Trying to get into the "same" medical school?

[mishjtnyu]

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Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone has any info or advice about two people trying to get into the same school. My SO and I both want to go to the same school, but don't know how realistic it is? We've gone to school in the same city and know that we don't want to just do that again.

Here's a bit of background....both went to good schools (not ivy though). Both had 3.7 Gpa's and a few years of research experience, shadowing etc etc.

Please no flaming about career vs relationships etc. Just want some real honest advice.

 

[tigress]

It really depends on the school. Also, is this a long-term relationship, permament-like? Because if so, you may contact the dean of admissions at whatever schools you're particularly interested in and mention the situation. They have the couples match for residency, and I imagine med schools have dealt with issues like this before.

In my case it was different because my husband is already a student at a school, but I do think it was a factor in my acceptance.

good luck

 

[docsuz]

It can definitely be done you just might have to apply to a few more. It's best to pick cities such as Philadelphia, New York, Chicago, etc. where there are multiple options. I would not recommend linking them, that can back fire and rub admissions people the wrong way. If your stats are similiar i would definitely apply to your state school/s, not sure what your home states are. If they are not the same, apply to a wide range, some top tier. middle and easier. How do your MCATs compare. Since your GPAs are good and comparable I think you stand a good chance of having common acceptances. Let us know your undergrad, MCATs, and states for residencies and we can make specific recommendations to apply to.

 

[tigress]

It can definitely be done you just might have to apply to a few more. It's best to pick cities such as Philadelphia, New York, Chicago, etc. where there are multiple options. I would not recommend linking them, that can back fire and rub admissions people the wrong way. If your stats are similiar i would definitely apply to your state school/s, not sure what your home states are. If they are not the same, apply to a wide range, some top tier. middle and easier. How do your MCATs compare. Since your GPAs are good and comparable I think you stand a good chance of having common acceptances. Let us know your undergrad, MCATs, and states for residencies and we can make specific recommendations to apply to.

That's a really good point. Apply to all 4 schools in Philly, and all the schools in other cities with multiple med schools. That way you have a better chance of at least being in the same city even if it's different schools.

 

[mishjtnyu]

Thanks for the replies already!

Thanks again for any advice.

btw Congrats Tigress (i'm a frequent reader but not poster 🙂 )

It can definitely be done you just might have to apply to a few more. It's best to pick cities such as Philadelphia, New York, Chicago, etc. where there are multiple options. I would not recommend linking them, that can back fire and rub admissions people the wrong way. If your stats are similiar i would definitely apply to your state school/s, not sure what your home states are. If they are not the same, apply to a wide range, some top tier. middle and easier. How do your MCATs compare. Since your GPAs are good and comparable I think you stand a good chance of having common acceptances. Let us know your undergrad, MCATs, and states for residencies and we can make specific recommendations to apply to.

 

[MoosePilot]

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone has any info or advice about two people trying to get into the same school. My SO and I both want to go to the same school, but don't know how realistic it is? We've gone to school in the same city and know that we don't want to just do that again.

Here's a bit of background....both went to good schools (not ivy though). Both had 3.7 Gpa's and a few years of research experience, shadowing etc etc.

Please no flaming about career vs relationships etc. Just want some real honest advice.

Both of you study hard for the MCAT. That opens a lot of doors. Once you have scores, apply pretty widely to schools around your number range. Pick one that you both get accepted to. It should work out even without admissions office cooperation.

 

[gujuDoc]

It really depends on the school. Also, is this a long-term relationship, permament-like? Because if so, you may contact the dean of admissions at whatever schools you're particularly interested in and mention the situation. They have the couples match for residency, and I imagine med schools have dealt with issues like this before.

In my case it was different because my husband is already a student at a school, but I do think it was a factor in my acceptance.

good luck

There was a girl on here just a year or two ago who went through the process and talked about a similar situation with one of the NY schools. They ended up helping her out and letting her in. So I'm positive that they've dealt with these things before too.

To the OP:

Talk to the admissions directors and explain your situation and application profile and see what they say.

 

[mishjtnyu]

Thanks soo much for all the encouragement everyone! We just wanted to make sure we weren't living in fantasy land about getting into the same place, and setting ourselves up for a huge disappointment. I am so relieved it has been done before!

 

[Bernito]

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone has any info or advice about two people trying to get into the same school. My SO and I both want to go to the same school, but don't know how realistic it is? We've gone to school in the same city and know that we don't want to just do that again.

Here's a bit of background....both went to good schools (not ivy though). Both had 3.7 Gpa's and a few years of research experience, shadowing etc etc.

Please no flaming about career vs relationships etc. Just want some real honest advice.

I am in the same boat right now, for the current appl'n cycle. Best thing is to write a letter to be included in your application folder at each school describing the situation.

U Mich actually has a checkbox if you are applying with someone, the only SOM with one that I have seen or know of.

 

[Chinorean]

Hey,

Some schools might have an option where you can tell them if you're applying as a couple. "Couple" can mean anything from SO to friends to siblings. I know the University of Michigan does, and people have successfully used it. Not sure what other schools do.

Hi everyone,

I was wondering if anyone has any info or advice about two people trying to get into the same school. My SO and I both want to go to the same school, but don't know how realistic it is? We've gone to school in the same city and know that we don't want to just do that again.

Here's a bit of background....both went to good schools (not ivy though). Both had 3.7 Gpa's and a few years of research experience, shadowing etc etc.

Please no flaming about career vs relationships etc. Just want some real honest advice.

 

[CuddlyKumquat]

I would have to say that I wouldn't put in a letter unless your stats and ec are soooo similar that it would be hard for them to accept one and not the other. Even then medical schools have been known to be unpredictable. Im in the same situation and I simply applied to the same schools/schools in the same area. It should help :-D

 

[C.P. Jones]

what's a SO?

