WAMC + School List Help 21M 3.7X, 509

[DopamineChaser]

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• cGPA & sGPA: 3.7X, 3.6X respectively
• MCAT Score: 509 (C/P: 129, CARS: 127, B/B: 127, P/S: 126).
• Residency & Citizenship: VA Resident.
• Race/Ethnicity: Asian.
• Undergraduate Institution:Major public research university (T30).
  
  
• Clinical Experience:
  • Volunteer EMT: ~1500 hours (completed & anticipated).
• Research Experience:
  • Research: ~2000 hours (completed & anticipated).
  • Productivity: Led a grant-funded project; co-authored 2 national conference abstracts.
• Shadowing Experience:
  • ~50 hours across many different specialties
• Non-Clinical Volunteering:
  • Food delivery service for homebound individuals: 75 hours.
  • Science competition volunteer and organizer: ~200 hours .
• Other Extracurriculars:
  • Leadership:
    • President of a large university special interest club; Project Lead for a student analytics organization; Executive board member for a science outreach club.
    • Innovation/Entrepreneurship: Developed multiple healthcare-focused tech solutions, winning a public sector hackathon and a university-wide competition.
    • Advocacy:Active in FGLI and undocumented student advocacy.
• Honors & Awards:
  • Recipient of a national, full four-year scholarship for high-achieving, low-income students.
  • Member of university's premier academic honors program.
  • Recipient of a competitive, university-wide research grant.
• Other Important Factors:
  • First-Generation, Low-Income (FGLI).
  • Grew up undocumented in the US.

List:

• Albert Einstein College of Medicine
• Boston University Aram V. Chobanian & Edward Avedisian School of Medicine
• Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine
• Cleveland Clinic Lerner College of Medicine
• Columbia University Vagelos College of Physicians and Surgeons
• Creighton University School of Medicine
• Drexel University College of Medicine
• Duke University School of Medicine
• Emory University School of Medicine
• George Washington University School of Medicine and Health Sciences
• Harvard Medical School
• Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai
• Johns Hopkins University School of Medicine
• Kaiser Permanente Bernard J. Tyson School of Medicine
• Loyola University Chicago Stritch School of Medicine
• New York Medical College
• New York University (NYU) Grossman School of Medicine
• Perelman School of Medicine at the University of Pennsylvania
• Rush University Medical College
• Sidney Kimmel Medical College at Thomas Jefferson University
• Stanford University School of Medicine
• Tufts University School of Medicine
• University of Illinois College of Medicine
• University of Miami Miller School of Medicine
• University of Pittsburgh School of Medicine
• University of Rochester School of Medicine and Dentistry
• University of Virginia School of Medicine
• Vanderbilt University School of Medicine
• Virginia Commonwealth University School of Medicine
• Washington University in St. Louis School of Medicine

 

[Faha]

You have only 75 hours of non clinical volunteering that medical schools are looking for and some schools screen at 150 hours. Rush, Creighton and Loyola are looking for applicants with many hundreds or thousands of hours of non clinical volunteering. Many of the schools on your list are completely unrealistic with a MCAT of 509. Who advised you that a 509 is competitive for Harvard, Stanford, Johns Hopkins, etc. ?
I suggest these schools with your stats:
Virginia Commonwealth
Eastern Virginia
Virginia Tech
West Virginia
George Washington
Wake Forest
Methodist (when it opens)
NOVA MD
Belmont
Alice Walton
Roseman
TCU
Ponce (St. Louis)
Medical College Wisconsin
Oakland Beaumont
Wayne State
Drexel
Temple
Jefferson
Penn State
Albany
Vermont
Quinnipiac
Also apply to DO schools and I suggest these:
WVSOM
PCOM (all schools)
Touro-NY
NYITCOM
CUSOM
VCOM (all schools)
MU-COM
DMU-COM
ATSU-KCOM
KCU-COM
AZCOM
CCOM

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I agree that you need more food delivery hours (150 minimum) to avoid getting screened out at most schools. Your best shot will be your in-state programs and many DO's including VCOM.

