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Sibling legacy & how to communicate it?
- Thread starter runtranquilo
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Legacy doesn't mean a whole lot in the grand scheme of things. It sounds impressive, but I doubt it will make the school absolutely want to chose you.
But if you were to mention it, where would you say it? Obviously you wouldn't say it on the primary app because then it might seem like you are choosing medicine because that's what your sister did. The secondary app may be better, but I would mention this in the "Why this school" question or "Anything else you would like to add." Obviously it isn't that strong of a reason to go there, but it is a reason. Frankly put, the schools will care more about your ECs, PS, LORs, GPA and MCAT than your sister already being a student there.
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quite a few of my secondaries specifically had a spot to write about family that had attended that medical school.
If you really wanted to work it in (not saying it will or will not help), the "why this school" question as BABSstudent said seems appropriate, as long as it's not the only reason.
If you really wanted to work it in (not saying it will or will not help), the "why this school" question as BABSstudent said seems appropriate, as long as it's not the only reason.
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I don't think it would be inappropriate to talk about your experience and familiarity of the school through your sister. Don't expect it to help a ton, but you are at an advantage since you have someone who is intimately familiar with the school and can tell you all about it. It puts you in a uniqueish spot where you can really talk genuinely about the things that attract you to the school.
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I agree with the above poster... but I must say, i've seen what being legacy can do. It may not be the end all be all, but when used the way i've witnessed it can carry some clout. A very interesting thing, this whole medical school admission process is.... Good luck OP! As for your question, I agree with the advice given by the previous posters.
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I got an interview at a school that I knew primarily through the experiences of a sibling and these experiences were discussed at length in my secondary essays. It can't hurt, but it's obviously not a reason that the school will magically give you the auto-admit status that is something like the pre-med's Fountain of Youth.
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sounds to me like this is something you might only bring up casually in an interview.
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Agree with above, why this school secondary prompt, give it a paragraph of its own but make it profound and not just 'also my sis goes here so I should too kthx.' Haha 🙂 harp on the attractive aspects of the school and keep it professional, cite your sibling's good experience there.
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Not worth bringing up in your app. All that does is make it obvious that you're leaning on the accomplishments of someone else to bolster your own success. Bad move. It'd be one thing if both parents went to a school, and their grandparents, and your uncles... but that's clearly not the case here. Bringing it up could stick you with a label of "that guy" for a very minimal, if any, benefit.
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At my school, legacies help you get to the interview table, but then it's on you. Your mileage may vary from school to school.
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I will never understand how being a legacy carries any weight at all. Maybe you know about the school because a parent went there, but how much do you REALLY know? The school has likely changed drastically since medicine itself is very different now than when an applicant's parent was in school. People can know just as much about a school by having a close friend or significant other (basically a peer) who attends the school. I see two options for why it may matter to an admissions committee.
Option A: Being a legacy means you know about the school. However, I think a very curious and research minded non-legacy can learn a ton about a school, and I don't see how passive consumption of information from a relative is any better than a non-legacy aggressively researching a school.
Option B: It is just another way students from higher socioeconomic backgrounds have a leg up in the process. I'd like to think it isn't this, but it probably is.
Option A: Being a legacy means you know about the school. However, I think a very curious and research minded non-legacy can learn a ton about a school, and I don't see how passive consumption of information from a relative is any better than a non-legacy aggressively researching a school.
Option B: It is just another way students from higher socioeconomic backgrounds have a leg up in the process. I'd like to think it isn't this, but it probably is.
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Your point about 'just another SES advantage' is probably quite valid...
But from a school's perspective, it probably does improve yield. Applying to Big Sister's medical school probably means you're more likely than most accepted students to choose that school in a multiple-acceptance scenario. After all, if you really didn't want to go to the same school, you'd have the information you needed to avoid applying there.
