Thoughts on the application process. A true underdog story.

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Most schools have student adcom members. Some of them use SDN... food for thought.............

Perhaps, but I'd say the chances here are absolutely slim to none. A VERY small and select subset of medical students use SDN and assuming that they are adcom members (4th year med students) is ridiculous. Maybe they do use SDN, but I highly doubt they have the time to check it with any frequency to "get the low down" on some of their applicants. The idea alone is ridiculous. 🙄

Don't "scare" other posters by putting down stuff like this. It doesn't matter to me as I'm already accepted, but for some people around here the last thing they need are comments like this 🙁
 
Why does everyone think that having doctors in your family helps you when you apply? I feel like if I were on an adcom the only thing that might indicate to me is to make sure these applicants are genuine in their interest for medicine and aren't pushed into it by parents.

I agree. I think that if I was on adcom and both an applicants parents were physicians, I would be worried that he/she were being pushed into medicine.
 
Your "underdog" story is nothing more than a "shaggy dog" story, Dude. Most of the people on this thread seem desperate to believe your tale, but your story is full of holes...

Troll.

flip: I cannot figure out what has caused your crusade against me. I have not said anything to justify the comments you have made. While you're at it, why don't you go call Spud Webb and tell him he's too short to win the dunk contest, or tell Drew Brees he's too small to be a pro quarterback - let alone lead the league in passing yards. Face it, when people are faced with adversity they often find honest ways to overcome it. Usually it involves a great deal of work.

That said, looking through your post history suggests you have not yet even applied. I am amazed at the wisdom you have gained about something you have not yet done. You should go into the residents forums and give them tips on how to get a good fellowship - you seem to like giving advice you have no credentials to give. If you have a problem with what I have said, come talk to me. I will be easy to find... just look for the person in the short, dorky, white coat. Thank you for your continued attempts to ruin what was intended to be a positive thread. I will no longer respond to you.

On that note, This thread had an intent when I started it that has gotten lost in the static.

As I was going through the application process this year, I found sanity in threads or mdapps that showed successes of people with less than desirable stats. THis was simply my attempt to pay it forward. For those of you out there in a similar situation, work your tail off, be honest, genuine, and hopefully you will find the same success I have. Also, be realistic and realize that it is going to be an uphill battle... but you will learn a great deal about yourself through the process. And if you succeed, it will feel that much better to know that your dream is coming true.
 
flip: I cannot figure out what has caused your crusade against me. I have not said anything to justify the comments you have made. While you're at it, why don't you go call Spud Webb and tell him he's too short to win the dunk contest, or tell Drew Brees he's too small to be a pro quarterback - let alone lead the league in passing yards. Face it, when people are faced with adversity they often find honest ways to overcome it. Usually it involves a great deal of work.

That said, looking through your post history suggests you have not yet even applied. I am amazed at the wisdom you have gained about something you have not yet done. You should go into the residents forums and give them tips on how to get a good fellowship - you seem to like giving advice you have no credentials to give. If you have a problem with what I have said, come talk to me. I will be easy to find... just look for the person in the short, dorky, white coat. Thank you for your continued attempts to ruin what was intended to be a positive thread. I will no longer respond to you.

On that note, This thread had an intent when I started it that has gotten lost in the static.

As I was going through the application process this year, I found sanity in threads or mdapps that showed successes of people with less than desirable stats. THis was simply my attempt to pay it forward. For those of you out there in a similar situation, work your tail off, be honest, genuine, and hopefully you will find the same success I have. Also, be realistic and realize that it is going to be an uphill battle... but you will learn a great deal about yourself through the process. And if you succeed, it will feel that much better to know that your dream is coming true.

👍
 
Explain how you only ended up with a cumulative 3.2 if, as you say here, you were only in engineering for one year, and you discovered your "love" for Biology where you made As, thus having a tremendous upward trend...also, you have now added another layer of BS, indicating you "floundered around in many other majors" before finding bio...so how long, exactly, were you in college? With the tremendous upward trend you claim to have, you should have ended up with something better than a 3.2...and if you really did click with science, something better than a 30 on the MCAT...

