No Interview Invites, Mid-December

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Omgkenny

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Hi All,

It's already the middle of December and I haven't gotten any interview invites from med schools at all. I was complete early-mid September. Applied to 40 schools (7 rejections, 3 pre-interview holds). I'm getting really nervous; how bad is my situation right now?

Stats: 3.56/3.43 GPA/sGPA
35 (13,10,12) MCAT
Bioengineering major
CA resident
Lots of research (3 summer internships in industry, 2.5 years Bioengineering research)
Limited Clinical (1 semester hospital volunteering, winter break overseas volunteering)
Adequate shadowing (about 5 weeks total split among 8 different doctors)

I will be coming up with backup plans in January if I really want to know how much of a chance I really still have this semester. I'm going to be pretty heartbroken considering I cast a really wide net too... I applied to mainly upper-mid/mid tier schools. I know my GPA isn't that good, but I was hoping my MCAT kind of makes up for it.
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Applying late and only to mid and uppers may have hurt you greatly


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My secondaries were complete early-mid September. Sorry I should have specified that. Is that still really late?
 
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Omgkenny said:
My secondaries were complete early-mid September. Sorry I should have specified that. Is that still really late?
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Yes, this is late. Ideally you want to submit them in early July if at all possible.

This cycle is not over, so don't give up yet.

With your lower GPA and high MCAT, a post bacc program could increase your competitiveness.
 
Jeez man, 40 schools, I'd expect some response at least. Cycle isn't over yet so stay positive. But if you have no luck, maybe expand your clinical experience and raise your GPA.
 
I wouldn't say Sept is super late, but applying earlier definitely helps you stand out more. The only problem with upper tiers is that their 10th percentile GPA is usually 3.6.

The cycle isn't over yet and I've seen people getting IIs even now.

If you don't get any luck, I would say be more open with applying to safety schools and also some of your letters might be mediocre. Also, you could always beef up your clinical experience.
 
September is late, but I'm still surprised you haven't heard anything with a 35 MCAT. Any strange red flags on your app?
 
I think lack of clinical may be hurting me. I'm going to try to get some more clinical experience if I don't get any med school offers.

I can't think of anything terribly wrong with my app off the top of my head. I guess my letters of rec weren't amazing? I know I got a solid letter from one of my internship supervisors and from my PI. I wasn't best friends with any of my professors, but I definitely went to their office hours and after class to get to know them.

I expected rejections. But what gets to me is that I haven't had any invites at all.

In terms of a post-bac, would a post-bac or more clinical experience help me at this point?

These are the schools that I still haven't heard from. Did I go way too top-heavy? I thought I had a good mix but I guess not...

Keck Sch. of Med.University of Southern California
University of California, Davis School of Medicine
University of California, Irvine- College/Medicine
University of California-Riverside School of Medicine
University of California San Diego
Stanford University School of Medicine
University of Colorado School of Medicine
Emory University School of Medicine
Medical College of Georgia at Georgia Regents University
University of Iowa, Carver College of Medicine
University of Chicago - Pritzker
Rush Medical College
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Tufts University School of Medicine
University of Michigan Medical School
Duke University School of Medicine
Albany Medical College
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Columbia University College of P & S
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
New York Medical College
New York University
SUNY at Buffalo Medical School
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Den
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
The Ohio State Univ. Coll. of Med.
Oregon Health and Science University
Temple University School of Medicine
Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University
Stony Brook
 
September for 40 schools is not a deal-breaker. Adcoms have told us time and time again that being verified will hurt a little, but isn't a deal breaker.

It would help if you gave us a list of the schools (or at the least, how many low, mid and top tiers you applied to.) The state schools I applied take their sweet time to send II's and decision letters.
 
After reading the list, you went a little top-heavy. Being a CA resident with that GPA is detrimental (not sure if the MCAT will outweigh the lower GPA.) The state schools (such as Oregon and Ohio) take a little longer. Hell, a class mate of mine didn't get an II until late February but still got in. Don't give up on hope just yet OP.
 
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I agree that your list is too top heavy for your stats. 3.56/35 means you're basically out of luck for schools like Duke, Stanford, and Sinai. Your MCAT is on the lower end of okay for them (average MCATs for these schools are 36-37) but your gpa is way too low and from the looks of it, I don't see anything that really makes up for it. The internships and research are nice, but they are more the icing on the cake. The cake for you has not been cooked nearly enough. Now your clinical exposure certainly isn't bad, but it won't cover for your gpa.

