which is weighed most of all???

[MDJatt here]

which out of these med. school admission components do you all think can be of highest weightage looking at all North American med. schools in general.
GPA, MCAT scores, Essays, Interviews, volunteering-international and domestic, research work, tutoring, I know most of the replies are gona be..............
"DIFFERENT SCHOOLS HAVE DIFFERENT OPINIONS ABOUT DIFFERENT THINGS"
but still...............anybody has some decent answers or maybe research-based........plzzz go ahead
any serious response ll be appreciated
thx

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[rajad10]

umm gpa + mcat

 

[deleted106503]

umm gpa + mcat

To get a secondary, yes. I'd say interview is the absolute make it or break it part in getting a spot by far.

 

[geno2568]

If you hang around SDN for too long, you might start thinking that unless you nursed a dying third-world orphan back to full health while taking 40 credits, you'll never make it into an MD school.

But the truth of the matter is, gpa and mcats are the most important. An interview can break you..but it cant really make you, since just to get one you gotta be hot stuff.

 

[Robizzle]

word, mad weightage.

 

[Law2Doc]

An interview can break you..but it cant really make you, since just to get one you gotta be hot stuff.

Not so. There are many people with relatively modest, but adequate numerical stats who get in over better numbered people on the strength of their ECs and interviews. You will meet many such people when you get to med school. There are also quite a few schools out there which consider everyone who gets to the interview stage as equal, making the interview the only game in town, once you make it past the initial cuts (which are largely numerically focused).

Truth of the matter is, these "which is more important" threads are exercises in futility. Everything is important, and there are plenty of people with all these stats. The ideal applicant has all of them. The less than ideal applicant should seriously consider fixing anything they fall short in, either by an MCAT retake, a year of postbac study, extra ECs before applying, or practice in interviewing.

 

[VPDcurt]

Not so. There are many people with relatively modest, but adequate numerical stats who get in over better numbered people on the strength of their ECs and interviews. You will meet many such people when you get to med school. There are also quite a few schools out there which consider everyone who gets to the interview stage as equal, making the interview the only game in town, once you make it past the initial cuts (which are largely numerically focused).

Truth of the matter is, these "which is more important" threads are exercises in futility. Everything is important, and there are plenty of people with all these stats. The ideal applicant has all of them. The less than ideal applicant should seriously consider fixing anything they fall short in, either by an MCAT retake, a year of postbac study, extra ECs before applying, or practice in interviewing.

Respek.

 

[vtucci]

Initial screenings-

GPA and MCATs are important for the majority of schools- particularly state schools and people applying out of state to a state school.

But do not overlook the importance of your personal statement. That can get you in the door when your other items may not be as impressive. Ditto on Extracurricular activities and unique experiences/unusual backgrounds.

Final screening-

Interview is very important. Secondary essays.

 

[Robizzle]

(in WWE announcer voice)

and here's weighing in at 352 pounds..the undisputed heavy weight champion of the woooorld...

G.. P... AAAAAAAAAAAA (crowd goes wild)

i'd say GPA carries the most weight. but we'll see after its championship match with MCAT tonight.

[/sarcasm]

 

[Law2Doc]

(in WWE announcer voice)

and here's weighing in at 352 pounds..the undisputed heavy weight champion of the woooorld...

G.. P... AAAAAAAAAAAA (crowd goes wild)

i'd say GPA carries the most weight. but we'll see after its championship match with MCAT tonight.

A 4.0 is meaningless if the MCAT is a 20, or if you are unbearable in an interview.

 

[Orthodoc40]

(in WWE announcer voice)

and here's weighing in at 352 pounds..the undisputed heavy weight champion of the woooorld...

G.. P... AAAAAAAAAAAA (crowd goes wild)

i'd say GPA carries the most weight. but we'll see after its championship match with MCAT tonight.

[/sarcasm]

Strongly disagree. Schools won't say it, but the MCAT carries the most weight as an initial screening. You'll find far more people getting interviews that have good MCAT scores but so-so GPAs. You won't find many people that have 4.0 GPA's or near that but low 20's for an MCAT getting interviews.

 

[MinnyGophers]

The way I see it is that a good GPA + MCAT will grant you an interview. If your GPA/MCAT are on the lower side, then your ECs and essay will decided whether or not you are granted an interview.

The interview plays the most important role in whether or not you will be accepted. If you have a so-so interview, then they will probably relook at your whole package and make a decision.

So basically, I think GPA + MCAT get you the interview, which will or will not get you the school spot. ECs, essays, and LORs are just there to sway in your favor.

That's my opinion..

