Need help figuring out where I should apply!

[cke1997]

Hey y'all! First of all, for any of you that see this post and have been accepted into an MD-PhD program, I want to heartily congratulate you. I've seen all of you on the "Acceptances" thread and I'm so very happy for each of you, I know that you will do amazing things and that these acceptances are a reflection of your work and dedication.

I'm a bit new to this whole MD-PhD process. I'm a junior, have been in an Alzheimer's lab going on two years now (finally starting on my own honors thesis project), and I got drawn to the MD-PhD path through a summer research experience in a cardiovascular research lab (two papers pending publication as a result of that experience). I realized just how much I love the process of research, and I know that I absolutely want to incorporate it into my career. I've been pretty well-set on this since coming back from my summer at the other institution, and have applied to a few more summer research programs to diversify my experiences and get a better idea of what I might ultimately like to pursue

The thing is, I really don't know where to begin in choosing which programs to apply to. I'm not entirely sure yet what I want to pursue from a research perspective (loved my cardiovascular experience, but have always been drawn toward cancer biology and treatment as well), and would ideally like to go somewhere that I could have plenty of options in case something really strikes my fancy during the first two years. I'm absolutely planning to apply to all programs in Texas as well as at KU (Texas resident, graduated from a Kansas high school), but beyond that don't know where to apply. If y'all could give me some advice on how to identify schools that would be good fits or some idea of what your selection process looked like, I would really appreciate it!

I'm taking my MCAT on the April 6 test date; if all goes well, I plan to apply in the next cycle. I'm happy to provide available stats or an idea of my ECs and whatnot if needed but I was kind of more hoping for just general advice in identifying potential programs to target/reach for if at all possible.

Thanks in advance! Hope y'all are having a great semester and a great application/acceptance experience!

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[JoaoMoutinho]

Posting your general stats information would be helpful, although you won't really be able to come up with a solid school list until you have a more concrete MCAT score and a better idea of what your grades will look like.

Some criteria that will be helpful in putting together a school list and choosing a school (aside from stats, which will heavily influence where you can actually get in):

Location and cost of living: some people (like myself, or you by the sound of things) would be perfectly happy in Texas or the Midwest, but other people strongly prefer to be on the coasts where things are generally more competitive and expensive. Proximity to family is also important to some people.

Program size: some people like to be in large programs, and some people don't. If you look at the AAMC facts tables about MD PhD programs, you can see that the class size ranges from 1 to like 25. While the general consensus seems to be to avoid a class size smaller than about 5, some people do prefer to be in a more intimate setting. However, there are also more seats available at the larger programs.

Research interests and strengths: try to get a feel for which programs are strong in research that interests you. For example, UT Houston/MD Anderson is a great place to apply to if you are interested in cancer immunology, but probably less great if you are interested in innate immunity. Look at the author information on the papers you read in your research, and you will notice patterns on where certain fields have strong clusters of researchers. Ask around as well! People like your PI will be able to tell you which other institutions have good scientists in your area of interest.

There are other criteria that may be important to you, and you will get a feel for things as you do more research and as you go to interviews. Your stats and experiences will open or close a lot of doors for you as well. Good luck with everything!

 

[cke1997]

Posting your general stats information would be helpful, although you won't really be able to come up with a solid school list until you have a more concrete MCAT score and a better idea of what your grades will look like.

Some criteria that will be helpful in putting together a school list and choosing a school (aside from stats, which will heavily influence where you can actually get in):

Location and cost of living: some people (like myself, or you by the sound of things) would be perfectly happy in Texas or the Midwest, but other people strongly prefer to be on the coasts where things are generally more competitive and expensive. Proximity to family is also important to some people.

Program size: some people like to be in large programs, and some people don't. If you look at the AAMC facts tables about MD PhD programs, you can see that the class size ranges from 1 to like 25. While the general consensus seems to be to avoid a class size smaller than about 5, some people do prefer to be in a more intimate setting. However, there are also more seats available at the larger programs.

Research interests and strengths: try to get a feel for which programs are strong in research that interests you. For example, UT Houston/MD Anderson is a great place to apply to if you are interested in cancer immunology, but probably less great if you are interested in innate immunity. Look at the author information on the papers you read in your research, and you will notice patterns on where certain fields have strong clusters of researchers. Ask around as well! People like your PI will be able to tell you which other institutions have good scientists in your area of interest.

