- Joined
- Mar 25, 2023
- Messages
- 8
- Reaction score
- 1
- Points
- 76
- Pre-Medical
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Hi everyone,
Last year, I asked about what I could do to improve my app, and got great advice (shoutout to MrSmile). I certainly took some of those suggestions to heart, and a year later, I am back to ask for advice on how I could improve my school list. I am aware that this may also change in the future as I research more about schools to try to better match mission fit. Furthermore, I have been told that this list may be a bit too baseline heavy, and hence why I wanted advice on my school list.
I also do think I want to center my narrative around elderly care, but I think this might change as I continue to draft and refine my PS and prewrite my secondaries. I am a bit worried that my research experience (which was bench work in biochemistry) may not tie well into this as my intended most important three activities were hospice, research, and Science Olympiad, and am open to suggestions about how to best refine this.
CA ORM (Indian), Currently starting gap year
Stats:
GPA: 3.99 cGPA, 3.99 sGPA
MCAT: 519, took this in September 2024, am aware this is my only shot at a cycle before I have to retake this
Undergrad Institution: T40 CA School, Biology major, Graduating Magna Cum Laude
Clinical Hours: 360 total, expecting ~ 400 by time of application
100 from my CNA licensing course
15 from my time as a hospital volunteer in the ER (asterisk below in nonclinical)
93 from Hospice (> 100 by time of app)
140 from second round of hospital volunteering (It is different from the other hospital volunteer program listed, it is more akin to being a CNA)
Non-clinical Hours: 460, ~ 500 by time of application
240 Hours, from my time as a hospital volunteer (I spent my time mostly in the non-clinical side of the hospital from my junior year of high school through freshman year, then continued in a clinical volunteering role in the ER for a short while till during the summer after freshman year)
220 hours from food bank and homeless shelter soup kitchen volunteering, I will have at least 250 by time of application
Research Experience: 1360 hours as a research assistant in a wet lab, first author paper due to be submitted to a journal (fairly low impact)
Shadowing: Currently zero at this point, but will be shadowing a doctor's practice for ~ 80 hours over two weeks in early May
Leadership: nothing leadership-specific only
Extracurriculars/Activities:
Current Volunteer at a low-income school coaching students to participate in Science Olympiad (100 hours, this may count as underserved volunteering and thus go into non-clinical hours from what I have been told)
TAed for a science class for a quarter, ~ 80 hours
LORS:
Science 1: My PI, I took his class, should be extremely strong
Science 2: A professor I TAed for and took her class, should be fairly strong
Non Science 1: An English professor whose small-format class (esp for my university) I took (should be fairly strong to extremely strong)|
Non Science 2: A Sociology professor with whom I took two classes, and know fairly well (should be fairly strong)
EC 1: Science Olympiad Teacher I work with, should be extremely strong as I have a great relationship with them
Last year, I asked about what I could do to improve my app, and got great advice (shoutout to MrSmile). I certainly took some of those suggestions to heart, and a year later, I am back to ask for advice on how I could improve my school list. I am aware that this may also change in the future as I research more about schools to try to better match mission fit. Furthermore, I have been told that this list may be a bit too baseline heavy, and hence why I wanted advice on my school list.
I also do think I want to center my narrative around elderly care, but I think this might change as I continue to draft and refine my PS and prewrite my secondaries. I am a bit worried that my research experience (which was bench work in biochemistry) may not tie well into this as my intended most important three activities were hospice, research, and Science Olympiad, and am open to suggestions about how to best refine this.
CA ORM (Indian), Currently starting gap year
Stats:
GPA: 3.99 cGPA, 3.99 sGPA
MCAT: 519, took this in September 2024, am aware this is my only shot at a cycle before I have to retake this
Undergrad Institution: T40 CA School, Biology major, Graduating Magna Cum Laude
Clinical Hours: 360 total, expecting ~ 400 by time of application
100 from my CNA licensing course
15 from my time as a hospital volunteer in the ER (asterisk below in nonclinical)
93 from Hospice (> 100 by time of app)
140 from second round of hospital volunteering (It is different from the other hospital volunteer program listed, it is more akin to being a CNA)
Non-clinical Hours: 460, ~ 500 by time of application
240 Hours, from my time as a hospital volunteer (I spent my time mostly in the non-clinical side of the hospital from my junior year of high school through freshman year, then continued in a clinical volunteering role in the ER for a short while till during the summer after freshman year)
220 hours from food bank and homeless shelter soup kitchen volunteering, I will have at least 250 by time of application
Research Experience: 1360 hours as a research assistant in a wet lab, first author paper due to be submitted to a journal (fairly low impact)
Shadowing: Currently zero at this point, but will be shadowing a doctor's practice for ~ 80 hours over two weeks in early May
Leadership: nothing leadership-specific only
Extracurriculars/Activities:
Current Volunteer at a low-income school coaching students to participate in Science Olympiad (100 hours, this may count as underserved volunteering and thus go into non-clinical hours from what I have been told)
TAed for a science class for a quarter, ~ 80 hours
LORS:
Science 1: My PI, I took his class, should be extremely strong
Science 2: A professor I TAed for and took her class, should be fairly strong
Non Science 1: An English professor whose small-format class (esp for my university) I took (should be fairly strong to extremely strong)|
Non Science 2: A Sociology professor with whom I took two classes, and know fairly well (should be fairly strong)
EC 1: Science Olympiad Teacher I work with, should be extremely strong as I have a great relationship with them