Oh, and I loved the added touch in your OP about "and then I saw my abysmal AMCAS GPA of 3.2 and said ugh" suggesting you had no idea how low your actual GPA was...and you eliminated the possibility that the "Top 10" you got into was your state school (you say you have no state med school) thus making this accomplishment even more amazing...

Your "underdog" story is nothing more than a "shaggy dog" story, Dude. Most of the people on this thread seem desperate to believe your tale, but your story is full of holes...

Troll.

Flip, you need to get a life. This is ridiculous.


OP: 👍 Congrats on the acceptance. Thanks for trying to share an inspiration story, it brightened my day when I first read it.
 
flip: I cannot figure out what has caused your crusade against me. I have not said anything to justify the comments you have made. While you're at it, why don't you go call Spud Webb and tell him he's too short to win the dunk contest, or tell Drew Brees he's too small to be a pro quarterback - let alone lead the league in passing yards. Face it, when people are faced with adversity they often find honest ways to overcome it. Usually it involves a great deal of work.

That said, looking through your post history suggests you have not yet even applied. I am amazed at the wisdom you have gained about something you have not yet done. You should go into the residents forums and give them tips on how to get a good fellowship - you seem to like giving advice you have no credentials to give. If you have a problem with what I have said, come talk to me. I will be easy to find... just look for the person in the short, dorky, white coat. Thank you for your continued attempts to ruin what was intended to be a positive thread. I will no longer respond to you.

On that note, This thread had an intent when I started it that has gotten lost in the static.

As I was going through the application process this year, I found sanity in threads or mdapps that showed successes of people with less than desirable stats. THis was simply my attempt to pay it forward. For those of you out there in a similar situation, work your tail off, be honest, genuine, and hopefully you will find the same success I have. Also, be realistic and realize that it is going to be an uphill battle... but you will learn a great deal about yourself through the process. And if you succeed, it will feel that much better to know that your dream is coming true.

Yet you still refuse to offer any details such as the name of the school, how you only have a 3.2 GPA, how many years you went to college if you floundered in several majors, how many med schools you applied to, any description of your ECs beyond "typical," etc...you are "Everyman" and you are spreading the good news that anything is possible, even for a sub par applicant at a Top 10, so long as you have a firm handshake and a winning smile...

Nice try.
 
Yes, I am extremely jealous of some anonymous poster's bull**** "underdog success story" on an internet forum.

Explain how you only ended up with a cumulative 3.2 if, as you say here, you were only in engineering for one year, and you discovered your "love" for Biology where you made As, thus having a tremendous upward trend...also, you have now added another layer of BS, indicating you "floundered around in many other majors" before finding bio...so how long, exactly, were you in college? With the tremendous upward trend you claim to have, you should have ended up with something better than a 3.2...and if you really did click with science, something better than a 30 on the MCAT...

Oh, and I loved the added touch in your OP about "and then I saw my abysmal AMCAS GPA of 3.2 and said ugh" suggesting you had no idea how low your actual GPA was...and you eliminated the possibility that the "Top 10" you got into was your state school (you say you have no state med school) thus making this accomplishment even more amazing...

Your "underdog" story is nothing more than a "shaggy dog" story, Dude. Most of the people on this thread seem desperate to believe your tale, but your story is full of holes...

Troll.

Yet you still refuse to offer any details such as the name of the school, how you only have a 3.2 GPA, how many years you went to college if you floundered in several majors, how many med schools you applied to, any description of your ECs beyond "typical," etc...you are "Everyman" and you are spreading the good news that anything is possible, even for a sub par applicant at a Top 10, so long as you have a firm handshake and a winning smile...

Nice try.

Dude (or chick), on a totally different note, you have some serious issues.
Or is someone paying you to wage this crusade? Drop it and get out of your dorm room or the library and have a life, instead of insisting on putting down the dude's story. What the....
 
