Objective:
SAT I (breakdown): 2330: 760 (CR), 770 (M), 800 (W)
ACT (breakdown): N/A
SAT II: 800: Math II; 780: Chemistry; 780: World History
Unweighted GPA (out of 4.0): My school doesn’t send unweighted GPA. Weighted: 109, UW: Prob. 98
Rank (percentile if rank is unavailable): 2/180ish
AP (place score in parentheses): World History (5), AP Calculus AB (5), U.S. History (5)
IB (place score in parentheses): IB Chemistry (6); IB Diploma Candidate; all IB courses.
Senior Year Course Load: IB English HL, AP Calculus BC, IB Biology HL, Honors Physics, IB Philosophy SL, IB Economics SL, IB French SL, TOK
Major Awards (USAMO, Intel etc.): National Merit Finalist, National French Exam 10th place and Honorable Mention, Co-authored three published abstracts; presented one abstract (first-author) at a 2014 national cardiology conference and another (first-author) at a 2015 international cardiology conference; Gold Presidential Service Award (X 2); Girl Scout Bronze and Silver Awards (Gold Award in June); AP Scholar;
Subjective:
Extracurriculars (place leadership in parentheses): Business and Economics Club (Founder—9th grade & President); School Newspaper (Editor-in-Chief); School Leadership Group (Co-President); Mathletes (Member), Science Olympiad (Grades 10, 11; won a medal)
Job/Work Experience: N/A
Volunteer/Community service:
Volunteer at Religious Place of Worship since elementary school—volunteer coordinator, student leader in religious community (maintaining flow of operating at large-scale events and training peers in public service rituals); Girl Scouts since Kindergarten; Started and implemented district-wide tutoring program aiding 100+ students. Started an outreach program connecting 100+ students at my high school with students in Kenya.
Summer Activities: 2012: Religious Camp for 2 weeks; 2013, 2014: Cardiac Research
Essays: CA was about my emotional journey moving from one school to another—Went through like 20 drafts lol. My guidance counselor said it was beautiful. My later supplements were definitely better than the first ones I wrote.
Teacher Recommendation: Research Teacher/Coordinator—AMAZING! I am close with my Philosophy teacher, School Principal, and my other teachers who wrote me recs, so they were probably very good.
Counselor Rec: Probably pretty good. She definitely talked about my growth from 9th grade to 12th.
Additional Rec: Research Mentor: This one, according to my guidance counselor, was very nice. My research mentor and I are pretty close as well.
Interviews: These went well. I stumbled in a few places at my HPME interview and one place in particular at my Siena/AMC interview, but it still worked out! I heard from one my friends after I heard I was accepted that the interviewers thought I was very well-spoken.
Supplementary Material: Sent a sheet with info about a student leader award I won–selected from students across two counties and spoke at an event with 600+ attendees. I also sent my abstracts.
Other
Applied for Financial Aid?: Yes
School Type: Public
Income Bracket(mention if FA candidate): >200K
Hooks (URM, first generation college, etc.): N/A
Reflection
Strengths: ECs, GPA, SATs, SAT IIs, Letters, Common App
Weaknesses: Some of my essays could have been a bit stronger, Asian; I wish I started the global outreach program earlier…I feel like that could have been a greater talking point in my essays and interviews; Lack of Shadowing
Why you think you were accepted/waitlisted/rejected: I think my ECs were somewhat unique; strong research basis, strong service focus
Applied to the following BS/MD Programs:
Boston University SMED -->Rejected Pre-Interview
Brown PLME --> Applied ED; was deferred and then rejected RD
Brooklyn BA/MD–>Interview–>Waitlisted
Case Western PPSP–>Rejected Pre-Interview
GW/GWSecond-Stage Applicant (Had to write an essay)–>Rejected Pre-Interview
Northwestern HPME–>Interview–>Accepted
Siena/AMC–>Interview–>Accepted
Rice/Baylor–>Rejected Pre-Interview
UPitt GAP–>Interview–>Rejected
WashU University Scholars Program in MedicineRejected Pre-Interview
Where were you accepted/waitlisted/rejected: Accepted to UPenn (Benjamin Franklin Scholar), Vanderbilt, Rice; Rejected From: Harvard, Stanford
General Comments:
For each interview (undergrad and BS/MD), I did A LOT of research on the school. If you are in science research, definitely look at the medical school faculty, see what research interests you, and bring that up in your interviews and essays. For example, I am involved in cardiac research, so for every school, I spent some time looking through the cardiac research that was done at the medical school that I would be going to and then mentioned the name of the professor, what research he did, and most importantly, WHY I was interested in that research. If you’re really up to it, you can contact the specific professor you want to work with (one alumni gave me that suggestion at an interview). I didn’t do that but it probably wouldn’t hurt.
On Demonstrated Interest:
These schools want to see DEMONSTRATED INTEREST. I was rejected from GW/GW after the second stage (writing an essay), but the main advice that I was given was, show why GW is the only place where you will be able to accomplish your goals. This kind of goes for any school. For the NU HPME interview, they really expect you to know a lot about the medical school. Know why you want an accelerated program rather than a regular 4 year undergraduate school.
Also–many programs have their own focus. HPME is big on flexibility–academic, extra-curricular, pursue your own interests before medical school, etc. The Albany Med Programs are geared towards leadership, service, and research. If you show a good understanding of why you are a good fit for the program you are applying to, they will be more likely to call you for an interview.
Essays:
I guess the best advice I can give is that you should make sure your passion for medicine, service, extra-curriculars, etc. comes through. Definitely have people look your essays over, but not too many. You want your voice to come through. For every med program, there is the generic “Why Doctor” essay. You can re-use this essay (usually around 500 words for most programs) but make sure that you include school-specific info too. In your “Why Doctor,” you can definitely put in/tie in observations about the medical field. Everyone has their unique story. Make sure that the essays you write are only the ones YOU can write, no one else.
Interviews:
- It’s important to recognize and be able to speak about the good AND the “bad”/challenges in the medical field. Have a plan for what you are going to pursue, what you are interested in, and how you will contribute to campus life.
- Do not discount undergrad interviews! They are AMAZING opportunities to “practice” for your BS/MD interviews. I did 10+ undergrad interviews before my BS/MD interview; it definitely makes your life easier. You are significantly more comfortable in an interview environment.
DECISION: Northwestern HPME
The college application process is unpredictable, an emotional roller-coaster, and arguably a microcosm of real life. Ultimately however, it is most important to go in with an open mind, not seeking validation from admissions officers and realizing the value in the journey of writing and reflecting, rather than in the outcome. Despite a lot of rejections, I’m really happy with how it all worked out! Definitely apply widely! Good luck to all the future applicants and congratulations to all those who were accepted!!