the 31 schools I'm applying to

[meanderson]

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Well after getting some good advice from this board, I've finally narrowed it down to 32(!) schools. Which of these would be good schools to cut out if I want to get down to 25?

bio/info: georgia resident, slightly non-trad(work experience as a high school teacher for a few year, gpa = 3.9 from unknown state U, normal volunteer experiences like ER, Hospice but no serious clinical stuff. Also taking mcat in august due to being out of country on april test day. anticipate 33-37 based on aamc practice tests #4-6.

Schools: 1) MCG 2) Mercer 3) Emory 4) UVA 5) MCV
6) EVMS 7) Baylor 8) Boston U 9) CWRU 10) Drexel
11) Duke 12) Jefferson 13) G-town 14) NYMC 15) Northwestern
16) OHSU 17) Penn 18) PSU 19) SLU 20) Tulane
21) OSU 22) UNC 23) Univ. of Chicago 24) Miami
25) Michigan 26) South Alabama 27) Vanderbilt 28) Vermont
29) Washington U 30) Einstein 31) GW

So what schools should I consider cutting? what schools should I consider adding? thanks!!

 

[Doctor Octopus]

You should add U. Pitt to your list.

 

[DW]

i would keep this list until you get your actual MCAT scores. hen you'll want to make cuts. get back to us after the test 😉

and as a fellow ga resident, if you are even an average applicant, i wouldnt apply to more than 20.

 

[Trix]

It is really hard to cut schools from your own list...and after looking someone elses list, it may be even harder with out knowing the person.

When I made my list several important factors came into play, the major one being location. Do you want to live in a rural area, a big city, near family etc?? You have several outlier schools (like OHSU, Vermont) that you could possibly eliminate. Have you spent any time in Oregon or Vermont?

I would take note of which schools give preference to in state vs. out of state applicants. I think Miami is tough unless you are in state..not sure though??

I would keep the schools that typically look favorably on non-trads. (GW, Einstein, and Drexel from what I know)

Check tuition $, and financial aid. (G-town is expensive! and financial aid is almost entirely loans) All depends on your financial situation though...

Another thing I would check, (and didn't for my own list), is which schools send pointless secondaries to everyone without screening. If a school sends a "secondary", which contains nothing other than "what is your name, please send a photo and $100" consider this in your selection process. I think your money is better spent on schools that at least care enough to get additional information/screen so you don't waste your money.

Good luck!!

 

[meanderson]

>>i would keep this list until you get your actual MCAT scores. >>hen you'll want to make cuts. get back to us after the test

But I have to decide what schools to put on amcas primary when I send it out in june. MCAT scores come back in october. There is no way I can wait until October to send out my primary. I want all my app to be complete except for mcat scores so that when my mcat scores in everything will be set. What I'll do is just fail to turn in some secondaries depending on what my score is. If I have a horrible day and score 30, I'm not going to to turn in secondaries(or either be rejected pre-second) from schools like Duke and Penn. Even with a 38 though, I know I have a very very small chance at those two schools though.


>>and as a fellow ga resident, if you are even an average >>applicant, i wouldnt apply to more than 20.

Why is that? Even with a 3.9/35, couldn't I slip through the cracks at MCG? As mentioned above, none of my volunteer work really stands out, and I will be an august mcat'er. And I haven't shown a strong committment to doing primary care in an undeserved area, so even mercer could be dicey with solid numbers. And after those two, how are ga applicants in any different situation from applicants with no good shot state schools?

 

[DW]

ohh, you're taking the august test. nevermind, i misread. kurtx puts it better than i did 😉

Originally posted by meanderson
Why is that? Even with a 3.9/35, couldn't I slip through the cracks at MCG? As mentioned above, none of my volunteer work really stands out, and I will be an august mcat'er. And I haven't shown a strong committment to doing primary care in an undeserved area, so even mercer could be dicey with solid numbers. And after those two, how are ga applicants in any different situation from applicants with no good shot state schools?

I stand by my assertion that 25 is way too many for a GA resident, and generally too many for any non california state if you have a 3.9 and 33+ mcat.

First off, there arent a lot of kids who apply to med school from GA. MCG gets about ~700 applicants for ~180 spots, and more or less everyone gets interviewed (i'm talking non URMs with 24 mcats I've met). There are no guarantees obviously, but I have a roughly similar stat profile while being hardly a blue blooded Georgian (I'm your typical Atlanta carpet bagger 😛) and I think you dont have to worry about not getting interviewed at MCG. Mercer I cant really speak to, but do also realize Emory gives preference to GA residents as well.

with a 3.9 and ~35, you'd get plenty of love out of state too. 🙂

 

[SunnyS81]

I'm a Georgia resident, so I'll comment a bit:

1) You haven't done any research into the schools you are applying because they are all VERY different.

