Only Rejections... Where Did I Go Wrong?

[kindofanerd]

I applied to 14 MD/PhD and MSTPs schools this cycle and so far have had 8 rejections with 0 interview invites. I am seriously contemplating another career choice at this point. I do not know where I went wrong exactly and I am here seeking your feedback.

• Year in School: Graduated in 2018, B.S. Molecular Biology and minor in CS from Top 15
• Schools I applied to (all MD/PhD or MSTP): Boston University, Columbia, Duke, Harvard, Hopkins, Einstein, Stanford, UCSF, WashU, Vanderbilt, Wake Forest, Yale, UVA, Emory
• Cumulative GPA: 3.72
• Science GPA: 3.65 (My school is tough...)
• MCAT Score: 514(128,126,130,130)
• Research: 4 years of continuous research since freshman year. 3 Publications (1 first author at a high impact journal, another co-first author and 4th author). Tons of posters and presentations. Presented at 2 national conferences and at my school. Continued doing research after graduation
• Volunteering (clinical): ~100 hrs in the US and outside
• Physician shadowing: ~60 hours with physician scientists and a surgeon
• Non-clinical volunteering: ~ 50 hours
• Extracurricular activities: President and vice president for two student orgs
• Employment history: Competitive research fellowships at my school
• Immediate family members in medicine? yes
• Essays: had positive feedback on my essays from several individuals and faculty.
• LORs: I am sure I had very strong LORs. The professors I asked to write letters had really positive opinion of me and said they wrote very strong letters.

My application and all secondaries were complete by October 1st; some were complete by the end of September but then I was hospitalized and completed the rest afterwards.

I would greatly appreciate your feedback and please let me know if I need to elaborate on anything.

EDITED:

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[Fencer]

Your stats are average for MSTP, let alone T15 MSTPs... You applied late. PM me

 

[Fencer]

There are many talented applicants to MD/PhD programs. As shown in the 2017 AAMC data, the average academic benchmarks of MD/PhD matriculants were 3.79 cGPA and 515.4 MCAT (see table B-10). If your numbers match them, congratulations YOU BELONG... now reset your expectations. About 75% of all MD/PhD matriculants are within the 50 NIH supported MSTPs. If you only apply to the most competitive 10 MSTPs, don't be surprised that you are not interviewed. Use the AAMC tables effectively, particularly tables B-8 and B-12. Make a spreadsheet of the # applicants, # matriculants, and the ratio of applicants per slot. Examine the MSTPs and large non-MSTP MD/PhD programs (4 or more slots per year). Examine their websites and recent trends, for example a program that matriculated 18 students a particular year when their typical class is 10 will likely admit less the following year. Call and inquire to the program coordinator and/or program director about their expected class size...
Readjust expectations... if your numbers are mid-level all MD/PhD, apply to mid-level MD/PhD programs. There are a lot of fantastic programs across the country that will take you to top 10 research-intensive residencies.

To @lovebiochem
Your application could always improve beyond MCAT. Circulate among mentors your essays, continue doing research, present your project at regional/national conferences, apply early AND broad (5 dream, 5-10 match, 5 lower tier for your stats), and take time to study for the MCAT. PM me if you want to talk more details.

 

[kepler16b]

You applied absurdly top-heavy...

 

[PursuingHappy]

I'm no expert but I think maybe you should have applied to a larger range of schools. I have around the same stats and applied to both MSTP and non-MSTP because I wasn't taking any chances. I also had a premed advisor directly tell me that someone applied to 13 schools with similar stats to mine and got 0 acceptances. If you end up having to re-apply, broaden your list. Maybe also include a hobby. Not sure about your other activities but nothing stands out to me. But I ain't even accepted yet so you don't have to listen to me lol.