 

[MoosePilot]

what's a SO?

It stands for significant other.

 

[BooMed]

Thanks for the replies already!

We are NY state residents, but don't have MCAT scores yet since we are taking them in april. We took a practice and didn't do too well. I got a 24 on my first diagnostic, but have hope b/c I heard most people have a similiar first try.

The problem with telling admissions people about the relationship is that we are gay..ouch I know some might react poorly too that (not to mention we are not out to all friends family etc) but we have been together for 3 years.

Thanks again for any advice.

btw Congrats Tigress (i'm a frequent reader but not poster 🙂 )

Good luck Mish, and don't worry at all about the 24 on the diagnostic. That's the average score of people taking the test, and you haven't even studied yet! Keep taking those practice tests and studying, and you will do great.

I'm in a simular situation, except for that my fiance has already started law school, so I'm trying to get into the med school here. Hopefully we will both get lucky.

 

[Moto]

I'm in a similar situation. My SO took August MCAT, I kept my April. So at each interview I only mention my SO if the interview is going well. This has worked for me because we are engaged to be married this summer and one interviewer actually jotted down his name (thank god!). It also helps to stress that you are willing to attend seperate schools, but that it would be a big break for you guys economically. I assume that most interviewers are married or have SO and know how difficult it is to be apart.
So good luck to you all who are trying to get in w their SO.

 

[atrovariousg]

It stands for significant other.

What's a significat other? 😕 😀 😎 😉

 

[frycek]

Hi - I'm an MS1 at U of Chicago. There's a married couple in my class - they applied to lots of schools together and I think ended up with multiple double acceptances. So it has been and can be done! Best of luck.

 

[Duke_David]

Tough call on whether to reveal this to an admissions committee, but I'd vote no. I'd give the same advice to a heterosexual couple, but in your case, revealing during the application process could be even more risky. They could just say "no" to your request to be considered together, or they could go out on a limb and agree to look at you together. Keep in mind that my answer applies to non-married heterosexual couples also.

If you can convince them to think of you as a couple, the odds are not in your favor. First, they could just be giving you the politically correct answer, and then look at the application negatively which harms both your chances. Second, they could agree to look at you together and give you favored treatment (very unlikely in my estimation). Third, they could give you the politically correct answer and then treat you independently. I think the third outcome is most likely.

Let's say you both get interviews at a school where the interviewees have a 25% chance of admission. That means you only have two possible outcomes: both get admitted which has only a 6.25% chance, or both get rejected (56.25% chance of happening). You would both need awesome applications to raise the odds of simultaneous admission. And, I've made the assumption (a big one) that you'd both get interviews since you imply you would both have reasonably strong applications.

But, there is a 37.5% chance that one of you will get admitted after interviews if they "uncouple" your application. Those are pretty good odds for at least one of you becoming a physician. If one gets admitted and you are in a city with multiple options, then the following year the other partner can reapply and perhaps also get admitted. The following year, the person applying gets the interview and has a 25% chance of admission. So, in the first year you have a 37.5% chance of one admission and the next year a 25% chance, versus a 6.25% chance if you apply as a couple. Of course, you would have to decide whether you are each willing to sacrifice for the other if that happens. It would be incredibly stressful for any couple (married or unmarried) to go through that, but it does optimize the chances that at least one of you will become a physician. On the other hand, it might enhance the chances that you would part ways.

 

[Psycho Doctor]

What's a significat other? 😕 😀 😎 😉

girl friend, boyfriend, fiance, fiancee; someone significantly important to you and could be a permanent relationship...more than just a casual friend

 

[CoffeeCat]

My SO and I are having similar issues and we're doing what docsuz said - applying mostly to Chicago, NY, philadelphia because they've got the most schools around. NY is a great place for you, I'm sure, so many state schools also. I also mentioned it in some areas on secondaries that asked "why ... city", but I definitely think you can just add that your SO is applying without elaborating or naming the other person.

The stronger the apps the easier, study hard! I went from a 21 diag to a 31 real deal (and others have improved even more) so as long as you're studying your best, don't worry to much about it. Plus you have a good person to study with so use it to your advantage.

Good luck

 

[evade]

I wanted to post with a bit of advice and a whole lot of good-luck wishes.

My significant other and I applied to professional school together last year; he applied to law school and I, of course, applied to medical school. While it's not quite the same deal as applying to medical school together, we still had our share of ups and downs. We applied very strategically and put a great emphasis on schools that had both M.D. and law programs, but mostly focused on applying to schools within the same cities. We struggled with the decision of whether to tell admissions committees that we were applying to school together. Would they look down on it? Would they be more likely to take us together? Would they reject us outright? We are not married, but we are in a very serious and long-term relationship.

In the end, however, everything worked out. I was accepted to UC Davis in January, and in March, my SO was still waiting for a response from the law school (they run on a later schedule). At this point, UCD was our top choice. He wrote a letter to the admissions committee, stating that I was attending and that if he were accepted, he would definitely go. . .it was really a letter of intent that made mention of me. Literally three days after the letter was sent, he was accepted. Truly, some schools do care, and they do pay attention to these things.

As to being gay, don't let that stop you from mentioning your significant other when you feel it's pertinent. That's what the term "significant other" was invented for. . .not only does it keep you from having to say things like "boyfriend" or "fiance," it is gender neutral. Also, to some degree you can assess the political leanings of schools and/or interviewers to ascertain whether or not they'd be accepting. Places like Georgetown might not be so keen on it, but lots of other places have a reputation for being liberal.

The bottom line is that it is possible. You may have to apply to a few more schools, and you'll definitely have to apply strategically, but it absolutely can be done. Good luck!!