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Chances (reapplying)
- Thread starter onetiime
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Quite frankly your MCAT is the only thing thats holding you back.
I think it would be better to take the MCAT again in August then reapply the summer afterwards. By then you'll probably have a good mcat, better ECs and have more time perfecting your app thus having a higher probability of getting in and spending much less money doing so.
The alternates would be:
a. Apply again with essentially the same app (with some new ec's)
b. Retake and apply late
With either of these however you have a low probability of acceptance due to your low MCAT and either because you apply late or your new ECs wont be known until later.
You are pretty much burning money away if you apply this season dont get in and then re-reapply again next summer.
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235009
the problem is your MCAT score. any plan that doesn't include retaking the MCAT is a bad plan. take a year off, retake the MCAT and apply again in 2013. if your score doesn't improve then get acquainted with the "DO philosophy"
also where were you 4 months ago when you knew you only had one interview? why weren't you studying for the MCAT then so you could retake it in time to reapply in 2012?
one last thing....you need to apply to more than 9 schools next time, even if you improve your mcat score.
also where were you 4 months ago when you knew you only had one interview? why weren't you studying for the MCAT then so you could retake it in time to reapply in 2012?
one last thing....you need to apply to more than 9 schools next time, even if you improve your mcat score.
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Your MCAT may or may not be a weakness, depending on whether you're applying from a state with lenient public schools or not.
Your shadowing and clinical experience both show a level of involvement below the average. You don't mention nonmedical community service that helps those in need in your wider community. And I see no peer leadership. Applying with the same application plus some more shadowing hours/tutoring with a plan to beef up the activities after submission may well doom you to a third application cycle. Update letters about ongoing activities may help at many med schools (where accepted), but generally only if you were borderline to begin with.
Consider waiting out this year's cycle and applying early in the next one. With a year to work with, you might manage an MCAT score more in accord with your excellent GPA and activities that will make it hard for adcomms to turn you away.
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Nice high GPA, and you MCAT is a bit shy of the "triple double" that is the bar for most MD schools. Suggest you aim a bit lower and forget Stanford and the Ivies. And yes, it's worth taking another MCAT...Try some DO schools as well.
Thank you all for the input.
Sounds like the overwhelming opinion is to submit for the '13-'14 cycle, which makes sense since even I don't feel like my app has changed much. Question though, ifI were to submit this cycle with my same app (plus early AMCAS submission, new mcat , ECs via update letters) would that harm my chances for the next cycle? I guess what I'm asking is if it would be a bad idea (other than burning time/$) to just take a chance this year, knowing full well I may need a third try.
Great point. I'm kicking myself for not being more proactive, but I guess I just didn't accept the fact of needing to reapply until recently. Plus, the few schools I did get feedback from said my MCAT was acceptable and that I should focus on ECs. But I know bringing my score up is the easiest way to make me more competitive.
I'm sure this is covered in other threads but how many clinical volunteer hours and shadowing hours should I be aiming for? Also would it be more advantageous for me to get more short-term (4hrs a wk for 4-6wks) shadowing experiences with lots of specialties or to establish one long term one throughout the year? *The school I interviewed with is big on primary care
Also, now that I am out of school. What can I do to build leadership experiences? From what I've read this is usually done by starting a club /holding an officer's role for your pre-med campus.
Sounds like the overwhelming opinion is to submit for the '13-'14 cycle, which makes sense since even I don't feel like my app has changed much. Question though, ifI were to submit this cycle with my same app (plus early AMCAS submission, new mcat , ECs via update letters) would that harm my chances for the next cycle? I guess what I'm asking is if it would be a bad idea (other than burning time/$) to just take a chance this year, knowing full well I may need a third try.
Great point. I'm kicking myself for not being more proactive, but I guess I just didn't accept the fact of needing to reapply until recently. Plus, the few schools I did get feedback from said my MCAT was acceptable and that I should focus on ECs. But I know bringing my score up is the easiest way to make me more competitive.
I'm sure this is covered in other threads but how many clinical volunteer hours and shadowing hours should I be aiming for? Also would it be more advantageous for me to get more short-term (4hrs a wk for 4-6wks) shadowing experiences with lots of specialties or to establish one long term one throughout the year? *The school I interviewed with is big on primary care
Also, now that I am out of school. What can I do to build leadership experiences? From what I've read this is usually done by starting a club /holding an officer's role for your pre-med campus.
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OP as everyone stated the best bet is to retake but as you stated the retake would be late and if you scored < 30 again well the cycle would be wasted mainly due to being too late. Assuming you're a non-URM (Caucasian) you had a pretty good chance of being accepted (68 %) but you messed up in a critical aspect.
https://www.aamc.org/download/157958/data/table25-mcatgpa-grid-white-0911.pdf
You applied late and very narrowly. Being complete in November is horribly late with a slightly "low" MCAT. I'm also going to assume you applied to some top-tier schools which is also a horrible idea for someone with a 28 score. If you submitted your app in June and applied to 25+ schools preferably even 30 (mostly low to mid-tier schools) to be safe you most likely would have been accepted.
I would say don't retake and apply smartly this time. I have very good tips in my mdapplicants profile and advice concerning when to apply and to the type of schools. If you need help feel free to PM me.
EDIT:- I forgot to answer your other question, if you were to build your ECs during the application cycle that's great. You could always send update letters concerning your ECs and trust me some schools will look at it very positively. Some schools have so many applicants, a letter updating something and showing interest in the school means a lot to them.
https://www.aamc.org/download/157958/data/table25-mcatgpa-grid-white-0911.pdf
You applied late and very narrowly. Being complete in November is horribly late with a slightly "low" MCAT. I'm also going to assume you applied to some top-tier schools which is also a horrible idea for someone with a 28 score. If you submitted your app in June and applied to 25+ schools preferably even 30 (mostly low to mid-tier schools) to be safe you most likely would have been accepted.
I would say don't retake and apply smartly this time. I have very good tips in my mdapplicants profile and advice concerning when to apply and to the type of schools. If you need help feel free to PM me.
EDIT:- I forgot to answer your other question, if you were to build your ECs during the application cycle that's great. You could always send update letters concerning your ECs and trust me some schools will look at it very positively. Some schools have so many applicants, a letter updating something and showing interest in the school means a lot to them.
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Not to get off topic, but every time I see that data I'm left with the same thought: Who was that one person who was accepted with an mcat score <15???
How strong does the rest of your application have to be to compensate for that? Something like: I am a rhodes scholar, heisman winner, nobel laureate and underwear model?
How strong does the rest of your application have to be to compensate for that? Something like: I am a rhodes scholar, heisman winner, nobel laureate and underwear model?
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Average clinical experience listed is 1.5 years with 150 hours. Duration is more important than total hours. And what you get out of it is most important of all. Average shadowing is 50 hours. I'd consider 40 to be a bare minimum and 60-80 hours ideal. This can be done in intense amounts over a short time or with a few hours a week on a regular basis. Including a primary care doc is important, and ideally you'd have enough of a relationship with this person to get insights into the problems facing docs today. You may add other specialties for a broader experience. Having a zillion of them isn't going to help you more.
Leadership is of most value if you make a difference. Consider taking on a leadership role with whatever nonmedical community service you pick. Habitat for Humanity needs subcommittee chairs. Tutors for afterschool kids programs or ESL adults need an organizer. Etc. Or start a special interest group/be a team captain, make it grow, but include community service as part of the agenda. JMO.
