unorthodoxstuff
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Hey everyone, looking for some honest feedback on my application as I finalize my school list for this cycle.
Stats: 3.93 GPA (science BA, concurrent engineering MS, Ivy), 516 MCAT, ORM
Research: Research Lead at MSK (first author pub, invited panelist at national conference, "how-to" AI brief used by hospitals around US, grant funding), research at T5 med school (radiation oncology/neurosurgery disparities, health policy, 3 pubs in JCO), UCLA Med (FDA regulatory policy, Health Affairs pub, JAMA submitted), and health policy institute at my university (briefs used by MedPAC and MACPAC, sole undergrad RA on nationwide project). Physics/chemistry research from high school into college at JHU (500 hours but I guess not directly relevant here). One additional first-author publication forthcoming in major journal before submission. 2 more mid author pubs accepted at mid tier journals.
Clinical/Volunteering: Hospital volunteer (not insane hours like 200), leading a multi-hospital anesthetic sustainability initiative through T5 med school near me (lots of time spent here, grant funding won, phased out desflurane during project timeline), leading a pediatric lead screening quality improvement initiative with pediatric hospital (working with insurance providers, patients, gov agencies, hospitals, etc; cool work and hopefully some policy impacts in next few years), lead youth wing at spiritual group since HS and very unorthodox EC for a summer which I don't want to disclose but deep involvement and led a program that saw over 100,000 people take part, set up preventative health fair in home state freshman and sophomore year (700 people first year, 850 year two).
Leadership: Churchill finalist, Lafayette finalist, Rhodes/Truman uni nominee, 2 selective fellowships at uni, chair of particular committee of student assembly; club leadership but called it quits with most of them after junior fall due to other ECs ramping up (mostly journals); development of existing established Medicare/Medicaid care delivery program in city during junior summer (lots of hands on work and goal was to connect prior Medicaid work to real on-the-ground impacts); had a startup which failed but it was hard-tech and concerned an overlook medical condition (I did get funding but the idea was too bold)
Main EC rn: Co-founder of a healthcare startup currently with ongoing pilot with a major academic medical center and setting up two more also at T10 hospitals. Funding secured, prizes won at entrepreneurship comps, backing from C-suite folks at multiple T5 academic medical centers. Z fellows, Y Combinator potentially if god wishes to bless me.
Gap year plans as of now: I want more concrete clinical experience so I will likely be an MA or CRC. I was leaning towards consulting but thinking of stepping back and just working at the hospital. I will also keep building startup and see if it goes anywhere (which it looks like it should as of now).
I'm interested in programs with strong research culture and health policy focus. Current list includes schools like Duke, Stanford, Mount Sinai, Georgetown, Emory, Dartmouth, Vanderbilt, UVA, Michigan, Pritzker. Obviously 5-6 more schools in the tier below this as well. I will also add T5 just so I don't have any lingering doubt.
Main concerns: I know the 516 is below mean at several of my targets. Do my ECs realistically compensate at research-focused programs? Any schools I should add or drop? Appreciate any honest feedback. My average FLs were around 518-525 so this was a bit of a surprise but do I really need to retake for May or should I just call it?
Stats: 3.93 GPA (science BA, concurrent engineering MS, Ivy), 516 MCAT, ORM
Research: Research Lead at MSK (first author pub, invited panelist at national conference, "how-to" AI brief used by hospitals around US, grant funding), research at T5 med school (radiation oncology/neurosurgery disparities, health policy, 3 pubs in JCO), UCLA Med (FDA regulatory policy, Health Affairs pub, JAMA submitted), and health policy institute at my university (briefs used by MedPAC and MACPAC, sole undergrad RA on nationwide project). Physics/chemistry research from high school into college at JHU (500 hours but I guess not directly relevant here). One additional first-author publication forthcoming in major journal before submission. 2 more mid author pubs accepted at mid tier journals.
Clinical/Volunteering: Hospital volunteer (not insane hours like 200), leading a multi-hospital anesthetic sustainability initiative through T5 med school near me (lots of time spent here, grant funding won, phased out desflurane during project timeline), leading a pediatric lead screening quality improvement initiative with pediatric hospital (working with insurance providers, patients, gov agencies, hospitals, etc; cool work and hopefully some policy impacts in next few years), lead youth wing at spiritual group since HS and very unorthodox EC for a summer which I don't want to disclose but deep involvement and led a program that saw over 100,000 people take part, set up preventative health fair in home state freshman and sophomore year (700 people first year, 850 year two).
Leadership: Churchill finalist, Lafayette finalist, Rhodes/Truman uni nominee, 2 selective fellowships at uni, chair of particular committee of student assembly; club leadership but called it quits with most of them after junior fall due to other ECs ramping up (mostly journals); development of existing established Medicare/Medicaid care delivery program in city during junior summer (lots of hands on work and goal was to connect prior Medicaid work to real on-the-ground impacts); had a startup which failed but it was hard-tech and concerned an overlook medical condition (I did get funding but the idea was too bold)
Main EC rn: Co-founder of a healthcare startup currently with ongoing pilot with a major academic medical center and setting up two more also at T10 hospitals. Funding secured, prizes won at entrepreneurship comps, backing from C-suite folks at multiple T5 academic medical centers. Z fellows, Y Combinator potentially if god wishes to bless me.
Gap year plans as of now: I want more concrete clinical experience so I will likely be an MA or CRC. I was leaning towards consulting but thinking of stepping back and just working at the hospital. I will also keep building startup and see if it goes anywhere (which it looks like it should as of now).
I'm interested in programs with strong research culture and health policy focus. Current list includes schools like Duke, Stanford, Mount Sinai, Georgetown, Emory, Dartmouth, Vanderbilt, UVA, Michigan, Pritzker. Obviously 5-6 more schools in the tier below this as well. I will also add T5 just so I don't have any lingering doubt.
Main concerns: I know the 516 is below mean at several of my targets. Do my ECs realistically compensate at research-focused programs? Any schools I should add or drop? Appreciate any honest feedback. My average FLs were around 518-525 so this was a bit of a surprise but do I really need to retake for May or should I just call it?
