MD WAMC? 518 MCAT, 3.81 GPA

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Hoosierpride99

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Hello! This is my first time posting in SDN. I’ll be applying this upcoming cycle and I have been an Indiana resident my whole life. I am very interested in pediatrics.

  1. cGPA: 3.81 (science GPA probably a bit higher)
  2. MCAT score: 518 (131/128/130/129)
  3. State of residence: Indiana
  4. Ethnicity: White (also female)
  5. Undergraduate institution: top 10
  6. Clinical experience: I volunteered at an ER for 1 year before covid hit (about 120 hours) and will be starting volunteering at a clinic next month so I will have 6 more months by the time I apply
  7. Research experience: at application I will have 2 years of “psych” research at the same lab (but I work with blood and measuring levels of different chemicals so not traditional psych- not sure if that matters) about 360 hours so far
  8. Shadowing experience and specialties represented: 70 hours- orthopedic surgery, pediatric infectious disease at Cinci Children’s, outpatient general pediatrics, and OB/GYN
  9. Non-clinical volunteering: I am the president of a club that I joined freshman year where we collect the leftover food from the dining halls and distribute it to food insecure people in my community. I don’t even know how to count up all the hours honestly haha, probably 200. I am also trying to start volunteering at a group home for kids that have failed foster placements.
  10. Other extracurricular activities: this past quarter I had a virtual internship in Guatemala that worked on educational equity for indigenous children (100 hours), study abroad ambassador (very few hours, like 25 over 2 years), peer tutor (80 hours), a part of a religious organization
  11. Relevant honors or awards: the club I am president of received an award for impact in social justice.
    My school list so far:
  12. Indiana University
    University of Michigan Ann Arbor
    Michigan State University
    Western Michigan University
    Case Western
    University of Cincinnati
    Ohio State University
    University of Pittsburgh
    Washington University of St. Louis
    University of Missouri
    University of Iowa
    University of Wisconsin, Madison
    Mayo Clinic
    Vanderbilt University
    University of Tennessee
    Georgetown University

    Note that I really want to stay as close to home as I can, so these are all Midwest schools (or close to it). I don’t really have an interest in research and am leaning more towards wanting my own peds practice, so I don’t think prestige matters a whole lot? But I could be wrong. I would love to have any feedback at all on my list. Are there any that I’m missing? Thanks!

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Hello! This is my first time posting in SDN. I’ll be applying this upcoming cycle and I have been an Indiana resident my whole life. I am very interested in pediatrics.

  1. cGPA: 3.81 (science GPA probably a bit higher)
  2. MCAT score: 518 (131/128/130/129)
  3. State of residence: Indiana
  4. Ethnicity: White (also female)
  5. Undergraduate institution: top 10
  6. Clinical experience: I volunteered at an ER for 1 year before covid hit (about 120 hours) and will be starting volunteering at a clinic next month so I will have 6 more months by the time I apply
  7. Research experience: at application I will have 2 years of “psych” research at the same lab (but I work with blood and measuring levels of different chemicals so not traditional psych- not sure if that matters) about 360 hours so far
  8. Shadowing experience and specialties represented: 70 hours- orthopedic surgery, pediatric infectious disease at Cinci Children’s, outpatient general pediatrics, and OB/GYN
  9. Non-clinical volunteering: I am the president of a club that I joined freshman year where we collect the leftover food from the dining halls and distribute it to food insecure people in my community. I don’t even know how to count up all the hours honestly haha, probably 200. I am also trying to start volunteering at a group home for kids that have failed foster placements.
  10. Other extracurricular activities: this past quarter I had a virtual internship in Guatemala that worked on educational equity for indigenous children (100 hours), study abroad ambassador (very few hours, like 25 over 2 years), peer tutor (80 hours), a part of a religious organization
  11. Relevant honors or awards: the club I am president of received an award for impact in social justice.
    My school list so far:
  12. Indiana University
    University of Michigan Ann Arbor
    Michigan State University
    Western Michigan University
    Case Western
    University of Cincinnati
    Ohio State University
    University of Pittsburgh
    Washington University of St. Louis
    University of Missouri
    University of Iowa
    University of Wisconsin, Madison
    Mayo Clinic
    Vanderbilt University
    University of Tennessee
    Georgetown University

    Note that I really want to stay as close to home as I can, so these are all Midwest schools (or close to it). I don’t really have an interest in research and am leaning more towards wanting my own peds practice, so I don’t think prestige matters a whole lot? But I could be wrong. I would love to have any feedback at all on my list. Are there any that I’m missing? Thanks!
Does University of Tennessee take OOS? Also how come no Chicago schools?
 
Does University of Tennessee take OOS? Also how come no Chicago schools?
I’m not sure how to tell if schools are OOS friendly or not, but I know that some people OOS applied to Tennessee in the sdn thread. Also I’ve been in Chicago the past 3 years and kind of want to go to a new place.
 
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I’m not sure how to tell if schools are OOS friendly or not, but I know that some people OOS applied to Tennessee in the sdn thread. Also I’ve been in Chicago the past 3 years and kind of want to go to a new place.
MSAR tells you how many they take IS vs OOS, worth spending $29. May be wait until you are ready to apply and get this cycle update. I checked Tennessee for you, recent data shows 62 interviewed and 18 matriculated but their tuition is $69,125 Out-of-state, higher than Harvard!
 
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MSAR tells you how many they take IS vs OOS, worth spending $29. May be wait until you are ready to apply and get this cycle update. I checked Tennessee for you, recent data shows 62 interviewed and 18 matriculated but their tuition is $69,125 Out-of-state, higher than Harvard!
Wow that is crazy expensive. Thank you for the info!
 
You have a strong application and that's a pretty good list. I would consider applying to 20 total though, and I think leaving out Chicago is doing a disservice if you want to be in the Midwest.

Northwestern/Uchicago/Rush/Rosalind Franklin should all be on your list. Also Medical College of Wisconsin, SLU.
 
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I suggest:
NYU
Columbia
WashU
Vanderbilt
Yale
JHU
U Chicago
U Penn
Northwestern
Harvard
Mayo
Cornell
Stanford
Case
Duke
Sinai
U VA
BU
Baylor
UCSF
Pitt
USC/Keck
UCSD
UCLA
U MI
Rochester
Hofstra
Ohio State
U Cincy
UTSW
Dartmouth
Western MI
USF Morsani
SUNY-SB
Brown
U MA
U IA
Albert Einstein
Emory
Tufts
NYU-LI
Jefferson
Miami
U WI
U CO
U VM
IU
 
Alright after some consideration I have modified my list:
Indiana University
University of Chicago
Northwestern University
Rosalind Franklin
University of Michigan Ann Arbor
Western Michigan University
Wayne State
Oakland University William Belmont
Case Western
University of Cincinnati
Ohio State University
University of Pittsburgh
Washington University of St. Louis
St. Louis University
University of Missouri
University of Iowa
University of Wisconsin, Madison
Medical College of Wisconsin
Vanderbilt University

Considering that I want to stay in the Midwest and go into pediatrics (and not too big on research but willing to do it if it improves residency chances), are there any more I should consider? Are there any that I shouldn't apply to?

@Faha @LizzyM
 
Missouri accepts few non residents with no connection to the state. You should receive several interviews from the other schools on your list.
 
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Looks pretty good overall. You can keep georgetown from your original list if you'd like too.
 
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