WAMC/School List feedback please!

[tryingmybest12]

ORM, undergrad neuroscience and philosophy double major
GA resident, jesuit ties, no family in medicine, 1st gen immigrant w/ US citizenship, T50 undergrad institution
cGPA: 3.49, sGPA: 3.10
current SMP student, consistently scoring ~ the average or slightly above mean of M1 class
I unfortunately took the MCAT before I was ready to, but will not make that mistake again
MCAT 500 (CPBS 123, CARS 129, BBLS 123, PSBB 125), plan to retake in July and expected to score much higher after grad program ends - took full length blueprint mock for diagnostic last week and scored 508, and will study intensively starting early June - goal is a 515+ score
2000+ hours clinical experience in EMS, both 911 and IFT settings
300+ hrs volunteer, mostly nonclinical
~10 hrs shadowing MDs in various specialties
1 summer in bio research lab, 1 humanities publication, no STEM pubs
LORs from SMP and committee letter (includes letters from bio prof, neuro prof, EMS supervisor, philosophy prof, and campus min)
I only plan to apply to MD schools. I would prefer to be in the new england area or the east coast generally, but obviously willing to go pretty much anywhere that might take me. Here is my tentative school list... I would appreciate any and all feedback. Which might be a waste of time/money/ too much of a hail mary for me to apply to? :

Boston University

Brown University

Chicago Rosalind Franklin

Creighton University

Emory University

Geisinger Commonwealth SOM

George Washington University

Georgetown University

Geisel SOM Dartmouth

Kaiser Permanente SOM

Loyola Stritch SOM

Medical College of GA

Mercer University

Morehouse SOM

Penn State

Rush Medical College

St Louis University

Temple University

Tufts University

Tulane University

UC Davis SOM

Drexel University

UMass Chan Medical School

UNC Chapel Hill SOM

University of Maryland SOM

University of Vermont

Virginia Commonwealth SOM

Virginia Tech Carilion SOM

Wake Forest University SOM

Eastern Virginia Medical School

Thank you for your help in advance!

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[Faha]

You should accumulate another 40 hours of physician shadowing before you apply. A MCAT of 500 is not competitive for any of the schools on your list except perhaps Mercer. You have many state public schools on your list that admit very few (if any ) non residents with your stats and no connection to the state (UC Davis only admits 2 or 3 per year). Post your new MCAT score here when available.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

What feedback have you received from your SMP advisors?

Details needed for your nonclinical volunteering. What did you do for 300 hours? What you have might be too low for Rush and other Jesuit schools.

 

[AJS59]

Go out and crush the MCAT retake and listen to what Faha and Smile have said.

As for the list - I get the desire to stay on the east coast but applications to UNC, Brown, and Geisel would most likely hit trash bin with your combined MCAT and GPA. As others have mentioned, 300 hours (again, depending on the nature of what you did) could be too low for Rush, St. Louis, Loyola, Georgetown.

As a GA resident, I would also eliminate UC Davis, Maryland, VCU and EVMS.

 

[tryingmybest12]

You should accumulate another 40 hours of physician shadowing before you apply. A MCAT of 500 is not competitive for any of the schools on your list except perhaps Mercer. You have many state public schools on your list that admit very few (if any ) non residents with your stats and no connection to the state (UC Davis only admits 2 or 3 per year). Post your new MCAT score here when available.

I will do that, thank you. Should I remove US Davis/others from my school list perhaps?

 

[tryingmybest12]

What feedback have you received from your SMP advisors?

Details needed for your nonclinical volunteering. What did you do for 300 hours? What you have might be too low for Rush and other Jesuit schools.

My SMP advisors said that as long as I get my MCAT score up I should be fine applying for the next cycle, and have not given me much other feedback. I did ~200 hours at a family shelter creating educational enrichment for the children and social support. ~30 hours packaging/distributing food at food pantry. ~30 hours helping low vision community members with various things like checking email or reading things to them or just talking to help with loneliness. ~10 hours for various events like helping with a charity gala or a 5k for a local hospital. ~80 hours for online mental health hotline. And the bio research I did for the summer my role was technically undergrad research volunteer and it was 60 hours. Do you recommend I get more research experience too? Or get an LOR from a jesuit? I know a few who may be willing to write me one if needed

 

[tryingmybest12]

Go out and crush the MCAT retake and listen to what Faha and Smile have said.

As for the list - I get the desire to stay on the east coast but applications to UNC, Brown, and Geisel would most likely hit trash bin with your combined MCAT and GPA. As others have mentioned, 300 hours (again, depending on the nature of what you did) could be too low for Rush, St. Louis, Loyola, Georgetown.

As a GA resident, I would also eliminate UC Davis, Maryland, VCU and EVMS.

This is very helpful, thank you. My volunteer activities I just wrote about briefly above.

 

[Faha]

I will do that, thank you. Should I remove US Davis/others from my school list perhaps?

It depends on what your July MCAT score is .

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Do you think you have done enough for admission to your home institution where you are doing your SMP? Do you qualify for linkage interviews?That's also important to know.

 

[tryingmybest12]

Do you think you have done enough for admission to your home institution where you are doing your SMP? Do you qualify for linkage interviews?That's also important to know.

I have heard from many faculty and students there that I am a strong mission fit for the school, and I have people who would go to bat for me if I were given an interview. However, my home institution does not have direct linkage to the medical school and I was passed over for an interview this cycle (only applied to home institution). I have a strong suspicion it is due to my MCAT score. I will definitely reapply to them next cycle as I can see myself doing well there, I like the school, and I know I can handle their curriculum.

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I have heard from many faculty and students there that I am a strong mission fit for the school, and I have people who would go to bat for me if I were given an interview. However, my home institution does not have direct linkage to the medical school and I was passed over for an interview this cycle (only applied to home institution). I have a strong suspicion it is due to my MCAT score. I will definitely reapply to them next cycle as I can see myself doing well there, I like the school, and I know I can handle their curriculum.

Let them tell you explicitly what you need to get higher priority for your MCAT. The SMP advisors should already know.

As you know, Jesuit schools like but don't prefer applicants based on their religious history. As you know they all favor applicants with examples of curae personalis through their community service/service orientation activities; I presume if you are at an SMP at such an institution, the SMP advisors will help you articulate that. A LOR from a Jesuit priest/minister doesn't matter; this isn't undergrad.

 

[tryingmybest12]

Let them tell you explicitly what you need to get higher priority for your MCAT. The SMP advisors should already know.

As you know, Jesuit schools like but don't prefer applicants based on their religious history. As you know they all favor applicants with examples of curae personalis through their community service/service orientation activities; I presume if you are at an SMP at such an institution, the SMP advisors will help you articulate that. A LOR from a Jesuit priest/minister doesn't matter; this isn't undergrad.

Thank you for your insight. I will make an appointment to talk to them and will update this thread after I have retaken my MCAT.

 

[everythingis onfire]

I only plan to apply to MD schools

I think you need to apply to at least a few DO schools as backup