<p>Hi, </p>
<p>I was just wondering what are some things that could pretty much guarantee you into Harvard Med School. Like I know, for undergrad, things such as making USABO camp, or USNCO camp and even going on to IBO or IChO would pretty much guarantee your admission into top universities. Are there similar things that you could do in undergrad that could increase your chances immensely or possibly even guarantee you admission into a top med school like HMS or JHU? </p>
<p>Thanks a lot</p>
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<p>No such thing exists. Why do you want to go to HMS so badly anyway?</p>
<p>Well, I know NOTHING can ABSOLUTELY GUARANTEE admission, but Im just wondering about what types of things I can do in undergrad that can boost my chances significantly. Im a high school senior and I didnt find out about the Olympiads till the end of my junior year, and I know with some practice I could’ve made at least USAMO qualifier, and USNCO top 150, which would’ve increased my chances tremendously for top universities. I just don’t want the same thing to happen in Undergrad where I miss opportunities because I dont know about them.</p>
<p>Most doctors dream of their kids attending their alma mater or their in state med school. Otherwise, I don’t know of any doctor who wants their kids to attend the prestigious med schools.</p>
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<p>Phoenix: this is a valid question for which I suspect you don’t have a viable answer other than HMS is well known and prestigious – the exact thing that you often see prestige-chasing HS kids have about colleges.</p>
<p>Your “I gotta get into HMS” attitude at this moment is laughable in the minds of current college seniors, readying themselves for actual med school applications or actual med students or degreed physicians. When and if you get to that point, you’ll see that being accepted at ANY medical school is the goal. </p>
<p>Do you know any eighth or ninth graders who are squawking about how they’re going to go to Harvard or Yale or Stanford? Do you know how you mentally deride and ridicule them for being blindly naive and prestige-whores? Your talking about HMS at this point makes you look the same.</p>
<p>While some med schools have “names” they don’t necessarily translate into better physicians, either… My retired MD FIL said his corporation always had the worst luck w/graduates of Ivy and JHU or other “name” med schools – because they were saddled with a false sense of their abilities and that other med schools tend to allow their students to be more hands-on. My FIL’s partners? All big state med school degrees.</p>
<p>Get a 4.0 GPA, 45 on the MCAT, and cure cancer and they might take you.</p>
<p>Seriously, I don’t know what you’re expecting here. The best thing to do to increase your chances of admission to any med school is to do well in your classes, get a good GPA, do well on the MCAT, and have lots of worthwhile extracurricular activities and leadership. One thing to learn now is that medical education is extremely standardized, and everyone has to pass the same licensing exams. If you do well at any med school (good board scores, LORs, and clinical grades), you will not be limiting your residency options. I know it’s difficult on CC where subjective and largely useless rankings mean everything, but don’t worry about these things yet. Worry about your classes and extracurriculars.</p>
<p>Yes, I know the typical response I get is get good grades, do well on the MCAT, and have lots of solid EC’s. However, all Im wondering is if theres anything different that I can do to make myself stand out more… That’s the only reason why I even created this thread. Like, for example, I know that publishing a research article would increase your chances. Im just looking for more examples like that.</p>
<p>Interestingly enough I met someone who went to Harvard med and currently doing residency how one gets into Harvard med. This was last week.</p>
<p>Answer, “I have no idea”.</p>
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That’s how you feel if you look at the stats of the folks getting interviews in this cycle. They are all over the place. However, amazingly, the median stats of the matriculants seem to somehow end up in the stratosphere each and every year. 
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<p>That was the answer from Harvard med school grad from just 4 years ago, not mine. :p</p>
<p>There are many who have high stats, many times more than Harvard can admit just like undergrad applicants. My guess is that they look for people who won unique awards, into service and research.</p>
<p>A Yale grad told me the upper ivies like to cross-pollinate and take from other upper ivies for med school.</p>
<p>It’s hard to “stand out” on your med school app unless you’re you have some crazy life experience, have published papers, etc. because everyone applying is doing the same things. Overtime you’ll realize that getting into a “prestigious” med school isn’t as important as getting into ANY med school. To build your application, start NOW. Shadow doctors. Volunteer in a hospital. Volunteer in a non medical setting(homeless shelter, food bank) that shows the committee your philanthropy. These you can do in high school. Document all these and get letters of recommendation. I had the opportunity to go to Honduras with my friend’s dad who’s a surgeon and helped him perform actual surgeries. Because of their lax laws, I was able to make incisions and everything. I know that’s not something likely available to everyone, but that’s just an idea of things that “stand out.” Besides GPA and MCAT, participation in shadowing, volunteering, and research are three beneficial things to strengthen your application. They also want to see a time commitment to these areas, not that you started 6 months before you applied.</p>
<p>The closest to guarantee would be being the child of one of their board of trustees, assuming you have a decent gpa and mcat. </p>
<p>from what ive seen, people who ask questions like these usually dont end up at those places anyways…</p>
<p>Getting into HMS should not be your goal or even on your radar.</p>
<p>@trapezius : “from what ive seen, people who ask questions like these usually dont end up at those places anyways…” Uhh rly? not sure what thats supposed to mean… if you dont have anything useful to say, then dont say anything at all, especially since you dont even know me… </p>
<p>Honestly, the only reason why I asked is so that I dont miss opportunities like I did in high school with stuff like Olympiads and other prestigious math competitions such as PuMAC and HMMT. </p>
<p>Thanks @Flor1dagator7 for actually answering my question. I’ll begin doing activities like that starting from freshmen year itself.</p>
<p>Actually he answered a different question - how to get into A medical school.<br>
It is pretty much what anyone does who is interested in getting into medical school.</p>
<p>Even if you do activities like that, you’ll be like every other med school applicant. I know a lot of pre med students (being one myself) and that’s what everyone’s resume is like and yet only a teeny tiny percent get anywhere close to Harvard.
Once you start college, you’ll realize quickly how laughable this is (not that it’s impossible, it isn’t, it just shouldn’t be your primary goal). Also, you still haven’t answered why Harvard?
Let me give you an anecdote explaining how much it doesn’t matter where you go to med school: my dad is in a really nice cardiology private practice, two of his partners went to HMS, one went to med school in China and my dad went to med school in Baghdad. They all make roughly the same amount of money, same number of patients, same everything…and yet their med schools are worlds apart. If you get into a med school in the US, that alone is a huge accomplishment, and you’ll probably end up doing the same thing you’d be doing had you gone to Harvard.</p>
<p>Actually he answered a different question - how to get into A medical school.
It is pretty much what anyone does who is interested in getting into medical school.</p>
<p>Exactly. Your goal can be getting into med school…and med school.</p>
<p>You do activities that you love, not the ones that are going to get you into a certain school… However, I bet if you do normal pre-med ECs (just like everybody else, choosing what you actually enjoy doing) and get GPA=4.0 and MCAT=45, my guess is that you will be picked up by Harvard Med.
But again, you should enjoy 100% your 4 years in UG and not thinking about mysterious fantom act that will propell you to Harvard Med. Why torture yourself.<br>
Sorry foe everybody who does things in HS to get to a certain UG. Also sorry for those who bend themselves in UG to get into certain Med. School.
Sounds like a miserable life. Have fun with your friends, it is much more worhwhile for you now.</p>
<p>So, @texaspg the best bet would be to try and do something special in research and service?</p>
<p>Yes, I realize that it won’t really matter in the future if I go to HMS or not, and I know several doctors that are doing quite well without going to one of the top medical schools. </p>
<p>I want to go to Harvard Med School or JHU, because it’s been a goal of mine since I was very young to go to such a prestigious school.</p>