 

[DopamineChaser]

You have only 75 hours of non clinical volunteering that medical schools are looking for and some schools screen at 150 hours. Rush, Creighton and Loyola are looking for applicants with many hundreds or thousands of hours of non clinical volunteering. Many of the schools on your list are completely unrealistic with a MCAT of 509. Who advised you that a 509 is competitive for Harvard, Stanford, Johns Hopkins, etc. ?
I suggest these schools with your stats:
Virginia Commonwealth
Eastern Virginia
Virginia Tech
West Virginia
George Washington
Wake Forest
Methodist (when it opens)
NOVA MD
Belmont
Alice Walton
Roseman
TCU
Ponce (St. Louis)
Medical College Wisconsin
Oakland Beaumont
Wayne State
Drexel
Temple
Jefferson
Penn State
Albany
Vermont
Quinnipiac
Also apply to DO schools and I suggest these:
WVSOM
PCOM (all schools)
Touro-NY
NYITCOM
CUSOM
VCOM (all schools)
MU-COM
DMU-COM
ATSU-KCOM
KCU-COM
AZCOM
CCOM

I agree that you need more food delivery hours (150 minimum) to avoid getting screened out at most schools. Your best shot will be your in-state programs and many DO's including VCOM.

Hi Dr. Faha and Mr.Smile12,

Thank you for your responses, I was unfortunately unable to continue the food delivery service due to the program being dissolved, and much of my time has been picked up by the other activities on the application. My application includes around 300 hours of community service and advocacy through my leadership roles in a science competition organization for middle/high school students and my advocacy work for FGLI and undocumented students on campus. My hope is that admissions committees will view these non-traditional experiences as a commitment to community engagement as they truly do mean a lot to me.

Second, the most significant factor determining my school list is my DACA status, which limits the number of institutions I am eligible to apply to. The list of 30 schools I am targeting has been specifically vetted for their DACA-friendly policies. This is also why I have included several "reach" and "far reach" institutions; while I recognize my MCAT score is below their median (if not far-below), these schools are often the ones with the resources and mission to most holistically evaluate my unique background and distance traveled. In addition, I will be applying to Tuft's Medical Scholarship program as I view them as a great mission fit

With that said, how would you recommend I proceed? Thank you again for your help.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Science competitions are nice, but express academic competency. And every science major should participate in some public awareness of science. The FGLI advocacy is advocacy/leadership, not service orientation (food distribution, shelter volunteer, job/tax preparation, legal support, transportation services, or housing rehabilitation).

I served on many admissions committees, and while I can't represent every single adcom, you hope will apply to those who see significant mission fit with your overall application but it will remain a factor to compare your app against others. You underestimate what your peers have done to show a deep commitment to non-clinical service.

Are you part of the PreHealth Dreamers?

 

[DopamineChaser]

Science competitions are nice, but express academic competency. And every science major should participate in some public awareness of science. The FGLI advocacy is advocacy/leadership, not service orientation (food distribution, shelter volunteer, job/tax preparation, legal support, transportation services, or housing rehabilitation).

I served on many admissions committees, and while I can't represent every single adcom, you hope will apply to those who see significant mission fit with your overall application but it will remain a factor to compare your app against others. You underestimate what your peers have done to show a deep commitment to non-clinical service.

Are you part of the PreHealth Dreamers?

Completely understandable - I think a new direction for me would be to volunteer at a shelter that I often respond to as an EMT, I think it'll be a great perspective to understand what goes on day-to-day allowing me to provide better care for future responses. I've already submitted my primary application, but would you advise bringing this up in secondaries if am able to do this?

Something I'm working on with me being the President of a large university hobby club is working with hospice homes to engage with their community and connect club members to hospice patients to better help with enrichment - it's been an email chain for quite some time but we're getting closer to starting this - I didn't include it in my primary application due to it still being planned, would you consider this as non-clinical volunteering?

While I have accessed some of the resources provided through PreHealth Dreamers, I am not a direct member of their programs (ex. Pathways/Launchpad) as I was unaware they existed until now. I will be sure to apply to their programs this upcoming cycle.

Also, I am open to discussing with more detail in private messages - thank you again, this is really helpful!

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Completely understandable - I think a new direction for me would be to volunteer at a shelter that I often respond to as an EMT, I think it'll be a great perspective to understand what goes on day-to-day allowing me to provide better care for future responses. I've already submitted my primary application, but would you advise bringing this up in secondaries if am able to do this?

Something I'm working on with me being the President of a large university hobby club is working with hospice homes to engage with their community and connect club members to hospice patients to better help with enrichment - it's been an email chain for quite some time but we're getting closer to starting this - I didn't include it in my primary application due to it still being planned, would you consider this as non-clinical volunteering?

While I have accessed some of the resources provided through PreHealth Dreamers, I am not a direct member of their programs (ex. Pathways/Launchpad) as I was unaware they existed until now. I will be sure to apply to their programs this upcoming cycle.

Also, I am open to discussing with more detail in private messages - thank you again, this is really helpful!

Please be aware, anticipated activities or coursework mean little in screening your application. You can promise the moon, but what matters is the snapshot you sent in.

Anything we can suggest to help you get better connected with your future.