No IIs - Need Advice

[cj16talo]

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I applied to 35 MD schools this cycle, with no interviews thus far. I am a NY resident, not URM, and applied to all state schools as well as OOS friendly private schools. Application submitted early June with all secondaries complete around late July or early August. I graduated in 2014 with degrees in Mathematics and Chemistry, and have since been working as a chemical engineer.

MCAT: 508
Phys: 128, CARS: 127, Bio: 125, Psych: 127
Is this worth retaking due to the poor Bio section?

cGPA: 3.60, sGPA: 3.56
My last year I had a 3.81 GPA despite taking all of the Chemistry major requirements except Gen Chem and Organic.

I did research full time the summer between my junior and senior years, as well as throughout my senior year. This resulted in two publications, one as first author. My job as an engineer is also research oriented, and I have five patents submitted along with six conference abstracts.

I worked ~20 hours per week part time as a scribe from 7/16-6/17, accumulating ~1000 hours. I stopped in June to be able to submit applications, as I would not have been able to spend time on them if I was scribing on top of my full time job.

I have tutored calculus, coached recreational soccer, and helped with fundraisers for a family foundation.

I worked two jobs throughout undergrad, consisting of 20-30 hours per week.

I obviously have work that needs to be done in order to improve my application. I'm wondering if I should be applying to SMP programs, trying to retake the MCAT, or if my application is good enough to apply to DO schools if I can shadow a DO and obtain a LOR.

Thank you!

 

[candbgirl]

Could you share your list with us? Have you heard anything from any schools- hold, rejections etc?

 

[cj16talo]

Silence:
Einstein, Duke, Eastern Virginia, FAU, FIU, Icahn, Loyola, Miami, Penn State, Quinnipiac, Rochester, Rosalind Franklin, Rush, Saint Louis, Stony Brook, SUNY Buffalo, SUNY Downstate, Temple, Jefferson, USF, UCF, VCU, Wake Forest

Pre-Interview Holds:
SUNY Upstate, Drexel

Rejections:
Hofstra, Virginia Tech, Tulane, BU, Tufts, Cornell, Albany Med, Dartmouth, Georgetown, George Washington

 

[s_tian]

Hi! What was your GPA trend for the other years? Any downward trends? Is this your only MCAT score?
Do you have any clinical or non-clinical volunteering? You could definitely work on accumulating service to the less fortunate.
You could also retake your MCAT for the next cycle. I don't think your grades warrant an SMP as it's not <3.2.
The cycle isn't over yet though, so keep your head up.

 

[candbgirl]

I think your list is pretty good although you have several schools that put heavy emphasis on serving the underserved.(Rush has a huge requirement and their applicants somehow exceed that requirement by hundreds/thousands of hours. Loyola, SLU, Georgetown have a big focus on serving the underserved). You are a non traditional so I’m not sure if those apply to you. Also some of your schools receive thousands(like 10k+) of Applications. Have you checked the school specific threads to see if some of these schools are still handing out interviews.

I think you are fine for DO, but I really don’t know. So I’ll tag @Goro and @Faha for their always spot on advice.

 

[Goro]

I applied to 35 MD schools this cycle, with no interviews thus far. I am a NY resident, not URM, and applied to all state schools as well as OOS friendly private schools. Application submitted early June with all secondaries complete around late July or early August. I graduated in 2014 with degrees in Mathematics and Chemistry, and have since been working as a chemical engineer.

MCAT: 508
Phys: 128, CARS: 127, Bio: 125, Psych: 127
Is this worth retaking due to the poor Bio section?

cGPA: 3.60, sGPA: 3.56
My last year I had a 3.81 GPA despite taking all of the Chemistry major requirements except Gen Chem and Organic.

I did research full time the summer between my junior and senior years, as well as throughout my senior year. This resulted in two publications, one as first author. My job as an engineer is also research oriented, and I have five patents submitted along with six conference abstracts.

I worked ~20 hours per week part time as a scribe from 7/16-6/17, accumulating ~1000 hours. I stopped in June to be able to submit applications, as I would not have been able to spend time on them if I was scribing on top of my full time job.

I have tutored calculus, coached recreational soccer, and helped with fundraisers for a family foundation.

I worked two jobs throughout undergrad, consisting of 20-30 hours per week.

I obviously have work that needs to be done in order to improve my application. I'm wondering if I should be applying to SMP programs, trying to retake the MCAT, or if my application is good enough to apply to DO schools if I can shadow a DO and obtain a LOR.

Thank you!

You're fine for any DO school. Start list with NYITCOM, PCOM and UNECOM. I can't recommend Touro-NY or LUCOM.

 

[cj16talo]

Hi! What was your GPA trend for the other years? Any downward trends? Is this your only MCAT score?
Do you have any clinical or non-clinical volunteering? You could definitely work on accumulating service to the less fortunate.
You could also retake your MCAT for the next cycle. I don't think your grades warrant an SMP as it's not <3.2.
The cycle isn't over yet though, so keep your head up.

GPA breakdown by year is as follows:
Freshman - 3.55, Sophomore - 3.22, Junior - 3.57, Senior - 3.81

I have only taken the MCAT once, and I have no other volunteering. I have considered volunteering for Crisis Text Line due to the flexibility, but I would prefer to do something more hands on if I can obtain such a position. Do you think the MCAT is worth retaking? I have been told before that I shouldn't retake a 508.

Thank you all for your responses and suggestions, I really appreciate the help!

 

[s_tian]

Only retake if you're sure you can get above a 513 or 90th percentile, but you're absolutely fine for DO as is. I mean if you target schools with average MCAT around your number you could possibly get by with the same score.
Lack of volunteering may be hurting your app since it's work/research heavy & like mentioned above many of your schools are service-centered. In addition to the Crisis text line, you could volunteer at a shelter/soup kitchen/someplace for the underserved for like 1-2 days a week. Good luck!