Please advise, Tufts vs. Reapply?

[Cletus]

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Hello everyone. I can't decide whether to accept my only offer to Tufts or to reapply again. I was a business major at Berkeley and after graduating have worked a few years as an investment banker and now on the business side of a nonprofit health plan. I applied very late in the cycle AMCAS (September), Secondaries (January). On top of that my MCAT score was considered too old and therefore my application incomplete for most schools and all CAlifornia ones. I feel because of the tardiness of my app and my old score, I did not give myself a fair chance this application cycle and was wondering if I should just try again next year and pursue my dream of getting into a CA School (UCLA, Stanfurd, USC, Davis, UCSD, UCI) or one outside of CA that is more highly regarded than Tufts.
Do you think given my profile I would have a shot at a California school, or should I just be grateful with my Tufts acceptance? I have a 3.6 GPA, 34 MCAT, spent 2 summers doing research, and am EMT certified. I don't think any of these stats are particularly outstanding given the competitiveness of the California schools, but I think I am differentiated based on my business background and my interest in utilizing it in the future to improve medicine. Also, the only schools I got interviews from this year were Tufts, Columbia, and Albany. Also, do you know if it looks bad to turn down an acceptance and to reapply again? Thank you very much in advance for helping me with this important life decision. =)

 

[imtiaz]

if you got in somewhere, be happy. even though you may want to go to another school, next cycle the schools will be able to see that you were accepted last cycle. how would you answer a question like "i see you were accepted to tufts last year, why arent you a first year there now?" during an interview? it just doesnt show dedication to the field, even though you may be highly motivated and dedicated. on the outside it appears as though you are just going for glory or prestige, and they dont like that. you should feel very relieved that you got in, cause there are people out there (like me) who have no acceptances yet. you should definitely go to tufts.

also, there is always residency. you could match at a CA school for a residency spot. so dont let this opportunity pass you by.

good luck......

 

[Incendiary]

Do NOT turn down Tufts. It sounds like you had quite a good shot at a UC this year, but no med school will be happy with someone who got into a school and turned it down. If you could get to the interview and explain your situation, that would be one thing, but I don't think you'd even have the chance. I guess you could conceivably send each school something explaining your actions when you reapply, but I would highly recommend against it....

Bottom line: take what you have now, or you might have nothing later. Also, be happy. Tufts is a great school, even considering the price. (Also, you don't have to answer this, but shouldn't you have some money saved up if you've been doing I-banking for a few years now?)

 

[deva]

Hi Cletus, welcome to SDN.

My pre-med advisor told me that schools will question your motivation to study medicine if you have an opportunity to go to med school but turn it down in order to reapply. I think this is a very good reason why you should NOT apply to backup schools (most people disagree with me on this).

I think the most important issue is whether you really loved Tufts or not. If you really liked it, than how do you know that you would like a CA school better? If you really hated Tufts, then don't go there. Going to Tufts just because they accepted you doesn't make sense. This is just my opinion.

 

[ckent]

Go to Tufts. If you are looking to save money, remember that you only have a certain number of years you will be working before you retire, so if you wait one more year to start med school, that's one year taken off of the final year of your practicing medicine when you would have been making at least ~100,000. It is difficult to get in as a re-applicant to those schools that you applied to this year because they will be looking for some signficant change to your application between this year and last year which is often difficult to supply. So financially it doesn't make sense, and admissions wise you are looking at an uphill battle at all the schools you already applied to this year, so unless you can't stand the thought of being at Tufts for the next four years, I would go to Tufts because the MD behind your name from Tufts looks the same as the MD that any of the UC schools would have given you.

 

[Cletus]

Thanks for your input imtiaz and incendiary. Someone told me though that schools will not know if you have been accepted because the AMCAS asks you only if you have matriculated and not accepted. Also, If they asked me why I did not accept I figured telling them that I did not because that's how bad I wanted to go to your school would be a strong answer.

