WAMC (506/3.62cGPA/3.45sGPA)

[allofme]

Hi everyone, I am applying this June 2024 and would greatly appreciate help editing my school list. I don't have any physicians in my family and have been lost the whole process just trying to gather information online. Any schools I should add or remove or any comments about my list would be so wonderful

I graduated with my undergrad in December 2021 (5 semesters total), and am now 24 years old (2 gap years).

cGPA: 3.62 (Upward trend: 3.15->3.87)
sGPA: 3.45
MCAT: 506 (127/125/126/128)
Residency: New York
Ethnicity: Caucasian Female
Undergraduate: SUNY New Paltz

Clinical Experience:
EMT: ~700 hours (transport & 911 in South Bronx NY- medically underserved)
Medical Scribe: ~500 hours (urgent care center in South Bronx NY- medically underserved)

Nonclinical Experience:
Head Waitress: ~1000 hours (age 14-17) **Not sure if I should include this on my application but, I feel like it helped shape who I am) \^o^/
Elementary School Tutor: ~50 hours (math & science in their library after school)
Genetics Teaching Assistant: ~50 hours/1 semester (assisted professors during class and held extra help sessions)
Administrative Assistant at PCP Private Clinic: ~50 hours (billing paperwork, contacting patients about results, creating budget sheets, analyzing data)

Research Experience:
none (I know... this isn't good)

Shadowing Experience:
Hospital shadowing in Kenya: ~100 hours (various specialties)
Private clinic PCP shadowing in USA: ~40 hours

Volunteering:
Disaster Responder Red Cross: ~150 hours (respond on-scene to fires along with the fire department to offer aid to those affected; aid includes temporary housing, financial assistance, clothing, and food)
Hospital Patient Ambassador: ~100 hours (checked on patients in the ER and provided them with extra blankets or helped them get a physician's attention, advocated for patients rights and desires)
College Student Mentor: ~50 hours (weekly meetings with college students to keep them on track to graduate, create plans for goals, advise on research or internship opportunities, motivate and tutor)
Respite Caregiver: ~100 hours (relieve family of caregiving once a week for an elderly woman with late-stage dementia, helping her with daily tasks and entertainment)
Hiking Club: ~50 hours (created a hiking club by putting up flyers and spreading the word which gained 15 members, organized hikes that fit everyone's schedules and hiking preferences)

To anyone who took the time to read this, you are awesome! I really appreciate your kindness

As you can see through my list, I would ideally prefer to be either East Coast or West Coast.

MD List:
Rush
New England
Albany
Eastern Virginia
SUNY Downstate
New York Upstate
Howard
Washington State
Morehouse
Nevada
Virginia Tech
Georgetown
Tulane
Brody
California Riverside
Florida International
Commonwealth
Louisiana State
California Davis
Arizona
Marshall
California Northstate
Loma Linda
Colorado
Connecticut
Hawaii
Maryland
Wayne State
NYU Long Island
Jefferson
Tufts
Brown
BU
Loyola
Rosalind Franklin
Drexel
Temple
NYMC
Penn State
USF-Morsani
Stony Brook
VCU


DO List:
Touro
West Virginia
NYIT
Lake Erie
Edward
Chicago
Des Moines
Campbell
Western
Arizona

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[AJS59]

You have loads of clinical experience but nothing in research (not necessarily off-putting) and more importantly your non-clinical is a bit low. Many schools are interested in your commitment to helping underserved populations specifically when coming from a place where you are not the expert (i.e. teaching/tutoring). Of the activities you listed, I think the Red Cross disaster responder fits but your other activities, not so much. The 150 hours just barely clears the line for screening out at most schools. If you were to strengthen anything in your app between now and app time I'd point to this, specifically I'd recommend you try working at a place like a food pantry, soup kitchen, housing rehabilitation, shelter work, or transport services for underserved communities.

Your school list needs a revamp. Others will offer more commentary, but here's a starting point: amongst the MD schools you listed I would rule out the following (FYI NECOM is DO, not MD):
-Rush, Georgetown, Loyola (all of these schools will demand pretty significant commitments to service on the order of several hundred hours, which you don't have).
-Howard, Morehouse (Both are HBCUs and will weigh URMs much more heavily)
-Washington State if no ties to WA
-Nevada if no ties to Nevada
-East Carolina Brody if no ties to North Carolina
-All California Schools (on your list, Riverside, Davis and Northstate) without ties to California
-Louisiana State without ties to Louisiana
-Marshall without ties to West Virginia
-Hawaii without ties to Hawaii
-Loma Linda, unless you have some religious background
-USF, Brown, BU, Arizona because your MCAT/GPA combo isn't really competitive enough for any of these schools

I can't really comment on your DO list, but my advice would be with your GPA and MCAT to add more DO schools, and perhaps a smattering of low tier MDs to replace these.

