Medical Should I be worried if I haven't received any interview invites yet?

[TheBoneDoctah]

I'm wondering why I haven't received any interview invites. Traditional applicant, top 20 top large research undergraduate. 515 MCAT (one sitting) 3.85 cGPA and 3.9 sGPA. Have six LORs (all science profs and one PI). ORM, CA resident. Major research (4 years in summer) at top tier research institutions, no publications but multiple poster presentations and presentations to faculty. >250 hours of hospital volunteering in university hospital w/direct patient experience. Tutoring/teaching undergraduates chemistry courses. COVID volunteer at testing center. I realize it's still early, but wondering if anything in my background/experience is lacking. Applied broadly to 32 schools (instate and out of state privates and some public).

California is a tough place to apply.

How top-heavy did you apply?

Thanks for your reply. Applied to: all the UC schools, Kaiser, USC and Stanford (worked there one summer and have additional connection). OOS schools: Jefferson, Tufts, Rochester, Stony Brook, Dartmouth, Emory, Wake Forest, Pitt, Cincinnati, Hofstra, Case, Northwestern, UVA, Ohio State, Penn, Iowa, Michigan, Vanderbilt, Wash U, Cornell, Maryland, Einstein, BU, Icahn, Harvard (worked there for summer and rec letter from there), JHU, Indiana.

Do you think it's too late to add any more schools. I was verified by AMCAS in earliest round (July 10th) and submitted secondaries to most schools within 2 weeks, some within a month. My last submission was last week to Iowa and Maryland.

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[Goro]

Patience is a virtue; the need for instant gratification is not.

Schools stratify the apps as they come in and don't send out secondaries or IIs merely in chronological order.

Secondaries are often a tax on the hopelessly naïve, if not pathologically optimistic.

Not directed at you, OP, but I do routinely advise SDNers to not to have the mindset of “I sent in my apps; where are my IIs???!!!”

 

[Goro]

Also, get off campus and out of your comfort zone in terms of service to others less fortunate than yourself.

 

[Goro]

Thanks for your reply. Applied to: all the UC schools, Kaiser, USC and Stanford (worked there one summer and have additional connection). OOS schools: Jefferson, Tufts, Rochester, Stony Brook, Dartmouth, Emory, Wake Forest, Pitt, Cincinnati, Hofstra, Case, Northwestern, UVA, Ohio State, Penn, Iowa, Michigan, Vanderbilt, Wash U, Cornell, Maryland, Einstein, BU, Icahn, Harvard (worked there for summer and rec letter from there), JHU, Indiana.

Do you think it's too late to add any more schools. I was verified by AMCAS in earliest round (July 10th) and submitted secondaries to most schools within 2 weeks, some within a month. My last submission was last week to Iowa and Maryland.

Northwestern, Stanford, U Penn, Vandy, U MD, WashU, Cornell, Harvard are likely all donations. Your MCAT score is five basis points below their medians, and the higher up the pole one wants to climb, the slipperier it gets.

 

[Goro]

Thank you. Yeah, I figured those were big reaches. I'm doing political work (off campus) in a battleground state --canvassing and helping get people registered to vote. I realize not medically-related, but I feel it's important work right now. Thank you for your feedback. I appreciate it.

That IS very important work!

Hang tight!

 

[tantacles]

I'm wondering why I haven't received any interview invites. Traditional applicant, top 20 top large research undergraduate. 515 MCAT (one sitting) 3.85 cGPA and 3.9 sGPA. Have six LORs (all science profs and one PI). ORM, CA resident. Major research (4 years in summer) at top tier research institutions, no publications but multiple poster presentations and presentations to faculty. >250 hours of hospital volunteering in university hospital w/direct patient experience. Tutoring/teaching undergraduates chemistry courses. COVID volunteer at testing center. I realize it's still early, but wondering if anything in my background/experience is lacking. Applied broadly to 32 schools (instate and out of state privates and some public).

It’s early. You don’t have any interviews now, but it’s the beginning of the season.

wait.

 

[TheBoneDoctah]

Just chill out. Your stats are good. I think you have a ton of reach schools on your list (which is ok), but maybe throw some bait to a few other schools that aren't reaches?

@Goro This cycle when do you think students should start to worry about not getting secondaries since things are pushed back?

 

[Goro]

Just chill out. Your stats are good. I think you have a ton of reach schools on your list (which is ok), but maybe throw some bait to a few other schools that aren't reaches?

@Goro This cycle when do you think students should start to worry about not getting secondaries since things are pushed back?

Early Dec for both MD and DO.