2) Cut Mercer, unless you want to go into rural medicine, and even then, MCG is better. Mercer really only accepts people if they promise to go into rural medicine.

3) It is up to you to apply to UVA. I got in there, but I learned that the students there think the administration is really bad, and most don't think it is worth paying out of state tuition for.

4) Does EVMS accept out ot state? And if so, it definitely isn't worth paying out of state tuition for.

5) If I remember correctly, Boston University is the most expensive medical school in the country. Only apply if you think you can't get into MCG, in which case you should rethink your entire application.

6) Duke-are you prepared for one year of basic sciences? Is your interest in research great enough that you want to spend one year doing it?

7) When I interviewed at Georgetown, they told me to only attend if I can't get in anyplace else, particularly my state school. It is also really expensive and in an expensive part of town.

8) I applied to Northwestern but turned down my interview. From what I understand, they spend VERY little time in class. It is up to you if that is your bag.

9) For all the state schools, it is important to look into the percent of people accepted out of state. For example, UNC accepts very few out of state, which is why even a person with a 3.8/36 may not get interviewed. Unless you really have your heart set on a state school with a small amount of out of state people, it isn't worth the time and money.

10) Why do you have PSU but not Pitt?

11) Chicago is really research focused (I didn't apply there for that reason). Is research your focus in medicine?

12) Why Miami? Florida schools accept almost no one out of state (although it is possible).

13) Apply to Michigan.

14) South Alabama doesn't accept out of state people. UAB does though.

15) I didn't know Vermont had a medical school.

16) Washington U-wait for your MCAT because it has to be really good.

I applied to 15 schools, sent in 13 Secondaries. Recieved 9 Interviews I think, and attended 6 of them, and I have recieved 4 acceptances. Use those stats as you like. 31 Secondaries will kill you.

 

[meanderson]

>>First off, there arent a lot of kids who apply to med school from >>GA. MCG gets about ~700 applicants for ~180 spots, and more >>or less everyone gets interviewed (i'm talking non URMs with >>24 mcats I've met).


According to the numbers(over the last 5 years) about 750 ga residents each year apply and about half are interviewed. Sometimes slightly more than half.

>>There are no guarantees obviously, but I have a roughly >>similar stat profile


Well assuming I match my aamc practice tests, I know the stats will be fine. It's my dull EC's and lack of great clinical experiences that is perhaps cause for concern. What did you have in that area?

>>while being hardly a blue blooded Georgian (I'm your typical >>Atlanta carpet bagger ) and I think you dont have to worry >>about not getting interviewed at MCG.

Oh I'm not worried about not being interviewed. I know I'll get the interview. But that doesn't neccessarily equal an acceptance. If 25 is too many, what kind of schools do you think I should be slashing?

 

[oldtown]

Schools: 1) MCG 2) Mercer 3) Emory 4) UVA 5) MCV
6) EVMS 7) Baylor 8) Boston U 9) CWRU 10) Drexel
11) Duke 12) Jefferson 13) G-town 14) NYMC 15) Northwestern
16) OHSU 17) Penn 18) PSU 19) SLU 20) Tulane
21) OSU 22) UNC 23) Univ. of Chicago 24) Miami
25) Michigan 26) South Alabama 27) Vanderbilt 28) Vermont
29) Washington U 30) Einstein 31) GW



I would cut OHSU because it's tough to get in out of state and they have a small class, probably not worth it. i want to say UNC is tough out of state, too, but i'm not sure.

also consider adding: Loyola, Med College of Wisconsin, wake forest

don't know if that helps or makes things more complicated. good luck

 

[MSTP boy]

depending on your MCAT, just apply to 10-20 schools. It's better to have 12 well-written secondaries to schools you WANT to attend than 30 bad secondaries for schools you don't care about.

 

[meanderson]

SunnyS81 wrote:

>>I'm a Georgia resident, so I'll comment a bit:

thanks for your advice!

>>1) You haven't done any research into the schools you are >>applying because they are all VERY different.

True. They are all different but it's impossible to find a large group of schools with decent #'s of out of state apps accepted that are all the same.