 

[Faha]

You need a better school list. Howard and Meharry mainly admit applicants from the African American community. You also have many state public schools that admit very few non residents with your stats and no connection to the state (Brody and Riverside admit zero non residents). I suggest these schools with your stats:
All 4 SUNYs
Albany
New York Medical College
Einstein
Vermont
Quinnipiac
Hackensack
Penn State
Drexel
Temple
George Washington
Virginia Commonwealth
Eastern Virginia
Wake Forest
NOVA MD
Belmont
Tulane
TCU
Creighton
Rosalind Franklin
Loyola
Rush
Medical College Wisconsin
Oakland Beaumont
Wayne State
Alice Walton (when it opens)
Roseman (when it opens)

 

[Faha]

You could add PCOM to your DO list.

 

[MD_Maker]

Hm, are you completely opposed to not being on a coast? Not sure it makes sense to completely limit your options. As above commenter mentioned, you have historically black colleges on your list. You are likely not going to be the 1 white student that matriculates every year. Also why is Riverside on your list? You don't have the ECs for Rush, whereas Davis and Hawaii aren't going to favor you. As for DO, Touro and Western (at least in CA) are extremely competitive, basically MD level competitive. Your list needs a lot of work.

 

[allofme]

You need a better school list. Howard and Meharry mainly admit applicants from the African American community. You also have many state public schools that admit very few non residents with your stats and no connection to the state (Brody and Riverside admit zero non residents). I suggest these schools with your stats:
All 4 SUNYs
Albany
New York Medical College
Einstein
Vermont
Quinnipiac
Hackensack
Penn State
Drexel
Temple
George Washington
Virginia Commonwealth
Eastern Virginia
Wake Forest
NOVA MD
Belmont
Tulane
TCU
Creighton
Rosalind Franklin
Loyola
Rush
Medical College Wisconsin
Oakland Beaumont
Wayne State
Alice Walton (when it opens)
Roseman (when it opens)

This response was so helpful! Thank you very much for taking the time to give me a full list of schools you think would work for me, I will definitely take your thoughts into account.

 

[allofme]

You have loads of clinical experience but nothing in research (not necessarily off-putting) and more importantly your non-clinical is a bit low. Many schools are interested in your commitment to helping underserved populations specifically when coming from a place where you are not the expert (i.e. teaching/tutoring). Of the activities you listed, I think the Red Cross disaster responder fits but your other activities, not so much. The 150 hours just barely clears the line for screening out at most schools. If you were to strengthen anything in your app between now and app time I'd point to this, specifically I'd recommend you try working at a place like a food pantry, soup kitchen, housing rehabilitation, shelter work, or transport services for underserved communities.

Your school list needs a revamp. Others will offer more commentary, but here's a starting point: amongst the MD schools you listed I would rule out the following (FYI NECOM is DO, not MD):
-Rush, Georgetown, Loyola (all of these schools will demand pretty significant commitments to service on the order of several hundred hours, which you don't have).
-Howard, Morehouse (Both are HBCUs and will weigh URMs much more heavily)
-Washington State if no ties to WA
-Nevada if no ties to Nevada
-East Carolina Brody if no ties to North Carolina
-All California Schools (on your list, Riverside, Davis and Northstate) without ties to California
-Louisiana State without ties to Louisiana
-Marshall without ties to West Virginia
-Hawaii without ties to Hawaii
-Loma Linda, unless you have some religious background
-USF, Brown, BU, Arizona because your MCAT/GPA combo isn't really competitive enough for any of these schools

I can't really comment on your DO list, but my advice would be with your GPA and MCAT to add more DO schools, and perhaps a smattering of low tier MDs to replace these.

Thank you for your advice, I appreciate it beyond words! I'll most definitely look into working in a place like those you mentioned Thank you for giving me reasons why I shouldn't apply to certain schools that was so so helpful! One question, when you say 150 hours is a cut for screening, what exactly do you mean by that? Like they don't take into consideration anything I've done for under 150 hours?

 

[allofme]

Hm, are you completely opposed to not being on a coast? Not sure it makes sense to completely limit your options. As above commenter mentioned, you have historically black colleges on your list. You are likely not going to be the 1 white student that matriculates every year. Also why is Riverside on your list? You don't have the ECs for Rush, whereas Davis and Hawaii aren't going to favor you. As for DO, Touro and Western (at least in CA) are extremely competitive, basically MD level competitive. Your list needs a lot of work.

You're right I shouldn't limit myself like that, I'll look into more schools without being so picky. I definitely don't have the stats to be so picky. You are also right about my list needing a lot fo work, I appreciate you helping me see that! Is there anything you think I should do to strengthen my application within the few months I have before applying?

 

[Mr.Smile12]

I'm not as concerned about your lack of research experience.... what did you do in Kenya? Why did you want to shadow a hospital there?