If you choose to reapply next year (assuming, of course, that you don't get an interview and acceptance this year which definitely isn't out of the question), you should be applying to lower, lower mid, and mid tier schools. Forget columbia, chicago, etc, or at least make sure your apps are in at other schools before you focus on them. Even at schools like keck, which is a very solid mid tier school, your MCAT is only average and your gpa is a whopping 0.2 below average.

That being said, I think it's surprising that you don't have at least one II. You have checked all EC boxes, and have a solid MCAT, even if your gpa is low. It's possible your essays or ps were either unremarkable or came across in a way you didn't intend. It's also possible for a single mediocre letter to sour the taste of an otherwise good group of letters, so maybe that's the case.

Again, take everything I say with a grain of salt (or several) as I'm just a premed with no admissions experience. I'm just trying to troubleshoot for you right now and I hope my nearly-stream of consciousness post will be of at least some use.
 
I feel the main problem with letters is that even if they know you well and think really positive things about you, they might not be good at writing letters. When I picked letter writers, I picked people who knew me well and have had years of experience writing letters. I would say your list is kind of top heavy, but I feel that you should have good chances at a decent number of them, like Rush med school.
 
Thank you guys for the responses. Assuming I don't get in anywhere, what other schools should I apply to in the future?
 
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Strike 1 - you submitted and were complete late.

Strike 2 - your GPA is low.

Strike 3 - you do not have enough clinical experience to make up for the low GPA.

Strike 4 - you applied too top heavy given your stats.

I can't comment on your PS or LOR's because I haven't seen them, but I think the 4 reasons I listed above combined led to your unfortunate situation.

I'd say the best solution (if you don't get in this year) is to do both the post-bacc AND get much more clinical experience.
 
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The gpa is a bit on the low end but I would imagine it is the lack of clinical experience that torpedoed your app.
w/o it you can't significantly relate to medicine in your primary and secondary applications. Probably creating 2 red flags.

Despite what everyone tends to say on sdn applying late isn't the unsurpassable death knell. It puts you at a disadvantage (probably significantly in ca) but with 40 plus schools you should have heard something! Maybe I'm just the n=1 but some schools are still in the thick of it.

Find out what schools are receptive of update letters and get on writing. I hope you kept up on EC and have something clinical to talk about. Just my inexperienced opinion for what has turned out to be a much better cycle than I anticipated when complete in mid October.

Good luck!

Edit: just noticed. Was your research productive and in the same field? If it was in multiple fields and unproductive than that whole aspect won't really help you all too much. Posters/grants/pubs!
 
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Have you considered DO? If you don't get in this cycle maybe you should at least research DO schools. In the meantime what are you doing now to improve your application? Have you done anything significant that you could update schools about?
 
If I were you I would start gaining a lot more clinical experiences now and also do more ECs, just in case you end up having to reapply. Your ECs are lacking a lot. Submitting secondaries later than mid-August is late in my opinion and it is arguable that you would've had several IIs if you at least applied earlier. You need to be done with secondaries by the end of July. You don't need to do a masters or post-bac. If it doesn't work out this year, just apply EARLY, don't apply so top-heavy, and make sure your ECs are a lot better.
 
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Your list is way too top heavy for your gpa and nothing that really stands out EC wise (unless you have other big EC's you didn't list). Also your school list included schools like Colorado and Oregon where you pretty much just donated them your application fees because you don't fit their profile. Brown also isn't very friendly to non-undergrads generally. Your list also has a few schools that receive extremely high applicant loads every year = low chance of coming through even if your stats are a fair fit. The wait list also isn't a good sign since schools such as NYU iirc are either done or very close to being done with interviews.

Hopefully something can come through for you, but really focus on your EC's for a potential reapplication and consult with the what schools to apply to forum to do a better job making a realistic list for next cycle. And/or consider an SMP if you would like to go that route.
 
The people saying that mid-September isn't late are just plain giving out lousy advice. Some people that applied in July have a handful of interview invites by that point. It may not be a deal-breaker, but for somebody with a low GPA that needs all the help they can get, you can't tell me that it wasn't a factor.
 