>>2) Cut Mercer, unless you want to go into rural medicine, and >>even then, MCG is better. Mercer really only accepts people if >>they promise to go into rural medicine.


Well of course MCG is better. I'd go there over Mercer. But if the choice was between waiting another year on MCG or going to mercer, I'd go to mercer.


>>4) Does EVMS accept out ot state? And if so, it definitely isn't >>worth paying out of state tuition for.

The out of state tuition there isn't any more than tuition at any 2nd/3rd tier private medical school in the country. again, it certainly wouldn't be chosen above MCG, but I'd go there if it was my only choice.


>>5) If I remember correctly, Boston University is the most >>expensive medical school in the country. Only apply if you think >>you can't get into MCG, in which case you should rethink your >>entire application.

I know I *can* get into MCG. But everyone always talks about the crapshoot aspect to this process.....BU will probably be one of the first schools to go though.....





>9) For all the state schools, it is important to look into the >percent of people accepted out of state. For example, UNC >accepts very few out of state, which is why even a person with >a 3.8/36 may not get interviewed. Unless you really have your >heart set on a state school with a small amount of out of state >people, it isn't worth the time and money.

I looked at this and only put schools that had 10% or more of there class from out of state. Also, sometimes when 10% of the class is out of state a higher % of out of state students was accepted. For ex, at UNV only 12 out of state students may have enrolled but 34 or something were accepted. You are right though in that UNC would be a real longshot.....



>>10) Why do you have PSU but not Pitt?

good point I will include pitt



>>12) Why Miami? Florida schools accept almost no one out of state (although it is possible).

Miami accepts about 40% out of state. Lots of people on mdapplicants.com are out of state.




15) I didn't know Vermont had a medical school.

>>>16) Washington U-wait for your MCAT because it has to be really good.

I can't wait until then to send in the primary. If it's less than a 37 I won't turn in the secondary. Michael



__________________

 

[kreno]

Definitely apply to UPiTT! Also, have you thougth about some other good schools like Yale?
kreno

 

[DW]

sunny hit the nail on the head with point 1. its not your fault, it takes a while to figure this all out, but your school selection is rather scattered.

your ECs arent bad. the teacher thing is a life experience few premeds can claim. i might have a slightly stronger profile (research publications), but my gpa is lower than yours 😛

i agree with sunny, i wouldnt really bother with mercer.

your locations are scattered all over the place. do you want to stay in the southeast. do you like DC/NYC/Philly/Chitown? big city, small city? do you want a school with student housing? do you want to deal with a school with a non traditional curriculum (pbl at NW, 1.5 years of basic science at penn/baylor, 1 year of basic science at duke)? Do you want a state school when you have to pay out of state tuition?

plus, if you end up with a 3.9 and a 35, its probably not worth your time applying to a ton of "lower" tiered schools. some might not even interview since they figure you wouldnt go there.

you can feel free to put all those schools on your amcas since you're an august test taker, but wait till your scores get there before deciding which secondaries to send out.

 

[meanderson]

Nope. I could make a 45T on the mcat and I'm pretty sure schools like Yale, Harvard, and Hopkins would (rightfully) reject me. I know I'll suffer the same fate at Duke, Washington, and Penn, but that .0001% chance at those schools might be worth it......

 

[DW]

Originally posted by meanderson
Nope. I could make a 45T on the mcat and I'm pretty sure schools like Yale, Harvard, and Hopkins would (rightfully) reject me. I know I'll suffer the same fate at Duke, Washington, and Penn, but that .0001% chance at those schools might be worth it......

i dont think any of these schools would be out of the realm of possiblity if you do well on the MCAT.

 

[PrincessCKNY]

>>Well assuming I match my aamc practice tests, I know the stats will be fine.<<

Don't assume. You know they say...🙂

Someone mentioned taking a close look at % of out of staters accepted...very good tip. That's an easy way to eliminate schools.
You should really wait until you get your scores back and apply the June following the MCAT if you want some definitive answers. However, if you're hellbent on applying this June and have cash to spare, go ahead and apply to all 31. You can be choosy after your MCAT and when secondaries come in.

 

[THE instiGATOR]

Originally posted by SunnyS81
14) South Alabama doesn't accept out of state people. UAB does though.

Actually, South accepts a max of 10% out of state. It is, in fact, easier to get into South than UAB as an out of state applicant because UAB requires a MINIMUM of 10 on each MCAT section. Get one 9, as I did, and you are out of the game. I believe South only requires that you earn a 30 or greater (combinations are not important).

