What kind of schools should I be looking at?

[PremeditatedPremed]

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[tswol]

Apply to your in-state schools, and really any that you like. Your MCAT is incredible and can get you into the likes of Johns Hopkins and Harvard. Purchase MSAR if you really want to do research and build a good school list, and really just pick which ones interest you. You're golden.

 

[PremeditatedPremed]

Apply to your in-state schools, and really any that you like. Your MCAT is incredible and can get you into the likes of Johns Hopkins and Harvard. Purchase MSAR if you really want to do research and build a good school list, and really just pick which ones interest you. You're golden.

Hey, thanks for the input! Not sure that the top tiers would be viable with my cGPA, though - isn't median for that type of school ~3.9 generally? I guess I'm trying to get a feel for whether I should bother looking at top 20s or if I would be better served at lower tier schools. Sorry if my question was vague.

 

[Goro]

Hi all,

first time posting here, though I've lurked a fair amount; if this is the wrong forum for this kind of post, my bad! Basically, I plan on applying early June (say, the first week or so). I'm trying to decide which schools to apply to. I've tried using the extensive calculator provided by WedgeDawg (got a score of 83) and I've also checked Lizzy scores (~75-76), etc., but I wanted to double check and see what others thought. I'm currently living in the midwest and would like to stay local, but would also be down for moving out of state if I got into a school that I liked.

My application:
GPA: 3.66 cGPA predicated after end of postbac spring quarter (undergrad final GPA was ~3.59), sGPA is a bit lower but comparable. Note: I could raise cGPA to 3.69 or 3.70 by taking classes over the summer and sending an updated transcript in after submitting my primary app, but not sure if it is worth it.

Major: Biology, specialization in endocrinology

MCAT: 522, 130/131/131/130

ORM status: ORM

Undergrad: US News top 10 @ known grade deflating school

Volunteering hours (clinical): 70 ER hours at the moment, will plan to have 100+ by June (trying to get a position at another ER room or an HIV clinic).

Volunteering hours (non-clinical): likely around 70 as well, also plan to have this up to 100 by June. The hours are divided into around 3 activities (club I was part of, animal shelter, miscellaneous volunteering).

Research: 2000+ hours at undergrad biochem lab and current job at an HIV lab, no publications or posters (bit worried about this). I have a poster I made during an undergrad HIV class and presented in front of HIV researchers (HIV poster), but not sure if this counts as "a real poster". It's not impossible I'll have a paper by June but it's unlikely.

Letters of Rec: Already asked for my letters (will also have one from current PI); I think they will be OK. Possible above average/notable letter from the person I TA'd physio for.

Clinical exposure: 70+ ER hours mentioned above, + ~20 hours shadowing. I plan to have 50+ hours shadowing by the time I apply in June. Mostly shadowed endocrinologists and a general practitioner so far.

Leadership: was on the board of a club concerned with minority access to medicine for 2 years, helped co-found a mental health/meditation club, 3 quarters of TA for physiology.

Miscellaneous: hobbies with piano and creative writing, no awards or performances though. Pretty average I think.

What kind of schools do you guys think are realistic? I know my cGPA is a bit low, so I'm thinking of trying the summer classes approach + sending in an updated transcript. Also, for what it's worth, my premed advisor (who was an adcom for my undergrad's med school) says that applicants from my school generally get around a ~.08 to .1 GPA "boost" in terms of adcom consideration, but this kinda seems like wishful thinking to me.

What general schools do you all recommend? Thanks so much!

There was a post by an unsuccessful SDNer recently who had an app just like yours. You have too little volunteering compared to the gobs of research hours. You might be OK at Stanford, but I'm worried about all the others.

Do you have a strong rising GPA trend? If so, then a few extra course that will raise your GPA aren't going to move the needle all that much. You'll do yourself more good by getting in more patient contact experience and just as important, service to others less fortunate than yourself.

Once you fix that, focus on some Albany/Drexel class schools, all Keck class, and a handful of Stanford/Harvard class. And don't forget your state schools!!! For example:

U Chicago OR U Penn OR NYU OR WashU

Vanderbilt OR Columbia OR Sinai OR Cornell

Northwestern OR Harvard OR Yale OR Stanford

JHU OR BU

U VM

Albert Einstein
Emory
Case
USC/Keck
Mayo
Rochester
Dartmouth
Duke
Pitt
Hofstra

Tufts
The Philly Triplets
Gtown
GWU
NYMC
Albany
Miami
Tulane

Your state school

 

[PremeditatedPremed]

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