<p>I'm going to finish my chemistry B.S. soon with a 3.9 cumulative GPA and a 3.8 science GPA.</p>
<p>Here are the pros and cons of my application:</p>
<p>Pro:
Many hours of shadowing within many specialties
2 year of chemistry research
Honors student
Member of many campus groups (chemistry and charity organizations)
Great LOR's</p>
<p>Cons:
Several withdrawals (most are medical); in the teens (13-19)</p>
<p>I really just want to get into one MD school; what should I do?</p>
<p>Apply widely and see what happens. No one here can guess how med school adcomms will respond to your particular situation.</p>
<p>Assuming that your medical withdrawals weren’t for mental health issues, you might note briefly on your primary/secondaries that your health has recovered and explain why it won’t be an issue in medical school.</p>
<p>If you don’t get any interview offers, at the end of admission cycle then contact a few schools where you applied and ask what you can do to strengthen your application. Some will respond; some won’t.</p>
<p>is the reason for the medical withdrawals under control? In other words, is there reason to believe you’ll complete the 4 years of medical school without a withdrawal?</p>
<p>Yes, I’ve received medical intervention and I should be able to attend medical school without this becoming an issue.</p>
<p>I forgot to mention my MCAT score: balance 36</p>
<p>No other advice?</p>
<p>My thoughts:</p>
<p>Your GPA and MCAT score are great and shouldn’t prevent you from getting a second look from any school.</p>
<p>Your major problem is the number of withdrawals you have, assuming that’s what you mean by “in the teens (13-19).” Were any of them “withdrawal-failing”? If so, that might negatively impact your otherwise great GPA. You should look into that!</p>
<p>It’s great that you’ve shadowed numerous specialties and that you are involved on campus. A potential downside to this is that it might appear that you’re doing a little bit of work in a lot of different areas, rather than spending a lot of time devoted to something you really care about. Do you have lots of hours doing meaningful work in an area you’re passionate about? That would definitely be something that works in your favor. </p>
<p>Have you done any research? Clinical work besides shadowing? Do you have a job? Do you tutor/mentor/edit/TA/RA/otherwise help fellow students? All of these things would be helpful. </p>
<p>As far as your great LORs go, who are they from? Note that you’ll need 2 from science profs and 1 from another prof, unless your committee has a different requirement. Your committee may want some sort of character reference–an employer, a faculty advisor for a group you’re head of, the lady who runs the agency where you volunteer, etc etc. </p>
<p>Where are you from? Your best chance of admission will be your state’s state school. There are some states that are “better” in that they have many schools with strong preference for residents (eg Texas) and some states that are “worse” in that they don’t have as many schools but they have lots of competitive applicants (eg California).</p>
<ol>
<li><p>None of the withdrawals were WF’s </p></li>
<li><p>I’ve spent a good amount of time volunteering in a local neighborhood whose demographic is diverse and truly needs assistance; very few people volunteer here because some of the work is not exactly clinical but I volunteer here because I see some tangible outcomes resulting from my efforts.</p></li>
<li><p>I’m a volunteer in both science and math at a primary school near my university and serve as somewhat of a mentor for kids without much familial stability.</p></li>
<li><p>All of my LOR’s are from science faculty.</p></li>
<li><p>Florida</p></li>
</ol>
<p>Good to know that none are WFs. It sounds like you have a nice mix of activities and good grades and a good MCAT score. At this point, there’s nothing you can do about the Ws except apply and see what happens. I like your chances though. If I had to apply all over again (thank God I don’t!), I wouldn’t have any hesitation applying with your profile.</p>
<p>If I were in your shoes, I’d apply broadly and early (first week of June), complete secondaries ASAP and prioritize sending them in based on where you have the best shot at acceptance (ie if you have 10 to work on, work on the one where you have the best shot first), choose the earliest possible interview dates, and really knock their socks off during your interview. Seems like you’ll have plenty to talk about!</p>
<p>Good luck!</p>
<p>How long did it take you to obtain your college degree? I suppose med schools might hestitate somewhat if you took, for instance, only 3 courses/9 credits per semester or you took ?+ years to graduate.</p>
<p>It will have been about four years to graduate (I had to take summer courses to stay on track).</p>
<p>Thanks for all the advice guys!</p>