Miami is accepting more and more out of state applicants each year. I suppose they think the opening of FSU's COM gives them liberty to do this without hurting the state (just a hunch).

Finally, EVMS does accept out of state applicants. You've got to be really competitive, though. It's worth applying to. You never know if it will be the only school to accept you. If it is, it IS worth the out of state tuition. I loved the school when I interviewed there.

To the OP: I don't think you should be counting on rocking the MCAT. You come off as very arrogant. Some of us had to work very hard to earn our puny 30. Good luck. Don't be crushed if you don't do as well as you think you will do. It's pretty tough to get a 35 (only a few people in my class have greater).

 

[VienneseWaltz]

If you do as well on the real MCAT as your practice exams, you are aiming way too low. If you want to attend Yale, Harvard, or Hopkins, APPLY! I never thought I would get into Hopkins (even during my interview--my group included a Rhodes Scholar and the MS-I class included an Olympic medalist), but I did. The late MCAT matters mainly for rolling-admissions schools, and a lot of those "reach" schools make all their initial decisions in March (someone correct me if I'm wrong about the Aug. MCAT). And if you get in the mid-30s, there will still be room for you even in a rolling-admissions class.

I agree with DW--teaching is a great and unusual life experience, and I think you will set yourself apart.

I also second (or third or fourth, I guess) the suggestion to apply to Pitt.

 

[irlandesa]

I would eliminate USA, vandy, UVM, and Penn State.. the latter 2 definitely seem to prefer (albeit informally) applicants from CA and the Northeast and Vandy is big on recruiting from prestigious undergrads (no offense meant, my undergrad was known but not prestigious). If you don't break 35, I'd also eliminate UNC and don't bother to return the secondary for Wash U.

 

[meanderson]

>I would eliminate USA, vandy, UVM, and Penn State.. the latter 2 >definitely seem to prefer (albeit informally) applicants from CA >and the Northeast and Vandy is big on recruiting from >prestigious undergrads (no offense meant, my undergrad was >known but not prestigious).

Interesting. I've heard the exact same thing about Vandy, but everything I've actually seen suggests they are open to take students from undergrad schools that are not very competitive. Yeah, it's a small sample size, but there are 2 physicians here in my county who went to vanderbilt med school and graduated from small state colleges in georgia(We aren't even talking UGA/Tech here). Furthermore, on mdapplicants.com, you see lots of students getting accepts and interviews at Vandy from lesser known state schools. Much better schools than what the two local physicians went to, but consider that mdapplicants.com isn't really representative of the whole applicant pool. So I know that vandy's rep is to give big preference to better undergrads, but I wonder if they really give more preference in this area than Emory, CWRU, Pitt, UVA, MSMS, etc....

I think I would be in ok shape if I went to a large but non-prestigous state university(UGA, Auburn, Florida State, etc)......but that has already been made and there is no point in stressing about it now.

>>If you don't break 35, I'd also eliminate UNC and don't bother >>to return the secondary for Wash U.

Oh yeah....I think that's what I'm going to do. I may actually eliminate UNC for AMCAS and save the $30. I think 37 will be the lowest score I would dare waste the $75(?) on for a washu secondary.

 

[UCLAMAN]

Originally posted by oldtown
I would cut OHSU because it's tough to get in out of state and they have a small class, probably not worth it. i want to say UNC is tough out of state, too, but i'm not sure.

OHSU isn't all that tough to get into out of state...definitely not as tough as UNC. UNC has pretty high cutoffs for out of state applicants from what I've heard. OHSU's cutoffs aren't that high. I think OHSU needs a 30 mcat min and like a 3.6 or something. Don't quote me on that tho. Either way OHSU only receives a small amount of funding from the state and consequently really doesn't have as high a preference for oregonians as people may think.

I have no ties whatsoever to OHSU or Oregon, had a bunch of typos on my secondary and still got an interview there.

 

[VienneseWaltz]

I think people are really overemphasizing both the importance of undergrad reputation and the MCAT. Yes, your undergrad matters, but if you have a good MCAT and everything else on your app is strong, it doesn't matter that much. If you pull mid-thirties on the MCAT, you are demonstrating that you are as prepared for med school as the Ivy kids are.

