Hi,
I am a rising senior, and want to attend a college/university (preferably in the Northeast area) that will give me a good shot at getting into medical school. I know that I should attend a university that I will be pretty top at, but I also don’t want to go to too bad of a school, given my stats. Could you guys help me pick some schools that I could excel at but still be challenged/get enough education that I can do well on the MCAT and maybe pursue some other interests I have on the side such as computer science or economics? Thanks!
SAT I (Took it this June) : Expected score - Math - 800
Reading - 700-750
ACT - Not Taken
SAT II - Biology M 780, Chemistry 790, taking Math 2 this fall
GPA - UW - 3.8/4.0
Weighted - 4.7/5
AP: Chemistry 5, APUSH 5, taking BC Calc, Biology, Stats, and Comp Sci Next year
Extracurriculars-
SADD - secretary
Student government
Yearbook club
Swim team varsity 4 years (captain next year)
I volunteered at the hospital during the summer
Recommendation Letters - I required one from my guidance counselor (mediocre), one from my chemistry teacher (very good), and one from my English teacher (mediocre)
I was considering Brandeis - caliber schools, but what do you guys think? Any specific colleges that come to mind??
Thanks!
These schools are listed as “Top Choices” in “The Experts’ Choice: Colleges with Great Pre-med Programs,” offer a computer science major, are in the Northeast and represent a range of admissions competitiveness:
UPenn
Amherst
Brown
Hamilton
Colgate
Bucknell
Franklin & Marshall
Muhlenberg
For information on economics programs, these analyses from IDEAS can be useful: “Economics Departments at Liberal Arts Colleges” and “U.S. Economics Departments.”
How much will your parents pay each year? Ask them, please don’t guess. We see later posts from a lot of disappointed students who thought their parents would pay more.
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was considering Brandeis - caliber schools
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You should go to a good undergrad where you will be a top student and you’ll get the best GPA. Look for schools where you stats are well within the top quartile.
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College of the Holy Cross to [the] list of strong pre-med programs
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I’m sure that HC has fine premed prereqs, but be aware that HC tightly controls who can be premed, and who can apply to med school (to protect their yield).
My parents said they are willing and able to pay for my full undergraduate education. However, I would still like to go to a school where there is generous merit aid so I can save up some funds for medical school.
My middle son did just fine at U Rochester and has absolutely loved his time there. It’s also convenient for shadowing, etc, when the hospital is right next to (essentially part of) campus. His MCAT scores were terrific. So is his GPA. He, of course, worked for both. It isn’t really the school that does it. They just provide the opportunities. Wherever you go, you will need to put the time and effort in - while enjoying yourself with extra curriculars too.
All that said, he has no regrets for choosing URoc. He loves it.
No, but between merit and need based aid, URoc ended up as his least expensive school by a couple grand. That includes beating in-state Pitt and high merit U Alabama - both of which I can also recommend the OP trying if he likes them, but UA isn’t in his target area. I’m not sure if he considers Pitt northeast either. Some do, some don’t.
With decent stats, I doubt he would be full pay. Most scholarships are between 14-20K, but there are some really nice ones. IME, it’s worth an application to see. I guess I worry more about “mediocre” recommendation letters, but who knows?