Perhaps, but I'd say the chances here are absolutely slim to none. A VERY small and select subset of medical students use SDN and assuming that they are adcom members (4th year med students) is ridiculous. Maybe they do use SDN, but I highly doubt they have the time to check it with any frequency to "get the low down" on some of their applicants. The idea alone is ridiculous. 🙄

Don't "scare" other posters by putting down stuff like this. It doesn't matter to me as I'm already accepted, but for some people around here the last thing they need are comments like this 🙁

At our school the majority of student adcom members are 2nd years.
 
Drizzt : I'm posting here under my real name. I don't think more than a handful of classmates are ever going to notice my posts here, and absolutely no one in my school's administration. Nor is a single attending or resident ever likely to notice my posts here, not once. People have too many more important things to worry about.

During my cycle, I was recognized on interviews on many occasions. I don't think most people are going to be singled out for malicious purposes, just commenting that people are less anonymous then they think.
 
Interesting!

[B said:
phospho[/b]]I'm not saying that high stats should automatically entitle people to an acceptance. I'm saying it's not fair for you to assume that people like "Onlyneedoneyes" didn't get in because they are "ingenuine" or bad salesmen.

Also, just because you got in w/ such low stats doesn't mean you were "genuine". In fact, I think you're being rather presumptuous by assuming so. That's where flip's comments come into play. He doesn't think it's your "genuity" that got you in (and neither do I). There's a lot of luck, subjectivity, and confounding variables in this process.
Can you give an example of someone who got in by "luck"? I don't believe in "luck". There must something adcoms like or don't like about you, and it influences their decision.

Though the OP may not tell us miniature details of his story, his experience has offered insights for future applicants. No offense, I don't see why some people get angry at the fact that he got in with low stats, but, let me say this straight out, if you so disagree, why have you started to recommend his strategy to someone else?

As a side note, my opinion is that you can't be a a salesman AND genuine at the same time. You wouldn't need to sell yourself if you were truly genuine.
I believe ALL accepted applicants are good at selling themselves one way or another. Is none of them genuine?

People get in with low stats every year. Look at those who got into combined bacc/md programs: 3.3-3.4 uGPA are sufficient to get them into allopathic med school, and MCAT is waived. Accept it. Definitely adcoms believe that MCAT isn't indicative of med school performance (I believe so, too).
Btw, the OP's MCAT score of 30 probably placed him in 80%ile of the test-takers.

Originally Posted by flip26 said:
Yet you still refuse to offer any details such as the name of the school, how you only have a 3.2 GPA, how many years you went to college if you floundered in several majors, how many med schools you applied to, any description of your ECs beyond "typical," etc...you are "Everyman" and you are spreading the good news that anything is possible, even for a sub par applicant at a Top 10, so long as you have a firm handshake and a winning smile...
Nice try.
Why, Are you going to call his school? 😉
The OP was being humble by saying his EC's were "pretty average". With that amount of commitment, I'd say definitely above average.
 
Can you give an example of someone who got in by "luck"? I don't believe in "luck". There must something adcoms like or don't like about you, and it influences their decision.

I had an interviewer who happened to share the life story I had (death of a family member by a type of disease), we clicked very well, I got in.

I had another interviewer who disliked Asians, didn't get into that school although I thought I had a good fit.

Much of interview is luck. An interviewer can ALWAYS sink you if he/she doesn't like you.
 
I had an interviewer who happened to share the life story I had (death of a family member by a type of disease), we clicked very well, I got in.

I had another interviewer who disliked Asians, didn't get into that school although I thought I had a good fit.


Much of interview is luck. An interviewer can ALWAYS sink you if he/she doesn't like you.

haha, what?
 
Look at those who got into combined bacc/md programs: 3.3-3.4 uGPA are sufficient to get them into allopathic med school, and MCAT is waived.

Name a Top 10 where this is true.
 
