@GoldenRock just sent you a PM
@in2llect
Thanks a lot for your PM and the detailed feedback and input. Greatly appreciate your help and support.
I made an account just for the purpose of this as I used a lot of previous threads for advice and I appreciate those who wrote before me.
Class Rank- School does not rank
Weighted GPA- 4.18
School: Public
SAT:
Total-2160
M -680
CR -730
W -750
ACT: N/A
SAT II:
Math 2: 720
Chemistry:740
AP classes (Junior Year):
AP Chem-4
AP Calc AB-5
AP French-4
Senior Year : AP Bio, AP Psych, AP Stat
Major Extracurriculars: Student Government,Leader of Biology club, FBLA,Orchestra, Piano
Community Service:Tutoring, First Aid , Library , Hospital/Shadowing, School Events
Research Experience:
None
Applied to the following BS/MD programs:
- Rutgers/NJMs- Rejected pre interview
- TCNJ/NJMS - Rejected pre interview
- PSU/Jefferson -Accepted
- NJIT/SGU- Accepted 5.Howard- Withdrew application 7.Boston- Accepted 8.Drexel/Drexel- Accepted
- Brown- Rejected
Other schools: Rutgers (Accepted) , Johns Hopkins (accepted) ,GW (Accepted), TCNJ (Accepted)
Decision:
Boston University Seven Year Accelerated Liberal Arts Medical Program
Reflection:
I’m so happy with where I am now. It’s been a long and hard journey with lots of thoughts and prayers but overall I’m glad. I picked BU ultimately because I love the city and the opportunities it presents. The undergraduate and graduate programs are strong and there are plenty of opportunities for research. Go Terriers!! As far as advice goes, apply broadly to BS/MD programs and normal undergraduate schools. Do your research: there are several BS/MD programs all with different MCAT requirements and GPA requirements once you get accepted. The MCAT is changing and some of them have changed the curriculum to reflect that. PSU/Jefferson ( PSU/Sydney Kimmel) is now a seven year program as opposed to 6 year program. BS/MD programs have early deadlines ( October/November) so I suggest write your applications over the summer. Anyways, keep organized, there are several essays and components that need to be handed in by a certain date, so I suggest an excel sheet. People always emphasize that scores are important but don’t let average sat scores prevent you from applying. I barely got the minimum score for Penn state and I still applied. However, don’t give them a reason to doubt your application, try to get the best scores in SAT and AP tests your scores for some of these programs are the things that determine whether or not you get an interview. Some programs won’t even look at your application unless you have a 1400/1500 SAT score in one sitting (Math and Critical Reading). However, other programs are more rounded and look at the overall application/person before the interview.
Don’t be intimidated by other people. I believe my essays and interviews helped me along with my life experiences and volunteer skills. I spent a lot of time with my common app essay and the additional questions/prompts to display my personality and life story. Use the additional questions to answer “ Why you want to be a doctor”. Ask yourself this and come up with something that will be a common thread in you answers to the questions /essay prompts and during the interviews. If you can’t answer this question honestly then really think before embarking on this long process. But with that said good luck. Apply broadly and don’t put all your faith in one program be open minded try out several schools regular undergraduate and combined BS/MD schools to figure out the program that you imagine yourself succeeding in for the next 7/ 8 years and beyond. If you get into the interview stage it is a level playing field be yourself, show that you can talk to people and be compassionate ( isn’t that what every doctor should be?). Make conversation and prepare for questions you know they are going to ask ex. “Why do you want to become a doctor”, “ Why this program” hint hint, wink wink. They want to see that you want this program not your parents, not anyone else, after all you’re going to be in it for the next 7-8 years. Show your passion in your essays and in your school work. You’ll need lots of teacher recommendation so I suggest writing a handwritten thank you to your teachers at the end of this process.
At the risk of sounding cliched try your best on every application ( imagine yourself going there) and keep your mind open. You might be rejected by some schools you thought you would get into and accepted into schools that you never thought you would get into. Apply so that in come April or May you have plenty of options of schools that you would like to go to, whether it be BS/MD schools or regular undergraduate schools. The fact that you are looking at this program shows that no matter what route your going to go through, you have a bright future. Also look back at old threads because people leave really good advice. I can’t remember who said it and the exact quote but another person posted on a BSB/MD thread a long time ago … show them what you did in the past to prepare you , your present maturity and your readiness to adapt in the future to the challenges ahead. Good luck guys!
