year, so I think your advice to consider a 2020-2021 application cycle is important. At the time, I knew that my clinical hours were not good but I hoped that the well-roundness of my application would compensate for that.

For now, I plan on completing an EMT course from mid-May to the end of June following my graduation. I will then attempt to find paid employment as an EMT (preferably in a hospital), while also volunteering in other spaces. I also plan on working part-time as a scribe during this time.

Thank you again to everyone that has already offered advice and if more people have anything to offer I invite you to do so!

 

[Allstarx15]

60 of your 100 hours of clinical volunteering was on a service trip?

Yes.

 

[Allstarx15]

You applied with 40 clinical hours in the US? Hope for a waitlist call up. And if you have to reapply increase your clinical hours by couple hundred hours. Don’t reapply without those hours. And I wouldn’t mention your 60 hours in Ecuador. What have you been doing this cycle to “significantly improve” your application to reapply?

I agree.

I have not significantly improved my application so I believe that a 2020-2021 cycle application may be more appropriate for me.

 

[Walter Raleigh]

That sounds like a good game plan.

 

[candbgirl]

Sounds like a smart plan. And you might still get off the WL. Good luck.