I elected to take two gap years after undergrad because I have no clinical experience and low volunteering due to COVID. I am a Canadian applicant from a top Canadian university, with strong ties to Texas (lmao) as I went to middle and high school there and my whole family lives there.
My stats are 3.92 cGPA/3.87 sGPA. My MCAT is a 518 (129, 127, 130, 132).
I am looking for an honest critique of my application as well as ways I can improve because I’m aware of how hard it is to get into USM as a Canadian applicant.
Would also like some help with my school list, in particular with finding Canadian friendly schools. I’m still trying to get the hang of using MSAR.
Here is my EC list, including prospective hours until the application date (6/2022). Gap year activities are highlighted.
1. Shadowing (100 hours): pediatrics, internal medicine (rural clinic), nephrology, hepatology, infectious diseases (2018-2020), can also get extra hours this year if needed
2. Paid Clinical experience (1300-1500 hrs by app date, approx 3000 by med school start date): Clinical research assistant - patient structured interviewing, administering TMS/EEG, etc **(SEPT 2021 - PRESENT)**
3. Research (720 hrs): Developmental psychopathology lab - did abstract screening and data collection for meta-analysis, helped write manuscript (publication) (Sept 2018-Dec 2019)
4. Research (160 hrs): Educational psychology lab - did literature review, designed research design and protocol in conjunction with PI, created research materials and wrote REB, helped in initial data collection until project was shut down due to COVID, wrote undergraduate thesis (May 2019-Aug 2019)
5. Research (1500 hrs): Hepatology lab - collected data and helped write manuscript for meta-analysis (publication), collected retrospective chart data for several projects, wrote results and introduction section and collected data for project (manuscript in submission process), wet lab work on cancer cells + wrote thesis (project shut down due to COVID), wrote REB, helped design clinical trials study (beginning phase) (May 2019 - present)
6. COVID-19 Underserved volunteering (150 hours): organized food and mask drive for underserved communities in Texas, organized fundraising concert for struggling artists in India (April 2020-Dec 2020)
7. Emotional support volunteer (200 hours): virtual emotional support through text line service **(Aug 2021-present)**
8. Volunteer tutor (100 hours): tutored elementary students in Math, undergraduate and high school students in chemistry, biochemistry, and biology **(January 2020-present)**
9. Publications (2 + 1 in submission process)
10. Leadership (210 hrs): Student research team lead and student mentor - Developed screening tool for transplant ward and online transplant education modules with team (Sept 2020-present)
11. Leadership (120 hrs): VP of homelessness club - held awareness and fundraising activities, organized academic conference (Sept 2019-April 2021)
12. Leadership (100 hrs): Editor-in-chief of online neuropsychology magazine - managed team of editors and staff writers, wrote and edited articles, managed design process **(Sept 2021-present)** (may replace with a volunteering activity if that is better)
13. Leadership (100 hrs): Events Director of First Aid Club - organized CPR workshops and socials for club members (Oct 2019-April 2021)
14. Honors (3 academic scholarships + Dean's List)
15. Hobby: Podcast host (worked on podcast for about 2 years, **released online Sept 2021**), writer (wrote articles for school newspaper, currently working on novel for past three years. Hoping to finish and get an agent, but not holding my breath because I’m a very slow writer lol)
I feel like my volunteering is still a weak link, but I'm not sure what type of volunteering would be best. I'm currently thinking of getting a remote writer position at a refugee services nonprofit, but not sure.
I'm planning on applying broadly to both US and Ontario medical schools based on GPA/MCAT medians.
Here is my tentative list:
US:
- Boston University
- Central Michigan
- Dartmouth
- George Washington
- Harvard
- Michigan State
- Perelman School of Medicine
- Stony Brook
- Sidney Kimmel
- Stanford
- UCLA
- West Virginia
- NYU
- NYU Long Island
- Wayne State
- Colorado
Ontario
- UofT
- Queen's
- McMaster
- Western
@Faha @Goro @Moko
@LizzyM
My stats are 3.92 cGPA/3.87 sGPA. My MCAT is a 518 (129, 127, 130, 132).
I am looking for an honest critique of my application as well as ways I can improve because I’m aware of how hard it is to get into USM as a Canadian applicant.
Would also like some help with my school list, in particular with finding Canadian friendly schools. I’m still trying to get the hang of using MSAR.
Here is my EC list, including prospective hours until the application date (6/2022). Gap year activities are highlighted.
1. Shadowing (100 hours): pediatrics, internal medicine (rural clinic), nephrology, hepatology, infectious diseases (2018-2020), can also get extra hours this year if needed
2. Paid Clinical experience (1300-1500 hrs by app date, approx 3000 by med school start date): Clinical research assistant - patient structured interviewing, administering TMS/EEG, etc **(SEPT 2021 - PRESENT)**
3. Research (720 hrs): Developmental psychopathology lab - did abstract screening and data collection for meta-analysis, helped write manuscript (publication) (Sept 2018-Dec 2019)
4. Research (160 hrs): Educational psychology lab - did literature review, designed research design and protocol in conjunction with PI, created research materials and wrote REB, helped in initial data collection until project was shut down due to COVID, wrote undergraduate thesis (May 2019-Aug 2019)
5. Research (1500 hrs): Hepatology lab - collected data and helped write manuscript for meta-analysis (publication), collected retrospective chart data for several projects, wrote results and introduction section and collected data for project (manuscript in submission process), wet lab work on cancer cells + wrote thesis (project shut down due to COVID), wrote REB, helped design clinical trials study (beginning phase) (May 2019 - present)
6. COVID-19 Underserved volunteering (150 hours): organized food and mask drive for underserved communities in Texas, organized fundraising concert for struggling artists in India (April 2020-Dec 2020)
7. Emotional support volunteer (200 hours): virtual emotional support through text line service **(Aug 2021-present)**
8. Volunteer tutor (100 hours): tutored elementary students in Math, undergraduate and high school students in chemistry, biochemistry, and biology **(January 2020-present)**
9. Publications (2 + 1 in submission process)
10. Leadership (210 hrs): Student research team lead and student mentor - Developed screening tool for transplant ward and online transplant education modules with team (Sept 2020-present)
11. Leadership (120 hrs): VP of homelessness club - held awareness and fundraising activities, organized academic conference (Sept 2019-April 2021)
12. Leadership (100 hrs): Editor-in-chief of online neuropsychology magazine - managed team of editors and staff writers, wrote and edited articles, managed design process **(Sept 2021-present)** (may replace with a volunteering activity if that is better)
13. Leadership (100 hrs): Events Director of First Aid Club - organized CPR workshops and socials for club members (Oct 2019-April 2021)
14. Honors (3 academic scholarships + Dean's List)
15. Hobby: Podcast host (worked on podcast for about 2 years, **released online Sept 2021**), writer (wrote articles for school newspaper, currently working on novel for past three years. Hoping to finish and get an agent, but not holding my breath because I’m a very slow writer lol)
I feel like my volunteering is still a weak link, but I'm not sure what type of volunteering would be best. I'm currently thinking of getting a remote writer position at a refugee services nonprofit, but not sure.
I'm planning on applying broadly to both US and Ontario medical schools based on GPA/MCAT medians.
Here is my tentative list:
US:
- Boston University
- Central Michigan
- Dartmouth
- George Washington
- Harvard
- Michigan State
- Perelman School of Medicine
- Stony Brook
- Sidney Kimmel
- Stanford
- UCLA
- West Virginia
- NYU
- NYU Long Island
- Wayne State
- Colorado
Ontario
- UofT
- Queen's
- McMaster
- Western
@Faha @Goro @Moko
@LizzyM
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