I had an interviewer who happened to share the life story I had (death of a family member by a type of disease), we clicked very well, I got in.

I had another interviewer who disliked Asians, didn't get into that school although I thought I had a good fit.

Much of interview is luck. An interviewer can ALWAYS sink you if he/she doesn't like you.

I dislike asians too!!! Wow what a small world.
 
Name a Top 10 where this is true.
Baylor

I was working for Kaplan, and I taught an MCAT class for those lucky fellows. One of them told me that the MCAT requirement "for them" was a 23.
 
Baylor

I was working for Kaplan, and I taught an MCAT class for those lucky fellows. One of them told me that the MCAT requirement "for them" was a 23.

Just so we're clear, there are 10 schools in the top ten. Here they are.

1. Harvard
2. Hopkins
3. Wash U
4. Penn
5. UCSF
6. Duke
6. U Wash
8. Stanford
9. UCLA
9. Yale
 
Interesting!


Can you give an example of someone who got in by "luck"? I don't believe in "luck". There must something adcoms like or don't like about you, and it influences their decision.

It happens all the time. You might just get an interviewer who loves you, or an interviewer who hates you no matter what you do. In a subjective process, there is always luck.

Though the OP may not tell us miniature details of his story, his experience has offered insights for future applicants. No offense, I don't see why some people get angry at the fact that he got in with low stats, but, let me say this straight out, if you so disagree, why have you started to recommend his strategy to someone else?

I think the OP has a cool story, and seems to be a cool guy that would be a good classmate. As long as people take home the message that organizing your PS, ECs, etc, in a coherent and genuine way to tell a story, that's great. The part that bothers most people is the contention that anyone can get into a top school regardless of stats if they sell themselves well. That just isn't true.

I believe ALL accepted applicants are good at selling themselves one way or another. Is none of them genuine?

People get in with low stats every year. Look at those who got into combined bacc/md programs: 3.3-3.4 uGPA are sufficient to get them into allopathic med school, and MCAT is waived. Accept it. Definitely adcoms believe that MCAT isn't indicative of med school performance (I believe so, too).
Btw, the OP's MCAT score of 30 probably placed him in 80%ile of the test-takers.

~75th percentile of test takers but ~40th percentile of matriculants. In any case, the OP has a below average score for med school.
 
~75th percentile of test takers but ~40th percentile of matriculants. In any case, the OP has a below average score for med school.

Where are you getting this statistic (just curious, not trying to criticize)?
 
Where are you getting this statistic (just curious, not trying to criticize)?

matriculant average is 30.9, standard deviation seems to be about 5, translating to somewhere around the 40-43th percentile.
 
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Baylor

I was working for Kaplan, and I taught an MCAT class for those lucky fellows. One of them told me that the MCAT requirement "for them" was a 23.

So in your example MCAT wasn't waived for them, and what about the GPA? Waived, to me, means you don't have to take it.

According to the following, there is a special program that requires a 3.4 / 28, but nothing as low as you are reporting.

http://hs.houstonisd.org/debakeyhs/premedical_academy.html

Anybody from Baylor know differently?
 
Well, it was a girl after class, and she stated that for her it was 23, but for most of her classmates it was 28.

Baylor is on at least one "top 10 medical schools" list

I consider a requirement of 23 to be so low as to basically waive the test entirely.
 
Well, it was a girl after class, and she stated that for her it was 23, but for most of her classmates it was 28.

Baylor is on at least one "top 10 medical schools" list

I consider a requirement of 23 to be so low as to basically waive the test entirely.

You still have to sit for the test, and you probably have to study for it. That's not waiving it.

Baylor was tied with 3 other schools last year at 10, which makes it rank about the same as it was this year, #13. It's not consistently a top 10 school like Harvard, Yale, Penn, Wash U, UCSF, Stanford, Duke, or University of Washington.
 
You still have to sit for the test, and you probably have to study for it. That's not waiving it.