Glandzburg said:
The people saying that mid-September isn't late are just plain giving out lousy advice. Some people that applied in July have a handful of interview invites by that point. It may not be a deal-breaker, but for somebody with a low GPA that needs all the help they can get, you can't tell me that it wasn't a factor.
Click to expand...

Never said it wasn't late or detrimental. Just that it's not an end all (and I may be the exception rather than the rule).

It seems there are many factors for the OP's predicament. One being applying late, but more so that he's from an uber competitive state and doesn't have any unique experiences to be a standout OOS applicant. That and at 40 schools, :vomit:, he should have gotten an interview statistically speaking, even late.

How school specific could he have made his essays? I found it to be a long, daunting process applying to 12 schools and making unique and specific connections between myself and specific school's mission/curriculum/student body/values/etc (since some schools bury their unique aspects deep in some brochure, to make anything heartfelt and not generic, you need lots of time). Quality not quantity is what wins the day. It may be the OP went for the latter instead of the former.
 
This is not a well thought out list. Too many state schools, too many reaches, or mission specific. MCG, for example, only takes GA residents. You guys are expected to do your homework. The ones I have in red are the ones I'd expect you to have a decent chance at.

Keck Sch. of Med.University of Southern California
University of California, Davis School of Medicine
University of California, Irvine- College/Medicine
University of California-Riverside School of Medicine
University of California San Diego
Stanford University School of Medicine
University of Colorado School of Medicine
Emory University School of Medicine
Medical College of Georgia at Georgia Regents University
University of Iowa, Carver College of Medicine
University of Chicago - Pritzker
Rush Medical College
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Tufts University School of Medicine
University of Michigan Medical School
Duke University School of Medicine
Albany Medical College
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Columbia University College of P & S
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
New York Medical College
New York University
SUNY at Buffalo Medical School
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Den
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
The Ohio State Univ. Coll. of Med.
Oregon Health and Science University
Temple University School of Medicine
Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University
Stony Brook[/QUOTE]
 
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Goro said:
This is not a well thought out list. Too many state schools, too many reaches, or mission specific. MCG, for example, only takes GA residents. You guys are expected to do your homework. The ones I have in red are the ones I'd expect you to have a decent chance at.
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I thought that MCG does take OOS residents, unless MSAR and MCG's website are both lying to me.
 
You applied to a bunch of top tier schools and OOS schools and not enough low-tier schools and DO schools. Did you apply to any DO schools? There are a lot of people with a 3.5 matriculating into med school this fall. They're going to be DOs, but they will be doctors.
 
Generally, state schools will take OOSers, but mostly from neighboring states. The taxpayers of the Peach State want to know that you'll stick around to practice there since they are, after all, subsidizing your tuition.

Again, because state schools favor the home team, one has to be above avg to be competitive for them.

aprimenumber said:
I thought that MCG does take OOS residents, unless MSAR and MCG's website are both lying to me.
Click to expand...
 
I have a 3.5 cgpa and science gpa and a 34 MCAT. I applied to 45 schools and completed 42 secondaries with most being complete at schools in mid august when my school uploaded the committee letter (couldn't be complete before then). I have 6 interviews so far, with 3 scheduled next year.

Both my jobs after college have involved tons of patient contact and I had medical reasons for grades and a year gap on my resume.

Your school list is top heavy and your lack of clinical exposure is hurting you. I think you might get some late interviews, but it's always a good idea to plan for a next cycle.

If I were you I would:

Start doing some clinical volunteering/internship.
Look for a research job with patient contact for a 1-2 year position. Or if financial stuff isn't a huge issue, then I would do a post bacc and get clinical exposure. Conversely, if you decide to work in industry, you'll need to do some (read: lots of) clinical exposure through volunteering and shadowing.
Take 1-2 classes a semester for that duration if you're not doing a postbac.

I don't think you should totally count yourself out yet. I would start sending personalized update letters to some schools that you might be interested in and have a reasonable shot at if you have anything interesting to report. For your sake, I hope you do. How are your grades this year?

Have you been doing anything clinical over the fall and winter since you applied?
 
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Doug Underhill said:
You applied to a bunch of top tier schools and OOS schools and not enough low-tier schools and DO schools. Did you apply to any DO schools? There are a lot of people with a 3.5 matriculating into med school this fall. They're going to be DOs, but they will be doctors.
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Lol don't spew the stupid SDN belief that you need to a have a 3.8+ to get into MD programs, you can get into plenty of MD programs with that GPA, especially if you have an upward trend as well as a good MCAT like the OP. As far as OP has told us though s/he hasn't showed any activities or story to make them really interesting to Adcoms. But OP is mostly suffering from just doing a really poor job of choosing which schools to apply to and timing, the 3.5 gpa isn't going to bar them from becoming an MD if that's what they desire.
 
