What would you do?

[jisu23]

~3.5 overall/science GPA, engineering major at ucla
35O MCAT
-safety officer (first aid/cpr certified) for a couple rec sports clubs (2 years)
-president/team captain of one of those club sports (1 year)
-numerous awards from those sports
-mentorship program for underprivileged children (2 years)

work/volunteer experience
-research/benchwork (1 year)
-volunteer at a clinic (150+ hours)
-shadowed various specialists (total of 150 hours)

-plan to do more shadowing spring, summer, fall quarters at least

Thing is, I had hoped to start applying this summer so I could go straight into med school out of undergrad, but after reading the "why apply early" article on SDN, I couldn't help but think whether I should wait a year to add to my clinical exposure. Would i have a chance in-state (CA resident) if i didn't wait the extra year? Worth it to wait the year? What would you do with these stats? Input is greatly appreciated

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[TooMuchResearch]

~3.5 overall/science GPA, engineering major at ucla
35O MCAT
-safety officer (first aid/cpr certified) for a couple rec sports clubs (2 years)
-president/team captain of one of those club sports (1 year)
-numerous awards from those sports
-mentorship program for underprivileged children (2 years)

work/volunteer experience
-research/benchwork (1 year)
-volunteer at a clinic (150+ hours)
-shadowed various specialists (total of 150 hours)

Edit: And doesn't this go in the What are My Chances thread?

-plan to do more shadowing spring, summer, fall quarters at least

Thing is, I had hoped to start applying this summer so I could go straight into med school out of undergrad, but after reading the "why apply early" article on SDN, I couldn't help but think whether I should wait a year to add to my clinical exposure. Would i have a chance in-state (CA resident) if i didn't wait the extra year? Worth it to wait the year? What would you do with these stats? Input is greatly appreciated

I don't really know how tough it is to get into a UC, but I think you should be alright with the amount of clinical exposure you listed. The 3.5 GPA is a little low, but the 35 MCAT should help compensate (I assume a 35 is pretty competitive for UC schools).

Keeping in line with the advice generally given in these threads: apply to all your state schools, apply broadly (a good mix of reach schools, schools around your range...which will be a bit harder to determine with the low GPA high MCAT, and a few "safety" schools. Some program(s) will likely take you.

 

[GoSpursGo]

I think you'd have a shot, but not a great one. It looks right now like your ECs are strong; given a glide year, you could really wind up with some outstanding ECs that would give you a chance to overcome your slightly lower GPA.

Keep in mind, however, that with your stats and ECs, I would think you're pretty likely to get into *A* medical school THIS year if you apply now; if you take a year off, you'll definitely make yourself more competitive by adding a bunch of more clinical exposure and getting "real world" experience... but you still won't have a guarantee. Is the extra year of your life worth increasing your chances at a Cali school, knowing that you might still wind up OOS at the end of the day? That's your call.

Also, we have a sub-forum known as "What are my Chances" specifically for asking these kinds of questions. I'm going to go ahead and move this over there

 

[Catalystik]

I think your clinical experience is fine as it is. Your high MCAT score compensates for the below average GPA. You have a good chance at an acceptance somewhere outside of California if you want to to apply this year. If you decide to improve your ECs, you should also take more classes to bring up your GPA and continue with the research.

 

[jisu23]

Cool, thanks everyone for the feedback

 

[drizzt3117]

I would apply broadly, your stats don't make you particularly competitive for CA schools, alot of CA applicants with higher stats end up going OOS.

 

[jisu23]

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