Hi, I posted this in the Re-Applicants forums, and I'd figure I'd repost it here with some minor modifications to see if I can get any more feedback from you guys. If I broke any posting rules, please let me know and I'll fix it as quickly as possible.
Hi, I'm a second-time poster who is likely to be rejected from every school I applied to (no interviews). Between my own gut instinct, advice from other people, and reading DrMidlife's Re-application Dissertation, I'm fairly confident that I am a classic example of how not to apply to medical school (late application, virtually no clinical experience, etc.). I'd like to pick your collective brains on how best to improve and rework my application.
* denotes an item that has improved significantly since my original application submission
** denotes an item that was not mentioned at all on my original application
The Vitals
Ethnicity/Gender: Asian/Male
State: Texas
MCAT: 12PS/11VR/15BS (38)
cGPA: 3.15 (undergraduate, biomedical engineering)
sGPA: 3.05 (undergraduate, biomedical engineering)
gGPA: 4.00 (biomedical engineering, graduating this semester)
The Non-Clinical ECs
Do you require additional information to answer the following questions?
Outside of Texas, I applied dumbly. What kind of schools should I be looking at with my current and/or 3-months-in-the-future stats?
As you might have noticed, my profile is fairly research-heavy. I'd jump at the chance to get into an MD/PhD program, but I don't think my stats cut it. What are your thoughts on this?
My international shadowing was in an East Asian country, but I observed strictly "Western" medicine (no tigers or rhinos were harmed to further my clinical exposure) and got to chat with the doctors over there about the medical issues endemic to that region. Do adcoms evaluate this type of experience differently compared to domestic shadowing?
It's my understanding that adcoms don't weigh graduate GPA as much due to the perceived "easiness" of the courses offered at the graduate level. However, all of my graduate classes also have an undergraduate section, and both graduate and undergraduate students are taught simultaneously in the same classroom. The only real difference is that graduate students have higher grade thresholds, are graded more strictly on projects, and are typically expected to complete more assignments. Making a C or worse is a very real possibility in many of the graduate classes that I've taken. Is there a way to present this information to adcoms viewing my application, and would it be advantageous to do so?
I haven't maintained any contact with my undergraduate professors. All of my LORs last cycle were research-related. Obviously I need to change this, but are letters from graduate school faculty acceptable?
On the same issue of LORs, do adcoms weigh a letter from a fresh senior lecturer differently compared to a letter from the department chair, assuming all else is equal?
Any general advice is also greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
Hi, I'm a second-time poster who is likely to be rejected from every school I applied to (no interviews). Between my own gut instinct, advice from other people, and reading DrMidlife's Re-application Dissertation, I'm fairly confident that I am a classic example of how not to apply to medical school (late application, virtually no clinical experience, etc.). I'd like to pick your collective brains on how best to improve and rework my application.
* denotes an item that has improved significantly since my original application submission
** denotes an item that was not mentioned at all on my original application
The Vitals
Ethnicity/Gender: Asian/Male
State: Texas
MCAT: 12PS/11VR/15BS (38)
cGPA: 3.15 (undergraduate, biomedical engineering)
sGPA: 3.05 (undergraduate, biomedical engineering)
gGPA: 4.00 (biomedical engineering, graduating this semester)
The Non-Clinical ECs
- Proofread journal/conference papers for 6 years (~1 paper/month, 150 hours)
- Tutored math/science for 2 years (volunteer, 100 hours)*
- Participated in a program to help freshmen get accustomed to college life for 1 semester (20 hours)
- Research in a biomedical engineering lab for 2 semesters during undergraduate career (50 hours)
- Research in electrical engineering labs for 3 summers (2 summers in one lab, 1 summer in another lab, 750 hours)
- Full-time research in a biomedical engineering lab for 2 years (current, leadership role, 3000+ hours)*
- 6 conference/journal papers in EE (All 2nd or 3rd author), 12 conference abstracts+posters in BME (4/12 1st author), 3 in-the-works journal papers in BME (2/3, maybe 3/3 1st author), 1 Master's thesis in the works*
- High school policy debate judge for 3 years (100 hours)
- Here-and-there volunteering at various academic conferences, robotics competitions/science fairs, local charity, etc.* (60 hours)
- 45 hours shadowing primary care physician in clinic (International)**
- 15 hours shadowing ENT physicians in hospital/clinic (International)**
- 15 hours shadowing primary care physician in clinic (USA)**
- 60 hours volunteering at a local charity clinic (work in progress)*
Do you require additional information to answer the following questions?
Outside of Texas, I applied dumbly. What kind of schools should I be looking at with my current and/or 3-months-in-the-future stats?
As you might have noticed, my profile is fairly research-heavy. I'd jump at the chance to get into an MD/PhD program, but I don't think my stats cut it. What are your thoughts on this?
My international shadowing was in an East Asian country, but I observed strictly "Western" medicine (no tigers or rhinos were harmed to further my clinical exposure) and got to chat with the doctors over there about the medical issues endemic to that region. Do adcoms evaluate this type of experience differently compared to domestic shadowing?
It's my understanding that adcoms don't weigh graduate GPA as much due to the perceived "easiness" of the courses offered at the graduate level. However, all of my graduate classes also have an undergraduate section, and both graduate and undergraduate students are taught simultaneously in the same classroom. The only real difference is that graduate students have higher grade thresholds, are graded more strictly on projects, and are typically expected to complete more assignments. Making a C or worse is a very real possibility in many of the graduate classes that I've taken. Is there a way to present this information to adcoms viewing my application, and would it be advantageous to do so?
I haven't maintained any contact with my undergraduate professors. All of my LORs last cycle were research-related. Obviously I need to change this, but are letters from graduate school faculty acceptable?
On the same issue of LORs, do adcoms weigh a letter from a fresh senior lecturer differently compared to a letter from the department chair, assuming all else is equal?
Any general advice is also greatly appreciated.
Thanks!