 

[Robizzle]

Damn yall I was just kiddin. I do agree with what you both say. I personally believe that the most weight goes to an interview, if granted one.

 

[Vox Animo]

how you look is most important. Just paste a big glamour photo of yourself over everything part of AMCAS with photoshop.

 

[MinnyGophers]

how you look is most important. Just paste a big glamour photo of yourself over everything part of AMCAS with photoshop.

don't forget the unicorn and huge rainbow in the background.

 

[MDJatt here]

A 4.0 is meaningless if the MCAT is a 20, or if you are unbearable in an interview.

Of course

 

[MDJatt here]

The way I see it is that a good GPA + MCAT will grant you an interview. If your GPA/MCAT are on the lower side, then your ECs and essay will decided whether or not you are granted an interview.

The interview plays the most important role in whether or not you will be accepted. If you have a so-so interview, then they will probably relook at your whole package and make a decision.

So basically, I think GPA + MCAT get you the interview, which will or will not get you the school spot. ECs, essays, and LORs are just there to sway in your favor.

That's my opinion..

thanks a lot MinnyGophers
i find that answer pretty decent

 

[vtucci]

Strongly disagree. Schools won't say it, but the MCAT carries the most weight as an initial screening. You'll find far more people getting interviews that have good MCAT scores but so-so GPAs. You won't find many people that have 4.0 GPA's or near that but low 20's for an MCAT getting interviews.

I disagree. I had a 29 MCAT and a 3.93 GPA in post-bac and received secondaries everywhere (except UMiami-- I was out of state and they said I did not have the GPA of 3.6, which I did) including those who screen. My MCAT was hardly outstanding. It was average for my application cycle. I also received interviews to a number of top schools and started pulling applications when I received multiple acceptances.

Other things matter.

 

[silas2642]

I disagree. I had a 29 MCAT and a 3.93 GPA in post-bac and received secondaries everywhere (except UMiami-- I was out of state and they said I did not have the GPA of 3.6, which I did) including those who screen. My MCAT was hardly outstanding. It was average for my application cycle. I also received interviews to a number of top schools and started pulling applications when I received multiple acceptances.

Other things matter.

I think that mcat and gpa can get your foot in the door, but they certainly do nothing to keep it from hitting your arse on the way out.

 

[ANCAdoc]

MCAT is more impt than GPA.

You might not like it, but that is they way it is. People with less competitive GPAs but high MCATs get accepted more frequently than do people with low MCAT/high GPA.

 

[ANCAdoc]

vtucci, your MCAT was pretty decent. I don't believe that was average for the app cycle. I think the avg MCAT for accepted students nationwide is something like 29ish.

 

[MedStudentWanna]

The fact is that someone with a 43 MCAT and a 3.1 GPA can probably still get into any school they want provided they can speak in coherent sentences, but someone with a 4.0 GPA and a 22 MCAT probably doesn't have much of a shot at anywhere but state schools. I think that's pretty telling. There are lots of 4.0's out there. There's maybe one 43 per application cycle, therefore, I think a high MCAT outweighs a high GPA by a landslide.

 

[SeventhSon]

Not so. There are many people with relatively modest, but adequate numerical stats who get in over better numbered people on the strength of their ECs and interviews. You will meet many such people when you get to med school. There are also quite a few schools out there which consider everyone who gets to the interview stage as equal, making the interview the only game in town, once you make it past the initial cuts (which are largely numerically focused).

Truth of the matter is, these "which is more important" threads are exercises in futility. Everything is important, and there are plenty of people with all these stats. The ideal applicant has all of them. The less than ideal applicant should seriously consider fixing anything they fall short in, either by an MCAT retake, a year of postbac study, extra ECs before applying, or practice in interviewing.

however, i think that good interviewing is biased towards people who have better ECs etc, naturally. You just come across as more interesting, cultured etc. Even if you think that's BS, that's the way I think things come across.

 

[Mutt]

Not so. There are many people with relatively modest, but adequate numerical stats who get in over better numbered people on the strength of their ECs and interviews. You will meet many such people when you get to med school. There are also quite a few schools out there which consider everyone who gets to the interview stage as equal, making the interview the only game in town, once you make it past the initial cuts (which are largely numerically focused).

The first part of your statement is ambigous as to what "adequate numerical stats" really are...

The second assertion is entirely conjecture and/or based on anecdotes that get passed around in the pre-med communities. Unless you are a member of an adcomm, then how can you have any basis for asserting that "everyone is equal at the interview stage?"

Yes, there exist exceptions; some people with lower than average MCAT/GPA get in - but remember, it's the exceptions that everyone talks about. Somehow, those get magnified into statistical possibilities, when they are really just outliers.