Baylor was tied with 3 other schools last year at 10, which makes it rank about the same as it was this year, #13. It's not consistently a top 10 school like Harvard, Yale, Penn, Wash U, UCSF, Stanford, Duke, or University of Washington.

Baylor's 10% percentile for GPA and MCAT is 3.6 and 29.
 
I dislike asians too!!! Wow what a small world.

Hi everybody. This is what you call a facetious or ironic comment. In this case, it is probably being used to point out a situation that could use more explanation. Nothing to get too worked up about.


This is just my take on it, if the original poster actually dislikes Asians, he may feel free to clarify.
 
Baylor's 10% percentile for GPA and MCAT is 3.6 and 29.

I'm not saying it's not a good school. It is. I just get annoyed when people throw out the term "top ten" for any school in the top 20. It's just not correct.
 
I had another interviewer who disliked Asians, didn't get into that school although I thought I had a good fit.

That sounds like my UCLA interviewer. Apparently, Middle Easterners were considered Asian in his eyes and he thought all Asian applicants had disingenuous reasons for pursuing medicine.
 
I think if OP wants to solve the mystery of the story, OP will tell us which school he/she got into.
 
Im guessing a state school==>Washington maybe?

Here is my theory: OP lives in Idaho. Got into UW which is the only top ten that has pitiful entrance req. (30 and 3.6) Then it is just a matter of making up for the 3.6 from a 3.2 using the engineer excuse. All in all it makes sense, no story here.

or

OP got into a top ten primary care school excluding of course the powerhouses such as: UNC, UCSF, Baylor and Harvard.

amirite?
 
That sounds like my UCLA interviewer. Apparently, Middle Easterners were considered Asian in his eyes and he thought all Asian applicants had disingenuous reasons for pursuing medicine.

we don't?
 
Here is my theory: OP lives in Idaho. Got into UW which is the only top ten that has pitiful entrance req. (30 and 3.6) Then it is just a matter of making up for the 3.6 from a 3.2 using the engineer excuse. All in all it makes sense, no story here.

or

OP got into a top ten primary care school excluding of course the powerhouses such as: UNC, UCSF, Baylor and Harvard.

amirite?

Im thinking that as well. Either Washington, top 10 primary school, or maybe even through a side program(like UC PRIMEs). Im not saying that they arent good programs, but if he got through one of those routes, I think it makes the picture clearer for his original post.

Honestly, I congratulate him on his acceptance and agree with his claim that presentation and selling yourself makes a difference. At the same time, I agree with Handy and flip's arguement that there has to be something else that the OP is failing to mention either about his profile or the school that he was accepted to that helped him. If we are assuming top 10 research schools, I find it really hard for a white male with mediocre(relative to those school's avgs and even 10%) GPA and MCAT, as well as only "avg ECs", got in without something else helping him, such as state of residency or life hardships(which I believe should be taken into account). Based on the little info about him that has been disclosed on this thread(first in family to graduate college and father died while in college), I think he might have had life hardships that aided him in the selection process. Once again, Im not trying to demean his accomplishment; I just think those kinds of details along with the school he was accepted to, plays a big role in admissions, and would be of great use to future applicants.
 
Im thinking that as well. Either Washington, top 10 primary school, or maybe even through a side program(like UC PRIMEs). Im not saying that they arent good programs, but if he got through one of those routes, I think it makes the picture clearer for his original post.

I agree, I think it is time for OP to disclose which school it was.
 
Why is everyone insisting that the OP reveal identifying information about himself? Sure, the med school he was accepted to isn't exactly the most sensitive of topics, but some people like their privacy. There's nothing wrong with that. I don't see how that affects his credulity in the slightest. Do you know where Law2Doc goes to school? I don't. That doesn't mean he isn't a fantastic source of information.
 
Why is everyone insisting that the OP reveal identifying information about himself? Sure, the med school he was accepted to isn't exactly the most sensitive of topics, but some people like their privacy. There's nothing wrong with that. I don't see how that affects his credulity in the slightest. Do you know where Law2Doc goes to school? I don't. That doesn't mean he isn't a fantastic source of information.

