Preparing for a second application cycle - looking for feedback + updated school list

[Reasonstocontinue]

Hello everyone. The cycle has been draining, and I'm on three waitlists, "1 R." I am seeking an updated school list (for both MD + MD/PhD) and any insights for this upcoming application cycle. I only applied MD this past cycle.

4 IIs
1) UMN (WL)
2) UCincinnati (WL)
3) Iowa (WL)
4) Emory (WL but believe will be R)

I received feedback from Iowa about my interview. The only negative aspect they mentioned was some of my answers felt "over-prepared." This was my first interview of the cycle. I believe I improved over time, but it is hard to say at the moment.

I am only listing the hours I'll have at the time of the new application cycle.

• cGPA and sGPA as calculated by AMCAS
  • 4.0
  • 4.0
• MCAT score(s) and breakdown. Include all (non-voided) attempts.
  • 514, one attempt. As it will be voided at most schools after my second cycle, I plan to start studying in Fall 2024 and resit the exam in Spring 2025.
• State of residence or country of citizenship (if non-US)
  • MN
• Ethnicity and/or race
  1. White
• Undergraduate institution or category
  1. UMN
• Clinical experience (volunteer and non-volunteer)
  1. 2250 hours at time of application
     1. CNA at rehab + memory care centers
     2. Technician at a large hospital system
     3. Hospital volunteer
• Research experience and productivity
  1. 4500 hours at time of application
  2. 13+ posters, 1 manuscript in prep but will not be ready by cycle
  3. Neuromodulation research focused on spinal cord injuries, epilepsy (seizure control), and Parkinson's disease
• Shadowing experience and specialties represented
  1. 300+ hours
  2. Cardiology, Family Medicine, Internal Medicine, Neurology, Neurosurgery, and ENT
  3. In-patient centers, surgeries, and clinics focused on women's cardiovascular health
• Non-clinical volunteering
  1. 220+ hours at time of application
  2. Split between community centers for Veterans, food banks/shelters, and the Ronald McDonald House
• Other extracurricular activities (including athletics, military service, gap year activities, leadership, teaching, etc)
  1. TA for four academic semesters (200+ hours)
  2. Peer Tutor for eight academic semesters (400+ hours)
  3. Leadership positions within my college focused on community building, public outreach, etc. (165+ hours)
  4. Hobby: gardening + farmhand. Connects to my upbringing and many brought this up in my interviews.
• Relevant honors or awards
  1. Dean's List (8x)
  2. Tutoring award
  3. Research grants + scholarships

Thanks, everyone. I appreciate any feedback.

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[indebtedsaddle23]

Wait you interviewed at Emory and received an R post interview? I thought that they don’t send R’s for interviewees until very end of cycle.

 

[indebtedsaddle23]

Also school list would be helpful as well!

 

[Reasonstocontinue]

Wait you interviewed at Emory and received an R post interview? I thought that they don’t send R’s for interviewees until very end of cycle.

That's what I'm assuming at this point - no significant ties to the state, low MCAT, and based on the feedback from Iowa, I'm not holding my breath.

 

[AJS59]

That's what I'm assuming at this point - no significant ties to the state, low MCAT, and based on the feedback from Iowa, I'm not holding my breath.

Emory is private so unless I'm not seeing something I don't think state ties are going to significantly weigh against you.

What was your full school list?

I don't see any obvious holes in your application. How did you feel about your LORs? Your writing? When did you submit your apps?

I still wouldn't give up all hope yet. All it takes is 1.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

What was this feedback from Iowa? How is 514 a "low MCAT"?

How is being a "gardener and farmhand" align with the mission fits of the schools left on your list? You say you have poor interviewing skills, so let's start with this specific element which you feel is a strength (adds diversity?).

 

[Reasonstocontinue]

What was this feedback from Iowa? How is 514 a "low MCAT"?

How is being a "gardener and farmhand" align with the mission fits of the schools left on your list? You say you have poor interviewing skills, so let's start with this specific element which you feel is a strength (adds diversity?).

Iowa feedback - strong PS/LOR/ECs. The only comment made was about my shadowing description ("negative"). They would rather me describe a personal experience with a physician/patient rather than what I did: listing all specialties I shadowed, my patient interactions, and what I gained. They stressed this was their preference and felt my response was "lacking."

For the "low MCAT," I'm proud of my score and never considered it low. The individual I talked to said this was a comment left by a reviewer who said, for an OOS applicant, they wished it wasn't this "low." Unfortunately, this is the lens I have for the score (I'm trying to fix it). They said I should retake for a "better chance next cycle." Yes, they aren't wrong, but I don't have the time to resit the exam at the moment.

As for your comment about my gardening and farmhand experience, this ties directly to my upbringing. Starting from a young age, I was working at my grandparent's hobby farm (rural MN) learning what it meant to care for the land, animals, and others in a small community. It represents my upbringing as I spent countless hours under the hot sun, tending to our gardens. This experience also connects to my non-clinical volunteering - specifically the homeless/community shelters - as I would always take the fresh produce to these locations. This is how, from my grandparents, I learned to connect with people at a young age. I didn't connect it to my "why medicine"/how I'll tend to others as a physician because this is just an aspect of me/how I've come to get involved in various communities. So, I didn't feel the need to try and stretch the truth. From attending a college in a large city, many of my peers had no idea what it meant to grow a garden and always cherished the food I shared with them. If you feel differently about this, I will take any feedback you have.