 

[geno2568]

The fact is that someone with a 43 MCAT and a 3.1 GPA can probably still get into any school they want provided they can speak in coherent sentences, but someone with a 4.0 GPA and a 22 MCAT probably doesn't have much of a shot at anywhere but state schools. I think that's pretty telling. There are lots of 4.0's out there. There's maybe one 43 per application cycle, therefore, I think a high MCAT outweighs a high GPA by a landslide.

I hope yur right

 

[Oculus Sinistra]

how you look is most important. Just paste a big glamour photo of yourself over everything part of AMCAS with photoshop.

Agreed.
And in all the pictures, make sure you're giving the thumbs-up.

Because otherwise the med schools might say, "A lot of pictures. But no thumbs-up? I wonder if something's wrong. Oh, here's one with thumbs-up. I guess he got it together in the end."

 

[Erina]

Agreed.
And in all the pictures, make sure you're giving the thumbs-up.

Because otherwise the med schools might say, "A lot of pictures. But no thumbs-up? I wonder if something's wrong. Oh, here's one with thumbs-up. I guess he got it together in the end."

you're really amusing me tonight.

 

[Oculus Sinistra]

you're really amusing me tonight.

 

[braluk]

most important is the quality of the paper u use for your secondaries when u send em in. they love feeling important with heavier papers that you can only find in specially marked packages in staples.

glad i could contribute

 

[Erina]

most important is the quality of the paper u use for your secondaries when u send em in. they love feeling important with heavier papers that you can only find in specially marked packages in staples.

glad i could contribute

what about pink scented paper? it worked in legally blonde...

 

[rajad10]

what about pink scented paper? it worked in legally blonde...

such a turn on

 

[Oculus Sinistra]

what about pink scented paper? it worked in legally blonde...

Nice. You could shape it like a heart.

And then write, "I heart medicine."

That's like an automatic-in right there.

 

[Erina]

Nice. You could shape it like a heart.

And then write, "I heart medicine."

That's like an automatic-in right there.

ok you can have the seduction strategy, this is my new one.

 

[Homer Simpson]

what about pink scented paper? it worked in legally blonde...

Ah, you beat me to it! No hard feelings though, Erina.

 

[Oculus Sinistra]

ok you can have the seduction strategy, this is my new one.

I think some adcom is going to slit my tires now.
They were all excited about the seduction.
They even hoped you were going to have a snake like the britney spears video....... where she eats a snake.
Was that the one with the chair?

Why do I know Britney Spears videos?

 

[GuzzyRon]

GPA and MCAT go hand in hand....And balance is the way to go i.e. good GPA AND good MCAT. Otherwise, to be successful, you have to balance a bad GPA with a high MCAT or a bad MCAT with a stellar GPA. But I for one prefer the former.

 

[Erina]

I think some adcom is going to slit my tires now.
They were all excited about the seduction.
They even hoped you were going to have a snake like the britney spears video....... where she eats a snake.
Was that the one with the chair?

Why do I know Britney Spears videos?

dude i dont need a snake. britney had to use the snake to distract from her trashiness. im way hotter.

and homer simpson, im sorry i stole the legally blonde thing from you. i'll give it back if you want.

 

[Oculus Sinistra]

dude i dont need a snake. britney had to use the snake to distract from her trashiness. im way hotter.

You're right. You should use something that accents your natural beauty. Like doves. Carrying arrows that point to you.

but seriously dude it's really hard to train doves.

 

[Law2Doc]

The first part of your statement is ambigous as to what "adequate numerical stats" really are...

The second assertion is entirely conjecture and/or based on anecdotes that get passed around in the pre-med communities. Unless you are a member of an adcomm, then how can you have any basis for asserting that "everyone is equal at the interview stage?"

What "adequate numerical stats" are was intentionally left as ambiguous, because while there tends to be a cut off, it clearly varies from place to place and probably from applicant pool to applicant pool. Nobody out there can define what this will mean for more than one school. As for the second point, how one can know all are treated as equal at the interview stage at many schools -- various deans and other adcoms do tell people this, sometimes it is announced on the interview day itself - it is not based on conjecture; Believe what you want.
I hardly think it's bad advice to tell people that the interview is extremely important, and not to be taken lightly or as a formality. Once you are in med school, you will meet more than just the few "exceptions" who have more modest stats and yet clearly have exceptional experiences and social skills. And you will know many people who did not get into your school with numerical stats better than a ton of your classmates. That's just the way things work when it's not a purely objective system.