Hi Everyone! I am a current B.S./M.D. freshman and although this is super late, I would love to answer questions and give advice!
GPA: 4.0 (UW), 4.3778 (W)
Class Rank: 1/421
ACT: 35
Subscores: Science (36), English (35), Reading (35), Math (34), Writing (10)
SAT Subject Tests:
Chemistry: 770
Math 2: 770
U.S. History: 760
AP’s (at time of application)
U.S. History - 5
Chemistry - 5
U.S. Gov - 5
Language & Composition - 5
Statistics - 5
Biology - 4
Senior AP’s: Physics C Mechanics, Calc BC, Literature & Composition, Psychology
Teacher Recs: Really great, well-rounded letter from APUSH teacher. Didn’t see my AP Chemistry teacher’s rec but she is known for writing amazing ones. Sent an English teacher rec and counselor rec to the schools that required them, and I assume they were both pretty good. Sent a letter from the director of the soup kitchen I volunteered at to a few select programs that had the options.
State: MI
Gender: F
Ethnicity: White, Native American
Income: 100-150k
Hooks: Nothing really! I stood out a little because I didn’t do a lot of research or academic ECs & focused a lot of my time on community service instead
Major ECs:
- Varsity Cross Country: captain
- Varsity Track & Field
- Key Club: co-founder, president
- Student Council: vice-president
- National Honors Society: secretary
- Paid AP Chemistry Tutor
- Orientation Leader
- Interact
Community Service:
- Local food warehouse - 180 hours
- Local homeless shelter - 300 hours
- Teacher of religious education at my church - 300 hours
- Volunteering through ECs - 150 hours
- Local nursing home - 100 hours
- Hospital - 50 hours
Medically related activities:
Physician Shadowing - 120 hours
Research in psychiatry department at Wayne State University - 60 hours
Applied to the following BS/MD Programs:
- Brown PLME - rejected ED - rejected RD
- Northwestern HPME - interview - ACCEPTED
- Pitt GAP - interview - ACCEPTED
- Case PPSP - interview - declined interview
- University of Rochester REMS - interview - ACCEPTED
- George Washington - rejected pre-interview
- Boston University - interview - ACCEPTED
- Penn State - interview - rejected
- University of Cincinnati DAP - interview - ACCEPTED
- Virginia Commonwealth GAP - interview - ACCEPTED
- UCONN SPiM - rejected pre-interview
- Wayne State University - interview - declined interview
Applied to the following undergraduate:
- University of Michigan - accepted
- Harvard - waitlisted
- Dartmouth - waitlisted
- Yale - rejected
DECISION: Northwestern HPME
Reflection:
Where do I begin? This process was certainly a whirlwind!! I experienced so many mixed emotions throughout it and never in a million years would have dreamed that I would end up where I did.
My greatest advice, although cliche, is to be yourself and to take quality time to reflect and think introspectively. Dig deep, think carefully about why you’re doing what you’re doing (nobody enters this process willingly without a good reason) and go beyond the idea of a checklist of items that you must meet. Don’t be afraid to be specific - it wasn’t the hospital volunteering that impacted you but the patient you met in the lobby on the way in; it wasn’t the complex chemicals that you worked with in the lab but the relationship you forged with your research mentor that influenced you. Tell the admissions people and interviewers that. Think carefully about what you love about yourself and how these can not only enable you to be a successful doctor but can enable you to LOVE medicine. Speak from the heart and everything will fall into place.
As far as interviews go (as I know that time is getting close!), have fun! The second I started treating my interviews as a conversation instead of an avenue of getting accepted into a medical program, everything changed drastically. Don’t be afraid to laugh, ask questions that you truly care about, share a personal detail from your life here and there. Be a person to the interviewer and treat them as a person. They have seen you on paper and it’s time to show them who you truly are!
Overall, I could not be more thankful for my experiences with the BS/MD programs. I met some of the most amazing people and learned so much about myself in the process.
Please don’t hesitate to message me if you have any questions at all!!!
@FormerCCStalker Thanks for sharing. Your reflection is so beautiful and succinct. Hope all students benefit from your thoughtful words.
Awesome . Thank you so much . What s your email address . So if I have any questions I can contact you