Incendiary, I actually did not have a chance at CA schools which is the reason why I am debating this. I took the MCAT in 98 and so I did not meet the MCAT time guidelines all CA Schools so my applications were all considered incomplete. And yes I did save some money, but clearly not enough to pay for Tufts at 40+k per year. This is also a big reason why I have doubts about Tufts in comparison to UCs because I want to pay for my entire education and don't want to rely on my parents for support. Plus I'm from CA, my friends and girlfriend are here, and I've heard its easier to get a CA residency when going to a CA school.

 

[Cletus]

Devastator,
I wish I had access to a premed advisor, but I guess this board is the next best thing. Berkeley doesn't give advice to alumni even for a fee.
I think I will just call up the schools I would like to go to and ask them how they view reaplicants that had an acceptance previously. I guess I should also ask them all whether my application was looked at seriously or not the first time around. They all told me flat out that my app would not be considered, but some still gave me secondaries and they all happily accepted my application fees. I've yet to get a refund from anyone.

Mr. Burns - Do you think having a valid MCAT score now would be significant improvement? I took that beast again this April. Also since my first application I got EMT certified and did some volunteer work at a local ER. Also I work now at a nonprofit Healthplan whereas before I was working at an ibank which was definitely not as medically oriented of a job.

Also would appreciate any other opinions anyone else may have. So far I hear a resounding "Go to Tufts!" =)

 

[Cambrian]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by Cletus:
•Someone told me though that schools will not know if you have been accepted because the AMCAS asks you only if you have matriculated and not accepted.
•••••That's an interesting point. If you have been accepted, when is it considered that you have officially "matriculated"? If you reply their acceptance with your intent to matriculate, does that mean you have matriculated? Or matriculation only occurs when you have officially registered for classes?

I know that on the AMCAS app they ask you if you have matriculated to a medical school. But if you don't tell them, will they dig up your old app and report this info to the medical school you apply to?

 

[Incendiary]

I don't remember what AMCAS asks, but matriculation is when you've officially registered for classes. I remember someone posted earlier that someone started at UCSD and then got into Harvard a week later and went. I somehow doubt that, since that's a big no-no by AMCAS rules, but whatever.

In any case, to the OP, I'm not sure what to say. I agree that you might be happier at a UC, but I don't think your reasoning will fly with them. I think you have more to lose than you have to gain. If medicine is really what you feel you want to do, I would just go with Tufts. You will get a good education there, Boston is a nice place to experience (once), and you'll likely benefit from a change of scenery. True, your girlfriend and parents are still in CA, but it's only four years... Besides, I still think that the UCs will know that you got into Tufts this year, question your motivation to study medicine, and then look less favorably upon you.

Well, how about this? Call every California school on Monday. Ask to speak to the deans of each school, and ask them personally how they would look upon your decision to reapply. Would they not like the fact that you'd gotten into a school already? I'm sure you can remain anonymous and keep the Tufts part on the DL, so I think that hearing it straight from the horses' mouths is the only way to answer your question.

Good luck!

 

[vyc]

it really depends on how badly you want to go to med school now and if you're willing to wait a year, which sounds like you are, or else you wouldn't be asking this question.

actually though, your application was NOT terribly late for this year. turning in AMCAS in september and sending in most primaries in january is a BIT late but not as late as it would have been had this year been normal.

i sent my AMCAS in august and had most primaries done by like november so see, i wasn't that much more ahead of you. and i don't think i really hurt myself with the timing of my applications.

my point is that i'm not sure how much stronger your application will be in a year so do you really want to go through the entire application process AGAIN???

 

[moo]

I would definitely NOT reapply again. Cali schools are notoriously difficult to get into as you probably know, and not to knock you or anything, but your stats aren't that high that you will be guaranteed another acceptance at a UC even if you apply early. Be grateful you got into Tufts, and go back to Cali for residency.

Cheers!

 

[TommyGunn04]

Some wise person once said, P=MD! If you go to Tufts, you'll become a doctor! And once you're there the rest is up to you. That being said, Tufts' financial aid is the worst, and it's one of the most expensive schools in the country.

