Too much non-primary care = likely reject from primary care med school?

[Si Se Puede]

---

Members don't see this ad.

If I have amazing research and very good/lots of teaching experience but weak clinical&volunteer experience (I'd say bottom 30th percentile), then is it likely for primary care oriented med schools (including my in-state schools) to reject me even though MCAT/GPA/other factors are spot on or higher than the avg?

 

[DokterMom]

If I have amazing research and very good/lots of teaching experience but weak clinical&volunteer experience (I'd say bottom 30th percentile), then is it likely for primary care oriented med schools (including my in-state schools) to reject me even though MCAT/GPA/other factors are spot on or higher than the avg?

This is the easiest bit to fix --

You may not be able to instantly get the clean and convenient volunteering gig at your local hospital, but drive a bit and you can find a clinic in an under served area (you know - the ones nobody wants to go to?) that will happily accept whatever help you can give them. And they look better on your application anyway. Or maybe a hospice or nursing home? That's all clinical and you can rack up 40 hours over Thanksgiving break.

Don't let something this easy to fix be the weak link in your application.

 

[Goro]

You might get an II, but then be waitlisted. So, do show us that you like being around patients.

If I have amazing research and very good/lots of teaching experience but weak clinical&volunteer experience (I'd say bottom 30th percentile), then is it likely for primary care oriented med schools (including my in-state schools) to reject me even though MCAT/GPA/other factors are spot on or higher than the avg?

 

[Planes2Doc]

The volunteering on your application needs more:

ing

 

[Nena01]

If I have amazing research and very good/lots of teaching experience but weak clinical&volunteer experience (I'd say bottom 30th percentile), then is it likely for primary care oriented med schools (including my in-state schools) to reject me even though MCAT/GPA/other factors are spot on or higher than the avg?

Yes, they will look for students with clinical experience. I know because I also lack a significant amount of clinical volunteering and have not heard back from schools that are geared towards primary care. My stats are significantly higher than their avgs but they are looking for extensive clinical exposure..which is expected.

However, my other nonclinical experiences have landed me 4 acceptances so far at other schools.

You'll get into medical school with non clinical experiences, just probably not a primary care school

 

[kyamh]

Eh, I don't know. I got into a school whose mission statement definitely leans to primary care with minimal volunteering. It can be done depending on the type of applicant you are and where the strengths of your application lie - my strength is research and a lot of my time was/is spent working for pay.

 

[Jennyfishy]

I've seen some people get waitlisted/ultimately rejected at the 2 schools I interviewed simply for not having "enough clinical exposure." They had much stronger stats than I did, and both of these schools are known for their strong primary care education/"focus."

Having plenty will def. eliminate any potential doubt adcoms/admissions people may have about you if the strongest thing going for you are your stats 😛. While interviewing at both the schools, the question of what types of clinical activities I've done/how much came up as well, since I also have a lot more non-clinical/non-health related ECs than shadowing/hospital work.

Either way, I feel like having a lot of time put into anything you're clearly passionate/interested in can also somewhat compensate for that, as long as you have enough to demonstrate that you know what you're getting into.