There are other criteria that may be important to you, and you will get a feel for things as you do more research and as you go to interviews. Your stats and experiences will open or close a lot of doors for you as well. Good luck with everything!

Thank you! I'll probably reply on here once I get a better idea of what my stats look like. I'd probably take that consensus advice on the program size; I think I'd feel more comfortable if I had a community of at least 8-10 other MD/PhDs to befriend and be around as the process unfolds. I kind of know that I won't be applying to any of the big hitters (the Dukes, HPYSMs, Vandies, etc of the world); my GPA is fine-not-great and my practice MCATs have been in the reasonably good but decidedly not stellar range. I've had quite a bit of experience in a lab setting (will be over 1000 hours by the time I apply) but I know that the same or far better can be said of practically every serious applicant. I certainly don't have any illusions of grandeur about this process. Thank you so much though, this has been quite helpful given the limited info I can currently supply.

 

[cke1997]

Current stats:
3.71 GPA (3.61 sGPA)
MCAT unknown
~100 hours shadowing (Roughly even between Emergency Med, Internal Med, and Surgery; planning on shadowing a cardiologist and oncologist a few times each before applying, hopefully bringing me to ~120 or 130 hours)
~800 hours research, 2 specialties and institutions (2 papers submitted for pub; will likely have at least 200 more by the time I apply)
~150-200 hours volunteering (have yet to fully tabulate; almost all with same organization dedicated to combating child abuse)
~250 hours work experience (EVS Tech in a hospital setting; doubt it counts for clinical exposure although it certainly did give me some stories I feel wouldn't be entirely irrelevant to an interview)
~90-100 hours in an on-campus leadership development program, culminating in a legacy project aimed at lasting campus or community improvement
~100 hours as part of an on-campus organization coordinating campus tours, alumni engagement events, philanthropy

Again, nothing totally exceptional. Don't particularly see that GPA budging. This summer, will either balance labwork at my uni with scribe work or will pursue full-time research via a SURF grant elsewhere. Hope this gives you a better idea of where I am @JoaoMoutinho

 

[cke1997]

Everything looks solid IMO. Your GPA is on the low side, but mine was lower and I've gotten an MSTP acceptance. Your research track record looks good- some people might says your hours a little low, but I think your publication submissions will make up for that. I'm going to go against the grain and suggest listing your submissions on your application in some form, even if they haven't been accepted yet.

That being said, it's really tough to suggest a list of schools without the MCAT.

Thank you so much for the kind words! Yeah, the GPA is not a strong point, but I think it's reasonable enough that a good showing on the MCAT could make up for it. Additionally, I just got accepted to a summer research program in the same area as my uni (though not at my uni) so I can juggle that with some weekend work at my primary lab; that would get me about 400 more hours (and potentially another publication if I'm lucky enough to fall into the right lab, although that's not necessarily a priority as much as exposure to a different field of research for me at this point) plus whatever I do on the weekends at my lab. MCAT is April 6th, I'll have more info to go on at that time.

 

[cke1997]

@kepler16b I am planning to apply this summer barring an unforeseen MCATastrophe. I'm definitely a bit worried about the workload, and may back-end my work in the lab at my uni, but I do have a thesis that I need to complete for my university through my lab and definitely feel obligated to put in as much work as I possibly can. The 40 hour work-week through the other institution would not be negotiable. However, I'll have a solid three-week period between school ending and the program starting in which I can do some work with my main lab and get as much done on apps as possible, then perhaps take 4 weeks or so to just do the research fellowship and fine-tune the apps. I'm not certain how the timing of everything would work out, but I'll figure that out. I feel like the fellowship isn't something I can refuse, as it's at a top-20 uni.

 

[kepler16b]

Just be aware that writing, checking, and re-checking your primary app takes a lot longer than you'd think. On top of that, you'll start getting secondaries in July and you'll want to turn those around within a week. That means writing, copying, pasting, checking, and re-checking.

I suspect that my apps being complete between late August and late September cost me a few interviews.

 

[cke1997]

Duly noted. I will keep that in mind. I may have to play it by ear a bit and just try to be in the lab at my uni when I can.