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If it makes you feel any better, I have not heard from the schools below in blue yet, and I applied as soon as I humanly could and I have clinical experience/research/unique activities. I think it's just a long waiting game for a lot of these schools and can't be blamed 100% on being later in the game, I have similar stats and I have IIs to 3 of the other schools listed below. N=1 I know.

Omgkenny said:
...
Keck Sch. of Med.University of Southern California
University of California, Davis School of Medicine
University of California, Irvine- College/Medicine
University of California-Riverside School of Medicine
University of California San Diego
Stanford University School of Medicine
University of Colorado School of Medicine
Emory University School of Medicine
Medical College of Georgia at Georgia Regents University
University of Iowa, Carver College of Medicine
University of Chicago - Pritzker
Rush Medical College
Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine
Tufts University School of Medicine
University of Michigan Medical School
Duke University School of Medicine
Albany Medical College
Albert Einstein College of Medicine
Columbia University College of P & S
Mount Sinai School of Medicine
New York Medical College
New York University
SUNY at Buffalo Medical School
University of Rochester School of Medicine and Den
Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
The Ohio State Univ. Coll. of Med.
Oregon Health and Science University
Temple University School of Medicine
Warren Alpert Medical School of Brown University
Stony Brook
Click to expand...
 
Looks like you just applied to less than 15 schools. With your stats, more than half of the schools are not possible. You are much behind those schools' GPA as well as MCAT (most schools have median MCAT 35 or higher).
 
Doug Underhill said:
You applied to a bunch of top tier schools and OOS schools and not enough low-tier schools and DO schools. Did you apply to any DO schools? There are a lot of people with a 3.5 matriculating into med school this fall. They're going to be DOs, but they will be doctors.
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You're the reason why people who don't have perfect stats will be that much more anxious for applying. Likewise, you're putting DOs in the wrong light, which doesn't help anyone either. I swear, if it were up to the non-adcoms on SDN, 1.) they would move all DO schools to the caribbean and 2.) if you didn't have a 3.8+ GPA and a 33+ MCAT, you'd be auto-rejected.

I have known people with sub-3.3 GPAs (non-URMs) with a lower MCAT that have gotten into "mid-tier" medical schools. This is because they had amazing ECs.
 
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Ace Khalifa said:
Strike 1 - you submitted and were complete late.

Strike 2 - your GPA is low.

Strike 3 - you do not have enough clinical experience to make up for the low GPA.

Strike 4 - you applied too top heavy given your stats.

I can't comment on your PS or LOR's because I haven't seen them, but I think the 4 reasons I listed above combined led to your unfortunate situation.

I'd say the best solution (if you don't get in this year) is to do both the post-bacc AND get much more clinical experience.
Click to expand...
Strike 5- California resident. I mean if you are Alabama or Mississippi residents, you are over qualified, and already got early acceptance way back in Sept/
 
Omgkenny said:
Hi All,

It's already the middle of December and I haven't gotten any interview invites from med schools at all. I was complete early-mid September. Applied to 40 schools (7 rejections, 3 pre-interview holds). I'm getting really nervous; how bad is my situation right now?

Stats: 3.56/3.43 GPA/sGPA
35 (13,10,12) MCAT
Bioengineering major
CA resident
Lots of research (3 summer internships in industry, 2.5 years Bioengineering research)
Limited Clinical (1 semester hospital volunteering, winter break overseas volunteering)
Adequate shadowing (about 5 weeks total split among 8 different doctors)

I will be coming up with backup plans in January if I really want to know how much of a chance I really still have this semester. I'm going to be pretty heartbroken considering I cast a really wide net too... I applied to mainly upper-mid/mid tier schools. I know my GPA isn't that good, but I was hoping my MCAT kind of makes up for it.
Click to expand...

Everyone has pointed out your mistakes. Too late to fix much of it.

It's update letter time to OOS friendly schools on your list!

Get writing.
 
IMO I would not do an smp; just be more broad with where you apply and avoid some of the top tiered schools that you applied to.
 
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