Unknown Undergrad Blues...

[Darkart]

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Is there a thread dealing with how bad graduating from an unknown undergrad school hurts your chances of admission to medical school? I’m sure that the topic has been discussed in the past and I’m also quite sure that the effect is significant. I appreciate any comment and/or reference to a discussion on the topic.

 

[BooMed]

Hmm, I went to the University of Oregon which is just a state school and I got in. It seems like on average people who went to Ivies think it's better to be from an Ivy, and those who didn't don't so much.

I don't think an unknown college ruins your chances by any means. 🙂 It can help make you a unique canidate.

 

[silas2642]

Is there a thread dealing with how bad graduating from an unknown undergrad school hurts your chances of admission to medical school? I’m sure that the topic has been discussed in the past and I’m also quite sure that the effect is significant. I appreciate any comment and/or reference to a discussion on the topic.

I'm quite sure that the effect of going to an "unknown" undergraduate institution is not significant, especially since I have a lot of friends who have graduated from my state school and done quite well (Hopkins, Cornell, Dartmouth, Case, Harvard, Tufts, Pitt). The key is wherever you do go, to do well there.

 

[Darkart]

I'm quite sure that the effect of going to an "unknown" undergraduate institution is not significant, especially since I have a lot of friends who have graduated from my state school and done quite well (Hopkins, Cornell, Dartmouth, Case, Harvard, Tufts, Pitt). The key is wherever you do go, to do well there.

Maybe its a bit of paranoia...Seems like everyone at my interviews has a name tag with "Columbia", "Penn", "Stanford", etc. I'd like to think that you're correct but sometimes I wonder.

 

[Thundrstorm]

I don't think any of us really know the answer to this. At MSTP interviews, I often notice that other interviewees are from big-name schools. I had a good laugh with a guy at my Cornell interview because we were the only 2 not from the Harvards/Stanfords/Columbias/etc. He went to a small state school and I went to a small liberal arts college... an all women's school, no less. Yet, we were both there. I think that coming from a well-respected school can help a little, but I don't necessarily think that coming from a smaller school hurts an applicant. I have to constantly describe my school at interviews, but it's always a conversation-starter, and perhaps even helps me to stand out. I did well there, and I enjoyed my college experience; that's all I really care about, and it hasn't held me back at all. I've been offered many interviews (some at top 20 schools), and have a couple of acceptances (one MD, one MSTP) in hand, so in my case at least, it has not been an issue.

Clearly, not every accepted med student went to an Ivy League. Try to keep some perspective. In the end, it comes down to your value as a whole applicant; your undergrad institution is just one tiny piece of that puzzle.

 

[QuantumMechanic]

Maybe its a bit of paranoia...Seems like everyone at my interviews has a name tag with "Columbia", "Penn", "Stanford", etc. I'd like to think that you're correct but sometimes I wonder.

More top students goto Stanford than, say, Chico State. Thus, you will probably see more students from Stanford at your interviews. The ivies et. al produce more doctors since they tend to have the best students. All students that get in med school distinguished themselves in a way that would probably make their undergrad institution a point mostly in passing.

 

[SpeedRacer]

dealing with the "went-to-a-non-grade-inflation-top-15-university-but-got-a-crappy-gpa-because-it-kicked-my-ass-but-it-doesn't-matter-because-they-aren't-taking-it-into-account-and-are-rejecting-me-because-the-low-science-gpa-scares-them-away" blues

 

[SpeedRacer]

but i feel ya man