chuck: cut off quota?

[Jim Henderson]

I am a going to be a senior at Cornell, just came back from studying at UCL, London. I decided to jump on my med-school applications early. So I have been getting a lot of secondaries back. My question is does every school just send one anyway, to make money. I applied to 15, most of them really good schools, and only one CAse Western didn't send me their secondary as I didn't make their first cut. I have a 3.25 GPA with a double major in Bio and Chem. There is a dip in my sophmore year, as I got C+ in my orgo and physics, since I had to double up if I wanted to go abroad. I have a lot of extracuriculars at school like Volleyball team, fraternity and a work-study job. I took on too much after a great freshmen year and was overwhelmed. I got my grades back up last year. I was wondering whether my low GPA is going to hurt me as most schools might use that as a primary cut off mark, making their first cut. I have 11V, 13P, 11B on my MCAT. If you have any suggestions, I would appreciate it. OH and one more thing,
some schools have rolling admission, like Jefferson, but if they accept you, they want your decision two weeks after they have given you an offer, not really letting you see whether you will get in somewhere else. Sorry with all these questions, but they have been sitting in my head for past month or so. Great site, by the way.
Thanks
Chuck

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[drhenderson]

IT's THE MCAT!!!!
THE MCAT!!!!

YOUR MCAT IS BUFF!!!!!!

That is why you are getting flooded with secondaries. I bet you get lots of interviews and acceptances too!

The GPA is lower than average at many schools, but that MCAT is also way above average at many... dropping you right in the "lets interview this one" category. (Besides, you go to a very well recognized university!)

(No guarantee... but I bet you get lots of interviews as long as you've applied to the appropriate distribution of schools!)

As for being accepted and then obligated to go... it is my understanding that you can go somewhere else if you are accepted at another school later... but you have to let any school you said "yes" to know that you changed your mind right away... that is, you cannot hold two simultaneous positions. I think if you hold two positions for too long, both can drop you!

Someone left my medical school after the 1st week of classes because they were on an alternate list at a California school and got accepted at the last minute!

That's not official... I'm in communication with AMCAS and will try to get you the official rule.

Thanks for writing and congrats on your MCATs!


THE OFFICIAL WORD
Someone at AMCAS e-mailed this to me:

Prior to May 15 of the year of matriculation, an applicant should be
given at least 2 weeks to reply to an offer of admission. After May
15, schools may require applicants to respond to acceptance offers in
less than 2 weeks. An applicant may be required to file a statement of
intent, a deposit, or both. The statement of intent should provide
freedom to withdraw if the applicant is later accepted by a school the
he or she prefers. It's not until you've enrolled in a US school of
medicine or begun a brief orientation program contiguous to enrollment,
that no further acceptances should be offered to you. Once enrolled
you have an obligation to withdraw your application promply from all
other schools. Enrollment is defined as being officially registered as
a member of the first-year entering class at a school. (See AMCAS
Instruction booklet, pg. 24 "AAMC Recommendation Concerning Medical
School Acceptance Procedures for First-Year Entering Students" or
AMCAS-E Help Menu.)

ds