 

[DRNNHA]

Have you consider to defer Tufts and apply to California schools next year? Plus you'll have to retake your MCAT, will you get a 34 again?
You can find out whether you should defer and reapply to a few schools of your interest.

 

[Cambrian]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by DRNNHA:
•Have you consider to defer Tufts and apply to California schools next year? Plus you'll have to retake your MCAT, will you get a 34 again?
You can find out whether you should defer and reapply to a few schools of your interest.•••••I don't think it works that way. Deferring means you are obligated to attend the medical school next year and that you are forbidden from applying to any other medical school. Correct me if I'm wrong.

 

[hawkeyes]

I'll get back to this, or if I forget to, PM me. My good friend actually did defer a non-Cali school, and re-applied and ended up at UCLA! (at least, that's what I remember) It may be possible, *IF* deferral is even an option with Tufts. I'll ask my friend how he did that. Wanting to go to a Cali school so badly that you would be willing to retake the MCAT and REAPPLY (that does sound like some major committment), ...I hope is becuase you want to save the extra 100K. IMHO that is legit. But if it's for reputation - I would strongly advise Tufts this year. I would not go to Stanford over Tufts and DEFINATELY not USC (being just as expensive). But that's just me. If I didn't have the option of a UC, I'd go to Tufts just for the adventure of living in Boston for 4 years. When else will you ever get to do something like that? Good luck! 🙂

 

[none]

You can't defer and go then go somewhere else the next year!! A deferment is a guarantee to the school you deferred from that you will matriculate the following year. As for reapplication, don't let getting into a CA residency deter you. If you want into a CA residency, you can get into one regardless of where you went for med school. Only 9 of 13 residency spots in Fresno filled last year for internal med.

 

[Katie]

I am an M '05 at Tufts and think you would get a very good education here.. plenty of people in my class are doing the long-distance relationship thing (though I personally couldn't hack it) and it seems to be working fine for them, so you and the gf could give it a try. good luck with your decision; let me know if you have any more questions about Tufts. I am very happy to have been admitted here and am greatful for my acceptance (my stats were not as good as yours).

 

[Incendiary]

•••quote:•••Originally posted by none:
•You can't defer and go then go somewhere else the next year!! A deferment is a guarantee to the school you deferred from that you will matriculate the following year. As for reapplication, don't let getting into a CA residency deter you. If you want into a CA residency, you can get into one regardless of where you went for med school. Only 9 of 13 residency spots in Fresno filled last year for internal med.•••••I think at most schools a deferral means that you will not apply anywhere else in the interim. However, you can always accept a position off the waitlist at a different school...

 

[otter]

Cletus, you should go to Tufts. Let me make a couple of points. In reference to your belief that it's easier to land a residency in CA from a UC school than from Tufts, I'm not sure that that's true. I interviewed at Tufts in March. The guy who interviewed me was a 4th year from CA. He said that Tufts grads who want to go back to CA for residency will NOT have any problems doing so, unless he/she has horrible grades or it's in a highly competitive field.

The second thing I want to say is that, yes your business background may help you differentiate yourself. But the thing is there are so many candidates out there with unique life experiences, too. I came from a very successful career in semiconductor, so I thought I had the upper-hand as far as being a unique candidate. But last year, I got rejected by every school I applied to. So, I think you should be happy with your Tufts acceptance. It's a top-notch school, and Boston's a great town. I am trying to get in there right now, so maybe we'll become classmates!

 

[lola]

wow, berkeley won't let you use their advisers if you've already graduated? that REALLY REALLY sucks. i graduated 5 years ago, and my undergraduate institution has been so helpful in this process.
i say go to tufts. it's a great school! maybe you could look into transferring to a uc (if possible) if you really want to go back to ca after spending a couple of years at tufts.

 

[Future_Doc]

What's wrong with Tufts?

 

[altaskier]

Listen, there is no guarantee that you'll get in again if you re apply. Go to Tufts. It's a good school in a kick ass location. I though Boston was a real nice city and I disliked the east coast.

 

[andy toth]

tufts is too "boston". i don't know if that spills over to the medical school.