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Legacy status makes a difference and it is definitely worth mentioning. I do not think it will be seen as trying to ride on your sister's coattails. Schools like legacies because strengthening their alumni network helps a school's reputation and endowment. Having a family tie to the school also makes you more likely to matriculate at that school, and schools like high matriculation rates.
Of course, it won't make up for a clearly subpar application, but it could definitely make the difference between a waitlist and an accept in some situations.
Of course, it won't make up for a clearly subpar application, but it could definitely make the difference between a waitlist and an accept in some situations.
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If you haven't taken the MCAT then try to shoot for a score higher than the average.
As said by some, a 33/3.55 (and hopefully higher after this semester) will be good enough on its own merits to get you an interview and being legacy would probably give you a slight leg up when it comes to whether you should be waitlisted or not (assuming the interview goes well).
As said by some, a 33/3.55 (and hopefully higher after this semester) will be good enough on its own merits to get you an interview and being legacy would probably give you a slight leg up when it comes to whether you should be waitlisted or not (assuming the interview goes well).
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In my opinion, legacy means absolutely nothing. I think it matters more for undergraduate admissions than it does for medical school admissions - some schools do value it, but as a rule of thumb - the fact someone else with your surname went/attends a school, does not give you a real big advantage. I would say probably it has the equivalent of a GPA bump from a 3.51 to 3.53. Marginal advantage, at best.
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Legacy means almost nothing for med school admissions. Just do all you can to be a unique you and apply.
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Legacy does matter, unfortunately. I'm sure it varies school to school. There are schools that specifically ask you about it (Jefferson and Tufts to name a couple). You could also add it in the "anything else/why this school" prompt. Personally, when I applied unsuccessfully two years ago, I received an interview invite at a school my dad went to. I ended up waitlisted, but I highly doubt that I would have even interviewed were it not for legacy.
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It's definitely school dependent, but worth mentioning in the secondary application. Spending the summer at the clinic would help you out regardless of whether or not your sister runs it. I know at least for me being a legacy did not matter in the slightest to my sister's school even though we had similar stats. In the end I think it does play a role in protecting yield, because I most likely would have matriculated due to my sister's positive experience with the school and proximity to our home. Her school does have one of the smallest class sizes in the nation so that may influence how selective they are with their invites. My friend who was a legacy to a mid-tier school also didn't get an interview despite MCAT and GPA above the school's average. In some schools it makes a difference in others it just doesn't.
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legacy means no matter how crappy of an applicant you are, usually we will extend an interview out of courtesy to your father/mother.
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Every school IMO admits 3 categories of students :-
1. Super-stars
2. Cookie-cutters
3. Sub-par candidates
Inevitably cookie-cutters make up the vast majority of the class, if you happen to be a cookie cutter applicant to that school, then something like legacy is very likely going to come into play when the admissions committee sits down to make a decision. It's an easy way to make a choice between you and the next guy/gal that looks exactly like you.
However, in the selection of sub-par(by stats, not experiences) candidates, how much effect legacy status confers on a student is probably up in the air. It might be very much dependant on which stage of the process you are in. Interviews might be extended as a matter of courtesy, but final decisions might hold everyone to the same standards. It could have similar effects to someone whose parents are members of the faculty or someone with political connections.
In the end, legacy is just another type of human network, and it's impossible to avoid networks. It's also equally useless to complain about the accumulation of advantage over generations, it's a direct result of the fact that capital can be held and passed on after death.
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The effect of legacy (in the broad definition) is more powerful than the effect of being under-represented in medicine (in any definition).
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100% agree. Can extend to siblings in med school or grads, or friends of Faculty.
To follow up gyngyn's comment,"legacy" also includes people with very large donation checks in hand. This explains some of those people who get accepted with <21 MCAT scores or <3.0 GPAs.
To follow up gyngyn's comment,"legacy" also includes people with very large donation checks in hand. This explains some of those people who get accepted with <21 MCAT scores or <3.0 GPAs.
