so what happens to all the applicants that don't get into any med school?

[alleyez]

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do they continue their education at grad schools? get jobs? other? stay an extra year or two and apply again?

most of them are bio, chemistry, and other science majors... so not many jobs are available for them except like a lab rat or something...

and the others who majors in psychology, philosophy... they are pretty much without luck...



can't they try going to a vet, dentistry, pharmacy, or other kind of professional schools?

 

[BlueFalcon]

The only stupid question is the question not asked. On second thought, scratch that.

 

[ForensicPath]

I'm pretty sure that vet school is as difficult or more difficult to get into than med school, so that is probably not an option (I considered vet school for about 3 years before I decided to go the med school route).

 

[jlee9531]

the people who want to get the MD but do not get into an MD school will apply again the next year trying to improve their status as an applicant over the coming year.

some will go and try different fields...but its not as if the fields you mention above are simple to get into. they require their own testing and app process...

about 50+% of applicants will not get into an MD school.

 

[Rohan]

vet is generally harder than med... at least in CA because Davis is the only vet school.. evne though one private may have opened up.

 

[absolutezero]

veterinary medical schools are definitely much harder to get into than human medical schools. you have to have considerable large animal experience to even apply. With only about 25 vet schools in the U.S., the admissions criteria (gpa etc.)would make the typical premed student blanch.

 

[fun8stuff]

I think this is a good question. You always hear about people getting accepted, but you never hear from the people who do not get in and what they end up doing.... what does happen? there has to be a significant number of people who fail to matriculate....

 

[WatchingWaiting]

The allopathic reject rate is about 50%; however, there is some percent who get into a backup option-- either osteopathic or overseas MD. I think there are 3,000 osteopathic slots, as well as probably a few thousand overseas slots, which suggests that perhaps 35% of MD applicants don't get to go to med school anywhere. They go and do what anyone with a college degree does-- teaching, go work in marketing or some other business area that doesn't require much specialized training, go be a real estate agent, etc.

There are ~300M people in this country, 299M of whom are not physicians, but ~100M of whom have college degrees and ~50M who have college degrees not in engineering, economics, or other readily employed professions who are, presumably, doing something.

 

[GeddyLee]

Well...here's what I did. I didn't get accepted my first time around. I got a job. Not a fancy job, just a working man's kinda job, pumping gas at the local airport. I also did some volunteer work at a nursing home for about 2 hours a week. Otherwise, I did a small amount of traveling within the US and just had a god time. My second time around, I got more interviews, wait listed at 2, and accepted straight out at 2 other schools. Much more successful than my first go.

I think continuing your education is a bad idea, unless you plan to get your masters or PhD. Keep in mind, this will set you back 2-7 more years. I would consider going this route if you get rejected you second time. Some people will take an extra year of liberal arts courses....I think this is transparent and doesn't serve much purpose.

I think working a real job is good for you, because it shows you have work ethic, and it puts you in touch with real people, like those you will be treating as a doctor. I don't know it admission committees see it that way, but at least I felt like I wasn't pandering for admission. And there's something to be said for proving you can work a full week, instead of going to classes 15-20 hours a week.

A good number of you who don't get accepted first time will get in second time...I think the number is nearly 50%. Of the 3-4 people in my undergrad college who applied to medical school, all of us got in our second time around.

A good idea for your second application is to broaden your list. Apply to places you left off the first time. Definitely apply to those places where you got interviews the first time. Schools that rejected you without an interview you can probably eliminate from your list, unless you are really interested in their program. Some people expand their application to DO schools and foreign schools. The final option is to decide to just forget about it....I thought about not re-applying. Hey, it's expensive, frustrating, and puts your life on hold. But if you definitely want to be a doc, go for it...the odds are more in your favor your second time.

Anyway, hope this helps. It's too ealy for you guys to worry about it right now though...i didn't get my acceptances until late February and April. Any questions, feel free to PM me.

Geddy

 

[gary5]

Some apply again. The others move on and start another career. Lots of people have one degree and work in a different field. It's not a big deal.

 

[....]

i would like some data that shows the vet school is harder to get into then MD school.

Keep in mind that comparing accepted:applied ratios is useless. They dont taking into acount the quality to their respective applicant pools. Harvard doesnt get as many apps at NYMC but no one thinks NYMC in tougher to get into than Harvard.

I think its odd that more talent goes into caring for peoples pets than does for humans. But it may be true..... show me the data though.

 

[absolutezero]

post deleted

 

[mmz6]

and i think they get paid less too...

my friend is applying to vet skoo...
harder to get into.. he likes the profession, so its worth it

peace
mmz6

 

[....]

Originally posted by absolutezero
I disagree that acceptance ratios for veterinary medical school don't compare to those for human medical school. The average gpa for entering students at ALL vet schools last year was 3.52. Compare that to 3.46 for human medicine applicants.At Cornell, one of the top vet schools, the average gpa of entering students was 3.70 and average GRE score was 1350. Average number of hours of animal experience was 800 hours. With only 27 vet schools in the U.S., applicants come from the very best undergraduate colleges.

In 1999, the last year for which statistics are available, 2301 people matriculated to veterinary medical school out of 6695 applicants. That's an acceptance rate of 32.83% which is considerably more competitive than for human medical school.

On top of that, applicants to vet. med. school must have completed in addition to the standard premed requirements (gchem, ochem, bio, physics, math) a semester of biochemistry and a semester of microbiology with lab.

