No IIs, need re-app help

[justmedschooltingz]

Hi. I applied to 30 MD schools this cycle, have been rejected from 8 so far, have 4 pre-II holds, and 18 silences. I'm preparing for re-application but am really having trouble determining the best way to proceed. My GPA is definitely my main issue, so my major questions are whether to do an SMP or a regular masters this upcoming year and whether to re-apply this coming cycle or wait until I finish the masters/SMP to re-apply. I'm also really hoping to pursue an MD as opposed to DO.

As for my stats and ECs:
1) undergraduate cGPA: 3.40 & sGPA: 3.21 (very problematic, I know, but had some trouble adjusting to my school. I have an upward trend and am currently in my second semester of a post-bacc with a 3.85 cGPA and sGPA so far)
2) MCAT: 515 (128/127/130/130)
3) residency: NJ
4) Asian
5) Bachelors from an Ivy League institution, doing post-bacc at the same institution
6) clinical experience: hospital volunteering in 2 departments (~250 hours), shadowing (~75 hours), virtual shadowing (~50 hours), lots of direct work with homeless populations and students from underfunded schools
7) research experience: 4 wet labs, 1 publication, currently conducting clinical research with 2 different labs (all totaling to hundreds of research hours)
8) leadership experience: 5 clubs (~100 hours in 4 of them - community service/mentorship/tutoring-based, ~400 hours in the 5th volunteering/medical mentoring club with main leadership positions)
9) language honor society
10) submitted most apps between mid-August and early September

Another point of concern for me is that due to financial constraints, I was only able to take two courses in my post-bacc last semester and am taking 3 now. Even though most students in the program take 2-4 courses a semester since we're also doing research/working full-time, I'm not sure if only 5 new (anticipated) A's will make much of a difference for my app. I may take 2-3 courses over the summer, but by the time I finish those, I will have already submitted my applications, so I can only use them as updates. Any evaluation of my candidacy for med school would be really helpful, as would any advice for future directions I should take. Thank you so much.

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[Putkernerinthehall]

Mind posting your school list ?

 

[justmedschooltingz]

Mind posting your school list ?

Sure, these are the schools I applied to this cycle. Not sure how/what to change for next cycle, though.

Albany
Cooper
Drexel
Eastern Virginia
Netter MD School of Medicine at Quinnipiac University
Geisinger Commonwealth
Hackensack Meridian
Nova Southeastern
Oakland University William Beaumont School of Medicine
Pennsylvania State
Robert Larner, M.D., College of Medicine at the University of Vermont
Rush
Rutgers New Jersey Medical School
Rutgers, Robert Wood Johnson Medical School
Toledo
Tulane
University of Arizona College of Medicine – Tucson
University of Illinois College of Medicine
University of Minnesota Medical School
Wake Forest
West Virginia
Wright State
George Washington*
Georgetown*
VCU*
Mich State*
RFU*
Temple*
Wayne State*
NYMC*

* = pre-II reject

 

[candbgirl]

Did you use the MSAR to develop your list? Did you review ISvOOS stats?
A Masters will not help you for MD schools. It will be listed separately and your very low sGPA will still be there. DO schools do use Master grades in figuring your GPAs. Do the GPAs you listed include the post bacc courses you have already taken?
I know you say you aren’t interested in DO schools but your GPAs are well below average for MD students. You have a very nice MCAT score but with a low sGPA it might cause ADCOMS to question why your sGPA is so low and your MCAT. Is so high. It’s a pretty big discrepancy.
If you want to be a doctor you need to do some soul searching and decide why you are against attending a DO school. DO schools might be your best/only path to med school. You are competitive for DO schools with your current stats.

 

[deleted314957]

Did you use the MSAR to develop your list? Did you review ISvOOS stats?
A Masters will not help you for MD schools. It will be listed separately and your very low sGPA will still be there. DO schools do use Master grades in figuring your GPAs. Do the GPAs you listed include the post bacc courses you have already taken?
I know you say you aren’t interested in DO schools but your GPAs are well below average for MD students. You have a very nice MCAT score but with a low sGPA it might cause ADCOMS to question why your sGPA is so low and your MCAT. Is so high. It’s a pretty big discrepancy.
If you want to be a doctor you need to do some soul searching and decide why you are against attending a DO school. DO schools might be your best/only path to med school. You are competitive for DO schools with your current stats.

this ^^

 

[justmedschooltingz]

Did you use the MSAR to develop your list? Did you review ISvOOS stats?
A Masters will not help you for MD schools. It will be listed separately and your very low sGPA will still be there. DO schools do use Master grades in figuring your GPAs. Do the GPAs you listed include the post bacc courses you have already taken?
I know you say you aren’t interested in DO schools but your GPAs are well below average for MD students. You have a very nice MCAT score but with a low sGPA it might cause ADCOMS to question why your sGPA is so low and your MCAT. Is so high. It’s a pretty big discrepancy.
If you want to be a doctor you need to do some soul searching and decide why you are against attending a DO school. DO schools might be your best/only path to med school. You are competitive for DO schools with your current stats.

Thank you for your input. I did use MSAR to generate my list, and the GPAs I listed are those directly from undergrad, so they do not include my post-bacc courses. Do you really think it will be impossible for me to pursue an MD? Is an SMP something I should consider?

 

[Putkernerinthehall]

I would probably pursue both DO and MD. Your list isn't too bad. (I'd delete Arizona, Illinois, Minnesota). Maybe try 20 schools next go round with 10-12 of those DO.

 

[justmedschooltingz]

I would probably pursue both DO and MD. Your list isn't too bad. (I'd delete Arizona, Illinois, Minnesota). Maybe try 20 schools next go round with 10-12 of those DO.

Very helpful, thank you. Do you have any recommendations as to what I should pursue next academic year while re-applying? Does an SMP sound like a good idea?

 

[candbgirl]

Thank you for your input. I did use MSAR to generate my list, and the GPAs I listed are those directly from undergrad, so they do not include my post-bacc courses. Do you really think it will be impossible for me to pursue an MD? Is an SMP something I should consider?

AMCAS does include your post bacc. They don’t include your Masters in your GPA at MD schools. The Masters will be listed separately.
So what are your GPAs combining undergrad and post bacc?
THE issue with a SMP is that it is high stakes-high rewards. You are expected to get a 3.7+ GPA or it’s game over for med school. In your case a full time post bacc for 3-4 semesters might be a better option. If you could string together those 3-4 semesters of full time upper level science courses with a 3.8 GPA you MIGHT be able to convince ADCOMS that you are up to the rigors of med school. But of course there are no guarantees.
Did you know that historically around 40-42% of all applicants are accepted each year? That means around 57%+ of all applicants are out right rejected each cycle. And this is including applicants that have stellar applications. Of course you can pursue a MD acceptance. Nobody is stoppping you. But you have to be realistic and you should always have a backup plan.
And don’t apply next cycle whiteout showing significant improvement in your application.

 

[Putkernerinthehall]

Very helpful, thank you. Do you have any recommendations as to what I should pursue next academic year while re-applying? Does an SMP sound like a good idea?

I would defer to @candbgirl recommendations above.