 

[Law2Doc]

however, i think that good interviewing is biased towards people who have better ECs etc, naturally. You just come across as more interesting, cultured etc. Even if you think that's BS, that's the way I think things come across.

I think there is no question this is the case, and nothing BS about it. Everybody has done the academics and the basic volunteering/shadowing, and so it's only what you have done beyond that, or in your life outside of these things, that will give you something interesting to talk about and make you stand out in an interviewer's mind.

 

[durfen]

So one quarter i got two B-s and a B.....will I be asked about this in the interview? I have solid reasons for it (rather emotional event during finals week), but I didn't put it down on the primaries because I didn't want to highlight it. Should I preempt it with the secondary?

Sorry, not related to the thread, but it is kinda sorta maybe. I have a 39 MCAT which hopefully will dispel too many worries about GPA. But I should prepare a statement if I'm going to be asked about it.

 

[MasterMD]

send them a copy of your favorite Prince video.

 

[Summer Sweet]

I hate to admit it, but I'm finally accepting the fact that my gpa and MCAT will matter much more than the time I devote to trivial EC's. It does make sense that the MCAT will weigh more since it's standardized, whereas GPA's may vary more due to the difficulty of classes at the school, etc. I'm going to be praying for stellar MCAT performance to offset my GPA, which isn't too hot right now.

 

[AggieJohn]

What "adequate numerical stats" are was intentionally left as ambiguous, because while there tends to be a cut off, it clearly varies from place to place and probably from applicant pool to applicant pool. Nobody out there can define what this will mean for more than one school. As for the second point, how one can know all are treated as equal at the interview stage at many schools -- various deans and other adcoms do tell people this, sometimes it is announced on the interview day itself - it is not based on conjecture; Believe what you want.
I hardly think it's bad advice to tell people that the interview is extremely important, and not to be taken lightly or as a formality. Once you are in med school, you will meet more than just the few "exceptions" who have more modest stats and yet clearly have exceptional experiences and social skills. And you will know many people who did not get into your school with numerical stats better than a ton of your classmates. That's just the way things work when it's not a purely objective system.

I tend to agree with most of your posts -- probably because of the well thought out responses you give. I have to disagree on this matter though. In my experience, it seems that grades/MCAT matter much more than other aspects. I think there are "exceptions" who have a ~3.1 gpa but did some amazing EC's... but for the most part they are looking for stellar grades and MCAT scores.

My opinion anyways.

 

[RokChalkJayhawk]

So one quarter i got two B-s and a B.....will I be asked about this in the interview? I have solid reasons for it (rather emotional event during finals week), but I didn't put it down on the primaries because I didn't want to highlight it. Should I preempt it with the secondary?

Sorry, not related to the thread, but it is kinda sorta maybe. I have a 39 MCAT which hopefully will dispel too many worries about GPA. But I should prepare a statement if I'm going to be asked about it.

I think the simple answer would be "Be Prepared." That 39 is going to dispel a lot of concerns about any B's. And you have 3 B's TOTAL on your application?? (AKA your GPA is at least above 3.7) Dude- you're so money and you don't even know it.

 

[Law2Doc]

I tend to agree with most of your posts -- probably because of the well thought out responses you give. I have to disagree on this matter though. In my experience, it seems that grades/MCAT matter much more than other aspects. I think there are "exceptions" who have a ~3.1 gpa but did some amazing EC's... but for the most part they are looking for stellar grades and MCAT scores.

My opinion anyways.

I intentionally didn't give specific numbers (such as the 3.1 you suggested). However, schools do not purely take the highest numerical stats. If they did, the schools would simply just fill up from Harvard down, starting with the 4.0/40 types and work there way down the list, with each school taking the highest stat individuals who applied until all classes were full. You would have no need for applications, essays, ECs, interviews, or at least could streamline the process significantly. And there would be a much more dramatic difference in GPA and MCAT from the top to bottom allo schools than you currently see. (The range is actually pretty small). But it doesn't work even close to that way.
You WILL meet folks with B+ averages at the top schools. You WILL see folks getting into top 10 schools with a 30 MCAT too. And not just one or two. The reason is that a big chunk of the application process focuses on the non-numerical portions of the application. Once you get to med school, you will absolutely meet people who got into school with really strong EC and interview skills, but certainly lower stats than many who got rejected. (Although still adequate stats to get interviewed, obviously). Non-numerical stats matter more than many on SDN would like to think.
Some people kill themeselves in undergrad for four long years to get that 4.0 and high MCAT, so it's pretty understandable that such folks live in a state of denial that there are actually other factors which may be viewed as favorably to admission.