As far as whether it requires more talent to care for animals than humans, consider the fact that veterinarians need to complete gross anatomy dissections of 5 animals (horse, dog, cat, pig, goat) in as much detail as allopathic med students do for one human cadaver. To top it all off, their patients are unable to describe their ailments. And what in the world would make you think the pathophysiology of animals is any less complicated than for humans? Vet students typically have a much larger workload during their first 2 preclinical years than the average student of human medicine.

what kind of BS comparision is this?!?
matriculant vet gpa > allopathic APPLICANT gpa 🙄

if your numbers are correct the correct comparison would be...

3.65 to 3.52 for the matricualting GPAs. MD wins.
3.7 GPA at cornell vet (which is THE TOP school incountry for vet)
3.83 for top med schools

http://grove.ufl.edu/~prevet/stats.htm

UF is in the top ten and its numbers are FAR off the MD numbers for its med school.

And the reason the appected to aplied ratios dont matter is that the applicant pools are different.

if 1000 people with an av gpa of 3.1 apply to a craribean med school which takes 100 students, and 500 people with an average gpa of 3.6 apply to harvard which also has 100 spots is harvard twice as easy to get into? NO. That is beacuse med school admissions are not random. They pick the best they can. It doesnt matter how many 3.1s are in the applicant pool your "competing" with if you have a 3.8. Think about it hard. It is the quality of the applicant pools that makes the real difference.

the only thing acc:app ratios will tell you is...If you had to throw a dart onto a list of applicants and you were trying to hit an accepted person, you should throw it at the list of the school with the higgest acc:app ratio. Luckily (or unluckily if you suck) med schools dont throw darts.


well maybe Boston U does 🙄 😀

 

[....]

http://users.augustana.edu/bigood/vetweb.html


Generally a g.p.a. of 3.5 or above and GRE scores above the 75th percentile will all but ensure at least one admission.



And by the way....a GRE score of <1200 is a joke. you can take the GRE a million times if you want and vet schools only take the top scores. I belive vet schools (like DO school) may not count the first grade of a failed course which is retaken in your gpa.

I was hesitant to take a stand without looking it up, but now ive researched it all and I will now. Med school is tougher to get into than vet school. and no...having to have 120 hours experince does not make vet school admisions tough.

 

[RedHeadKiddo]

Step 1: Evaluate where you applied. Did you apply to too few schools, too many schools that were top tier, schools that only accept students that are instate and you are out of state, etc?

I am a second time applicant and have a few friends who did not get accepted in to med school when they applied. Here is a summary of what my friends and I did.

Option 1 Re-Apply

If you plan on applying again, it is wise to contact the schools that denied you admission and see what you can do to make your application stronger. Each school has a different policy, some you can send an email, others you will have to write a letter. You definitely want to do this soon after you get your rejection letters, some schools toss your files and then they can send you stupid responses...this happened to me.

Suggestions:
1. Retake the MCAT if you scores are not stellar
2. Take graduate level science course work to increase your GPA and show you can handle med school level course work
3. Enroll in a post-bacc program that has a partnership with a medical school and can shuttle you into a program after a year or two of "proving yourself"
4. Do medical related research. Get some publications
5. Other volunteer stuff...better your EC's

Option 2 Other Grad Programs
Maybe you just want a job where you work with people and make them feel better...Dentists do that, as to podiatrists, chiropractors, etc. Programs require the entrance classes but different exams. I have a friend who is in at the #1 dental school now, but was rejected all over the place for med school. Don't forget about the DO schools!

Option 3 Soul Searching
If these options don't make you happy then it may be time for soul searching. I know people who went into the peace core, work for industry, teach biology/chemistry at private high schools, some are still working in a lab, others are still sitting at home with mom and dad. I am working as a clinical research coordinator and reapplying.

The world does not come to an end when you get rejected. Last year I got one interview offer and 7 rejection letters. It is painful, but you do what you have to do. Don't worry yet, all it takes is one acceptance and then you will be a doctor!

 

[absolutezero]

post deleted

 

[robotdancing]

... would you like fries w/ that? 😀

 

[tugbug]

I recieved my first MD school rejection in 1995...Then a few more in 1996. Finally, in 2003, I recieved my first acceptance. It would take a long long post to tell the things I did in the interim.

 

[jlee9531]

Originally posted by robotdancing
... would you like fries w/ that? 😀

can you supersize that?

just giving you some early practice

 

[Paws]

Originally posted by tugbug
I recieved my first MD school rejection in 1995...Then a few more in 1996. Finally, in 2003, I recieved my first acceptance. It would take a long long post to tell the things I did in the interim.

Hey tugbug, I'd like to hear what you did and maybe other people would learn from what you say. Can you offer us a shorthand version? Congratulations on getting in !

 

[rgporter]

Originally posted by alleyez
do they continue their education at grad schools? get jobs? other? stay an extra year or two and apply again?

Actually they use them to make Soylent greens. Or perhaps they are used to make glue (horses now being too expensive to feed). j/k 🙂

Most try over and over and over. Till they get accepted or choose a different career. Sucsessfull reaplicants improve their application by getting a graduate degree, joining peace corps, etc.

 

[tugbug]

Originally posted by Paws
Hey tugbug, I'd like to hear what you did and maybe other people would learn from what you say. Can you offer us a shorthand version? Congratulations on getting in !

Hey paws. My post was a little overdramatic haha. I started a business (that will hopefully pay tuition). Probably the only useful thing to take from my experience is that wanting to be a doctor doesn't go away, even after years of trying to ignore the feeling. At least I could never get it out of my head. Cheers.

 

[docmemi]

bump