WAMC? Nontrad, 520 but low GPA (3.42). No clue if I'm doing great or terribly.

[xrlviwuwbo]

I'm a career changer, with some pretty mixed stats. Great MCAT, bad GPA. Amazing unique experiences, but missing core elements like shadowing.

Because of those mixed stats, I've had a hard time assessing where I stand, and especially what schools I should apply to. Do my unique experiences make me stand out enough to go to T10 schools? Or do I have enough holes in my application that I should only look at bottom tier schools? I honestly have no idea.

Help me figure out how these pros and cons weigh against each other, and which schools to apply to.

GPA	😦 low, 3.42	📉 cGPA: 3.42 decreasing. sGPA 3.52. post-bac 3.67.
MCAT	😍 520	evenly distributed
State	not TX/NY/CA	(When evaluating my school list consider me OOS everywhere.)
Undergrad	😃 fantastic school (non-ivy), best in the country for my engineering major.	Graduated 5-ish years ago.
URM?	👎🏻 No	😎 but I'm in a different non-racial minority that gives me diversity points
Clinical experience	🚑 EMT, a few hundred hours so far
Research	🚫 None	Cuz of the career change. It wasn't a priority in undergrad. I'm looking to focus on clinical stuff and not do any of my own research in med school, but would if a school requires it.
Shadowing	🚫 None	Cuz COVID+nontrad. Is that a good excuse? I'm trying to get some, but all I've got is some meh online shadowing.
Volunteering	🚫 None	🤔 But I have other non-volunteering experiences that show I'm involved and care about my community which will be a pretty central part of my application.
Other ECs	🤠 A broad array of interesting experiences including teaching+sports things.
Work experience	😍 Several years doing super cool government work.	This is a fantastic experience and the crux of my story and my application

School list (MD only):

It's huge right now (~40 schools) and very top-heavy, partially because I don't know how I stack up, and partially because they just all sound good to me. My priorities are good urban location, early clinical contact, and a focus on serving their community / disadvantaged communities. I've tried to narrow it down on my own but got nowhere.

Are there schools that are out of my league that I should skip? Are there schools that particularly love nontrads with weird situations like me? How many schools should I apply to to keep my chances up?

Tier 1 - I'm on my knees begging to go here:
- Harvard
- NYU
- Northwestern
- Boston U
- Tufts

Tier 2 - I would be so happy here.
- Penn
- Michigan
- UCLA
- Columbia
- Vanderbilt
- UChicago
- USC Keck
- Minnesota
- Icahn
- UMiami
- Cincinnati
- Rush
- Wayne
- Kaiser (can't argue with free!)
- Temple
- Rutgers RWJMS
- Rutgers NJMS
- Cooper

Tier 3 - Sure yeah, it's still a medical school, I'll be fine there.
- WashU
- Cornell
- Jefferson
- UVM
- Albert Einstein
- UMass
- VCU
- SUNY Buffalo
- Geisinger
- SUNY Downstate

Tier 4 - Probably won't apply but if I need to add more schools I'll draw from here.
- Wisconsin
- Brown
- Indiana (no seconary, so I'll probably apply anyway)

Sorry for the long post, but this stuff is complicated! Thanks for all your help ❤️

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[Lasofloxabuterol]

You need at least 50 hours of shadowing and 150hrs of non-clinical volunteering to comfortably apply. Top ten schools are not out of the question given your MCAT score and "unique" experiences, however, most will likely screen you out due to your relatively low gpa. Just continue both your clinical and non-clinical experiences and try to look for shadowing opportunities. Maybe even look into research opportunities if at all possible as research is looked upon favorably by top schools, it is not a requirement though. Other than that it seems that you are doing great, best of luck!

 

[Faha]

Your lack of shadowing, research and non clinical volunteering as well as your relatively low GPA will limit you chances for interviews. Basically, you are depending on your MCAT of 520 to obtain interviews. The GPA-MCAT grid shows you have a ~70% chance for a MD acceptance. I suggest these schools from your list.
- Tufts

Tier 2 - I would be so happy here.
- UMiami
- Cincinnati
- Wayne
- Kaiser (can't argue with free!)
- Temple

Tier 3 - Sure yeah, it's still a medical school, I'll be fine there.
- Jefferson
- UVM
- Albert Einstein
- VCU


Tier 4 - Probably won't apply but if I need to add more schools I'll draw from here.
- Indiana (no secondary, so I'll probably apply anyway)
You could add any of these schools:
Quinnipiac
Albany
New York Medical College
Hofstra
Seton Hall
Drexel
Penn State
George Washington
Eastern Virginia
Wake Forest
NOVA MD
Tulane
TCU-UNT
Medical College Wisconsin
Western Michigan
Oakland Beaumont
Wayne State
California University
For DO schools I suggest these:
Touro-NY
NYITCOM
PCOM
MU-COM
DMU-COM
ATSU-KCOM
KCU-COM
AZCOM
TUCOM-CA
WESTERN