WAMC/School List - 518 MCAT, 3.73 cGPA, 3.84 sGPA

[Atreides22]

Hi all,
I am in the process of creating a school list. Currently at 38 but would like to trim it down to the low 30s, and see if I'm missing more fitting ones. I will also apply to a couple DOs in CA. Any advice would be great!

1. cGPA - 3.73, sGPA ~ 3.84 with an upward trend

2. MCAT - 518 (130/126/130/132)

3. CA resident (LA area)

4. ORM, 1st gen immigrant (Russia)

5. Attended UCLA

6. Clinical Experience - 150 hours volunteering at a hospital

7. Research - pretty much 0 outside of a project for a club that I presented on and a completed quarter-long project for a course

8. Shadowing + Volunteering - 150+ hours for cardiologist (MD), 15 hours for rheumatologist (DO)

9. Non-clinical volunteering - ~150 hours adult daycare clinic

10. Other - will have 100-200 hours of scribing by the time I submit apps, currently taking a gap year to work as a full-time scribe at an underserved community clinic (also could use help with how to write that properly on an application given that I will have thousands of hours here)

- Have LOR from RN, Cardiologist, 2 science profs, 1 English prof

School List
- 12 CA schools, all except Stanford
- Mayo Clinic AZ
- University of Arizona (Tucson and Phoenix)
- Einstein
- UT southwestern
- UT Austin
- UT San Antonio
- McGovern
- TCU
- UTMB John Sealy
- UNLV
- U of Nevada, Reno
- Boston U
- Tufts
- Hofstra
- Stony Brook
- NY Medical College
- SUNY
- Quinnipiac
- Sidney Kimmel Jefferson
- Drexel
- Temple
- Rosalind Franklin
- Loyola Chicago Stritch
- Tulane
- Meharry

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[Faha]

With no non clinical volunteering hours your chances for interviews are limited. You should accumulate 150+ hours of non clinical volunteering such as food bank, homeless shelter, etc. before you submit your application. Loyola expects many hundreds of non clinical hours. You also have many state public schools on your list that admit few non residents with no connection to the state. Meharry mainly admits applicants from the Black community.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Non-clinical service orientation activities are must-haves. Food distribution, shelter volunteer, job/tax preparation, legal support, transportation services, or housing rehabilitation.

Clinical experience is also light. 150 hours as a hospital volunteer seems light, and 150 hours shadowing a cardiologist seems like a ton.

Who has helped you on your prehealth journey?

 

[wysdoc]

You have 5 Texas schools on your list that would require you to use their separate Texas application system (TMDSAS Application.)
(UTSW, UT Austin Dell, UT San Antonio, UTMB, McGovern)
Your GPA and MCAT are high enough to be competitive as an OOS applicant, but you would be screened out because of zero community service hours.
To have a successful cycle and not have to repeat applying next year, you have to find some community service activity that would get you at least 150 hours before you submit your application.
Would you be able to find some way to help a Russian immigrant community by helping them understand their health insurance options, explaining medical terms, helping them understand how to file income taxes, etc? Volunteer organizations like the United Way or others in Los Angeles could help you find something.

I think working this year as a scribe ( you will be earning money to support yourself) and building your other nonacademic activities would be the best path to success and to applying to med schools just once, next year.

 

[Atreides22]

You have 5 Texas schools on your list that would require you to use their separate Texas application system (TMDSAS Application.)
(UTSW, UT Austin Dell, UT San Antonio, UTMB, McGovern)
Your GPA and MCAT are high enough to be competitive as an OOS applicant, but you would be screened out because of zero community service hours.
To have a successful cycle and not have to repeat applying next year, you have to find some community service activity that would get you at least 150 hours before you submit your application.
Would you be able to find some way to help a Russian immigrant community by helping them understand their health insurance options, explaining medical terms, helping them understand how to file income taxes, etc? Volunteer organizations like the United Way or others in Los Angeles could help you find something.

I think working this year as a scribe ( you will be earning money to support yourself) and building your other nonacademic activities would be the best path to success and to applying to med schools just once, next year.

I do have some volunteer time spread out through the years for an adult daycare, I think it’s close enough to 150 where I could get it there by June. It dates back to high school, but I think I did enough during college too. Would that work?

 

[wysdoc]

I do have some volunteer time spread out through the years for an adult daycare, I think it’s close enough to 150 where I could get it there by June. It dates back to high school, but I think I did enough during college too. Would that work?

Add up your senior HS plus after, see where you stand. Can you add more by June?

 

[Atreides22]

Add up your senior HS plus after, see where you stand. Can you add more by June?

Yeah I can add some for sure. With that taken into account, how’s my list overall? Thanks for your help!

 

[Atreides22]

Non-clinical service orientation activities are must-haves. Food distribution, shelter volunteer, job/tax preparation, legal support, transportation services, or housing rehabilitation.

Clinical experience is also light. 150 hours as a hospital volunteer seems light, and 150 hours shadowing a cardiologist seems like a ton.

Who has helped you on your prehealth journey?

Family mostly. Never had an advisor or anything, if that’s what you mean. With ~150 hours for an adult daycare added, is the list I currently have accurate?

 

[Atreides22]

With no non clinical volunteering hours your chances for interviews are limited. You should accumulate 150+ hours of non clinical volunteering such as food bank, homeless shelter, etc. before you submit your application. Loyola expects many hundreds of non clinical hours. You also have many state public schools on your list that admit few non residents with no connection to the state. Meharry mainly admits applicants from the Black community.

Thank you. If I factor in ~150 for the daycare, is the rest of the list up to par?

 

[Faha]

Thank you. If I factor in ~150 for the daycare, is the rest of the list up to par?

If you will have those 150 hours of non clinical volunteering when you submit your application I suggest these schools:
Vermont
Quinnipiac
UMass
Tufts
Albany
New York Medical College
Hofstra
Hackensack
Drexel
Temple
Jefferson
Penn State
George Washington
Virginia Commonwealth
Eastern Virginia
Wake Forest
NOVA MD
Belmont
TCU
Rosalind Franklin
Iowa
Medical College Wisconsin
Western Michigan
Oakland Beaumont
Alice Walton
Roseman
Arizona (Phoenix)
The UCs (except Riverside unless you are from that region)
USC Keck
Kaiser
California University
Loma Linda (if you fit their mission)

 

[Atreides22]

If you will have those 150 hours of non clinical volunteering when you submit your application I suggest these schools:
Vermont
Quinnipiac
UMass
Tufts
Albany
New York Medical College
Hofstra
Hackensack
Drexel
Temple
Jefferson
Penn State
George Washington
Virginia Commonwealth
Eastern Virginia
Wake Forest
NOVA MD
Belmont
TCU
Rosalind Franklin
Iowa
Medical College Wisconsin
Western Michigan
Oakland Beaumont
Alice Walton
Roseman
Arizona (Phoenix)
The UCs (except Riverside unless you are from that region)
USC Keck
Kaiser
California University
Loma Linda (if you fit their mission)

Thanks so much!