premed consulting firms?

[tranvu]

Hi guys,

I was wondering if any of you guys have tried using a private premed consulting firm that helps you out with the entire application process. If so, would you recommend it? I'm just realized that I won't be getting into med school this year and am thinking about getting help with my application for next year. Any advice would help!

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[Street Philosopher]

Nothing like a $10,000 nanny to hold your weenie for ya while you piss.

Look. A doctor is supposed to be able to think and act indepedently. If you want questions answered, there are so many sources out there, from your school counselor, SDN, and other premed sites. Why do you need to pay someone to coach you? If so, maybe being a doctor is not for you, and you should just learn how to take money off your parents' trust fund or something. Resourcefulness is another quality that a good physician should have. Learn to use the resources you already have. You don't need people telling you how to do everything in every step of the process and to tell you how to write your PS or what your personal values and interests should be.

I guess this is my biased and not-so-friendly way of saying:

No, I have not used a premed consulting firm and I do not recommend it.

 

[Street Philosopher]

Welcome to SDN. You'll find that you can answer a lot of questions here, and that people are generally nicer than I am.

 

[indianboy]

Hey! You're in luck, I just happen to be a certified pre-med consultant. And since I already like you, I'm willing to cut you a deal - friend, this is your lucky day. All your dreams and more, just one check away. PM me Dr-to-be. Let's make this happen.

Hope that Helps.

P 'Premed's gift to god' ShankOut

 

[Dr.Tong]

Wow, this kid just wanted some advice...why such anger and sarcasm?

 

[UCLAMAN]

Originally posted by Dr.Tong
Wow, this kid just wanted some advice...why such anger and sarcasm?

Word.

To the OP....

Basically the consulting firms are just money grubbers. Sorta like those scholarship search agencies that you pay hundreds to to get you a scholarship application that you could've found yourself if you had looked around.

If you aren't doing so hot this year a consulting firm won't help you. To analyze your weaknesses you should seek out admissions officers from schools you have been rejected at. Some schools would be more than willing to give you some feedback while other may not. You have to take the initiative to reach them though. I mean...for the most part you don't even need adcoms to figure out your weaknesses. Were youur numbers low(gpa/mcat)? Were your EC's lacking in substance? What was your personal statement like? Did it convey who you were through vivid vignettes about yourself? Did you revise it again, and again, and yet again while having as many people as possible give you feedback? What about timing? Did you apply early? What other EC's can you add to make yourself a stronger applicant? How can you become a leader/coordinator/primary author/something better in the ECs you are already involved in?

You don't really need a consulting firm to ask those questions for you, right? You are probably bright enough to assess your own situation. I'd say rather than spending hundreds or thousands of dollars on a consulting firm save it for your app fees. Spend the time you would've been spending with a money grubbing consultant IMPROVING YOURSELF by addressing the many questions above. A consulting firm(as much as they market themselves to be) IS NOT A MAGIC BULLET to get you to medical school! You are the only one who can get you to medical school. It is your work, your test scores, your essay revisions, your late nights feeding the homeless, etc. that will get you to medical school.

 

[booradley]

I actually met with a woman who does pre-med consulting once. She charges $125/hour. She used to be on the adcom at Stanford. I am non-traditional and don't have access to a pre-med advisor at a University, so I needed this to see what I needed to do before I applied. She is in Menlo Park (SF bay area), but will do phone consulting as well. I thought the $125 was worth it as I have 3 interviews so far (USC, SLU, Drexel) and my undergrad GPA was only 3.3. In case you're curious my MCAT was 31, and my graduate GPA was 3.7. She gave me some tips I would not have had otherwise, and I think that helped me get these interviews. She will also review personal statements and do mock-interviewing, but I did not use these services. I only had the one initial consult. Anyway, here is her website:
http://www.judycolwell.com/

Good luck!

 

[aquaboy]

$125 per hour. Holy crap!!!!! I should skip med school and become a pre-med consultant since I have done this twice. Boo, you stated that you received interviews at SLU, Drexel and USC with a 3.3 and a 31 MCAT. I think it's great that you have interviews but it is not a result of the premed consultant. You have around/above the average stats for these schools and that is why you got interviews. If you would have applied and saved yourself the $125 you most likely would have received interviews anyways. Just surf, SDN, it's free and you get a lot of great advice!!!!!!!!