I guess if you are trying to pitch towards a community service mission, you need to build more hours as has been suggested above. I'm missing an overall purpose as a physician.

Direct comments:
* Waitress during high school: maybe not in work/activities but you can find a place to include it. Look at the secondary essay prompts, or consider Other Impactful Experiences if it was a source of income supporting your family. Were you involved in any pipeline programs that promote STEM or health careers while growing up? Where did you grow up?

 

[allofme]

I'm not as concerned about your lack of research experience.... what did you do in Kenya? Why did you want to shadow a hospital there?

I guess if you are trying to pitch towards a community service mission, you need to build more hours as has been suggested above. I'm missing an overall purpose as a physician.

Direct comments:
* Waitress during high school: maybe not in work/activities but you can find a place to include it. Look at the secondary essay prompts, or consider Other Impactful Experiences if it was a source of income supporting your family. Were you involved in any pipeline programs that promote STEM or health careers while growing up? Where did you grow up?

You are so kind to give me feedback like this, I clearly need it. I am lost in terms of what I am trying to pitch for. The extracurriculars that I chose to spend my time on were really just because I either wanted to learn something or felt aligned with their mission/goals. Of course, I took into account what I thought medical schools would want but honestly, I don't think I know much.

Although I'm sure those were all rhetorical questions, I will answer them with the hope that you could tell me if you can see my purpose as a physician afterward. I would like to see if admissions/knowledgeable others can see my purpose with a little bit more explanation. Don't feel obligated to respond, I just figured I would throw it out there.

I grew up in Long Island NY (medically overserved). I didn't take part in any STEM programs growing up besides clubs in school. I worked as a waitress since my parents told me I had to learn to work and start paying my own (not rent or food but all other expenses). My free time was spent working, studying, or playing sports. I had a great PCP who taught me some medical knowledge, saw my interest, and influenced me to go into medicine. So, I always considered it a possibility. I went to college for biology and psychology since I've always been fascinated by science and behavior. I graduated college and still thought of medicine as a possibility so I took an EMT course to learn more of the field. I heard of a program to travel internationally and have the opportunity to shadow doctors in a hospital. I love experiencing different cultures and I thought I would gain a valuable perspective on health systems. I chose Kenya in particular because it is known to have a rich and diverse culture and I wanted to be in a place where I was told they need the extra hands. During my month in Kenya, I found myself spending a lot of time in the ER since I could be of some help with my EMT skills but, I also shadowed physicians in surgery, OBGYN, ICU, pediatrics, and internal medicine. I found a passion for learning about healthcare disparities and how I could take part in reducing them. Upon coming back from Kenya, I realized how medically overserved the area I lived in was and I decided that I didn't want to be somewhere people really don't need me. So, I did some research on medically underserved areas of New York and applied for EMT jobs. I got a position in the South Bronx, saved up the funds, and moved here. Since then, I have taken up positions that helped me validate my desire to become a physician while also allowing me to give back to the community here. Along with being an EMT, I am a medical scribe in a nearby urgent care center, advocate for patients in a local hospital, volunteer and shadow at a private clinic close by, and respond to fires all around the city offering aid to those affected. These experiences taught me a lot and showed me how much I enjoy healthcare. I want to learn more and be able to do more.

Do you think I have a purpose as a physician?

 

[Mr.Smile12]

Do you think I have a purpose as a physician?

I appreciate the narrative, and good luck in composing your personal essay and other supporting essays for your application. Make sure you strategize how you will share these parts of your story.

The challenge you have is to compile the evidence with your work/activities descriptions, letters of recommendation, and school list to demonstrate mission fit and alignment of purpose and values... your own and the schools where you want to attend. Growing up around the NYC area, you have many opportunities to work with an internationally diverse and socioeconomically diverse patient population, so as long as your eyes are wide open to the opportunities you feel you need to take you to the next step, that's great. Show me the mentors you have met and the champions you want to work with for the rest of your training and professional maturation. If you do that, you will do more than most applicants and stand out. (In a nutshell, what Becoming a Student Doctor should help you).

Now unless you retake your MCAT, consider the schools from the lists you have received. If there are specific programs that you feel most inclined to apply to that may have significantly higher expectations, know why you are interested in them other than "prestige" and "better resources for specialties" (which are important but you need to remain optimistic in thinking, but not magical).

I also am not sure that being "medically overserved" is appropriate as a description, but I understand what you are trying to say. Healthcare workforce trends however highlight an overall deficit in the number of physicians that can address the overall health needs of the US population. Canada is having a bear of a time now with a severe shortage of general practitioners, even in areas with a "glut" of physicians. If serving in a medically underserved area is your interest, have you looked up the NHSC or even the HPSP? How many schools work with AHECs and FQHCs? Would taking a year off with Peace Corps or Americorps interest you? These options can build your narrative more; along with a stronger MCAT result, you could be in a fine position for a focused track helping underserved communities.