Hello, class of 2022 high school student here. Looking at my list of schools I plan to apply to (WashU, Vanderbilt, etc.), I realized that they only really accept 3-5 students from my high school. I’m wondering what schools are in between super prestigious schools that are very difficult if not impossible to get into and good state schools that have pre-med? Still looking for a mid-large size school and not those very very small private schools.
stats&ec:
- ACT: 35
- GPA: 4.95/5.0 (may go down a little in the future), 3.96/4.0
- volleyball team, track and field
- band at school
- medical club at school
- volunteering as a math tutor at school
- summer jobs as math tutor and swim instructor
- recently started some virtual shadowing
- currently a news editor on my school newspaper, hoping to be editor-in-chief next year
- Tri-M Music Honor Society
Thank you to everyone who answers, I appreciate it!
home state is IL, hoping to pay a very max of ~45,000 but I’m also going to be applying for many scholarships
If you are serious about leaving open the option of attending medical school in the future, then you definitely want to avoid debt for your undergraduate education. Leaving some $$ left in your college fund would be even better if you can manage it. With a budget of $45,000 per year, you should be able to avoid debt completely.
UIUC is very good for premed. I understand that staying in-state is not exciting for many students. However, you will get a very good premed education there. It should be affordable given your excellent stats and being in-state with a decent budget. You will be surprised how academically demanding premed classes are, and how strong the other students in your classes will be. Staying in-state might in some cases also give you an edge in the future if applying to an in-state public medical school.
To have a chance to get accepted to medical school, you are going to need to be at least in the top 1/2 and preferably in the top 1/4 of your very demanding premed classes. This implies you do not want to be in the bottom 1/2 of incoming freshmen. This consideration might push you to very good schools where you are one of the stronger incoming students, and therefore can make application to university for premed programs “boring”. However, it can also lead you to a strong future in the direction that you want to go.
I am not as familiar with other in-state public universities in IL, but they will most likely also be worth considering.
Yes, this does mean that I have a strong opinion on the “prestige versus public university” debate.
Also, if you do end up attending a very good in-state public university where your stats put you near the top of the incoming freshman class: Do not underestimate how difficult classes are going to be. You will need to show up at university on day 1 intending to work very hard and determined to stay very near the top of every class regardless of how much work it is going to take. As a premed student, you will also need to seek out volunteer opportunities in a medical environment.
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What is your class rank ?
What would you like to do professionally other than practice medicine ?
Thank you for your advice, that really helps put things in perspective.
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My school does not provide class ranks because we have a lot of strong students. Also, while I’m fairly certain I’d like to go to med school I want to go to an undergrad program where I can explore a wide variety of subjects, too since I am an avid writer and history buff.
UIUC is an obvious answer for someone who is a resident of IL. Doing well there will not preclude you from getting into any medical school. The top pre-med students at UIUC will probably have better outcomes than the average pre-med student at Vanderbilt or WUSTL. I personally would not pay OOS tuition for someone who wants to go to medical school, especially when you have a strong state flagship option in IL.
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Suggest you look at mid range LAC’s like Knox, Lawrence, DePauw, Rhodes all of whom give good merit for your stats. Many of these schools have great med school admittance rates. Higher ranked Washington and Lee has a full ride competitive scholarship that is not need based called the Johnson. Other large public’s like Alabama have auto merit scholarships up to full ride for someone with your stats.
Based on the budget, it sounds like you’re going in-state whether you like it or not. Assuming you still choose to major in Premed (the vast majority decide other majors), then prestige doesn’t matter anyway. Medical schools look at grades and MCAT scores. Also state medical schools favor state residents, which makes in-state your best bet for medical school. So either way, in-state is win-win.
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I’m wondering what schools are in between super prestigious schools that are very difficult if not impossible to get into and good state schools that have pre-med?
Any college in the country can teach the dozen or so lower-division classes needed to be eligible to apply to med school. Premed is not a major, it is just those classes and your intention to apply. How strong a candidate you are will depend on how hard you work to learn the material, as well as if you do the other things needed (get to know some profs, take part in volunteer work in patient care, etc)