Eligibility for Accelerated Medical Programs

Pre-Med & Medical School Multiple Degree Programs
1

<p>Let me just start off by saying that going into the medical field is absolutely what I want to do, not because my parents pressure me into becoming a doctor. With that said, I have no idea if I am a competitive applicant for East Coast accelerated medical programs. Moreover, most programs say that the minimum requirement of being in the top 10% of my graduating class is absolutely necessary. My school does not release rank and the only way to ascertain my standing is by using a very general GPA distribution chart. I was wondering how colleges can find out if I'm in the top ten percent or not. Anyway, here is a general summary of my app thus far:</p>

<p>3.75 GPA out of a 4.0 scale</p>

<p>SAT Score In One Sitting: 2330 (800 M, 750 CR, 780 W)</p>

<p>Subject Tests:
Biology E - 700
Chemistry - 760
Math 2 - 780
US History - 780</p>

<p>AP Exams Taken:
World History - 4
US History - 5
Language and Composition - 5</p>

<p>AP Courses Senior Year:
Spanish Language
Calculus
Biology
Literature and Composition</p>

<p>Club Activities:
InterAct - President
Key Club - Fundraising Board
Spanish Honor Society - Executive Board Member
Model United Nations
Science National Honor Society
Social Studies National Honor Society</p>

<p>Community Service:
John F. Kennedy Hospital - about 90 hours
Local Religious Center - about 130 hours</p>

<p>Honors/Awards:
North American Invitational Model United Nations - Verbal Delegate (Freshman)
Key Club New Jersey District Convention - Best Oratorical Speech (Junior)
Town Hall Council Resolution Honoring Oratorical Speech (Junior)
Board of Education Honoring Oratorical Speech (Junior)
President's Education Awards Program - Award in Recognition of Outstanding Academic Achievement</p>

<p>Work Experience:
Kumon Learning Center about 175 hours</p>

<p>Other:
Currently in a summer internship in the Oral Microbiology Department at the University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey</p>

<p>It would be of great help to at least know where I stand in the pool of students who will apply to accelerated medical programs. I understand that no one knows how it will turn out but the colleges that do not require a top ten percentage ranking have less restrictive requirements. Does this mean their accelerated medical program is less renowned? For example, UConn takes 3.5 at least, as do Monmouth University and Drexel University. Thank you for all the help!</p>

2

<p>Can you use the percentile chart to find out top 10% status? If not, explain your situation to guidance and ask for an unofficial percentile rank for your applications.</p>

<p>Shadowing would help your app, not sure if that summer internship is research or shadowing, but it seems like research.</p>

<p>Yes, the Drexel and UConn programs are on the lower end of the competitiveness range. But they will still consider rank and GPA heavily despite their lower minimum. A 3.75 doesn’t appear that great on paper but isn’t really bad either. Even without rank, I think you would be competitive for them since the rest of your application is pretty strong.</p>

3

<p>Yeah that is a summer intenship for research. Well the percentile chart is a bar graph of weighted GPAs. My weighted is around 5.33, and the chart shows how many kids have a certain weighted GPA. For example, the percentile chart of the Class of 2012 shows that 17 kids had a weighted GPA in the range of 5.50 to 5.99, and 65 kids in the range of 5.00 to 5.49. I can’t tell if there are 64 kids with a GPA under a 5.3 and then only me with a 5.33, for example. That’s why it’s so hard to determine my percentage which is also why I was wondering how colleges find out if I can’t. But thank you for the reply!</p>