wamc signaling programs out of state with no ties

[worldeater0]

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i'm an m4 at a t20 school in the midwest. i've lived here my whole life and my entire family is here. but i'm sick of the cold and want to apply to the NE and Cali regions for residency. aside from my home program (guaranteed interview) i don't think i'll be applying to anything in the midwest honestly, im done with this place.

my step score is low 240s, second quartile, no AOA and i had to remediate my very first course m1 year. i have good ECs and pubs, LORs and personal statement are good. would it be impossible to try and leave? are my stats good enough to try for the northeast, west coast and southern programs? what tier of programs should i apply to? i don't have any ties there at all so i'm a little worried they won't take my signal seriously. thanks for the help

 

[comp1]

First off, congrats on focusing on geography over other things. That is the right perspective since you will, statistically, stay where you match for the rest of your life. That said...the Northeast is quite large. "Cali" is a bit more manageable. I totally get wanting to not live in the Midwest. The weather does sound unlivable. You are in an unfortunate situation where your application has a red flag that might get you filtered out at some places and you aren't able to argue for any specific ties to an area beyond the weather. You are going to need to apply broadly. For CA that means places like Kaweah Delta, Lake Arrowhead, Fresno, Chico, etc. You can definitely try out some slightly more competitive places too, like UCR and the UCLA county programs. You are on a kind of borderline with competitively. Try to come up with some good discussion points for your interview. Get familiar with the state laws and systems around mental health.