MD 3.7/33MCAT reapplicant

[FoolishSwami]

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[md-2020]

Put up your current and previous school lists for the best help.

Do not retake two 33's.

 

[FoolishSwami]

My previous schools list was
Downstate
buffalo
stony Brook
Upstate
nymc
albany
drexel
University of miami
weill cornell
columbia
mt sinai
nyu
university of rochester
emory
einstein

I am a NY resident btw.

 

[FoolishSwami]

For my current school list I was thinking of keeping the same schools and adding

creighton
quinnipiac
hofstra
fiu
as well as Texas Medical Schools as I have some ties to the state.

Any other input would be greatly appreciated!

 

[md-2020]

My previous schools list was
Downstate
buffalo
stony Brook
Upstate
nymc
albany
drexel
University of miami
weill cornell
columbia
mt sinai
nyu
university of rochester
emory
einstein

I am a NY resident btw.

For my current school list I was thinking of keeping the same schools and adding
creighton
quinnipiac
hofstra
fiu
as well as Texas Medical Schools as I have some ties to the state.
Any other input would be greatly appreciated!

As an NY resident and 3.7/33 I'm extremely surprised you didn't get into some state schools. 5 II's and no acceptances might indicate some interview deficiencies, have you talked with your rejected schools about this?

Nevertheless, I think your previous school list is excellent. Texas MD schools will be low yield for OOS unless your ties are extremely strong.
FIU is low yield for OOS.

If you must add more schools I agree w/ Creighton, Quinnipiac, and Hofstra; also consider Temple, GW, Georgetown, Jefferson, and BU/tufts.

 

[piii]

1) Did you take both MCATs before applying last cycle?
2) Which schools did you interview at, if you don't mind?
3) Did you get any feedback from the schools you were rejected from?

I agree with @md-2020, Not one acceptance from 5 interviews suggests poor interview skills. How did you feel after the interviews? Were there problems? Were they traditional or MMI?

 

[GrapesofRath]

It's the interview. Period

 

[Faha]

The Texas schools accept mainly Texas residents so skip those. In addition to the schools you applied to before consider adding:
Vermont
Quinnipiac
Temple
Jefferson
Oakland Beaumont
Western Michigan
St. Louis
Rosalind Franklin
Loyola
Creighton
Tulane
Hofstra
Any new private MD schools that open in 2017 (Seton Hall, Roseman, Henricopolis, etc. )
You should receive some interviews from these schools with your stats.
Also apply to several DO schools and you are competitive for any DO school.

 

[FoolishSwami]

1) Did you take both MCATs before applying last cycle?
2) Which schools did you interview at, if you don't mind?
3) Did you get any feedback from the schools you were rejected from?

I agree with @md-2020, Not one acceptance from 5 interviews suggests poor interview skills. How did you feel after the interviews? Were there problems? Were they traditional or MMI?

1) Yes I took both before applying last cycle.
2) I interviewed at Stony Brook, Buffalo, Downstate, Upstate, and NYMC.
3) I did not get any feedback but was going to contact them soon and see where i could improve.

Looking back, I had trouble with the MMI interviews at Upstate and NYMC. Stony Brook, Buffalo, and Downstate interviews went ok but I definitely felt that I could have done better. I wasn't as prepared as I could have been.

 

[piii]

1) Yes I took both before applying last cycle.
2) I interviewed at Stony Brook, Buffalo, Downstate, Upstate, and NYMC.
3) I did not get any feedback but was going to contact them soon and see where i could improve.

Looking back, I had trouble with the MMI interviews at Upstate and NYMC. Stony Brook, Buffalo, and Downstate interviews went ok but I definitely felt that I could have done better. I wasn't as prepared as I could have been.

Did you get waitlisted at mostly MMI, or mostly traditional schools?

So it is definitely the interview. You need to really focus on what you had trouble with. Did you not click with interviewers? Did you feel that you didn't articulate wel enough? Did you stumble? Could you not answer a bunch of questions? Did the interviewers seem bored?

 

[FoolishSwami]

Did you get waitlisted at mostly MMI, or mostly traditional schools?

So it is definitely the interview. You need to really focus on what you had trouble with. Did you not click with interviewers? Did you feel that you didn't articulate wel enough? Did you stumble? Could you not answer a bunch of questions? Did the interviewers seem bored?

Both the schools i was waitlisted at were traditional interviews. For MMIs it was a mix of difficulty answering questions and not clicking with interviewers. For traditional interview I had trouble with articulating in an engaging way which probably bored the interviewers. Of course, I also did had interviews which I thought went very smoothly and where i clicked with the interviewers.

 

[tenblackalps]

Hey Guys,

I just graduated from college this past May and did not get off the waitlists I was on. I plan to reapply next summer for the entering class of 2017. I was wondering if you could give me some advice on how to improve my application or maybe help me identify some specific areas where could use improvement. Last cycle I had 5 MD interview, 3 of which were rejections and 2 waitlists.

My extracurriculars are fairly standard:

Clinical:
Hospital Volunteering - 300 hours
Shadowing - 100 hours

Research
- 2 research summer internships
- worked in one lab over 3 years of undergrad with one publication (not first author)
- Did poster presentations for each internship

Non-clinical/community service:
- 400 hours volunteering at a summer camp for special needs children
- active involvement in church projects and fundraisers for charity
- TA for intro chemistry and physics classes in my university over multiple semesters

work:
SAT/ACT tutor

I have one red flag due to a IA I received 3 years ago for alcohol but nothing too serious otherwise.
I applied to 15 schools and feel that this may have been too few. Also, i have been considering taking the new MCAT but am on the fence. I took the old MCAT twice and got a 33 both times. However, I do have the time so i feel it might be worth it. I also have a decrease in GPA during my senior year due to a severe case of senioritis.

What are my chances?

I agree with @GrapesofRath that it has to be the interview. I haven't had an MMI yet but all the normal interviews I have had so far I treated as conservations and took the liberty to expand on topics even if they weren't *directly* related to medicine. So far that strategy (I hesitate to call it that) has helped quell my nerves, keep the flow of conversation relaxed and natural, and fully use the time alotted. I recommend if there is time for Q&A at the end of the interview always asking the person who is interviewing you about their journey in medicine and how they got to where they are now.