I lol'd. Which school he got into is the core of his argument. Not telling us which one makes it more likely that it was UW and he is just hyping his tale more than what is necessary. Did OP get into Duke? Harvard? JHU? if so he probably would have said it by now. It is one of the proposed theories or bust.
 
Why is everyone insisting that the OP reveal identifying information about himself? Sure, the med school he was accepted to isn't exactly the most sensitive of topics, but some people like their privacy. There's nothing wrong with that. I don't see how that affects his credulity in the slightest. Do you know where Law2Doc goes to school? I don't. That doesn't mean he isn't a fantastic source of information.

Law2Doc= Wisconsin, right?
I dont think we are asking to much in terms of sensitive information from OP(just school and potential other things that might have helped). Its just that when OP's argument is essentially do what you like and sell yourself and you will get into a top 10 school, it rings hollow if he doesnt provide other info.
I think all of us on this thread agree that presenting and selling oneself can make a difference. We just find it hard to believe that was enough for a subpar applicant(relative to top 10 schools in terms of grades, MCAT, ECs,) to get in. I mean there are countless applicants like Kioko and myself in my previous two attempts that had strong stats, good ECs, and etc, and we barely even got interviews from any med schools. Thus, disclosing the school and other potentially helpful details of his application would be benefical to all of SDN in my opinion.
 
I lol'd. Which school he got into is the core of his argument. Not telling us which one makes it more likely that it was UW and he is just hyping his tale more than what is necessary. Did OP get into Duke? Harvard? JHU? if so he probably would have said it by now. It is one of the proposed theories or bust.
"lol" all you want, but getting into med school with his stats is impressive no matter what. Again, people like their privacy. Get over it.
 
Does it really matter where he got in? The size contest is over post-acceptance in regards to medical school admissions. You're all a member of the club now so zip up and go home... the size contest will continue between 3 and 4th year.
 
This thread has gotten so far off topic... I am sorry to everyone I may have offended. That was not my intention. Nor was it my goal to rub anything in anyone's face. I only had good intentions. Apparently two words I have said (top ten) have started some heated debate. My mistake.

As I have said a few times, I just wanted to post an inspirational story that may help some people through the demoralizing process they are about to endure. I know reading things like this certainly gave me some snippet of comfort. Again, those of you out there on the interweb to whom this thread was intended, I hope you got something valuable from it... even if it was just some comfort.

Now, just to feed the fire... I never did specify whether I meant top research or primary care school.

There's even a DO school in the top 10 for primary care... Just sayin'
 
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This thread has gotten so far off topic... I am sorry to everyone I may have offended. That was not my intention. Nor was it my intention to rub anything in anyone's face. I only had good intentions. Apparently two words I have said (top ten) have started some heated debate. My mistake.

As I have said a few times, I just wanted to post an inspirational story that may help some people through the demoralizing process they are about to endure. I know reading things like this certainly gave me some snippet of comfort. Again, those of you out there on the interweb to whom this thread was intended, I hope you got something valuable from it... even if it was just some comfort.

Now, just to feed the fire... I never did specify whether I meant top research or primary care school.

There's even a DO school in the top 10 for primary care... Just sayin'

Well said, sir! 👍👍
 
Sort of off-topic : I sort of chuckle whenever I hear of "top 10 primary care"

What good would attending a school that helps you get into a residency that you can walk in to from any medical school in the country? Even the prestigious IM/FP residencies that make it easier to get fellowship can't be all that competitive next to the high end residencies like plastics, neurosurg, derm, or ENT.
 
Really? Three pages of this palaver?

I think those of you who are playing semantics over appreciating the overall tone of the original post are going to look back in a few days and see how ridiculous this all is.