You do NOT need a 37 to get into Wash U. I know someone with a 32 who is there now, and I believe MDApplicants lists someone with a 28 who got into Harvard.

meanderson, what I'm seeing in your reasoning is you want to elminate schools based on what you think they will think of you instead of where you want to go. With respect to state schools, I think that is reasonable (I applied to state schools in 2 states: where I live and where I grew up), but for the private schools, let them reject you, don't do it for them. If you want to go to Wash U, apply there. Having an average of 36 means that they must take some people with a score lower than 36.

You've got a good list. Visit their Web sites and see what the schools have to offer. If you like it, apply there, even if it seems like it might be out of your league. I had a list of 40, did my homework, and applied to 17.

 

[Desdemona]

Originally posted by Slickness
You shouldn't be anticipating to get a 33-37 based off of your scores on practice tests. First off anything could happen on MCAT day. You might get a really hard form because those AAMC practice tests are particularly easy. Also, you're getting those scores now and you're taking the test in August which is 4 months from now so you will have to keep studying while you're out of the country. I think you should concentrate on the MCAT before you worry too much about other things.

I agree. I don't mean to sound rude or pessimistic, but a lot can happen on test day, and those scores on the practice tests are not necessarily consistent with scores on the real MCAT. I had a sinus infection during one of the Kaplan practice tests and did about 8 points lower than I was usually getting, on what everyone else said was a really easy test. Being nervous for the real test is a big factor that you can't account for in the practice tests because subconsciously you know it doesn't count. We had a bird flying around the room during one practice test. Even sitting in an uncomfortable seat where the desk is too low and your neck starts to hurt...there are so many things that could distract you and make you mess up, that you really can't predict how you'll do, and you should be grateful even if you do "only" get a 30. I know a lot of people who did really well on the kaplan tests and even better on the AAMC practice tests who ended up with a very hard version and did not score as well on the real thing as they had been. Based on their experiences, I credit my own score to my abilities and time spent preparing ,but also very much to good luck

So, don't get discouraged by that, but take your practice scores with a grain of salt and do the best you can. I took the april MCAT, but if I had taken the august, I would have not applied to any 'reach' schools until after I got my scores, just to save cash. A lot of them are non-rolling anyways.

 

[meanderson]

>>meanderson, what I'm seeing in your reasoning is you want to >>elminate schools based on what you think they will think of >>you instead of where you want to go. With respect to state >>schools, I think that is reasonable (I applied to state schools in >>2 states: where I live and where I grew up), but for the >>private schools, let them reject you, don't do it for them. If you >>want to go to Wash U, apply there. Having an average of 36 >>means that they must take some people with a score lower >>than 36.

But I'm assuming the students accepted to Wash U with slightly below average stats didn't both:
1) go to an unknown undergrad
2) have mediocre volunteer work and clinical experiences

Since I'm applying with those two factors going against me, I figure I better at least meet the averages or be slightly above them to have a decent shot.

 

[SunnyS81]

I suggest you stop being a pessimist. If everyone on this site was a pessimist then we would all seriously think we would never get in anywhere.

As for Vandy, they have accepted one person in the past four years from West Ga College. They also gave a full scholarship to one of my former roommates.

APply to a ton of places on your amcas, and only selectively apply with secondaries based on your mcat score. It is the best option.

Just out of curiousity, where do you teach?

 

[meanderson]

I really think that's the best advice.....just spending the thousand bucks designating 25-30 schools and then eliminate some based on how the mcat went.

For schools that don't screen for secondaries, I'm going to decide whether to send in the secondary based on how I feel I did. I'm not going to wait until October to send the Emory secondary in for example if I'm confident I did pretty well on the mcat. I'll just send it in in august the week following the mcat.

MCG is the one school that doesn't screen that I will return the secondary to before I take the mcat. It doesn't really matter whether I score a 27 or 37.....it's still probably my top choice.

As for Vandy taking someone from West Georgia college in the last four years, that's good news. I wonder if he had super great stats(3.9/39) or had some truly special EC's.

I teach at a high school in houston county. Houston county is about 20 minutes south of macon(almost in the middle of the state)

 

[DW]

Originally posted by meanderson
MCG is the one school that doesn't screen that I will return the secondary to before I take the mcat. It doesn't really matter whether I score a 27 or 37.....it's still probably my top choice.

if MCG is one of your top choices, make sure you lead onto this in their secondary. you'll have plenty of space within their essays to explain your interest in the school. their secondary is very long, but its free 😀

 

[SunnyS81]

I also met one guy from UGA during my interview at Vandy, so anything is possible. Although going to a second tier school does hurt (my roommate's interview at Vandy called GT second tier), you can still go just about anywhere. It isn't all stats. If you look for the Stanford Secondary and interview thread from this fall, you will see how people with high stats and good extracurriculars didn't even get secondaries and others did. Stanford is known for being random though. With one person in four years from WestGA, it is possible the guy was amazing or was a legacy or had connections.

