Need some advice on ECs during gap year

[holiwest cocktail]

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I am currently application this cycle to medical school. I want to stay in California, but my chances are sorta slim to getting into California schools, even though I'm a resident. Here are my stats:
cGPA: 3.866 (graduated already)
sGPA: 3.85
MCAT (took it twice)
-1st time: 5VR, 8PS, 10BS (this stopped me from applying last cycle, hence the gap year)
-2nd time: 6VR, 10PS, 11BS (The VR section really screwed me up)
-over 300 hours in volunteering at a hospital (been there for over two years), been in the cardio wing, now in the catheter lab wing
-recently started another volunteer position at different hospital in neurosciences clinic.

Now I have been offered a research position at my college from my college advisor, who is actually/maybe working around my schedule (since I can only come in Mondays to Wednesdays). I don't have any significant research experience. But I also plan on applying to a medical scribe program. Now, I don't think I take on all four of these. Should I take the research or the scribe during my gap year? Go ahead and be brutal if you need you to.

 

[BurghMed]

Definitely have a nice chunk of volunteering, consider volunteering non clinically. Research will help you given the fact that you have none under your belt. Having 3 months of research experience by the time you get potential interviews is nothing. Consider doing it the whole year and applying next cycle...

However, it all honesty, not that this helps you now, I would consider not filling out tons and tons of secondaries ($$$) given the fact that you have such a low verbal score (I believe its roughly in the 25th percentile range?), most particularly because you took it twice and did not improve. If you applied to a healthy mix of MD (low tier) and DO schools, and are URM, then you should be slightly better off. If you haven't submitted your primary yet, I would consider re-taking the MCAT (to the point where averaging on practice tests at least a ~9 verbal (especially because you took it twice already)), and applying next cycle.

 

[heebeejeebies]

I am currently application this cycle to medical school. I want to stay in California, but my chances are sorta slim to getting into California schools, even though I'm a resident. Here are my stats:
cGPA: 3.866 (graduated already)
sGPA: 3.85
MCAT (took it twice)
-1st time: 5VR, 8PS, 10BS (this stopped me from applying last cycle, hence the gap year)
-2nd time: 6VR, 10PS, 11BS (The VR section really screwed me up)
-over 300 hours in volunteering at a hospital (been there for over two years), been in the cardio wing, now in the catheter lab wing
-recently started another volunteer position at different hospital in neurosciences clinic.

Now I have been offered a research position at my college from my college advisor, who is actually/maybe working around my schedule (since I can only come in Mondays to Wednesdays). I don't have any significant research experience. But I also plan on applying to a medical scribe program. Now, I don't think I take on all four of these. Should I take the research or the scribe during my gap year? Go ahead and be brutal if you need you to.

Do things you enjoy (but are still relevant). Adcoms will be able to tell that you're feigning excitement when describing things you did solely for the application.

 

[sovereign0]

I'd personally go for the research experience since you have hospital volunteering (which I hope you continue).

As someone else mentioned, the consistently low VR scores WILL significantly hurt your chances, maybe even kill your chances at MD (especially as a Cali resident). I believe that many MD schools will screen anything less than an 8. I'm not sure about your chances with DO, but you will have a tough time with MD, unless you have URM status (maybe?).

 

[holiwest cocktail]

What you said about the VR is true. And no, I am not URM status. I actually tried prepping for the VR section with practice exams. And I was scoring around 7-9s on the practice exams, so I was bummed out when I got the 6VR (although I was sort of in a panicked state as I got into the section and the passages were ridiculously longer than I thought, so I had to basically guess answers because of NOT ENOUGH TIME). I honestly don't want to take it again, especially the new one. And do you guys mean by screening? As in picking out who to give secondaries?

 

[DrDorianTurkleton]

I think they mean that some schools, such as my instate school, have bare minimum cutoffs for even getting a secondary. For example, having atleast a 7 or 8 on every subsection. Other schools like Vandy and UCSF do a comprehensive screen where they look at the entire primary before sending secondaries.

 

[sovereign0]

What you said about the VR is true. And no, I am not URM status. I actually tried prepping for the VR section with practice exams. And I was scoring around 7-9s on the practice exams, so I was bummed out when I got the 6VR (although I was sort of in a panicked state as I got into the section and the passages were ridiculously longer than I thought, so I had to basically guess answers because of NOT ENOUGH TIME). I honestly don't want to take it again, especially the new one. And do you guys mean by screening? As in picking out who to give secondaries?

Screening means that schools essentially run their pile of a thousands of applications through a computer filter. All applications with GPA or MCAT subsections less than some threshold will be screened out and auto-rejected. Some schools will screen before sending secondaries (meaning, you never get a secondary), while others send automatic secondaries to everyone and screen after your application is complete (you completed the secondary and paid the fee, then got rejected by the filter).

If I could be perfectly honest, scoring 7-9 on a practice exam VR section is not very good, especially considering the median scores for matriculating students, and that you can expect to lose a few points on the real exam compared to the practice exams due to the pressure of your surroundings. The amount of time allotted for each section is part of the challenge of the exam. Scores are not arbitrary, they are representative of percentile scores, which compare how you performed versus others who took the same exam as you. The scores are already "corrected" for the length of the passages and lack of time, as everyone else who took that particular test was in the same boat.

I understand not wanting to take the exam - especially the new one. Unfortunately, that doesn't change the reality of how competitive the application process can be. A 27 is pretty low, especially as a CA resident, but an unbalanced 27 with a 6 in VR could be lethal. Combined with the fact that it is not the first MCAT, but a retake, and you could have a VERY hard time with MD schools.

I should advise that I am just another premed and my opinion doesn't really mean anything. You may be better suited by a reply from one of the friendly Adcoms who frequent SDN, or a cross-post to the What Are My Chances? subforum, considering we are steering off the topic of your original post.

 

[holiwest cocktail]

Thank you for all your replies. I still plan on applying to medical school. I'll think about the research position some more.