I always knew that some premeds were an elitist, presumptuous bunch but to argue over whether the OP got into a top 10 school (which doesn't even matter because the whole point was that he got in anywhere at all) or whether he needs to reveal identifying information on this series of tubes is a joke.

For all we know, LizzyM could be the adcom at Ross University but we still take her advice seriously. Her anecdotes could be 100% fiction but we don't accuse her of lies or launch personal attacks because her whole purpose is to help pre-meds. That's what the OP is trying to do and preemptively and facetiously attacking him for telling a story only reflects poorly on you.
 
Here is my theory: OP lives in Idaho. Got into UW which is the only top ten that has pitiful entrance req. (30 and 3.6) Then it is just a matter of making up for the 3.6 from a 3.2 using the engineer excuse.

Its no excuse, if i wasnt an engineer my GPA would be like +.3 higher. (Based on my Chem,Physics,English,Psychology grades)
 
Sort of off-topic : I sort of chuckle whenever I hear of "top 10 primary care"

What good would attending a school that helps you get into a residency that you can walk in to from any medical school in the country? Even the prestigious IM/FP residencies that make it easier to get fellowship can't be all that competitive next to the high end residencies like plastics, neurosurg, derm, or ENT.

Actually IM is actually reasonably competitive, if you take a look at the average board scores of applicants, the average of 223 is higher than anesthesia, neurology, and pathology. Peds somewhat less so, but still more competitive than OBGyn and FP.
 
Actually IM is actually reasonably competitive, if you take a look at the average board scores of applicants, the average of 223 is higher than anesthesia, neurology, and pathology.

I was under the impression that if you passed the boards, even if you came from the Carribbean or were a foreign IMG, you could find an IM slot somewhere. I read about programs that pretty much are chock full of IMGs because they are so malignant that no AMG is interested. In any case, if you're an American graduate who finishes in 4 years and passes the boards, it seems like you could pretty much expect to match somewhere. I think the statistics support that. With that said, some of the fellowships might be difficult/impossible to obtain if one went to an unknown IM program or one with a poor reputation. I would assume that some of the lucrative ones with a good lifestyle have fierce competition.
 
Law2Doc= Wisconsin, right?
I dont think we are asking to much in terms of sensitive information from OP(just school and potential other things that might have helped). Its just that when OP's argument is essentially do what you like and sell yourself and you will get into a top 10 school, it rings hollow if he doesnt provide other info.
I think all of us on this thread agree that presenting and selling oneself can make a difference. We just find it hard to believe that was enough for a subpar applicant(relative to top 10 schools in terms of grades, MCAT, ECs,) to get in. I mean there are countless applicants like Kioko and myself in my previous two attempts that had strong stats, good ECs, and etc, and we barely even got interviews from any med schools. Thus, disclosing the school and other potentially helpful details of his application would be benefical to all of SDN in my opinion.

👍
 
I was under the impression that if you passed the boards, even if you came from the Carribbean or were a foreign IMG, you could find an IM slot somewhere. I read about programs that pretty much are chock full of IMGs because they are so malignant that no AMG is interested. In any case, if you're an American graduate who finishes in 4 years and passes the boards, it seems like you could pretty much expect to match somewhere. I think the statistics support that. With that said, some of the fellowships might be difficult/impossible to obtain if one went to an unknown IM program or one with a poor reputation. I would assume that some of the lucrative ones with a good lifestyle have fierce competition.

Well, there are ALOT of IM residency spots in the US, so I think matching into IM if you are a US grad wouldn't be impossible, although the top programs are competitive.

As far as matching into IM programs as a FMG, the overall match rate from the Caribbean was like ~47% for IMGs. I highly doubt a lot of those people were shooting for super tough residencies and didn't get in, so yeah, also a lot of them had one year matches (not advanced) People at SGU that graduate tend to do pretty well in the match but that isn't true of all Caribs. In any case, this argument is neither here not there. IM isn't a cakewalk to match into. It's not as competitive as plastics or ortho, but it's still not super easy, especially to pick and choose where you want to go.
 
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