<p>i've attended a state university.....
overall gpa: 3.80
bcpm gpa : 3.75
mcat: 34
extracurriculars:
- volunteering in the ER 8hr/week for 1.5 years
- volunteering in the childrens hospital for 3hr/week for 1.5 years
- volunteering in an organization that is not medical related 3hr/week for 1.5 years
- doing research since my freshman year / 1 publication (with couple people)
- tutoring chemistry for 3 semesters
- shadowed a doctor for a month / 100 hours</p>
<p>...</p>
<p>any chance for top schools ? if so, please give me some names specifically.</p>
<p>Good start, from what I can tell you would be competitive at pretty much any school. There are only a few schools out there that want students with unbelievable MCAT scores (i.e. WashU, with their incredible 37 MCAT matriculant average), and it's my belief that beyond a 33-34, your MCAT doesn't matter very much. </p>
<p>I think you'll do well in terms of getting interviews, and from there, it's up to your secondary essays & interview performance. I'm currently in the application cycle, so if you have a question about a specific school, I can let you know if I've applied there and what I know about it.</p>
<p>Yep - you should be fine, assuming good essays and secondaries and no major foul-ups during the interviews. Your ECs are pretty run-of-the-mill, but again, you should have a decent shot at least at your state school. </p>
<p>
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from what I can tell you would be competitive at pretty much any school.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Um, not so much. This doesn't exist unless you have a 4.0, 40+ MCAT, and have cured cancer. You will still get plenty of outright rejections.</p>
<p>Looking at those ECs I can say that they will probably be pretty much what I will do. So, I must ask, when you say run off the mill, you mean common and overdone? Would amazing ECs be something that you have a passion for that is rare? Because that's hard to do. I know there is a thread on the Premed Advice, but I don;t know where to start in my community. </p>
<p>I read this profile on "mdapplicants.com". (MDapplicants.com</a> - View Profile). This applicant at the end says "the weakest aspect of my application was the lack of a demonstrated commitment to medicine and the absence of volunteer work."
What exactly does "the lack of a demonstrated commitment to medicine" translate into? What would be equivalent to "demonstrated commitment to medicine"? </p>
<p>I know you are all going to start freaking out and saying "how do we know.... go ask that person.." Fyi, that person does not have any contact info listed.</p>
<p>Finally, say for example you've worked as a caregiver for the elderly , would that be considered an example of compassion and empathy, which medical schools could be looking for. In other words, would this slightly advantageous, possibly advantageous, or very advantageous?</p>
<p>
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So, I must ask, when you say run off the mill, you mean common and overdone? Would amazing ECs be something that you have a passion for that is rare? Because that's hard to do.
[/quote]
</p>
<p>Yeah, just common. Every pre-med and their mothers have volunteered in the ER and shadowed doctors. But that's certainly not to say there's anything wrong with that. There are reasons these activities are so popular - they give you decent exposure to medicine and demonstrate a commitment to learning about the field you want to enter. So they are good EC's to have, but you're not going to score any points based on those ECs. Thats all I meant.</p>