It would be really arrogant to hold out turning in the Emory secondary. If I remember correctly, they used to reserve about 40% of their seats for instate because they recieve state funding (do some research into this....it may have changed). Emory is almost like getting into a state school for GA residents for that reason. Emory has a lot higher caliber applicants (at least at my interview) than many other higher ranking schools I visited. I'm not quite sure why.

Almost no schools screens for secondaries. Stanford does. If memory serves me right, only about 5 schools nation wide filter for secondaries.

I hated the MCG secondary. It jammed in my printer so many times I almost thought about not doing it. I sort of wish I hadn't since i never went to the interview.

I do know where Houston H.S. is.......I went there once I think in high school for some activity.

Remember, you are dealing with single digit acceptance rates at most these schools. As an applied statistician, I can tell you that trying to predict what will happen (unless you are phenomenal) is close to impossible.

 

[DW]

Originally posted by SunnyS81
Almost no schools screens for secondaries. Stanford does. If memory serves me right, only about 5 schools nation wide filter for secondaries..

i'm sorry, but you couldn't be further off point with this comment

http://www.studentdoctor.net/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=43310&highlight=schools+that+screen

 

[meanderson]

>>I also met one guy from UGA during my interview at Vandy, so >>anything is possible. Although going to a second tier school >>does hurt (my roommate's interview at Vandy called GT second >>tier), you can still go just about anywhere. It isn't all stats
>>you look for the Stanford Secondary and interview thread from >>this fall, you will see how people with high stats and good >>extracurriculars didn't even get secondaries and others did. >>Stanford is known for being random though. With one person >>in four years from WestGA, it is possible the guy was amazing >>or was a legacy or had connections.

I dunno....but like I said earlier, there are 2(!) local physicians who went to vandy and came from undergrad schools just like west georgia. I'm not surprised at all to see UGA students interviewing at Vandy....I would bet a good bit of vandy's student body is made up of students who went to undergrads like UGA. It's just that there is a difference between schools like west georgia and UGA......


>>It would be really arrogant to hold out turning in the Emory >>secondary. If I remember correctly, they used to reserve about >>40% of their seats for instate because they recieve state funding (do some research into this....it may have changed).

Yeah, last year about 40% of the class that actually enrolled was from Georgia. But the # accepted is a good bit less(a higher % of out of state accepted decline)


>Almost no schools screens for secondaries. Stanford does. If >memory serves me right, only about 5 schools nation wide filter >for secondaries.

That can't be right. Even mercer screens for secondaries based on gap/mcat. I think 1/3-1/2 of all schools screen for secondaries.

>>I hated the MCG secondary. It jammed in my printer so many >>times I almost thought about not doing it. I sort of wish I >>hadn't since i never went to the interview.

were you already accepted at Umich before the interview date? Unless it were Duke, I didn't think I would turn down MCG for anyone on my list unless a school like emory threw in some nice aid......maybe that's just me though......

 

[gwyn779]

Originally posted by SunnyS81
I'm a Georgia resident, so I'll comment a bit:

3) It is up to you to apply to UVA. I got in there, but I learned that the students there think the administration is really bad, and most don't think it is worth paying out of state tuition for.

I go to UVA and would just like to say I DON'T think the administration is really bad. Plus we just got a new dean who seems to be pretty cool. Everyone seems very helpful and wants you to do well. Don't get me wrong, I certainly won't tell you it's the best school ever, but I'm quite happy. Out-of-state tuition would suck, but again, it's about equal to your average private school.

By the way, I only applied to 10 schools. I got interviews at 4 and my stats were definitely lower than yours. I looked really hard at location, curriculum, and how close I would be to SOME sort of family/friends. It has made a difference, because you're going to need to get away and it's easier if you don't have to fly to do it.

 

[SunnyS81]

MCG gave me an interview after I got accepted at UMich. I didn't apply to Duke.......but I did apply to UNC. Didn't like the Duke curriculum. I've been wanting to go to Michigan for a long time, so I'm as happy as can be. The only places I applied where I MIGHT not consider going to michigan were Penn, harvard, and stanford.