 

[UCLAMAN]

Originally posted by booradley
I actually met with a woman who does pre-med consulting once. She charges $125/hour. She used to be on the adcom at Stanford. I am non-traditional and don't have access to a pre-med advisor at a University, so I needed this to see what I needed to do before I applied. She is in Menlo Park (SF bay area), but will do phone consulting as well. I thought the $125 was worth it as I have 3 interviews so far (USC, SLU, Drexel) and my undergrad GPA was only 3.3. In case you're curious my MCAT was 31, and my graduate GPA was 3.7. She gave me some tips I would not have had otherwise, and I think that helped me get these interviews. She will also review personal statements and do mock-interviewing, but I did not use these services. I only had the one initial consult. Anyway, here is her website:
http://www.judycolwell.com/

Good luck!

So what exactly did she tell you that you wouldn't have known if you didn't do the searching? (or can you not divulge that because then you would be giving free consulting to the rest of sdn?) Like aquaboy said...you got those interviews because of YOUR accomplishments. Judy Colwell probably advised you how to present those accomplishments. But you really could have figured all that stuff out for yourself had you sought a good premed advisor(even tho you are nontrad I'm sure if you searched at the local univeristies you would find someone willing to help even if you weren't enrolled) and kept your ear to the ground at places like sdn. Sure a lot of stuff on this message board is worthless....but if you sift through it all there is some valuable information to be found. But hey...your $125 I guess...whatever reassures you that you will get in somewhere. So yeah....what exactly did she do for you that was worth $125?

 

[DW]

haha, seriously, developing a pm rapport with a couple med students and fellow applicants on here was easily the best advice i got in this process. save your money for the relevant **** (secondaries, flights, etc)

 

[tms]

Talk about negative energy. WOW.

Hey, if paying $125 gives you peace of mind that your application process is on track...good for you. As far as I'm concerned, any positive feelings that I can get during this sh*tty process is worth it.

 

[booradley]

Well basically, I have been out of school for about 8 years working in the biotech industry. I had most of my pre-reqs done, but was missing a few. She helped me figure out how to fit these into my work schedule so I did not have to quit working. Which to take first, which schools needed what, etc. She also gave me advice on where to start to get clinical experience which I had none of since 1992. In addition, since I have been out of the school loop, I wanted someone to look at my credentials to tell me if I even had a chance before I invested the mega$$ you spend while applying. When I met with her, I had not yet taken the MCAT, so I also wanted to know what I needed to score to have a shot (she told me to get at least a 30). Honestly, you all are right, I probably could have found all the info she gave me by web-surfing, but I am pretty busy at work most of the time, and sitting on the computer is the last thing I want to do when I get home. So yes, having the info given to me an a silver platter in 1 hour was worth it. Also, since I have a very nice salary thanks to working, $125 didn't seem like much given it probably would have taken me days/weeks to find out the info. Like I said 1 meeting was enough, I just needed someone to help me get the ball rolling.

 

[UCLAMAN]

Originally posted by booradley
Well basically, I have been out of school for about 8 years working in the biotech industry. I had most of my pre-reqs done, but was missing a few. She helped me figure out how to fit these into my work schedule so I did not have to quit working. Which to take first, which schools needed what, etc. She also gave me advice on where to start to get clinical experience which I had none of since 1992. In addition, since I have been out of the school loop, I wanted someone to look at my credentials to tell me if I even had a chance before I invested the mega$$ you spend while applying. When I met with her, I had not yet taken the MCAT, so I also wanted to know what I needed to score to have a shot (she told me to get at least a 30). Honestly, you all are right, I probably could have found all the info she gave me by web-surfing, but I am pretty busy at work most of the time, and sitting on the computer is the last thing I want to do when I get home. So yes, having the info given to me an a silver platter in 1 hour was worth it. Also, since I have a very nice salary thanks to working, $125 didn't seem like much given it probably would have taken me days/weeks to find out the info. Like I said 1 meeting was enough, I just needed someone to help me get the ball rolling.

Your situation makes sense and is a good call on your part....but for most traditional applicants I 'd say consulting is a waste.

Good luck the rest of the way!