Need serious advice

[PrincetonRocks]

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What is the number of schools everyone is applying to? In another thread, I saw 20-40 schools as California residents. This is a little discouraging for me because I only applied to a total of 15, with most in the top 10. I already turned down secondaries from LLU and Cornell. I thought that with my stats and extracurriculars I could use USC or UCI as my back-ups. But i guess it's still very hard to get into these two schools.

Should I:
(A) Date Michael whose family donated the Chao Comprehensive Center to UCI? Just kidding!! Don't jump all over me over this statement like my previous post.
(B) Apply to more schools through AMCAS or return secondaries to LLU and Cornell?

My MCAT score is in the high 30s, a 4.0 cumulative GPA, and lots of volunteer/leadership experiences. I also have a published paper as first author and 3 papers as second author. I won numerous research grants, leadership/community scholarships, etc... What are my chances at schools who are not in the top 10 like UCSD, UCLA, UCI, Dartmouth, and USC?

 

[Idiopathic]

Why on Earth would you turn down Cornell but consider Dartmouth.

 

[sanoge7]

Princeton Rocks -- You are crazy.

You're freaking out for no reason.

 

[Catalyst]

Need serious advice?

www.zipit.com, relax and wait for 1 million interviews

Sachin

 

[calebho501]

I'm a cautious applicant myself, so I wouldn't recommend turning down secondaries and interviews at this stage. Once you get your FIRST acceptance in mail, you can start to pick n' choose.

 

[Tezzie]

If you are a CA resident then it's obvious you shouldn't have any problems.

However i do have to wonder how can a "4.0 - high 30s and so-called leader" fall for the marketing plan of a crappy publication?

Are you applying to schools just because of their numbers or because you really want to go there?

Don't forget that regardless of great scores and grades (and even ECs) , an arrogant approach to an interview can destroy your chances of getting admitted.

 

[PrincetonRocks]

The reason why i have decided to turn down the secondaries at LLU and Cornell is that I realize that I do not want to go these schools if I was admitted. I just read about many qualified candidates getting rejected, so I'm begining to harbor a little doubt. I have not turned down any interviews yet...still interviewing at 3 in california and 1 in chicago this October. Based on your advice, I should still apply to LLU and Cornell? Well, I'll definitely look into those secondaries then....I think i still have a week before my password at LLU expires.


Well, thanks everyone for their critical advice/comments. I guess i'm just a little paranoid through this whole process.

 

[Paws]

Hey PR,

Well, I am on your side and sincerely hope you get into the school of your choice first time out.

BUT, considering how many posts there are on this forum with all kinds of crazy things happening to applicants, I would SUGGEST (ahem) that you apply more widely *just in case* (ahem again ...)

We all want everyone to get in but we also have to be practical and pragmatic. I didn't even apply to Cornell (which I love to pieces) because I figured I would be immediately rejected in favor of smart people like you. I do not have your scores.

Instead I am now sloggin thru about 34 other schools because, come next summer I want to be going to medschool somewhere and I am willing to do what it takes.

You have a great Ugrad education, so the medical school shouldn't be as big a deal. SUNY Downstate is filled with plenty of outstanding undergraduates, and I'm sure in the end they were glad to have been accepted somewhere. You just never know ...

Just my 0.02 worth ...

 

[SMW]

You need to apply to a wider range of schools, and quite a few more because you are a CA resident. From what I've read on SDN, no one should use a CA school as a back-up. And in your case, because of your stats, that could be especially dangerous. There are no true back-up schools in the med school admissions process, which is really something of a crapshoot. The deal is to maximize your odds. It's true you should not apply to a school that you wouldn't go to if admitted, but there have to be some more schools that are not in the top 10 that you would consider. Pull out the MSAR and figure out what they are.

 

[Dr. Xavier]

I have a friend who is a second year at UCSD w/40 mcat and 3.8 gpa from ucla and he barely go in off the waitlist. He was an aug mcater though, thats maybe why, but from him I've learned you can't take getting in for granted.

 

[PrincetonRocks]

Is it Dave? He also got into UCI, UCD, and he declined at Stanford right? I thought he got into UCSD in December? Dave didn't have any extracurriculars and he went to Berkeley right? He's cute though...and nice.

 

[PrincetonRocks]

Thank you everyone for all of their wonderful advice. I think I was cheap in my medical school application decisions. I think I will turn in 2 more secondaries...LLU and Cornell to increase my chances. I have been invited to 3 CA interviews and 1 in Chicago for October. It's probably too late to go through AMCAS and apply for more programs.

 

[Dr. Xavier]

No it's not dave, my friend did get into Irvine though, and he did decline Yale for UC tuition.

 

[Street Philosopher]

Originally posted by PrincetonRocks
Is it Dave? He also got into UCI, UCD, and he declined at Stanford right? I thought he got into UCSD in December? Dave didn't have any extracurriculars and he went to Berkeley right? He's cute though...and nice.

lol come on, he said he went to ucla 😛

I think you should apply to Cornell. There are some superstars going to that school, and I don't mean the faculty. 🙂

 

[Paws]

PR,

It takes about a minute to add new schools - you might surprise yourself when you start to add schools. I find that as I work on each secondary I start to think: yes ! I would LOVE to be a student here and I totally get into it.

 

[lola]

if you are a california resident, you need to apply to at least 15 (well-chosen) schools in my opinion. if you don't like the sound of cornell or loma linda, then by all means don't turn in the secondaries. however, you should definitely add a couple more schools to replace those. have you thought about georgetown? tulane? pitt? wake forest? case western? these are the types of schools that you will likely need as a "backup" if your app is as strong as it appears. your chances at the schools that are not top 10 that you mentioned are very small when you think about what a crapshot it is to get into these schools. the uc's cannot be depended upon, and you probably have a decent shot at dartmouth, but you can't depend on getting into any one school. i never would have predicted i'd get interviews where i did, i'd get in where i did, etc.. you just never know! so apply to enough schools so that you will not have to go through this process again! there appears to be no reason why you wouldn't get in this time around, but you should do all you can to ensure you will.