 

[Reasonstocontinue]

Also school list would be helpful as well!

School List:
UMN (ties to state)
Cincinnati (ties to state)
Iowa
Emory
Dartmouth
Brown
Maryland
Tufts
Wisconsin (ties to state)
Nebraska (ties to state)
Ohio State (ties to state)
UPitt
New York Medical College
Mayo Clinic (ties to state + worked at institution)

---------------------------------------------------------

School list is too top heavy + not enough schools. I didn't have the financial means to apply to more schools (albeit more appropriate choices) last cycle, which has since changed. I've currently stretched my MD list to 23 schools and MD-PhD list to 25 schools. The MD-PhD list also contains schools that will consider me for the MD-only track if rejected from MD-PhD program.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Iowa feedback - strong PS/LOR/ECs. The only comment made was about my shadowing description ("negative"). They would rather me describe a personal experience with a physician/patient rather than what I did: listing all specialties I shadowed, my patient interactions, and what I gained. They stressed this was their preference and felt my response was "lacking."

For the "low MCAT," I'm proud of my score and never considered it low. The individual I talked to said this was a comment left by a reviewer who said, for an OOS applicant, they wished it wasn't this "low." Unfortunately, this is the lens I have for the score (I'm trying to fix it). They said I should retake for a "better chance next cycle." Yes, they aren't wrong, but I don't have the time to resit the exam at the moment.

As for your comment about my gardening and farmhand experience, this ties directly to my upbringing. Starting from a young age, I was working at my grandparent's hobby farm (rural MN) learning what it meant to care for the land, animals, and others in a small community. It represents my upbringing as I spent countless hours under the hot sun, tending to our gardens. This experience also connects to my non-clinical volunteering - specifically the homeless/community shelters - as I would always take the fresh produce to these locations. This is how, from my grandparents, I learned to connect with people at a young age. I didn't connect it to my "why medicine"/how I'll tend to others as a physician because this is just an aspect of me/how I've come to get involved in various communities. So, I didn't feel the need to try and stretch the truth. From attending a college in a large city, many of my peers had no idea what it meant to grow a garden and always cherished the food I shared with them. If you feel differently about this, I will take any feedback you have.

The Iowa feedback is helpful. Without knowing more context behind the question, I have pushed advisees to emphasize observational skills to reflect on what doctors do in establishing or maintaining a strong doctor-patient relationship despite the short duration of the visits. You will do a lot of observing early in your education and training, so how you reflect and process the interactions to help you is important. That doesn't make you a "bad interviewer," but it's a key point on their rubric.

I don't consider a 514 low. It might be low for the pool you happen to be in, but many schools only make that judgment to screen for interview. If it came up in file deliberations, that's how the cards are dealt, but I'm sure they have lost plenty of OOS applicants with higher MCATs. I tell people, holistic review is important, but the model still has the metrics at the center of the bullseye. You could do just fine in another applicant pool or an adcom that doesn't consider MCAT in file deliberations so strongly.

I don't have any issue with your story, but you said as a topic it always came up in interviewers. I wasn't sure your comment on being a "bad interviewer" had something to do with the interviewers' reception to this. I totally get how you can link it as a core value that you intend to live upon. But you don't have to stretch the truth to connect it to the way you will practice medicine. In fact, it's not much of a stretch.

Look up programs and cross-reference with your list:

Medical Schools Using the HmF Curriculum

Find out which medical schools are using the Health meets Food Culinary Medicine curriculum and how to contact the leaders of each program.

culinarymedicine.org

FIMC

fimcoalition.org

 

[ClashRoyaleKing]

514 is not low for Iowa, this is their accepted candidates. As Smile said, they probably lose a lot of higher MCAT students anyways.

Interesting to hear about the feedback on the shadowing. It makes me want to check mine now....

 

[Mr.Smile12]

View attachment 385299
514 is not low for Iowa, this is their accepted candidates. As Smile said, they probably lose a lot of higher MCAT students anyways.

Interesting to hear about the feedback on the shadowing. It makes me want to check mine now....

Becoming a Student Doctor has a checklist on shadowing for enrolled students.

 

[ClashRoyaleKing]

Becoming a Student Doctor has a checklist on shadowing for enrolled students.

Awesome! I'll check that out.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Awesome! I'll check that out.

Let me know if you can't find it.

 

[sciencerules135]

Awesome! I'll check that out.

Did you find the link/ can you share it? Thank you

 

[ClashRoyaleKing]

I just got back into my email to access the course and could not find it. I am scouring the content though lol. Are you on the Becoming a Student Doctor channel?

@Mr.Smile12
@sciencerules135

(for some reason the multiquote did not work lol)

 

[chilly_md]

School list is too top heavy + not enough schools. I didn't have the financial means to apply to more schools (albeit more appropriate choices) last cycle, which has since changed. I've currently stretched my MD list to 23 schools and MD-PhD list to 25 schools. The MD-PhD list also contains schools that will consider me for the MD-only track if rejected from MD-PhD program.

4 interviews out of 14 schools applied to is impressive. Do a few mock interviews to practice.

What is new on your app that was not there before (or were projected hours originally)?

 

[sciencerules135]

I just got back into my email to access the course and could not find it. I am scouring the content though lol. Are you on the Becoming a Student Doctor channel?

@Mr.Smile12
@sciencerules135

(for some reason the multiquote did not work lol)

I don't think so