WAMC ORM 524/4.0

[cookielover101]

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I am a third-year, applying this summer (2026-2027 cycle)
1. GPA: 4.0
2. MCAT: 524 (132/130/132/130)
3. Ohio
4. Asian
5. Public Land Grant Uni
6. Shadowing (6 different specialties - 60 hours) --> spread through 3 years
7. Hospital Volunteering (52 hours across 1 year)
8. Clinical volunteering at unhoused sites (triage) for 3 years - 100 hours
9. Study abroad May-mester (Health based)
10. Summer Internship with a Free Clinic Company (150 hours in office + 175 clinical hours including dental assistant work)
11. Free clinic volunteering (all 4 years): 150 hours (clinical)
12. Co-founder of respite care organization
13. Co-founder of transplant donor registry organization
14. VP of org advocating for unhoused folk
14. Another free clinic org (local): 50 hours (over two years)
15. Lab TA: 260 hours by the end of this semester
16. Two exceptional awards (including full ride)
17. Meditation/Spirituality Hobby
18. Research: Neuro (first two years) and Early Childhood Clinical (last two years - planned) --> Abstract presentations, no pubs

I should have one exceptional LOR (STEM) and one "fine" LOR (STEM) and one "fine" LOR (non-STEM). Two research LORS which are "good" and an internship LOR which is closer to exceptional.

Need help crafting a school list! Thank you so much I really appreciate you guys 🙂

 

[Faha]

You would benefit from 150+ hours of non clinical volunteering such as food bank, homeless shelter since some schools screen at 150 hours.
I suggest these schools with your stats:
Case Western
Cincinnati
Ohio State
NEOMED
Toledo
Wright State
U Michigan
Northwestern
U Chicago
Washington University (in St. Louis-almost a guaranteed interview with your stats)
Vanderbilt
Mayo
Emory
Duke
U Virginia
Johns Hopkins (free tuition)
U Penn
Pittsburgh
Hofstra
Einstein (free tuition)
Mount Sinai
NYU (free tuition)
Columbia
Cornell
Harvard
Yale
Boston University
Tufts

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Welcome to the forums.

I'll add, with your metrics, I think you need MORE clinical exposure; I think I need descriptions and a timeline for a better idea to justify my impression. I appreciate the breadth of experiences, but the level of commitment is not deep. It feels good for a social work direction (unhoused community), especially with being involved establishing respite care and donor registry orgs. I just get the sense you have lots of pots cooking, but they're only boiling pasta or peas. 50 hours over 1 year is one hour per week; as described, it's hard to understand why you have 50 hours in one free clinic and 50 hours in a different one; maybe you have a story why you can't consistently work at one site.

With your metrics, you should have at least 250 hours of clinical exposure, and you are competing against applicants with more consistent hours and deep impact (for the brand name schools). Even if I bundle your homeless advocacy into a category of activities, you should aspire for 250+ hours minimum.

Work on this over the next few months before April. You have time to shape up your profile. Do your networking. Enroll in Becoming a Student Doctor to articulate your purpose as a physician and assess mission to schools on your list.

As on Ohio resident, you have a lot of in-state choices. Hopefully you're going to OMED next weekend, which is an opportunity for all the medical schools to talk with aspiring 2026 applicants and their prehealth advisors about preparing your best application.